HID headlights, yes or no?

Has anyone considered or fitted HID headlights yet?

Its one of those things i would like as i struggle like hell with standard bulbs to see where im going at night but theres always been something i cant put my finger on thats put me off. I know that sometimes MOT garages dont like them and the police arent keen but if modern luxury cars such as mercs and beamers have them then they must have something going for them.

Kits on ebay range from £30 - £60 but ive heard stories about the heat melting plastic parts and such, also heard stories about how great they are. Many thousands of these kits are sold on ebay so they cant be that bad can they?

Any thoughts??

I wouldn't. As they do look better, they blind others. Call me grumpy and old but even the factory ones on cars I find to bright for use.

We recently bought a Suzuki SZ5 which has HID's on dip as a standard factory fit and they make a big difference to night time visibility which made me look at fitting some on the TF.

In comparison with the TF I found that the standard H7 headlight bulbs, the low profile of the position of the headlights and the low seating position in the car gives very poor illumination and visibility for night time driving on unlit roads.

I fitted HID's only to the dipped headlights on the TF, I went for the white 4300k H7's as they were the same as the SZ5. The difference is fantastic, also a lot safer for night time driving.

The units were easy to fit, no alterations to the wiring, just two 3mm holes each side for the self tappers that hold the ballasts in place and cut a 20mm hole for the grommet in the rubber covers.

No oncoming car has flashed me at night while on dip beam and it has recently passed it's MOT with no comment on the HID's.

In my opinion a good upgrade to the TF.

Brian.

Just fit night breakers or the like for brighter lights, personally I use Philips Blue Lighters which are slightly brighter than O/E but have a blue finish which gives a whiter light.

We need to clarify that this conversion is illegal according to those that must be obeyed.
Whether your car passes an MOT or not. Still illegal.

HAVING SAID THAT, on the TF they are a passable improvement with acceptable beam pattern because of the projector beam headlights already fitted as standard.
Using hids on the F with its traditional reflector type headlamps do give a much brighter beam than normal, but there is also a lot of scatter that might cause dazzle to oncoming motorists.
As Brian mentions the low level of the MGs headlamps tend to mitigate the dazzling.

Personally, I find oncoming hids, even in expensive new cars to be very distracting/ blinding. There is no way the self levelling systems can cope with undulating roads, so that oncoming cars appear to be flashing main beam at you!

A good few interesting points of view there. I dont quite understand how the conversation can be illegal though?

Sithmaull wrote: A good few interesting points of view there. I dont quite understand how the conversation can be illegal though?

Legally HIDs should be O/E equipment, and the car should be fitted with a headlight levelling system and headlight washers but apart from that..............

Read this about the legal issues:
http://www.powerbulbs.com/blog/2010/03/are-xenon-hid-kits-legal

Richard

Sithmaull wrote: A good few interesting points of view there. I dont quite understand how the conversation can be illegal though?

The conversion of standard lights to HID is illegal; not this conversation about it.

Just to be clear, is your car an F or a TF?

If it is an F the lack of light is likely to be down to degraded reflectors which is a well know issue with older lamp units. There are several ways to sort this but the worst is simply to put in more powerful bulbs.

Richard

Its an F, the headlight units are in excellent condition both inside and out, i just always have struggled to see at night,, the missus has a little fiesta and the headlights are amazing, really lights up the roads so perhaps i'll just nick her bulbs and swap them with mine when shes out one day (assuming they are the same fitment of course)... Thats after i have managed to get the bonnet open that is, snapped cable.

With the headlights on the F, the reflectors go cloudy and dull, due to a step being left out of the metalising process.(Bloody beancounters again ) The step they left out, stabilises the metalising and protects it against heat damage.
If the car has only or has mainly used in urban areas the damage my not be easily visible as the high/main beam reflector (the one that's easy to see) wont have had enough use to cause damage to it, but the low/dipped beam lens can be cloudy/dull and you can only see this when the light is apart.

You can get the reflectors remetalised, I've had this done and it makes a huge difference.
Then if you fit Osram Ultimate Plus Night Breaker globes/bulbs, the lights are further improved. (you'll need 4 x 55watt H1)

Don't be tempted to fit higher wattage globes/bulbs as these will run too hot in such a relatively small light and won't last long as well as further damaging the metalising, not to mention being illegal.