HID lights

Oh yeah, it's the geek bling with flashing lights, just can't get enough.

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NVSteve
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Postby NVSteve » Fri Aug 14, 2009 3:51 pm

cruzstyle wrote:K not kelvin.
K is Kelvin. Above, you wrote:
that is why most all BMW and Mercedes have 43k
Are you saying that the mfrs. mean the "k" above means 1,000?
i emailed OSRAM SYLVANIA, PIAA, NOKYA, and HELLA they all told me that 4300 was the best you can get before you start to lose lighting. when a company spends millions of dollars every year on R & D for lighting theirs really no reason not to take there word for it. ive always bought the 4300 and have never had any issues and loved there lighting performance
I think you are misunderstanding. Certain portions of the Kelvin scale are not going to emit as visibly bright a light to the human eye, but that is entirely due to the color of the light, represented by a Kelvin numeric.


cruzstyle
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Postby cruzstyle » Sat Aug 15, 2009 6:07 am

Fofiddy wrote:****K or Kelvin
so i said K, i was not referring to kelvin.

Are you saying that the mfrs. mean the "k" above means 1,000?

yes


I think you are misunderstanding. Certain portions of the Kelvin scale are not going to emit as visibly bright a light to the human eye, but that is entirely due to the color of the light, represented by a Kelvin numeric.

i understand this but why a company that does pretty much nothing but make and test lights to see which ones give the best performance and then tell u that 4300k is the best if you want the furthest and brightness light. then usually its a good bet to go with that since they have more then enough prof that it works. my friends have 6000k in there trucks and my headlights project much farther then theirs do. i know im not an expert on lights but have have been told by many of the top companies that these are the best for driving anything over 4300k will improve your nighttime viability but are more for personal look and style then just performance

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Fofiddy
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Postby Fofiddy » Sat Aug 15, 2009 8:29 am

I'm going to assume that since your friends are running them in trucks that they are using conversion kits. Basically they are attempting to use a HID bulb in an application (reflectors and housings) that was designed for a halogen. You will notice the vast majority of HID applications utilize a Projector and not a housing and reflector system. With HID your dealing with a controlled arc in a gas opposed to a fixed filament in gas with many many variables. There is a lot that goes into designing an HID system which is why the vast majority if not all of the kits are not DOT approved and basically illegal/ for show car use only.

K is still the abbreviation Kelvin. You may not be referring to the light temperature measurement but the the manufacturers and myself are. I'd chalk it up to the customer service rep who didn't know any better trying to give you an incredibly oversimplified answer. There are countless measurements pertaining to light and of all of them brightness is the most subjective as touched upon by NVSteve. I'm not saying I'm the ultimate authority, but I'm very involved with studio lighting on a technical level. I've been looking for a while for a solution to what I felt were crappy stock headlights and there are 3:
1. Make more money and buy a car with HIDs or LED standard.
2. Don't drive at night
3. Slow down
I struggled with the truth of the matter for a while but the Path's headlights are completely appropriate for it's handling abilities. In fact the wide throw of the lights helps me spot wildlife hellbent on testing my bumper before it's too late. There is a old motorcycle term called "overriding your headlight", basically you ride/drive faster than your visibility allows. I'm assuming the point of this topic is the whole visibility safety angle and not the bling factor. Bling is like a 2wd truck.

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Postby cruzstyle » Sat Aug 15, 2009 2:44 pm

because of where i live and the fact i work most of the year at night and i have pretty crappy night vision. i need the best lighting i can get. im scared of tickets and normally drive five under the limit but because of all the trees curves and deer. i like the HID plug and plays. i would love to put some real projectors in there but all i have found are the ebay el cheapo's. i think i might just go ahead and do the hella 90 mm fog light mod and put the HID bulbs in there then just use Philips night vision plus for the headlights. either way i need some type f HID in this ride. i really dont see why every car does not come with xenon projectors stock i mean its 2009. now even the mustang has projectors and ford is usually the last to do anything


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