Just An Old Retired "Build Thread"..
11-19-2013, 10:02 PM
#382
wow this is some awesome DIY biglilsteve. but it makes me a little sad that they only made one aftermarket set of taillights and none of the headlights.
I wouldn't mind having a pair of red halos on my MGM that i could control on and off to look a bit like this camaro:
Of course I'd want a full turbo kit and maybe a wide body(or completely stock body) to go with it
I wouldn't mind having a pair of red halos on my MGM that i could control on and off to look a bit like this camaro:
Of course I'd want a full turbo kit and maybe a wide body(or completely stock body) to go with it
11-20-2013, 12:10 AM
#383
Thanks, I appreciate it man. But honestly, aftermarket headlights are typically of poor quality anyway. If you really want something good, you're going to have to do it yourself. And why not put your own halos in? You can have exactly what you want!
11-25-2013, 07:38 PM
#385
I think Steve can tell you how bright his Amber COB halos are!! TRS can special order other colors if you want, but legality is up to you. Red looks badazz!
For the projector you can change:
1. The STI-R clear lens in the H11 projectors you have now
2. Change the projector out with a drop-in low beam only but HID OEM Bulbs (D2S)
3. Upgrade to the Lexus RX350 Bi-Xenon (Hi & Lo) in the same projector.
For the projector you can change:
1. The STI-R clear lens in the H11 projectors you have now
2. Change the projector out with a drop-in low beam only but HID OEM Bulbs (D2S)
3. Upgrade to the Lexus RX350 Bi-Xenon (Hi & Lo) in the same projector.
11-25-2013, 10:53 PM
#386
Yeah! Those halos are freaking awesome!! Definitey met and exceeded all expectations.
Hey Will, will the Lexus RX350 low-beam be a direct drop-in? When looking at your comparison photos of all the different RX350 projectors, it didn't look like the RX low beam had the same bolt pattern as the bi-xenon ones I have...
Hey Will, will the Lexus RX350 low-beam be a direct drop-in? When looking at your comparison photos of all the different RX350 projectors, it didn't look like the RX low beam had the same bolt pattern as the bi-xenon ones I have...
11-25-2013, 11:05 PM
#387
is there a way to rig up red halos that you can control from cabin via switch? somehow wire in a switch a the end so that i wouldn't have police problems, i do not want them on all the time.
The angel eyes you got biglilsteve are very nice and bright. i checked their site but didnt see a red option, just white and yellowish.
The angel eyes you got biglilsteve are very nice and bright. i checked their site but didnt see a red option, just white and yellowish.
11-26-2013, 11:59 AM
#388
is there a way to rig up red halos that you can control from cabin via switch? somehow wire in a switch a the end so that i wouldn't have police problems, i do not want them on all the time.
The angel eyes you got biglilsteve are very nice and bright. i checked their site but didnt see a red option, just white and yellowish.
The angel eyes you got biglilsteve are very nice and bright. i checked their site but didnt see a red option, just white and yellowish.
11-26-2013, 05:19 PM
#391
Absolutely man. I was very surprised at how nicely the floral wire technique worked out. It's a clean look and the wire is inconspicuous when looking at the shrouds normally. Soooo much better than using any kind of adhesive to glue them to the shroud.
Running the wire underneath and through the shroud was PERFECT and totally invisible. I'm psyched about the retrofit...it's definitely among the best things I've done to my car.
Still working out some minor aiming issues so I can find the right balance between having a cutoff high enough for good vision, but not too high to blind most people. Height adjustments are ridiculously easy though and don't require removing the lights from the car, so not a big deal at all.
Seriously though man...if you open your headlights to install angel eyes, you BETTER at least do a clear lens upgrade for your projectors. Don't spend all that time removing your bumper and baking your headlights open just to do angel eyes!
Running the wire underneath and through the shroud was PERFECT and totally invisible. I'm psyched about the retrofit...it's definitely among the best things I've done to my car.
Still working out some minor aiming issues so I can find the right balance between having a cutoff high enough for good vision, but not too high to blind most people. Height adjustments are ridiculously easy though and don't require removing the lights from the car, so not a big deal at all.
Seriously though man...if you open your headlights to install angel eyes, you BETTER at least do a clear lens upgrade for your projectors. Don't spend all that time removing your bumper and baking your headlights open just to do angel eyes!
11-26-2013, 05:24 PM
#392
^^ Totally agree, floral wire method for securing halos is the way to go. Just a couple good bumps and the weight of the halos will break the adhesive bond and fall off the shroud. Clear lens is a must if you have the cash, sharper cutoff line and more light hitting the road.
11-26-2013, 06:33 PM
#393
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"Seriously though man...if you open your headlights to install angel eyes, you BETTER at least do a clear lens upgrade for your projectors. Don't spend all that time removing your bumper and baking your headlights open just to do angel eyes! "
^^^ LOL im on my 7th time opening my headlights. This last time I did it I got water in them. I went crazy trying to find where the water was filtering in through until I notiiced the new XB35 H11 bulb rubber seal was the problem.
DigitalPro helped me out on that issue. I am using Thicker bulb rings for a better seal.
*BTW the STI-R clear lens is about 2-3mm taller than the OEM so the shield will need some work done to get a sharp cutoff. I had this issue when I installed the STI-R clear lens on the stock H11 projectors, I got a fuzzy and yellowish cutoff with the stock shield so I had to make my own using a Non-bendable piece of aluminum.
^^^ LOL im on my 7th time opening my headlights. This last time I did it I got water in them. I went crazy trying to find where the water was filtering in through until I notiiced the new XB35 H11 bulb rubber seal was the problem.
