HID conversion Elise S2

[Shug]

Thats not proper HID's though :S

Its just an effect...

argh right, i stand corrected.....it does say that they are 5000k output thou

Colour temp is nothing to do with output. It's just the colour of the light. HIDs are "better" as they throw more light output - a blue halogen is just a blue halogen. As Rich says, the actual effectiveness of headlights is more a combo factor (colour, output, spread, even height of the lamps) rather than one thing though.

[Justin]

Generally, 4300k are standard Xenon colour, and 8000k are a bit chav/blue/purple.

I'd go for 4300k (whiter) or 6000k which have a blue tinge to them..

6000k -





I think these were 4300k, but they might have been 6000k

[Justin]

The VX220 ones ARE 6000k, and the Clio ones are the standard 4300k

[dirkpitt]

Generally, 4300k are standard Xenon colour, and 8000k are a bit chav/blue/purple.

I'd go for 4300k (whiter) or 6000k which have a blue tinge to them..

6000k -





I think these were 4300k, but they might have been 6000k

ing the second pic of the exige..very nice.......6000k HIDs right?

[Justin]

Yeah 6000k, got them off eBay!

[IanD]

Seloc have just organised a HID bulk discount buy through Elise-shop and have HID lights on offer for £40 or £50 + vat + postage for 4300k light at moment. Certainly worth a look if you are thinking about them.

See http://forums.seloc.org/viewthread.php?tid=287760 but need to be registered to see it - registration is free

Initial seloc post below

Time to shed some (HID) light!



As announced earlier on, we have been working on a new HID bulkdeal for a little while.

We've spent a lot of time looking for a new, reliable supplier who can help us to offer relatively cheap but reliable kits. ..and we found one..


Some background on HIDs:

Xenon or HID lamps are the bright white lamps you'd normally find in the newer generation cars. Although these lamps draw less current then the OE halogen bulbs, the light output is increased by approx. 3 - 3.5x over a Halogen bulb.

Besides.. the colour temperature of these lamps is different.. The kits we are quoting are 4300 Kelvin which is not too blue and mostly used by OE manufacturers.
The advantage of this colour temperature is a more relaxing view of what's in front of you. Besides, road marking will reflect better.
We have decided to move away from the 6000K versions as people tend to want the HID's to look factory standard rather than aftermarket.

HID is High Intensity Discharge.
The actual bulb looks like a small glass bubble. The bubble looks empty, but it is filled with Xenon gas. (hence the reason why some people call these lamps Xenon lamps)

Xenon gas is used as the conductor.

Applying 12 Volt to this conductor wouldn't start the lamp as the Xenon gas needs a higher voltage to start. To start the lamp, you need to apply approx. 24.000 Volt. When the lamp heats up, the voltage is lowered to approx. 85 Volt.

Comparing the two: (based on a H1 (=Elise S2) base)
Halogen / HID
Wattage (W) 55 / 35
Candela (CD) 67500 / 202500
Lumen (Lm) 1550 / 3100-2900
ColourTemp (K) 3200 / 4300

Beware, we are not only offering a bulb, but a complete kit which contains of a ballast / starter unit and the actual lamp per light unit.

This kits we're offering are:

Elise S1 H4 full kit
This kit replaces the OE H4 lamp and will act as both dip beam and main beam. This is done with a single HID lamp which is positioned correctly for the function (dip or main beam). Also known as Hi/Lo kit.
The wiring loom is improved to draw power directly from the battery.

Elise S1 H1 driving lights
This kit will replace the original H1 bulbs in the OE driving lights. You will need to drill a hole in the black rear cover of the driving light to feed the wires and connectors through.

Elise S2 (VX220/Speedster) H1 single kit
This is the lowest cost solution for the Elise S2 This kit replaces the dip beam bulbs with the high power HID items. Mean beam will remain Halogen.
Please read below remark regarding S2 lamps!!

Elise S2 (VX220/Speedster) H7 single kit
This kit will replace the main beam lamps with the high-power HID items. Dip beam will remain Halogen.

