Aftermarket HID? Results?

Headlamps that have optics designed for halogen filament bulbs can not be fitted with HID bulbs and be expected to comply with federal and state motor vehicle beam pattern and intensity requirements. Anyone who says otherwise is a snake oil salesman. What your are getting yourself into is a headlamp system that has way too much intensity in the wrong places on the highway. That not only is bad for you, but also for other highway users. Also, if your headlamp emits both the lower and upper beams from the same reflector/bulb, then you are most likely to loose having an upper beam. Some aftermarket kluges use solenoids or motors to move the HID bulb around in the headlamp socket to make up for that deficiency, but most are unreliable, all compromise headlamp performance, and all achieve undue glare.

Bottom line: if you want real HID headlamps, get OEM HID headlamps when you buy your car.

 

If you just put in a new bulb, it'll be lousy. You have to swap the housing too. There are usually Pri on eBay that have been in a rollover or something. You could probably find someone to sell you the housings, bulbs, and starter (starters?) as a package. The HIDs are nice.

 

You are so right! But for most prospective Prius purchasers, the best advice is to test drive both kinds of headlamps at night! The buy the kind that you want when you order or pick out you new Prius. It will save lots of headaches and guilty feelings.

 

the cutoff on the halogen lamps are just as good as the HID housing, im not promoting it, but the HID housing and the normal halogen housing are almost the same, the bulbs are located in the same area, except the HID has a auto leveling system.

i would buy a kit if i had the money, the stock halogens are great though, i would just stick with it.

 

Regardless of what anyone may tell you, I reiterate: "Headlamps that have optics designed for halogen filament bulbs can not be fitted with HID bulbs and be expected to comply with federal and state motor vehicle beam pattern and intensity requirements. Anyone who says otherwise is a snake oil salesman. What your are getting yourself into is a headlamp system that has way too much intensity in the wrong places on the highway. That not only is bad for you, but also for other highway users. Also, if your headlamp emits both the lower and upper beams from the same reflector/bulb, then you are most likely to loose having an upper beam. Some aftermarket kluges use solenoids or motors to move the HID bulb around in the headlamp socket to make up for that deficiency, but most are unreliable, all compromise headlamp performance, and all achieve undue glare.

Bottom line: if you want real HID headlamps, get OEM HID headlamps when you buy your car."

If you do not trust me, click on my name and read about me.

 

Hmm- how appropriate. lol. I'm looking for a 2g prius with HID and came across this thread. I agree with Rich with the fact that they are ILLEGAL. However, there are A LOT of things that most of us do that are illegal when we drive. Speed, change lanes w/o signaling, lift our trucks to make the light output at a given height go beyond the maximum tolerance allowed to prevent blinding other drivers, etc...

That's not to excuse the fact that the lights are illegal and I won't chide you if you do something illegal because we're all grown up here and we can all make decisions on our own. What I will say though is - if you're going to add an HID kit, add the right kind. I took at look at the lights offered by the company in the original post and the HID H4 bulbs that they use will offer you your high beam option (albeit, a halogen bulb) but it will still have one.

I am looking for a used prius like the OP's dad and would love to get one with factory HID but if I can't find a good deal on one with them, then I'll have to settle for one without. I have aftermarket HID lights on my car right now that I bought years ago when Philips used legitimately make sets and they work wonders. What I did notice compared to a factory HID is that the way the housing is designed, it projects more light directly in front of you because it is designed for a halogen which does not have a lot of overall light output. After putting in the HID bulbs, I noticed a lot more light directly ahead of me on the ground compared to other cars that were the same as mine but that came with HID from the factory. I'm not saying this is good or bad, it just is what it is - but I can definitely see better at night and I don't get flashed at all.