ModedGen1CL

<font face="verdana" size="1" color="navy">The HID conversion is ver simple the one I have is an APC it costs $1000 but its worth it I got lucky I have a friend that sells after market products so I got it for$600 instilation is as follows:

1. I had to shave the holes for the lights in the headlights a little not to hard
2. Then just plug it all in
3. Clean up the wires so it all looks nice and neat
4. Then thats it turn it on and make sure it works and your good to go

Unfortunatly I do not have pics but you wont need them its fairly easy took me about 2 hrs to do it all.

Albertt

CLs use a 9006/HB4 low beam lamp. There are various HID conversion kits out there that don't require modification of the bulb mounting area on the headlamp. These feature adapter rings that allow the D2R HID bulb to sit properly in the 9006 mount. Also, there are kits that cost a couple hundred less and feature name brand components such as Philips and Osram. Do a little research before you plop down the cash.

1StGenCL

Yeah you can buy the philips kit off group buy center for like $500 or your can buy it from www.mircolights.com (believe thats the address) for like $600 last time i checked. The bulbs are made to fit our housings with no modifications. Congrats on your kit

JCG

Have you guys ever had problems with glare and oncoming drivers flashing back at you. I have heard that since our headlight housings are not made for HID that they difract lots of light and blind other drivers.

What are your guys thoughts on this?

1StGenCL

From what i have read at the philips lighting forum, the headlight housing is going to put the light in the same places no matter what bulb or how bright (the reflectors and optics dont change after all). The HID should light up the same areas your current bulbs light up but it will just be alot brighter. As far as glare you might need to aim the headlights down a little bit.

FrstGenCL

From what I understand with the HID conversion the beam patern is off by far. Original HID's give you a very wide beam, the aftermarket set will give you a vertical like beam. You can light up 4 story buildings.
Not to sound cheap but how about those Japanese Piaa bulbs. Never mind the HID look but what about the lighting. Do the give you good visibility at night and in the rain ...

melo72

I have the PIAA bulbs and let me tell you they are at least twice as bright as the stock bulbs. I get people highbeaming me thinking that I have my brights on when I don't.

I no longer have a need to keep my foglights on while driving other than for looks. When I had the stock bulbs, I needed the foglights just to be able to look far enough ahead and to the sides of the car.

JCG

I concur, I had have replaced the stock bulbs with Piaa Super Whites. The are huge improvement over stock. The only issue with such bulbs is their life - they may only last a couple years or even less.

The HID kit is probably out of the question for my 97 CL. I will probably trade the car back in in a couple of years for a certified pre-owned TL (2001 or maybe the new 2002 by that point). So the $500+ investment does not make much sense for me.

Has anyone had experience with the Piaa bulbs that are sold overseas only (I beleive they call them extreme whites and rate them at 4100 K)??
JCG

JCG

These were Japanese Piaa's I was talking about. They don't sell these in the U.S. and from the stats appear to be much brighter bulbs. I was thinking of getting the yellow headlight bulbs.

JCG
http://www.hitechimportlighting.com/piaa.htm

MikeSwing

Hey Melo, do you have the Japanese PIAA's? I'm talking about the PIAA Super Plasmas. I want HID's but these might do it for me. If anyone out there has HID's on their CL or the PIAA Super Plasmas let me know how they perform for you. Thanks in advance.

Albertt

"I have heard that since our headlight housings are not made for HID that they difract lots of light and blind other drivers."

As long as the HID bulb is of the D2R type and the mouting places the light point source close to that of a standard 9006 bulb, the pattern should be decent.

"I have the PIAA bulbs and let me tell you they are at least twice as bright as the stock bulbs. I get people highbeaming me thinking that I have my brights on when I don't."

You might want to try re-aiming your headlamps. Even if you've replaced the Stanley (OE for Honda/Acura) bulbs with another DOT certified 9006 bulb, you might have to re-aim your headlamps. Any slight variation on the light source (bulb) will alter the beam pattern.

"These were Japanese Piaa's I was talking about. They don't sell these in the U.S. and from the stats appear to be much brighter bulbs. I was thinking of getting the yellow headlight bulbs."

Beware of the Japanese PIAAs. Some of them are overwattage rated. If you attempt to use these without upgrading the wiring and relays, you run the risk of melting wires, connectors or your relays.

Philips makes a bulb called the WeatherVision which puts out yellow light. You can find them at K-Mart or online at http://www.autooptiks.com/matrix.html

melo72

I don't think that the ones that I have are Japenese. i brought them from a local Auto parts store(Napa - I think).

FrstGenCL

The Japanese set are the ones I am refering to. Those are the ones that i ordered. They have been on back order for the past 3 weeks. They are pretty hard to get. Especially for my price.