HID's vs. Xenon
#1
Racer
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HID's vs. Xenon
I was at a restaurant with my friends. We drove separate cars and were all parked in a row. One had an Audi, another a BMW and the third a Benz. When we got out, I was the first one to my car. I was out first and when I turned on my headlights, everybody said "Hey, you've got HIDs" I went "yeah, and so what??" They said "Ours are Xenon"
As far as I was able to tell, there was no difference in brightness, or whiteness of the lights. (Our cars were facing a wall)
Can anyone here explain what the difference is between a HID system and Xenon headlights ? Pros & cons ???
As far as I was able to tell, there was no difference in brightness, or whiteness of the lights. (Our cars were facing a wall)
Can anyone here explain what the difference is between a HID system and Xenon headlights ? Pros & cons ???
#3
Sticky Rice OwnZ joO
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HID = Xenon
same thing.. as long as they are truely D2S/D2R HID bulbs filled with Xenon gas.. powered by a ballast.. and give the same 4200K color temp.
You have Xenon as well..
Your friends have HID as well..
Next time they tell you it's diff, them them they are exactly the same thing, probably exactly the same bulbs/ballast as well.![Wink](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/wink.gif)
I'm guessing your friends didn't know they are the same thing just referred to by diff names.. like calling a photocopy a xerox copy.. same thing, but it's become known by other names..
There are fake HIDs out there, these are just halogen bulbs with a filter in it.. these are not powered by a ballast, they are just replacements for regular bulbs..
same thing.. as long as they are truely D2S/D2R HID bulbs filled with Xenon gas.. powered by a ballast.. and give the same 4200K color temp.
You have Xenon as well..
Your friends have HID as well..
Next time they tell you it's diff, them them they are exactly the same thing, probably exactly the same bulbs/ballast as well.
![Wink](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/wink.gif)
I'm guessing your friends didn't know they are the same thing just referred to by diff names.. like calling a photocopy a xerox copy.. same thing, but it's become known by other names..
There are fake HIDs out there, these are just halogen bulbs with a filter in it.. these are not powered by a ballast, they are just replacements for regular bulbs..
![Big Grin](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif)
#6
Sticky Rice OwnZ joO
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Nope, German cars have exactly the same bulb(4200K), it's just the projector lenses that make it look diff.. and projectors use D2S bulbs instead of the D2R buls we use..
But I wouldn't be surprised if the 04TL has Projectors in it.
But I wouldn't be surprised if the 04TL has Projectors in it.
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#7
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Originally posted by Edub-TL
But I wouldn't be surprised if the 04TL has Projectors in it.
But I wouldn't be surprised if the 04TL has Projectors in it.
![Big Grin](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif)
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#8
Three Wheelin'
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Also, HID stands for High Intensity Discharge (lights)...HID lights
The temp. range of 4100K-4300K is the maximum brightness output. I doubt any car manufacturer will make their bulbs 6000K because the 6000Ks are dimmer. When you stare at 4100K-4300K directly it's like looking at the sun so don't stare, you'll go blind.
PS don't stare at the 6000K bulbs either, (I did) you start seeing everylight source blue....I was laughing at a Mercury Sable who's lights were blue but then I realized that it was my eyes and anything that emmited light was blue (went away after a couple of minutes)
The temp. range of 4100K-4300K is the maximum brightness output. I doubt any car manufacturer will make their bulbs 6000K because the 6000Ks are dimmer. When you stare at 4100K-4300K directly it's like looking at the sun so don't stare, you'll go blind.
PS don't stare at the 6000K bulbs either, (I did) you start seeing everylight source blue....I was laughing at a Mercury Sable who's lights were blue but then I realized that it was my eyes and anything that emmited light was blue (went away after a couple of minutes)
#11
The best is when u go to dealers and they dont know what ure talking bout... if u say HID to them, some look at u weird (they only know Xenon) and the others u say Xenon and they are confused
but yeah... HID - high intensity discharge (just in case you want to know how it works: The xenon gas inside the bulb gets excited to a high energy state when you pass a current through it - hence you need an AC adapter otherwise u cant get a back and forth current.... and then when the gas lowers to a lower energy state, u get light )
if someone sells u the bulbs and no AC converter, dont buy it.. the system is useless for your car (unless u already have one)
but yeah... HID - high intensity discharge (just in case you want to know how it works: The xenon gas inside the bulb gets excited to a high energy state when you pass a current through it - hence you need an AC adapter otherwise u cant get a back and forth current.... and then when the gas lowers to a lower energy state, u get light )
if someone sells u the bulbs and no AC converter, dont buy it.. the system is useless for your car (unless u already have one)
#14
Originally posted by fla-tls
I just love the warning on the back of the lights. Do not remove this cover - 25,000 volts - can kill....
