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Need a GenIII owner to test a headlight idea

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Accessories and Modifications' started by F8L, Dec 16, 2011.

  1. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    I was reading up on HIDPlanet.com and noticed there was discussion on trimming an H9 bulb to fit in an H11 projector. The GenIII has an H11 projector that may benefit from swapping to a higher output H9 bulb. this would eliminate the need for an HID kit for those not interested in installing one. The optics may also be better. Orrr You may be able to use an H9 HID kit for extra lumens. Here is the information I copied from HIDPlanet. Thanks to Markus for posting it there.

    Is anyone willing to buy a cheapo H9 bulb and see if you can make it fit? This could benefit GenIII owners now and in the future. :)

    Here is a thread referring to changing to an H9 bulb in the foglights.

    http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...-parking-lights-rear-license-plate-bulbs.html
     
    #1 F8L, Dec 16, 2011
  2. wick1ert

    wick1ert Senior Member

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    I'll try to give it a shot. Since I already have an HID kit installed, I will probably try to get a pair of H9 HID bulbs ($15 on ebay). They are usually the same end plugs so should be a simple swap, no? If I can find a cheap pair of regular H9 bulbs to try, I might do that too. I assume the plug is the same for H9 and H11?
     
    #2 wick1ert, Dec 16, 2011
  3. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    It is supposed to be but since I don't have the car I cannot tell. :) I think all you need to do is trim the base of the bulb a little bit.

    Ohh, I also need you to measure the depth of the basket on your bike. I have an idea for mounting your Mini headlight but it will only work if you have a lot of depth behind the headlight housing. ;)
     
    #3 F8L, Dec 16, 2011
  4. wick1ert

    wick1ert Senior Member

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    I just ebay'd (not to be confused with Tebow'd) some H9 HID bulbs and some H9 halogen (65W). The lowest wattage I saw was 65W for the H9, which is what a standard high beam wattage is. I'll get 5000k HID and the other says 5.5k-6k which is the closest I could find at a reasonable price.

    I'll try to get that measurement this weekend for you. There's a good 6" of depth behind the headlight, since it goes back into an opening. The back of the headlight assembly, goes into an open cavity to some extent.
     
    #4 wick1ert, Dec 16, 2011
  5. wick1ert

    wick1ert Senior Member

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    I got the H9 HID lights in the mail today (they shipped fast!), so hopefully with a 3 day weekend coming up I can get something done. I plan to compare the H9 HID with the OEM lights that I took out of the car to see if I can come to any determination without really hacking things up initially. That should make it a little easier on me when it comes time to dremel or whatever I might end up having to do.
     
    #5 wick1ert, Dec 20, 2011
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  6. putty

    putty Member

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    I almost did this but then found hids, that might of been a good trick before the price of hids dropped, wic not sure why you got h9 hids
     
    #6 putty, Dec 20, 2011
  7. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    The output difference could apply to HIDs also. It's all about bulb design.
     
    #7 F8L, Dec 20, 2011
  8. wick1ert

    wick1ert Senior Member

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    Ok, I got the HID bulbs in during the week. I'm still waiting on the regular H9 bulbs to show up so I can get some comparison shots. I took some pictures of the H9 and the H11 bulb that came with the car. Basically, it looks as though there is 1 little tab that is larger on the H9 bulb than the H11 bulb. I took my wire cutters to that tab, took 2 small slices off of it, and it slipped right into the housing. Very simple, and really anyone could do it. You could even use a dremel if you wanted, or some tin snips. I find the wire cutters worked good, because the cutting part is small and they are easy to maneuver around the tab and still fit between the tab and the bottom base of the bulb.

    I attached a straight on view of the H9 and H11. Then the straight on view of the H9 after I modified it. Both bulbs need modified the same way, since there's no such thing as a "left" or "right" bulb.

    I'll follow back up on this thread once I get all my bulbs in to give some comparison views. Hopefully everything will show up this week, as I have a 3 day weekend coming up and assuming I'm not too hungover might be able to get it done then.
     

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    #8 wick1ert, Dec 26, 2011
  9. xs650

    xs650 Senior Member

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    #9 xs650, Dec 26, 2011
  10. xs650

    xs650 Senior Member

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    #10 xs650, Dec 29, 2011
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