Hey Guys, let me first say today was my first time to this sight and I am very impressed. Gettin down to business though, I recently bought a 98 CL 3.0 and love it a ton. For my first upgrade i want to hook up the head lights. My goal is to resemble those luxury lights of like the new mercedez. Whats the most efficient way to do this? I've seen people talking crazy bills for the HID's, which is way too extreme for something that doesnt make me go faster. Whats the deal with the Piaa xtreme white bulbs for around $80, or similar in that range.

 

PIAA' s are good. But I would definately recommend you spend a little more and purchase HIDs. Let's face it, your not going to go much faster with the Cl, so why not spend the $400 and get something that makes the car look a lot nicer.

 

Its really not worth going with Xenon bulbs, they are expensive, blow quickly, and most of them decrease output to give you the color you want. Get some HIDs you wont regret it





More pics in the link below

 

Actually I have PIAA suoper white and have had the same bulbs in for um... 2 years.

If i were you i would spend $170 and get the CTAZ ZETA which will get you almost the same brightness as the HID but are much cheaper.

One thing though. I never had the catz zeta but myf riends have. I don't know if they will blow bulbs but i don't think they will anymore then the HIDS but i could be wrong.

This is my option but still i would probrably soend the extra $$$ to get the HIDS.

 

It looks like everyones pushing me towards the HIDs. Any suggestions on the types or where to look. I've done some searches and came across some untrusting webstores. As I said, Im still new to this so any input on HID models and recommendations on shops are very much appreciated. Also, do I still have high/low beam capability with them?

 

I got my CATZ HID bulbs for a little under a hundred. I have had them for about 5-6 months and they are really bright, just make sure that the ligh housings are clean,

 

how about the life span of bulbs etc.?

I heard they work great but actually never even asked

 

I say just splurge and get the HIDs. Like gjr said, the CL is a relatively slow car and unless you're takin it to the track, don't waste too much money on stuff that'll make your car just a tiny bit quicker. Get the HIDs, it's not worth blowing fake bulbs every other month.

 

those xenon bulbs sux- I bought at leat 7 pairs and at $40-50 a pair, i eventually saved up enough $$ and got a pair of hid, cost me 680$ i pretty sure i paid to much, but i think that the hid's are the best thing i have ever bought for my car. by the way- order my from Nopionline.

 

HID's are wak though. they are pointless to buy. I rather put that money into the motor. This si my opinion

 

not flaming, turbotk, but why do you say HIDs are pointless? My opinion is anything that will help you see at least 3x better at night is worth spending money on. Whatever creams your twinkie though

 

Easy guys, didn't mean to rustle a debate on if its worth it or not. I checked some out and $600 is way too much over my price limit. I live in the city and don't have any problems seeing as it is. If I lived in the boonies then the purchase would probably be justified. I guess I was just looking for that obnoxious luxury look of the audis and mercedez. Would those piaa bulbs do the job?

 

I have PIAA super whites and they look beautiful.

I spent $100 for the headlight and side markers and i couldn't be happier. Be sure to get PIAA though because the cheap ones WILL BLOW ON YOU.

Have fun.

 

How do you guys go through 7 sets of bulbs, i have had the same cheapy set for 2 years now.

 

PIAA superwhites would be a good bet...however, sit behind the wheel of a car that has HIDs and it would be difficult to go back. As for price..do rims make a car go faster?

 

those cheapie bulbs will eventually burn up your wiring harness too. It took mine 2 years, but it finally did. I am going with hID's...prob 6200k to 8000k....you will thank yourself later

check out the autolamps...they go for 400 or so on ebay all the time.

also check out the philips forums for more info

 

Check out Philips, Osram, or Hella for good bulbs and ballasts. Those are the brands most guys/girls here would recommend for HIDs

 

I am engineer at Philips. I'll check them out first, if I get deals I'll let all you CL thugs know. I think I'm leaning towards the PIAA's though. I can't justify spending more than $200 for new lights. Im saving up for Rims.

 

if they're lightweight

 

I just did the 9005 conversion and it looks a lot better than I expected. If you are going to upgrade the lights but don't want to pay a lot for them, I'd buy some inexpensive 9005s and go for the conversion.

 

i dont think the rims make much difference- the weight difference is negligible if you have the factory alloys to begin with (or so the rim dealer told me)

 

Rob, you're right the 9005s do look a little better than stock. but HIDs look sooooooo much better and will last the rest of the life of your car