Elise S2 H3 driving lights
This kit will replace the original H3 bulbs in the OE driving lights. You will need to drill a hole in the black rear cover of the driving light to feed the wires and connectors through.



Prices:

The price for any of the single kits will be £ 39.95 or € 47.95

The pricing for the Elise S1 Hi/Lo kit will be £ 49.95 or € 59.95

All mentioned prices exclude VAT and shipping.

If you order anything over £ 75,- + VAT for shipment within the UK (mainland excluding Highlands) you will get free shipping.

This is the link to the H4 Hi/Lo kits

and this is the link to the single kits

We will run this offer till Christmas. We have already received a first shipment so we can do quite a few kits from stock.
If we would need to re-order, we will charge 2010 VAT. Last shipment should take no longer than mid Januari, but this is only when we have to re-order.

For Elise S2 / Exige S2 owners: Lotus has changed the fillament of the Dip beam as of MY2007.
If the sidelights on your car are integrated in the main beam reflector, your car has pre-2007 headlamps with H1 Dip Beam lamps.
If your car has seperate sidelights, which are located above the Dip beam projector, your car has MY 2007 onwards lamps which have H7 dip beam lamps.

If you have any further questions, please let me know..



(*)The components in the new kits are not interchangable with the old kits. However, we have a rather large stock of spare ballasts and lamps, so we will not leave the people who previously bought a kit in the dark.

[Matelotman]

Not legal either?

I thought the purpose of HID is that it throws out more light - nicer colour is just a side effect?

Strictly speaking, you need to replace the entire light unit for them to be legal

http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roadsafety/drs/hidheadlamps

[CubanGav]

I've looked but dont see and HID specific reflectors. Do they exist?

[dirkpitt]

okay update on HID's

i bought and fitted some 6000k h1 bulbs from ebay..and they look great and work nice.....however, im hearing that they would be an MOT failure , due to the new rules...is this so?

leigh

P.S. will show some pics later

[Rich H]

Like a lot of things... technically they are a fail now but most MOT stations are happy with lights that work, the only give away is the slight delay in sparking up, but it depends ont he mot station...
Swap back should not take very long if it fails on them, unplug HID ballasts plug in old bulbs, pass MOT, reconnect HIDs.

for example headlamp bulbs are supposed to be E marked, but the MOT station can't take things to bits to check... so they don't care.

[dirkpitt]

Like a lot of things... technically they are a fail now but most MOT stations are happy with lights that work, the only give away is the slight delay in sparking up, but it depends ont he mot station...
Swap back should not take very long if it fails on them, unplug HID ballasts plug in old bulbs, pass MOT, reconnect HIDs.

for example headlamp bulbs are supposed to be E marked, but the MOT station can't take things to bits to check... so they don't care.

yeah as you say ill just change back for the MOT.......also, a bit worried about dazzling other drivers with them, but being a loty the lights are much lower than most cars so figure this isnt an issue...infact its more the oher way round, im the one being dazzled by range rovers with massive HID lights



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[Rich H]

jsut find a flat bit of ground and a nice stright wall and adjust them so they don't rise. I did the esprit by wheeling a wheelie bin ni the way of the lights and marking the upper edge of the flat bright bit, then wheel the bin 10' further away and see if the bright bit goes up or down.

Keep checking and adjusting until it's flat then you'll have maximum range.

Left/right is slightly harder but the same applies.

[PartTimer]

I've had them for a couple of years. Best upgrade yet. Went for both main and dipped beam, which is very useful when driving in the highlands at night. No issues yet with MOTs. Just make sure they are correctly adjusted. I didn't at first and kept getting flashed by oncoming cars.

[a4drk]

I've bought a set of Xenons for the S2 Exige.
THe ballast is really slim.
Wheres the best place for the ballasts to go ?
Havent taken the wheels off / plastic cover off yet -
I'm assuming there will be space in there somewhere?

I went for 4300k.
not bad @ £63

David

[C7Steve]

http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/f286/di ... ge-112974/

http://wiki.seloc.org/a/Fit_a_HID_kit

Steve.