HID Headlamp Kits .... anyone tried?

[rogerwalker]

A mate of mine has been raving about the HID kit he has just fitted to his motorbike and I was wondering if anyone had tried to fit an HID headlamp kit to their Caterham?

 

The HID Kits come as complete unit and are typically fed from the standard headlamp fitting. The challenge would seem to be that the cabling from the HID box to the new bulb unit is a sealed cable and from what I understand is a HV feed to the lamp. Clearly this is not going to be threadable through the rear support tube as the standard wiring is. I have an enquiry out to one of the suppliers as to whether this cable can be broken/extended.

 

Any thoughts?

 

Roger

 

 

 

[Bricol]

I looked at this a few years ago - supplier in question then would extend the cables if needed. But if you had the connectors, I can't see why you can't make your own cables up.

 

I also didn't like the idea of having only a dip beam, or if a dipping unit, I didn't think the fragile looking mechanism for doing the beam deflection would survive the vibration in Caterham headlights.

 

Remember that technically they are illegal. I am a fan of the kits I have elsewhere though . . . 😬 Off-road use only of course . . . I think you get what you pay for - I bought some stupidly expensive (they seemed at the time) HIDs to use in my dipped beam on an integrale, from Autolamps on-line via a Scoobynet deal. Must be 10yrs or more ago. They still work, each time, every time. In the main beams I'm on the second cheaper set - and they work most of the time - then one might not, or the other, or both . . .

 

Bri

 

 

 

[Clousta]

H4 bulbs are suitable for a Bi-Xenon HIDs kit so yo can have HID dip and Main beam (its one lamp a but a very quick electromagnetic shutter moves are deflects the beam when you go to main beam so there is no delay whilst the HID warms up for main beam). My local Controle Technique (Belgian MOT) station bought the argument that the fitment was OK because the Range Rover's suspension self levels and therefore doesn't separate headlight levellers. (Range Rover P38)

 

Gavin

1988 1700 Supersprint (LA, long cockpit)

[DohNut]

 

An article in Practical Performance Car a couple of months ago suggested that it is NOT illegal. - technically they quoted the relevant docs and said there was no reason to fail an MOT.

 

I stand to be corrected but the increased throw of the HID lamps is not just down to the increase in light they are producing but that the beam shines at a shallower angle.

The shallower angle means the self levelling is required to account for having something in the boot and avoid dazzling.

Fitting them to a standard headlight should be ok as it will still shine light in the same place as the standard headlight, the risk might be that the tarmac infront of you is over-lit and you have more difficulty seeing up the road.

 

N

[Bricol]

There is a difference in passing the MOT, and complying with Construction and Use. It is easily possible to pass the MOT, and not comply with C&U regs - which HID in the wrong optics, without the headlamp wash and self-levelling, don't. DVLC has a page devoted to it somewhere.

 

Bri

[Rattie]

That would most likely be this page

 

Martyn

^_R300GRR

[Bricol]

Just in-case you are tempted to fit HID for off-road use only, then this here might be of interest.

 

They supplied my second cheap kit . . . the one that sometimes works both lamps, sometimes one, sometimes the other, sometimes neither . . . cables are okay though . . .

 

Bri