HID question

[djomlas]

im trying to decide about the numbers here.
6000k or anything else? anyone have any insight or tips?
thx

[humara]

the temperature ratings refer to the color of the bulb.
4500k is white and pretty much closest to the stock litronics.
6000k is a little bluer and IMO looks like the audi/vw lights. although some say that all manufacturers use 4500k.
higher numbers start getting really blue or purple. 10000k are rediculous IMO and would really stand out. so with that said, go with 4500k or 6000k. ideally look at 2 side by side at night so you can see what they look like.

[RandallNeighbour]

DJ, my tip would be not to try and retrofit your lamp assembly with HID's. They throw off a lot of glare, are illegal in some places, and not nearly as nice as the real thing (litronics).

Plus, the bulbs sold as HID that are a direct swap for your factory lamps aren't really HID, which require additional electronics to get them to fire up.

[pteam]

Ok I just had aftermarket HID kit installed with a ballast and electonic box for each light installed. Its a true HID and you can get them on ebay for less than $200, it is so much brighter than stock bulbs you will wonder how you EVER EVER lived without them. Trust me its the best $200 you will EVER spend on your Porsche. Not to mention it doesnt look like you have 1970 VW lights on your porsche anymore.

I would not recommend anything below 8k and for sure not below 6k. Anything 6k or below will probably be just white and won't look HID at all. But it will depend on your brand. I suggest you get the exact same brand I got if you want to know exactly what the 10k color will look like (see below). 8-10k is what every audi, cadilliac, bmw, ferrari on the road is running when it comes to color and brightness, anything below that will just like white. You need to view the video link on the bottom of this thread to see what my 10k lights look like, theyre very close to all teh HID luxury cars on the road. I would say that the stock porsche litronics are also 8-10k you can see below by comparison pics. If you compare the porsche 911 I had a few years ago with litronics to the boxster pic with aftermarket HIDs that are 10K in color they are almost exactly the same.

I posted this awhile ago here but I'll copy it for you.

Ok just installed the KLIGHT HID Xenon kit tonight. Its amazing. Very easy to install. Takes about 2-3 hours just to take your time and make sure you do everything right etc, especially if you've never taken out the headlights. Just as good as my lamborghini lights.


These 10k's that I bought have no purple or violet in them at all except for a few seconds while they're warming up. Now maybe other brands of lights do have their 10k bulbs have purple in them, but these do not. On the contrary my lamborghini lights pictured below are very purple and a little bit brighter but I'm sure the lamborghini lights are like $10 grand or something. And these lights are MANY times brighter than the stock bulbs.

Also even though the lights I got for the Porsche arnt purple at all, the factory Lamborghini lights are purple, so are some Audi's and BMWs and this is definately not "ricer" like some have said. I would say the stock Lamborghini lights are closer to 12000K purple and they are BRIGHTER than the HID lights just put in the Porsche even though a higher number. So the whole thing about sacrificing saftey is untrue when the Lambo purple looking lights are brighter and light up more of the road. I stood right next to each of them side by side tonight and compared.

For $200 this is the best thing you can buy and much cheaper than $1200-$1400 for porsche's HID litronics. I would bet that if I asked 10 regular people on the street they would all think these lights are straight from the factory at porsche.

IMO the stock porsche bulbs are a joke, if you don't have the litronics from the factory, something has to be done. The stock bulbs look like bulbs from a 1970 volvo...

I'll try to get around to posting a DIY guide this week. Tommorrow we're installing the heated seats I'll let you know how that goes!







Also here are a few pics from the ebay auction which I must say are very accurate.


10000K lights

Also a picture of my Porsche 911 from years ago with litronics:


Also here is a video of the lights (3mb) , they start off a richer darker color then as they warm up after a few seconds they go into the nice blue color. This video gives the most accurate representation of the color especially near the end of the video as the color changes for the first 10 seconds as the lights warm up - http://www.pteam.net/porschelights.wmv (right click open in a new window)

Hope this post / guide / comparison tests between a few different vehicles and bulb colors helps some of you guys out. I really urge you to AT LEAST get replacement bulbs for your Porsche for $30-$50 as this would at least double the output of the stock Porsche bulbs, and also not look horribly ugly but if you can do the whole HID kit this a great upgrade to the look and safety of your car for a small amount of money!

[RandallNeighbour]

One thing to remember is that the aftermarket (non-HID) bulbs that give a much whiter and brighter light (such as Silverstars) don't last nearly as long as standard Porsche bulbs. If you replace yours with these, you'll be replacing them frequently.

I had silverstars in my Lexus and they didn't last a year.

[Jeph]

This is a subject in which I disagree with Pteam.

Don't go over 6k. Keep it legal. The lower/whiter temps/colors have more throw and spill. Anything between 4300 & 6000 will
look like Litronics, as that is the range of your higher end cars (manufacturers produce street legal vehicles -they do not come
close to 8-10k). A lot of people think the higher the number the better. That is not true when relating useable/visible light.

Also, the following image is fake.

This is the same image with saturation & hue levels adjusted.

And if any one wants to debate what I have posted, feel free to do so. But please first research it in a capacity relating to
Optics -not from eBay and sites that sell xenon kits or observations of seeing cars on the road.