1black_seven

iTrader: (2)

Just buy the V3 Tritons, don't play parkour with mods. Go with whats proven.

robocam

Oh, I believe you =) I might end up with those someday. However, I'm using these in the rear, so they won't be as visible.

Haha, thanks =) If someone tried this and failed at it, I probably wouldn't try this. I'll learn something either way, so I'm ok.

Replies in bold.

Thanks. Have you happened to have a chance to compare the 50W to the VLEDS Platinum bulbs? How many years would you say a typical 50W cree lasts?

http://www.vleds.com/7443-21-red.html

And just to be clear to others reading this, I'm not looking for the brightest bulb out there. I just want something that is at least as bright as stock but reliable.

350

iTrader: (4)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/400503714055...84.m1497.l2649

There's a ton that look like that, for the rear they're beyond adequate.

paperboy42190

iTrader: (7)

No i havent compared them to the platinum one. From first glance, the type of LEDs on the platinum bulbs don't seem like they would outshine the cree LEDs though.
For as long as I've had these, I havent seen these fail yet. LEDs have no moving parts so there's nothing to really wear out. However, a poorly designed heatsink will not have enough cooling capacity to make the diode last long. These 50w cree LEDs are pretty good quality, and I would say they should last you a couple years at the very least.

tones160

Let the guy do his thing ..Best of luck and show us that you can make it happen..not being naive but open minded to possibilities.

TL Luver

iTrader: (2)

Thats what this sight is for to figure out how to change up your car & post results... wouldnt you rather them post it here rather than somewhere else?... the regular bulbs probably get hotter so im sure the lens could handle it; use a "junk kit" if it works then upgrade why use the most expensive one as an "EXPERIMENT" obviously this guy knows led's are an option & we all know HID's shouldnt go on & off ... i know hes talking about rear but if the worked in the front turn signals id try some yellow ones maybe...

justinduhhh

they wouldnt heat up fast enought unless they were always on kinda like a running light with a blinker

rockyfeller

iTrader: (6)

First of all, I’m gonna say thanks for the laugh. One side of me feels sorry for you that you are being flamed for this thread, but the other side of me pokes me into reality. I mean you didn’t realize you’d be flamed for this? Or this really is a joke right? Because if it is, we are over 3 wks away from April fools, this is really too much.

As umpteen people have told you HIDs will never warm up to match the blink rate coming from the relay, not to mention the electrical haphazard in the making. You are tinkering with 1000s of volts. If you start melting a whole harness of wires in your car, that’s a big mess on your hands, you are gonna regret this experiment. There is really no benefit or payoff whatsoever.

The best lighting source in automotive lighting is LEDs. The new Mercedes S-class is 100% LED for a reason, you don’t see them putting HIDs everywhere. LEDs draw less, burn cooler and most important they are quick on and off. Exactly what you WANT a signal to do.

Keep this in mind. This is not a headlight housing where there is additional clearance and a hot bulb can operate. The reflector and housing can handle an HID bulb. The housing where your turn signal sits does not have the same clearance. It was engineered for a smaller bulb. So not only will it not disperse light properly and produce hot spots, it will MELT your lens/reflector/housing.

People who are telling you to go ahead and do whatever you want either don’t care enough (you could crash your car into a brick wall as an experiment for all most people care) or they want to laugh behind your back as this explodes into a royal mistake. I don’t think anyone reading this thread is thinking “ooo! Ya. I wanted to try the same thing, what a great idea!”

I know you’re not a dummy, use your brains with some common sense.

robocam

Replies in bold.

thoiboi

Quit responding to people in thread and just do you OP. Most of us know it's not going to work but do prove us wrong. I'd really like to see the outcome of this because I don't have the balls (nor the lack of common sense) to try it myself.

Just do it. And remember to take pictures and videos so all the naysayers can eat their words (or the others can say "told you so")

nate_0022

iTrader: (2)

As many people have said, the ballasts will NEVER warm an HID bulb up to operating temperatures, especially being turned on and off constantly for seconds to minutes, you're going to go through ballasts like candy. Even with OEM ballasts it takes a good 10-15 seconds for our bulbs to warm up. My aftermarket ballasts take a little longer than OEM ballasts as well. Only way I see this working is you're going to have to run the turn signals off when you have the headlights on, HID bulbs do not have a blinking function, it's either on or off. If you do get it to work, you'll be sitting in the turning lane giving everyone seizures with your HID strobe lights.
I know you're going to try this regardless of what everyone else says, but honestly you're wasting your time.

splew

Please don't put HIDs in your turn signals. Even if it could work (dubious at best), it would be downright obnoxiously bright. IIRC a standard 7440 filament bulb puts out something like 150-200 lumens. A HID bulb would be putting out well over 1000 lumens, so basically you would just be blinding the hell out of people behind you.

robocam

I'm very close to ordering the parts, and I will definitely carefully document the results. There are multiple factors that can make this a failure. One of my main concerns is the quality of the HID kit to begin with. It's quite possible that even if I don't flash the lights, the kit would die prematurely anyway. 15W kits aren't common, so it's not like I can buy a quality ballast to try. What I could do is tint a regular 35W bulb so that it isn't as bright. I don't think the housing will mind the extra 10W of heat (vs the stock 25W incandescent bulb). But that's for a future experiment. I'll take it one step at a time.