Now those are some REAL headlights!
I just love the warning on the back of the lights. Do not remove this cover - 25,000 volts - can kill....
Now those are some REAL headlights!
![Big Grin](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif)
#16
Originally posted by got_3.2?
hahahahahaha lol
what a woman.. go back to AW
lol j/p
hahahahahaha lol
what a woman.. go back to AW
lol j/p
did you see my thread about what kind of cars they drive?
i get reply like 89 legend and 91 integra and stuff like that. I was like wtf. i like this forum better.
#18
Flyin' and Drivin'
My biggest friggen pet peave in my life is seeing those idiots with fake HIDs. I cant STAND them!!! Anyways, why does it say that 25,000 volts thing? Its not that powerful is it? I thought they ran lower voltage than regular halogens... or is it 25K when they first ignite?
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
#20
the start up voltage is about 23-25k drawing a good 20 amps after the warm up state the ballast regulats the flow of charge to about 3.2 amps and a stedy wattage of 35 watts with the voltage at about 85 volts from the 23-25k volts
#21
to be honest...the term xenon is very misleading as to regular halogen based filiment lamps can be called XENON as it refers to the gas filled in them...BUT HID refers to the way the bulb works...so yeah...they could posibly just have xenon filled filiment bulbs that arent HID's.....but HID are simply ONLY filled with Xenon and other rare noble gases, and metalic salts...
#22
Originally posted by Comet2404
Anyways, why does it say that 25,000 volts thing? Its not that powerful is it? I thought they ran lower voltage than regular halogens... or is it 25K when they first ignite?
Anyways, why does it say that 25,000 volts thing? Its not that powerful is it? I thought they ran lower voltage than regular halogens... or is it 25K when they first ignite?
At sea level, it takes about 10,000 volts of electricity to jump 1/4 inch through the atmosphere (think about those hand-held electronic stun guns--they're about the same voltage as our ballasts). With a regular halogen bulb, electric current flows through the tungsten filament and it heats up the small coils in the filament. The hot coils glow and you have light. In a Xenon headlamp, the voltage is passed through Xenon gas and the burning of the arc in the gas is what creates the light. But just like the stun gun analogy, there are two terminals on either side of the gas chamber and the current has to "jump" from one to the other though the gas, which is why so much voltage is required. However, the *big* difference between our headlamps and the stun gun is the amount of amps required to make the arc. A stun gun has microamps or milliamps of power. You can survive a shock from a lot of volts as long as there are hardly any amps. Painful, yes---but the amperage is so minute that it doesn't kill you. Our lights on the other hand, draw about 20 amps on start-up and then drop dramatically to sustain the arc. 20 amps at that voltage would most certainly kill you. HID ballasts are so dangerous that most manufacturers design them so if a vehicle is involved in a collision that damages the lights while they are active, the ballast permanently shuts down and needs to be replaced. This is so rescue workers don't accidentally get electrocuted trying to get you out of a car or disconnecting your battery if there is a damaged ballast.
#25
well just to clearify what pianoman said.....the 20 amps is being drawn at 12 volts...of course this is way more than that of a 9 volt battery in a stun gun....how ever using the formula v*i=p, at startup the ballast draws about 12 volts at 20 amps... roughly about 240 watts, now on the high side of the ballast there is about 25,000 volts comsuming about 240 watts...do the math on that one and its only about .0096 amps or roughly 9.6 mA which isnt that bad actually, but if you had say a pace maker it will definatly mess that up, and say if you were a lil kid your body mass is exponitially absorbing in that bored with a more concentrated force....but not going against anyone but it not a instant death type electrocution....just a rather painful one.....
