^ i could do upper molalla AVE in OC to 185th in 35 min if traffic is flowing, otherwise its 45 to an hour..

but you have to ask yourself do you wanna pay an arm and a leg for the part? or drive an hour and save a few hundred? you can always call speed concept and see if they have it in stock and if they could install same day.. usually if its a quick install they will do it pretty fast.


Marco- we have always been under the microscope from the east coast MODs in this chat.. i think its jealousy =)

 

Whew, good thing it was a three beer lunch! Anyone going to the Auto Show next week?

 

I'd get like Kaixen HID kit, better build quality...

 

I'm so in! I haven't been in like years.

 

i was thinking of going but it always seems like they are the same.. nothing is really peaking my interest either.. we need an auto accessory show here that would be nice

 

Isn't there a Seattle show at one of the dealers?

 

I want to sit in the CR-Z... I know it's blasphemy

What's even more blasphemy...my wife and I are thinking about a prius!!!!

 

^ hang your head in shame for even thinking the P word..

next thing youll tell me is that you arent gonna get a ruckus!!

the CRZ is nice i watch the american top gear on it and it was kinda neat.. ive seen some people already trying to do engine swaps for them too..

 

Motorweek gave a very positive review of the 2011 Ford Fusion hybrid. $33K with tech and leather. Better looking than the Prius IMHO.

 

oregon city isn't that far from speed concept. and speed concept will be the fastest headache free solution for that ballast issue. and since they did one on my friend's cl, they know how to do it for sure compared to local shop.

i used to drive from 185th & farmington to s leland rd (further south of ccc) in oregon city everyday and maximum it took was 35min with traffic.

 

btw.. cr-z is a cool hybrid. but i think lexus's new ct200h is cooler

 

guage is blue during eco drive. when put into sport mode, it turns to red and tech meter comes on.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtRcwBhOJUM

 

yeah the lexus is pimpin for an hybrid

 

Is that the place on TV highway?

 

lol I just took my car to a local shop to see if they can remedy my headlight. The guy insisted it was the bulb (I told him I really think it's the ballast/inverter) yet he still insisted. 20 minutes later he goes in the back, I hear some commotion, he comes back, and tells me they confirmed it wasn't the bulb, and that it may be the inverter, but that their mechanics don't want to go near my headlights because there's a sign or sticker that says "120,000 volts could kill" Welcome to auto mechanics?

Meh, I'm just not at all familiar with that whole area, Beaverton and all. and I don't have navigation, so meh

 

^ it really isnt that hard.. go to 205 south, hit I-5 north take the 217 exit follow it till you get to the canyon rd/beaverton hilldale exit. take a left on canyon rd (turns into TVhighway at Murray blvd) follow it till you get to 198th, just passed it you will see a MR peeps and its right next door to it.. if you go to 209th and take a right (kaady car wash) and take another imediate right it will take you right there too (they are all in the same spot)

 

Chime in and let me know if you are going on Saturday, if you wish we could pick a time & place to meet so we can drool over cars. Carrie is working, so I'll be bored at home.

 

Why not get a Fit and save some money?

Hybrids take many many years and miles to pay for themselves, meanwhile the Fit has room and is fun to drive.

Just a thought.

 

Love The fit but wife wants leather and what not. Could just reapolster though.. Or some alcontara recaros

 

i thought was to have 2 bigger vehicles?? if you get the fit you are downgrading the TSX and might as well keep it..

BTW the new jeep cherokee SRT8 comes out soon you could get that =) wife was trying to talk me into a jeep liberty but i just cant go for it.. the RDX had me at hello =)

 

lol it turns out it WAS the bulb, all this time.... ugh.

The thing is when I took it to that shop down in Oregon City, they "checked" to see if it was the bulb by putting in a new bulb. It still didn't come on, so they said "There's no way it can't be the bulb!" but the problem is they used the wrong kind of bulb in my car. So obviously it wouldn't have worked.

Dan's Auto Service on Molalla Avenue = a waste of time.

Since it was just the bulb and my wallet didn't take too hard of a hit, I'll definitely look into Speed Concept. I'm thinking about upgrading my HIDs to like 8000k. Think it would be easier to buy my own HIDs and ballasts, and take them there, as opposed to having them get them for me? Also, does anyone know if I get a new set, will the new ballasts get saturated with water like the OEM ones apparently do?

btw I hate I-5 drivers.