If anything, this is at least a fun science experiment. Maybe it would make some people happier if I ran the experiment in my basement instead of in my car?

Check this out starting at 5:20


Try this. Flash your brights (if you're equipped with bixenons, and if not, just turn them on and off quickly) while your headlights are off and see how bright the flash is. It should be quite bright.

I will make sure they are not annoying, and if they are, I will take steps to reduce their brightness. Keep in mind that they might not reach full brightness, AND these are 15W bulbs which put out 43% as much light as standard HID bulbs. Remember, they will be installed in a very inefficient housing. It's not like a focused headlight flashing at you.

I will make sure they are not annoying, and if they are, I will take steps to reduce their brightness. Keep in mind that they might not reach full brightness, AND these are 15W bulbs which put out 43% as much light as standard HID bulbs. Remember, they will be installed in a very inefficient housing. It's not like a focused headlight flashing at you.

robocam

Oh, and the reason I linked the video is because I wanted to show how one could run the experiment at home.

paperboy42190

iTrader: (7)

I know how hids look when warming up. It's significantly less bright than when warmed up.

To be honest though, if you're truly determined about something, the only way to stop is to try it and fail. Nothing we say seem to change your mind, so go ahead, attempt to prove us wrong. I'd like to hear your review after it's done

robocam

Exactly, so that should quell the brightness concerns. On the flip side, if a 15W system isn't bright enough, then I'll consider a regular 35W system.

I knew there would be resistance going into this. I was mainly seeking results from those that may have tried something similar. I think a lot of people are rightly concerned, but they're potentially basing much of what they say on hearsay or conjecture, however, I appreciate their advice. What I am planning to do will add evidence to either confirm or deny my hypothesis (that an HID system can be used in the application of a turn signal). What I am curious about though is how long does it have to last for this to be considered a success?

I also feel that it's highly likely that the kit will be of poor quality and fail prematurely but not due to traditionally suspected causes, and people will inaccurately attribute the cause of failure. I also do not know if the ballasts are hot restrike capable. It's possible that the bulb might melt due to multiple restarts.

Anyway, let's just see what happens. I may be afraid to post my results though

paperboy42190

iTrader: (7)

I just watched that video. It's interesting, but they tested fluorescent, LEDs, and incandescent. Hids would be completely different

Still a good video though haha now I will definitely turn off lights whenever possible

Franchise1124

OP, I won't weigh in on the project as a whole as you seem focused and willing to try. I browsed the thread and noticed you made mention of flashing the bixenons twice. I'm not sure if anyone else addressed this but our bixenon headlights and HIDs in your rear turn signals are apples and oranges. Our bixenon system is really just one bulb - when you flick the high beam switch, a shutter is moved to create a different beam pattern. Bulbs are not turned off/on in this process.

Just figured that this information may be helpful to you whichever route you choose. Good luck

nate_0022

iTrader: (2)

I mentioned that in my previous post. HID bulbs are not HI/Low bulbs like a normal halogen. They do not flicker unless you're having ballast issues. Bi-xenon is projector based system not a bulb. To achieve a high beam the bulb doesn't get brighter, the solenoid lowers the cutoff shield in the projector and spreads the lights up and out.

robocam

Thanks, I appreciate your desire to help

That is why I said to flash your brights while the headlights are off. Every time you pull back on the turn signal lever, it turns your headlights on, and when you let go, they turn off. You can do the same thing by turning your headlights on and off using the headlight switch.

The reason I suggested trying this was to demonstrate how bright HID bulbs are when first lit. They may not be anywhere near 100%, but they should be bright enough for a turn signal.

rockyfeller

iTrader: (6)

I know I sounded rude, I don't usually comment on threads like that. But I was just trying to be blunt so you'd get the point. It's not to be argumentative, thanks for taking it the right way. I think you realize I have good intentions.