#27
Originally posted by asiankidd
well just to clearify what pianoman said.....the 20 amps is being drawn at 12 volts...of course this is way more than that of a 9 volt battery in a stun gun....how ever using the formula v*i=p, at startup the ballast draws about 12 volts at 20 amps... roughly about 240 watts, now on the high side of the ballast there is about 25,000 volts comsuming about 240 watts...do the math on that one and its only about .0096 amps or roughly 9.6 mA which isnt that bad actually, but if you had say a pace maker it will definatly mess that up, and say if you were a lil kid your body mass is exponitially absorbing in that bored with a more concentrated force....but not going against anyone but it not a instant death type electrocution....just a rather painful one.....
well just to clearify what pianoman said.....the 20 amps is being drawn at 12 volts...of course this is way more than that of a 9 volt battery in a stun gun....how ever using the formula v*i=p, at startup the ballast draws about 12 volts at 20 amps... roughly about 240 watts, now on the high side of the ballast there is about 25,000 volts comsuming about 240 watts...do the math on that one and its only about .0096 amps or roughly 9.6 mA which isnt that bad actually, but if you had say a pace maker it will definatly mess that up, and say if you were a lil kid your body mass is exponitially absorbing in that bored with a more concentrated force....but not going against anyone but it not a instant death type electrocution....just a rather painful one.....
#28
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I know if you look on the top of the headlight housing (at least on the '02) the wattage and bulb type are molded into the plastic and reads D2R 35w for the low beam.
#29
Originally posted by ShaguraTL
IIRC, HID's usually use 35W (less wattage but more voltage than halogen) I may be wrong though...anyone confirm this?
IIRC, HID's usually use 35W (less wattage but more voltage than halogen) I may be wrong though...anyone confirm this?
initial wattage draw is around 240 watts and then stabilizes at 35 watts....
#30
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Just to add my worthless two cents into this discussion--real HIDs don't use bulbs--they use "capsules", or perhaps referred to as "lamps". IIRC, technically the meaning of the word "bulb" implies the use of filaments, whereas a HID lamp/capsule contains electrodes. So, it is a misnomer to say that HID "bulbs" are used in a true HID system...![Smile](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/smile.gif)
Think I'm just blowing smarta$$ smoke at you guys? Go to Sylvania's web site--they don't refer to HID lighting element as "bulbs"...
![Smile](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/smile.gif)
Think I'm just blowing smarta$$ smoke at you guys? Go to Sylvania's web site--they don't refer to HID lighting element as "bulbs"...
#31
Originally posted by Comet2404
My biggest friggen pet peave in my life is seeing those idiots with fake HIDs. I cant STAND them!!! Anyways, why does it say that 25,000 volts thing? Its not that powerful is it? I thought they ran lower voltage than regular halogens... or is it 25K when they first ignite?
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
My biggest friggen pet peave in my life is seeing those idiots with fake HIDs. I cant STAND them!!! Anyways, why does it say that 25,000 volts thing? Its not that powerful is it? I thought they ran lower voltage than regular halogens... or is it 25K when they first ignite?
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
Opening the balast could expose you to the capacitors used to acheive the 25k volts. As capacitors are not necessarily discharged when the power is turned off or disconnected, there could still be voltage in the cap when you open the cover.
#32
Flyin' and Drivin'
OK then.... gotta question for you HID people.... I looked at mine last night, and the passenger headlamp is more purpleish than the driver one. In fact, when compared to other TL's (I was next to a new CL tonite too) mine look purple, while theirs are more blueish. What the hell is up with that, do I need new bulbs?
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
#34
Originally posted by Comet2404
OK then.... gotta question for you HID people.... I looked at mine last night, and the passenger headlamp is more purpleish than the driver one. In fact, when compared to other TL's (I was next to a new CL tonite too) mine look purple, while theirs are more blueish. What the hell is up with that, do I need new bulbs?
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
OK then.... gotta question for you HID people.... I looked at mine last night, and the passenger headlamp is more purpleish than the driver one. In fact, when compared to other TL's (I was next to a new CL tonite too) mine look purple, while theirs are more blueish. What the hell is up with that, do I need new bulbs?
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
#38
Flyin' and Drivin'
asiankidd... does that mean that one is near the end of its life? one is blue, the other is slightly purpler, although they are bother purple in colour.... LOL... I thought mine had 6000K in it when I first got them!
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
#40
Originally posted by Comet2404
asiankidd... does that mean that one is near the end of its life? one is blue, the other is slightly purpler, although they are bother purple in colour.... LOL... I thought mine had 6000K in it when I first got them!
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
asiankidd... does that mean that one is near the end of its life? one is blue, the other is slightly purpler, although they are bother purple in colour.... LOL... I thought mine had 6000K in it when I first got them!
-Ryan
'99 SSM TL
JON