Trans Am HID foglights - who here is running them??

[ThreeHonks]

Im interested in getting some HID foglights and im wondering what T/A guys here are running them. My whole point for getting them is to not have to use the bat ears anymore (i hate pop-up headlights).

I have heard so many mixed things about them. From the 35watt to 55watt debate, and the whole, "they will melt your housing".

If you guys can, post up your experience! i would appreciate any input from Camaro guys as well.

thanks!

[Darren]

Calling Larry, Larry enter stage left please.

[ThreeHonks]

Calling Larry, Larry enter stage left please.

yes! i know he has them along with detoxx. I was hoping I could get some input from one of those guys!

[JoeliusZ28]

You'll also want to talk to jon (pHEnomIC). He's never on here but he started a thread on LS1tech for this a couple weeks ago and just bought a set. Might want to look for that.

Also even though its stupid, its technically illegal because of their height from the ground to use them as a replacement for the headlights. Depending on how bored the cop is you could get pulled over for that. I also want to get HIDs for my fog lamp housings.

[ThreeHonks]

thanks joel. I'll look into his thread.

Im aware you can get pulled over for it, but I have so many things on my car that arent exactly "legal", so i'll just add it to the list

I just actually purchased a set of 35 watt 5000k! hope they work out good

[c0ncEpT]

http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/appear...t-options.html

[ThreeHonks]

thanks mike. I ordered from ddm tuning, so keep your fingers crossed. I hear they have some issues going on, dont know if they are just rumors or not

[c0ncEpT]

A lot of my friends have had very good luck with the DDM tuning kits.

[Gregs_gsxr]

who ever said HIDs melt your housing is dumb....HIDs running cooler the regular halogen bulbs.
Note: 50w ballasts will optically drop the temperature 1000k when compared to similar bulbs using 35w ballasts. Headlight and fog light housing sizes will affect the color output. Refraction housings and dirty headlights will emit more color than clear reflector housings. Projector housings require higher kelvin burners to achieve a given color.

[ThreeHonks]

I think you are getting confused with LED's. HIDs are proven to run hotter.

[Gregs_gsxr]

not from my own personal experience

[Gregs_gsxr]

Heat Comparison: Halogens vs. HIDs
There have been great debates in regard to which runs hotter. The truth is that the core of an HID bulb runs hotter than a halogen bulb. However, that core's heat is a result of light output and energy, whereas halogen bulbs produce light as a result of heat.

Halogen bulbs use halogen gas, a tungsten filament, and a quartz encasing. The reason why the encasing is quartz is because if it were glass, it would melt as a result of the heat. The current passes through the filament, heating it to the point to where it creates light. Halogen bulb gives off white light using thinner filament. The advantage of thinner filament is that it gives off brighter light. With thinner filament however, it tend to burns out easily and to overcome this problem, manufacturers have been able to increase its lifespan by incorporating halogen gas inside the filament there to prevent oxidization of the hot filament, thus the name halogen bulb. To make a comparison, this is like a space heater.

HID's use a completely different method. The bulb consists of two electrodes placed in very close proximity to each other. The gas used here is Xenon. Unlike with Halogen-filament bulbs, the light is created by the gas, not by a filament. HID's use a ballast which consists of a series of high current capacitors, transistors, and resistors. To light a Xenon bulb in an HID kit, the ballast takes in a small amount of power and sends a very intense charge of electricity across the electrodes. This is why they're called High Intensity Discharge. The electrical charge excites the gas molecules inside the bulb and causes them to discharge photon particles, producing light. because all of the gas in the capsule is used to create the light instead of just one filament, you end up with much brighter overall light output. The ballast regulates a constant flow of power only to keep the gas molecules excited, while a standard filament based light requires a constant intense electrical current to keep the filament hot.

I have confirmed with a simple test that 55W HIDs run significantly cooler than 55W halogens do as a result of this by placing my hand on the surface of the lense after a 30 minute drive.

[OIF1VET]

I run 8K HIDs..

PA305102 - Copy.JPG

[Schuby87]

The previous owner had Superstars in my fog lights and they melted the housings. I have no doubt that a HID light would do the same.

[ThreeHonks]

thanks larry! those look nice. did you get the 35watt or 55watt setup? how are your housings doing?