[rspitz]

Happy to say my MDX finally arrived!
a month later than initially expected, glad that it is finally here!

Some have asked me to post pics when I did the HID install. So here are the details, probably more than most want to know,

I ordered the 9006 HID kit from hidkits.com, $499 for internet order and $549 for phone orders

Kit arrived within a couple of days of ordering. I noted that the HID bulbs were the Sylvania's and not the Phillips if it is important to anyone. I seem to recall that Hidkits.com uses both. You might be able to request one over the other if it matters to you.

The kit was billed as being "plug and play." Needing only to:
1. Unplug your halogen bulb
2. Plug cord into new HID ballast
3. Plug cord from ballast into HID bulb
4. Insert HID bulb

I really was hoping that the kit was as billed or I thought I might be in trouble. I had read horror stories of having to splice wires, check polarity, mess with the battery and drill holes to mount the ballasts into the firewall on kits from some vendors.

So the answer is yes, the kit was essentially "plug and play" as touted, only small snag I ran into was needing to cut off a small plastic nub with some utility scissors to make the plugs fit tight.

The ballasts sit well on shelf beneath the headlights, affixed with double sided foam tape.

 

[rspitz]

6" X 6" box everything came in. First thought was $499 for this?!

 

[rspitz]

Contents of box:


small bag of ties and double sided foam tape.

2 ballasts (in middle)

2 hid bulbs attached to cords, bulbs protected by hard plastic sheaths (on right)


The install only entails plugging white plug on the ballast onto existing wire harness (also a white plug) , and plugging black plug onto other black plug attached to HID bulb.

(I also had to nip off that little plastic nub on the white plug with some utility scissors so that it would correspond in shape to the existing white plastic end on the halogen bulb)

 

[rspitz]

HID kit's ballast plug with plastic nub I clipped off with utility scissors

 

[rspitz]

OEM halogen bulb without plastic nub

 

[rspitz]

Shelf beneath washer fluid that ballast easily sits on

 

[rspitz]

Shelf beneath battery that ballast fits on. The space was a bit tighter on the left side of the vehicle. Glad I did the right side first so that I got the hang of it prior to doing the left side beneath the battery.

 

[rspitz]

Front shot after doing HID bulb on MDX's right. I know the photo may not show it as well as it truly is, but you can get a sense of how much whiter/brighter the HID is than the OEM halogen bulb on the vehicle's left.

 

[rspitz]

This was a really hard photo to do. I was trying to show the difference between the HID lamp on the right and the halogen on the left. (View from inside MDX looking out)

 

[rspitz]

Truly the last Photo!

Closeup of halogen bulb on left and HID lamp on right.

Total install time was about 45 minutes with taking my time, and doing all the photos. Time really required is surprisingly more like 15 minutes.

Let me know what you think.

 

[TheWorm]

Great pics -- thanks for those!

Quick questions/clarifications, if you don't mind:

- Did you order a "standard" D2R bulb, or the "special mask" one SteveMitchell talked about?

- This kit appears unusual in that all the others I've seen have a seperate wiring harness and direct-connect to the + terminal right on the battery. This plugs straight into the OEM wiring harness?

 

[deltajetfixer]

Excellent Pics!

Thanks for the details! Your pics and commentary are appreciated.

On a scale of 1 to 10, "1" being your original halogens, how would you rate your new HID's?

 

[rspitz]

Thanks for the questions

Worm,

I ordered the standard 9006 kit. From what the guy at hidkits.com said they had such good results from the modifications that they did for Steve Mitchell that they are now doing all of their kits that way.

I didn't have to mess with the battery at all. This kit plugs directly into the existing wiring harness.

Also, On hidkits.com the installation instructions recommend disconnecting the battery prior to the install, I called and asked them about that. They said it is only for safety reasons that the lights don't get turned on while you are plugging everything in. I knew I wasn't going to do that. I therefor skipped that and everything was fine.



deltajetfixer,

It is really hard for me to be truly unbiased, especially after spending $500 bucks for the kit. I think people always try rationalize purchases.

For me, I love the HID lamps that came standard on my wife's Lexus. I think that putting them in makes my MDX feel (to me) even more like a luxury car. Also one good thing (I forgot to mention) is if you decide you don't like the high intensity bulbs you can always unplug the kit, and plug back in your existing halogen bulbs.

I would say that quality of the lights are comparable to the one's on my wife's car. I truly notice that road signs are much better illuminated, I believe it is from the higher UV light. I absolutely love the the clarity of the color, and I definitely can see the road much better.

I think you can really get a sense of how dramatic a difference in the light is, even from a photograph, when you look at the head-on photo with the hood up. The OEM halogen lights look pale by comparison almost like a flashlight whose batteries are dying out.

So I would say I have no regrets, I feel like I got my money's worth.

Is that an honest enough answer?