 

So what was the symptom of non working headlight?

And don't get 8000k... Visibility is crap when it rains. 6000k is the max color temp I'll go with.
And speed concept always have hid sets in stock. So just give them a call and confirm before you drive all the way to Aloha.

 

agreed.. i have the 8K HIDs in the scion they look great in the summer and reflect road signs well but in the rainy nights they are horrible.. of course i have crappy eye sight to begin with so that could be part of it..

i have the 6Ks for my fogs on the TSX and they are great!! im thinking of getting new bulbs to mtch them better but i wanna wait and get new headlights before i make the plunge

 

Well I was actually surprised it was the headlight. It had all the symptoms of a messed up inverter/ballast. Light comes on, immediately goes dim, flickers for a few seconds, then dies out completely.

I just thought a bad bulb = it doesn't come on at all.

So wait, the 8000k HIDs, are they just not bright, or are they too blue? And what about the ballast? If I get that replaced, no more ballast issues, or will it still collect water like the OEM ones do?

 

Flickering is a ballast issue. Same symptom as my friend's 2003 CL. So this is what happened in steps (same headlight issue like yours).

#1. We thought it was the bulbs. Replaced with brand new bulbs. Worked great for few weeks and same thing happens again.
#2. We swapped bulbs left/right and old/new, thinking that bulb might be defective. After swapping the bulbs, it worked ok for another few weeks but same problem started again.
#3. Finally bought a used oem ballast. This one lasted almost a year but same issue started again about two months ago.
#4. Since used ones are not guaranteed to last long and brand new oem ballast being way too expensive, we went with aftermarket ballast solution. Works great so far. Zero issues. And aftermarket ballast sits inside the engine bay so it will be less prone to water damage.

And here's your guide to hid color temps.

http://www.everything4scion.com/hid-...hart-i-28.html

 

Well wait, if it was the ballast/inverter then why would new bulbs work at all?

 

Actually the bulbs were swapped (driver -> passenger side, and vice versa) and they were able to determine it was the bulb based on that, according to them. I'll see how it goes for the time being.

 

With hids the higher the kelvins the lower the lumens. Kelvins=color and lumens=usable light. This is why most oem bulbs are somewhere between 4300k and 5000k because those provide the best visibility and are also the easiest for oncoming traffic to look at. So Min is right 6k max I've had my share of 8k and they look awesome but suck at lighting up the roadway

 

Yeah I read the 03 TLs/CLs are at like 4500k.

At the risk of sounding rice, I was kinda thinking it might be cool to get something with a slightly blue-ish hue to it... to match my ABP *puts on flamesuit*

 

well get the 6K then, it's a blue-ish hue but should still have decent night time visibility. But if you're in it for usability it's best to stay 4300K - 5K

I think all of us on here at ONE time had 8K or higher HIDs so we can't give you too much flack for it lol

 

Anyone have Netflix and use the streaming option to watch movies??

 

^^all the time, stream on our downstairs tv, ipad, and iphones. It's pretty good

 

do you get the 5.1 surround sound or 7.1 if its HD? and do you know of any way to record your streaming audio video? we are thinking of swapping from blockbuster to netflix but i like the option that i can rip my dvds if i dont watch them right away so i can watch them later..

 

I don't believe netflix streams HD. I don't have surround so I am not sure, I'd imagine basic 5.1. And you could prolly record them as they play if you have the software.

 

hmm.. i was just thinking about it.. i suppose if i stream the movie and like it i could always have the disc sent to my house..

i still think the blockbuster by your place will still be open.. ill have to call them and see.. still is a drive just to go there for some movies

 

yeah the blockbuster by us in the Bethany village center is still open

 

LOL i for one have never stepped above 5k and that goes back to when were HID's were not available. I was running 5k raybrigs in my teg. Never had a PnP kit for my headlights either (fogs only).

 

forgot to mention that anything above 6500K can cause eye strain which can make you tired.. (Food for thought)

 

I do. Computers, PS3 and Apple TV in the house.

Yes, it'll stream 720p HD and surround sound.

 

^ awesome good to know.. wish blockbuster would stream on the ps3