DigitalPro helped me out on that issue. I am using Thicker bulb rings for a better seal.
*BTW the STI-R clear lens is about 2-3mm taller than the OEM so the shield will need some work done to get a sharp cutoff. I had this issue when I installed the STI-R clear lens on the stock H11 projectors, I got a fuzzy and yellowish cutoff with the stock shield so I had to make my own using a Non-bendable piece of aluminum.
11-26-2013, 07:46 PM
#394
Haha, yes you are definitley the notorious baker! That's crazy though...it takes much more effort to install a clear lens on the factory projector than to just pop in a new projector. Then again, there is also a big difference in cost.
I was about to get worried about my own XB35's letting water in...then I realized that D2S bulbs don't have that same rubber ring lol. Right now my lights aren't completely sealed though. I haven't installed the new 90mm rubber housing caps. I'm still using the OEM ones which don't seal the back of the new projectors the same way they did the H11 ones. Hopefully I find the time to do that before any moisture gets in!
I was about to get worried about my own XB35's letting water in...then I realized that D2S bulbs don't have that same rubber ring lol. Right now my lights aren't completely sealed though. I haven't installed the new 90mm rubber housing caps. I'm still using the OEM ones which don't seal the back of the new projectors the same way they did the H11 ones. Hopefully I find the time to do that before any moisture gets in!
11-26-2013, 09:44 PM
#395
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Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 516
I am still wondering how you sealed the back of the projectors...
Are those rubber caps really good for sealing?
Getting water inside the headlight is a pain to remove.
It leaves those ugly water marks inside the plastic lens
Are those rubber caps really good for sealing?
Getting water inside the headlight is a pain to remove.
It leaves those ugly water marks inside the plastic lens
11-26-2013, 11:11 PM
#396
Killer- for the installation of the STI-R clear lens you need to install a couple small washers under the top posts or the bottom or all, you have to get the spacing correct this way instead of the shield moving.
Both- the 90mm cap should be cut to fit snuggly over the housing with a thin strip of butyl inside to hold it on. Prep both surfaces and use a little heat to soften the butyl and push it on, once it cools it shouldn't move. Make sure to clean your bulbs and double check the ballast connector because you really don't want to have pull the cap back off if you don't have to. It's a PITA to remove.
XB35 H11- orange rubber seal is a little to soft and can be swapped from a H11 halogen or other HID with a better seal. Older Morimotos had a better rubber seal but not the XB35s.
Both- the 90mm cap should be cut to fit snuggly over the housing with a thin strip of butyl inside to hold it on. Prep both surfaces and use a little heat to soften the butyl and push it on, once it cools it shouldn't move. Make sure to clean your bulbs and double check the ballast connector because you really don't want to have pull the cap back off if you don't have to. It's a PITA to remove.
XB35 H11- orange rubber seal is a little to soft and can be swapped from a H11 halogen or other HID with a better seal. Older Morimotos had a better rubber seal but not the XB35s.
Last edited by DigitalPro; 11-27-2013 at 01:14 PM.
11-27-2013, 01:00 AM
#397
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Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 516
I did add washers, played around with the spacing between the shield and lens and i even tested diffrent types of bulbs. You can't really get great results with the crappy oem shield since it has the squirrel finders. This is why I just made my own straight shield. Once I made the "step" effect I finally saw improvements in both sharpness and color band.
11-27-2013, 02:04 AM
#398
What was the distance between the projector and the wall? 25' in the minimum distance to setup proper focus and color, once you get that you can shine the projector towards the ground in front if to see the yellow cutoff and move away from slowly to see the cutoff color change to blue and purple. Also only the center will have sharp focus and color, this is because of the lens focus curvature and the high brightness contrast of the bulb sitting directly centered right behind the shield. Curved shield will give you sharp focus if curved correctly all the way across the cutoff, but still only color in the center.
Last edited by DigitalPro; 11-27-2013 at 01:17 PM.
11-27-2013, 07:07 PM
#399
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What was the distance between the projector and the wall? 25' in the minimum distance to setup proper focus and color, once you get that you can shine the projector towards the ground in front if to see the yellow cutoff and move away from slowly to see the cutoff color change to blue and purple. Also only the center will have sharp focus and color, this is because of the lens focus curvature and the high brightness contrast of the bulb sitting directly centered right behind the shield. Curved shield will give you sharp focus if curved correctly all the way across the cutoff, but still only color in the center.
11-27-2013, 07:53 PM
#400
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BTW, I was pulled over by a cop last night because of my lights....
Ummmm yea this got me by surprise because they shine white on the road since Im using 4300k for both Low beams and Fog lights. Anyway the cop asks " What is wrong with your lights?
I reply " If there is something wrong I might not have noticed it, can you please point out the issue?
he says " They are blue" then as he walks to the front of the car, looks at the headlights up close and his face goes blank (?). I think the blue/purple flicker mind f***** him.
He was a DICK about it and gave me a citation but on the ticket he wrote "Blue lights both sides / I know it looks good though. Ill be taking it to court to show proof that my car doesnt have blue lights. I am offended. He basically called me a ricer
Ummmm yea this got me by surprise because they shine white on the road since Im using 4300k for both Low beams and Fog lights. Anyway the cop asks " What is wrong with your lights?
I reply " If there is something wrong I might not have noticed it, can you please point out the issue?
he says " They are blue" then as he walks to the front of the car, looks at the headlights up close and his face goes blank (?). I think the blue/purple flicker mind f***** him.
He was a DICK about it and gave me a citation but on the ticket he wrote "Blue lights both sides / I know it looks good though. Ill be taking it to court to show proof that my car doesnt have blue lights. I am offended. He basically called me a ricer