 

[SteveMitchell]

Rspitz - Nice post - and very informative.

 

[bapisz]

HID install question

Awesome info, thanks for the post

Question, was the beam pattern/dispersion changed after
installing the Xenon bulb into a Halogen projector housing?
I've been researching this issue for awhile as I wait for my
Mohogany/touring , and I've read several articles making
the point that HID's should never be installed into Halogen
housing's....is this even an issue for the MDX?

Is the HID beam pattern the same as the Halogen beam
pattern, only much whiter and brighter? or is the beam
cut short (which I heard can happen )

Thank you for the info

 

[MDXtrous]

What is the warranty?

rspitz,

Thanks for the very informative post. Do you know what is the warranty on this?

 

[rspitz]

Bapisz,

I drove around a bit with the halogen in one lamp and the HID in the other prior to doing the full install. I was very impressed by how close the beam pattern of the HID bulb was to the OEM bulb, both on the road and on my garage door. Sorry if the picture of the comparison on my garage didn't come out too well, when I was trying to show this. The HID lamp to me simply looked to have much greater illumination over the same area. I also noticed that roadsigns and roadway markers glowed at a much greater distance down the road.

Stevemitchell knows much more than I do about beam pattern. I also had been worried about simply having an intense light that blinded everyone. I learned a lot from his posts in this thread:

"Click here"

From (the little) that I understand if the bulb filament placement and dimensions of the filament are the same the pattern should be the same because they are placed in the same housing.

MDXtrous,

It was because of stevemitchell posting such good experience's with hidkits.com and their willingness to answer all my questions on the phone that I ultimately chose to try them.

hidkits advertise a 1 year warranty on their kit.

 

[rflagg]

How about high beams?

rspitz,

Do your high beams work with your HID kit?


rflagg

 

[rspitz]

I also considered doing the high beams. I asked the guys at HIDKITS if this was an option, it requires an addition wiring harness (I think it was about $50) and of course the seperate bulbs. I decided to leave the existing halogen high beams when I got a '02 Acura TL loaner and noted that it had halogen highs and xenon lows. I think it is cheaper for Acura to do it this way, rather than some other manufacturers (like Lexus) which have a 2 stage xenon bulb in the same housing. I have (so far) been very satisfied with this setup, I believe if I ever changed my mind I can always opt to put in the second harness and the additional high bulb

 

[Fireblade6]

HID conversions

You know I have been doing a lot of research and also reading a lot about HID XENON lighting system conversion that will work in a "Halogen" housing....for today's vehicle and some of the stuff I discover is some what very interesting especially in Japanese automobiles.

When I first did some research...I had spoke to the folks at Sylvania, Phillips and Hella. They gave me some valuable insights however there was no way that I was going to be able to obtain the components from them to put together the lighting systems.

So hence, I was referred to two companies that are OEM for HID lighting systems. www.HID4less.com which is a division of MTC lighting and www.hidkits.com. HID4less is from the East coast and hidkits is from Texas.

I chose to go with HID4less because they have a VERY unique HID lightbulb from Hella that is stage II the difference between a standard DS2 HID light bulb and a stage II DS2 from Hella. This light bulb is used in racing cars such as the LeMans 24 hour racing cars and also the stage 2 light bulbs are used in the Ferrari 360 Modena, the Lamborghini Mucielo, the Astin Martins and such. The color on the Stage II is much whiter with a tint of rainbow in it and when you first turn on the lighting system it will be purple then when the ballasts heats up it will turn to blue then white. It is really nice..I have posted a couple picture in another thread comparing the difference between the halogen 9006 and the HID kit. When I turn the lighting system on the HID lights cast a blueish tint around the edge of the lense(light housing) It makes the MDX look really futuristic at night. Especially when you have a black color MDX.

In regards to the light housing...I know that Acura today build light housings that can take HID lighting systems as long as there is the 9006 or 9005 conversion base to the DS2, DS2-R bulbs. There is no degredation of light patterns if you choose to do an upgrade from halogen lights to HID lighting system for your car. The big difference by doing this is to have a better lighting pattern, clearer lighting on the road ahead of you and much more efficient wattage draw on your electrical system.

I drive on country side roads a lot at night where there are NO street lights and city lights...with the HID conversion..I have not been flashed by on coming traffic nor got pulled over by local authorities. For some reason the HID lighting system in my vehicle even though provides a very bright lighting pattern...does not cast eye squinting brightness. It casts a warmer looking light at a distance...I just cant describe it. But it just cast a much warmer lighting feel to the eyes than say a dyed halogen bulb that tries to replicate what an HID lighting system.

Because the HID bulbs burn on xenon gas and not on a filament that is heated by electricity...the HID bulb light is cooler...so the assumption that HID retrofit kit can burn a Halogen housing is false.

Any...I dont regret upgrading my lighting from Halogen to HID.