[[email protected]]

Hey guys, have you seen this website http://www.xenonshop.com ? I just found the link and it looks pretty interesting. It says there is a cross reference to replace bulbs in the 850, and they use Phillips HID bulbs, so this isn't a purple bulb conversion, but real HIDs.

We're going to be launching Project 854 R shortly, and I'm seriously considering this to some extent, though I have a few reservations and or thoughts on it.

First, they seem to have HID capability for the high beams, low beams and foglights. That'd be expensive to do all of that, and I don't really think anything more than the low beams will be necessary for the car.

The R's foglights are weak, but with HIDs that doesn't really matter. I've driven cars with them, and they REALLY make a difference.

Second issue is DRLs. With DRLs the HIDs will be on all of the time, and I have reservations about running such expensive bulbs 24/7.

Last is how the beams will exit the stock housings. These housings weren't designed for HID bulbs, though I expect the light to go out in a similar fashion, i.e. not up and blinding oncoming traffic.

Though the highbeams on our R kick butt, the low beams are less than adequate for our needs, so I think this is the way we'll go.

This kit, with Phillips components, seems pretty high quality, and as far as I can tell, the closest thing we'll get to a factory finish.

 

[Prospero]

Nice deal, $610 for HID headlamps. I have never thought about converting over, but the price is not all that bad. Only question remaining would be the service life of the bulb. How long shoud one last do you think? I have no experience with HID, yet. I hope the bulbs are $<100 to replace if the service life is less than 2 years.

 

[[email protected]]

I'm not too sure about that, but I agree, the price is very reasonable, and your retain the factory lenses.

I'm all for improving on a car while retaining the could-be-factory look, and this is a natural IMHO.

 

[Prospero]

No doubt in my mind there. I maybe will even do low output high beams as DRLs instead of fog lamps. (as seen on other cars) As I have not found any fog lights that will look good on my car, yet. I want the factory look but don't want the factory price.

 

[[email protected]]

I'd suggest factory foglights, but they really don't do all that much anyway.

 

[S.R.]

George,

The DRL's can be turned off! If there is a little "screw-head" right by the headlight switch, then the DRL's on your car can be turned off. If it is on your car, all you have to do is turn the screw in either direction, and it will turn off the DRL's. I will have to check my manual to see which way the screw has to be turned, it is something like 60 degree's. BTW, I think that you should go for the HID's. I have been wondering how well those work from XenonShop. I know that some of the AudiWorld folks have done it to their cars.

Another thing that I wanted to mention is that if you do decide to put HID's on your car, it will be important to turn off the DRL's. The only downside to HID Xenon lights is that they do not like being turned on and off regularly. This would be the case for DRL's. HID Xenon lights do decrease in effectiveness over time (long time) unlike filament bulbs, that just suddenly burn out. If they are turned off and on the arc in the Xenon gas does not discharge fully. This is the reason why they can not be used for flash-to-pass or highbeams. This is why a moving-mask is used for the highbeam like the Bi-Xenon systems for the 996 Turbo, S8, and CL500/600. I know that XenonShop will do conversions for all lights, but I am not sure how well it will work for highbeams.

Also, if you must have DRL's or want the "cool factor", you can hook up your foglights to the parking lights. I think that it is a pretty simple procedure, but I am not sure how to do it on an 800 series car. The power "ON" source for the fogs lights needs to be changed to the parking light circuit rather than the low-beam circuit. I know that there are people on the BrickBoard that have done this before.

-Drew

 

[Prospero]

I was wondering what the little screw was there for. I will have to try it as soon as I break free from work. Thanks for the input!
Prospero

 

[S.R.]

I turned off my DRL's as soon as I got my car. It makes the bulbs last almost 10-times longer depending on how much you drive.

I have my fogs hooked up so they work with just the parking lights. It is the Canadian way of doing DRL's.