I've done tons of electrical mods and fried plenty of stuff and learned my lessons. I think I've removed my front bumper at least 50x for stuff that needs to redone. I don't do shoddy work, everything is heat shrinked, loomed, zip tied away with stock wiring. The car will seem stock and I do it proper, yet stuff still happens. Heat, weather and water is what a car deals with. Comes with the territory when you do mods. I ALWAYS use relays too. Sometimes the wires will STILL melt over time. I have a 30A fuse on one and the relay ITSELF melts into the fuse. Note that the wiring PAST the fuse may not melt, but anything before that can. And can even catch fire before popping a fuse. I have done 3 sets of puddle lights, water always gets into them. So we all learn our lessons somehow. So if you really like taking your front bumper off a lot be my guest.

15W HID bulbs?? Interesting, never heard of that. Well if that is available, yea that will definitely negate most of the heat risks. But keep in mind a regular bulb is ROUND. An HID bulb is long and narrow. The site from which the light emits will be from a different length compared to the standard bulb and the distal end of the HID bulb may be too close to parts of the housing or reflector. I just didn't want you to think that standard 35w HID bulbs were safe because they burn cooler than a standard 55w HID bulb. 35w definitely gets hot, trust me.

Paint a bulb? You realize a coating on the glass will cause it to ABSORB the heat and keep it from dissipating. Increased heat will make the bulb fail quicker. If it is a regular filament bulb, it's bad for the filament, in HIDs you have halide salts.You may say, why do some specialty bulbs come with coatings on them? Well as THIN as they make those coatings, the manufacturers just make em that way to offer something different. They'll always fail quicker than their clear bulbs, they just won't tell you that.

Yea the Tritons are overpriced. But they are just a one shot, install it and done deal. The amount of time/energy to do HIDs isn't justified because they aren't the best option. Time is money to me. But that's me. I know you gotta do you.

Yes the HID turn ON instantly. But they need to warm up to get up to usable brightness. In the first 3-8 seconds when they are cold they are dim and darker in color. As you cut power intermittently you extend the amount of time it takes for the bulb to warm up. So if used as a signal the light emitted would be hardly visible in the daytime. If you are using them behind a red lens, obviously that's not the same as a clear lens. It will take more intensity of light to cut through especially in the daytime. And that is a safety issue for someone behind you who doesn't know you are making a turn.

Here's a quick experiment for you; just get a friend to help you. Go to your car outside in the daytime. Go stand in front of your car. Tell them to start the car and put the hazzards on. Then tell them to PULL the turn signal stalk ("flash to pass" function which activates the high beams) and flash them at the same rate of the high beams. Those much weaker turn signal bulbs will be brighter than the HIDs. Instead of taking 3-8 seconds it will take double the time because power is cut to them half the time. By the point they warm up yes, it will be brighter than the signals, but you will be rear ended by that point.

Naysayers annoy me too. It's the reason I also did many of my mods. But most of them made sense. I rarely tell someone not to try something. It was just an additional warning coming from someone who has been modding cars for 25yrs. So some of us are going to just chime in making sure you know what you are getting into. But it seems you do and you have your mind made up to do it. Good luck.

rockyfeller

iTrader: (6)

BTW
I kinda don't understand the point of the video you posted. In essence it kills your own idea. It supports the fact that the LEDs outlasted all the other options, lol.

paperboy42190

iTrader: (7)

^you're 38 and have been modding for 25 yrs? 13 is an early age to start messing with cars, wow.

robocam

Reply in bold.

Haha, that's why I posted right under that the reason. I posted the video to show how one could run the longevity test at home (to see how long an HID bulb would last if it were flashed). I know the bulb will fail, but I don't know how long it will take.

rockyfeller

iTrader: (6)

Haha, OK it's more like 23yrs OK?

rockyfeller

iTrader: (6)

The wiring I'm referring to is 14gauge I think. Thicker than the OEM electrical wire. Wired to a standard HID that I use as DRLs on the car. It hits a 30A fuse in a waterproof holder that then goes to a relay before going to the ballasts. The fuse rarely pops but every once in awhile I have to check the wiring. One factor is underhood temperatures especially in the summer with 90+ degree days. Becuase I use them as DRLs they cycle a lot. HIDs won't draw a lot of current in regular operation. But as csmenace pointed out, when the igniter fires up the bulb and during that warm up sequence which is those first 10sec. there is a heavy draw and the wiring gets hot. It may not be enough AMPs to pop the fuse but it gets hot enough to melt over time and many cycles. And yes I did upgrade this wiring and I'm going to do it again with even thicker wiring.

If you are using 4gauge wire, that is essentially amplifier wiring. So that is a different story. A good ANL fuse with that is more than safe for an HID kit. I use that with my sound system and it is a great choice.