-Drew

 

[Prospero]

I can't wait to kill the DRLs on my 850. I will connect some for when I drive, but I want to be in control of when they come on. My neighbors hate when I start my car in the am as my headlamps beam them right in their bedroom window. I try to turn on the parking lamps before I start the car, but I am not always 100% awake at 5 in the morning. Anyhow, thanks again for the input. Now to mount fog lamps. Factory ones look good, but not effective according to George. I don't rellish the idea of forking out several hundred bones to get some ill-performing lights. Any suggestions?

 

[S.R.]

This is what I did with my car:

The factory fog lights on my car ('95 964) work really well, the only problem is that they only work with the low-beams on. So, I found a very easy solution to get Canadian style DRL's and an extra set of fog lights. The fog lights that I got are made by Pilot Automotive. They have two bulbs inside of them. One is a regular 55 watt H3 bulb and the other is a blue 35 watt bulb. The best thing about them is that they work with a two-button remote control. This makes installation a snap, because there is no need to run wiring around the engine or through the firewall. The remote control has two buttons on it, so that I can turn on either/both bulb for the fog lights, and it works from about 100 feet away. The lens on the lights are tinted slightly blue as you can see in the picture, but when they are on, they produce a very "white" light. They work great for complementing the low-beams or by themselves. I only use them when appropriate though. Good companies for aftermarket lights are of course Hella, Catz, Raybrig, and Pilot. I only paid about $140 for these including the remote system/wiring, not a bad deal.

-Drew

 

[Prospero]

You and I have very similar taste. I have the same lights on my '94 accord. The blue bulb in mine is a 8mm blue LED though. I have them hard wired into the alarm so that when the alarm is armed they light up, not blinking, and of course when dis-armed they are off. Looks great, and don't drain the battery at all. Total current draw was 40 mAh. I do not think that they will mesh well with the red paint on my 850 though. I do miss them ever so much, hard to see in the rain for now. I am still conflicted about what to do about fogs, I want the look that is on the Volvo as seen on the IPD website. Any ideas what is going on there? Could be a nice edited photo, or they could be real. But that is the look I am going for.

 

[Prospero]

Oh my now, that is soo much better. No more DRLs when starting the car in the am (or anymore for that matter). Indy, my neighbors, my battey, and I thank you. BTW, the screw turned to the 10 o' clock position did the trick. Thanks again

 

[S.R.]

Prospero,

Depending on when you last changed your low-beam bulbs, you might want to consider getting some new ones. Over time, the lens on the bulb can start to get cloudy or brown, and this will affect the light output. Also, if someone touched the lens of the bulb, the fingerprints get burned onto the bulb. Since you had your DLR's on for so long, your bulbs might be pretty worn out. There are some great new bulbs out there that are filled with Xenon gas, called Philips High Visibility, Wagner Xenon Britelite, Narva Plus 30, Sylvania Xtravision, or Narva Rangepower. This is the next best thing you can do for your lighting besides doing a real $650 HID conversion. These are all real clear Xenon filled filament bulbs, not the blue coated poor vision ones that you find in stores.

-Drew

 

[Prospero]

The day I bought my 850 I pulled out the OEM bulbs and replaced them with some of those light blue coated ones. Hey, at $11.00 for a 2-pack from Sylvania/Osram, I was not going to pass up on the deal. There is a significant light output difference between the OEM's and "new" bulbs. I believe that some of the halogen gas has excaped from the bulbs, which came with the car. Similar to the result of phosphorus depreciation that occurs with fluorescent bulbs. They just get old and dim. (Sort of like an ex-girlfriend does with time) Too bad I can't replace them with a 2-pack for 11 bucks.

Anyhow, HID is in my future, vision is paramount in my eyes.

(Pardon the pun) Tell you one thing for sure, the 850 has some killer head lights when it comes to illuminating the area directly in front of the vehicle. This is the first car that I didn't need additional lighting for the dark region usually prevalent in the immediate bumper forward area on most cars. Now, about the long distances...