Another Headlight Question

I need to know different options with my flip-up headlights. I know of the H4 conversion but I was looking at something like on the top of the 3si web page where the healights are down but still shining through the lenses. How would I do that? Or like I saw on another thread in here where the guy with the SL took the lenses off. Once agian how would I take those off. I looked at them and they didnt look like they were bolted down so I don't know. And while I'm on this once agian I might as well ask if anyone knows a good sealed beam headlight that would qualify as a "Xenon Halogen" (a name and brand would be great).

I need to know different options with my flip-up headlights. I know of the H4 conversion but I was looking at something like on the top of the 3si web page where the healights are down but still shining through the lenses. How would I do that? Or like I saw on another thread in here where the guy with the SL took the lenses off. Once agian how would I take those off. I looked at them and they didnt look like they were bolted down so I don't know. And while I'm on this once agian I might as well ask if anyone knows a good sealed beam headlight that would qualify as a "Xenon Halogen" (a name and brand would be great).

1. options for pop-ups? H4 simply allows you to change the bulb out and put brighter bulbs in. For the headlights to be on shining through the bottom exterior lens is called the Snake Eyes mod. there are several different ways to do it. so a search on here, there have been many threads. the easiest way to do it is to use the 'jumper wire method'.

2. the lenses that are commonly referred to as the snake eyes lens, is just a bolt-on piece. however, to access the bolts, you have to remove the headlights.

3. "Xenon Halogen"---where did you get this info? i've never heard of that. if you want a brighter light, then you basically have 2 options: A) convert to 2nd gen headlights B) do an HID retrofit.

I heard of the Xenon Halogens on the internet. All it basically is, is a halogen that looks like a xenon. Is it much work to take the headlights off?

so a halogen that LOOKS like a xenon? that means nothing to me. what does that mean to you? does the color resemble that of a xenon?

look, i know that you have observed a severe lack of lighting coming from the pop-up headlights and you want to remedy that. i've noticed this too, and i have sought after all the cheaper options. none of them really do anything noticeable. i did the H4 conversion, put some brighter bulbs in there, and all it did was give me a cooler, brighter blue color than a stock halogen.

a good friend of mine did an HID retrofit on his 97 prelude over Christmas and the results were incredible. basically, an HID retrofit is your best option. another, more feasible and less challenging option is to upgrade to the 94-99 headlights.

so basically we're dealing with light output, or luminosity, here. the luminosity put out by 1 halogen lamp on a car is in the area of 1500-1800 lumens. this is the measured light output, different from the color temperature which you will often seen advertised as 3000K (K for Kelvin, absolute temperature. to convert Kelvin to Celsius, simply subtract 273.15 and you have the Celsius equivalent). Xenon luminosity is much much greater than that of halogens. on average, a xenon lamp has 2,800 to 3,000 lumens, so basically twice that of a halogen lamp.

now you will see advertised different color temperatures for xenons, and most would think that simply, the higher the number, the brighter the bulb. NOT correct. the color temperature does correlate to the luminosity, but its not 1-to-1 like you would think. the color temperature at which the xenon bulb produces the maximum amount of lumens is 4300K. so the 6,000K and 8,000K bulbs simply give you a reduced light output, but a different color like blue or purple, respectively, which some people like and care more about than visibility.

if you want to do an HID retrofit, do it the right way. DON'T buy a HID kit, as those simply just put out a bunch of light and doesn't filter it properly. and HID retrofit basically entails taking a HID headlight projector lense from another car (a high end new model car that has HIDs) and fitting it all onto your car. the key here is the Projector Lens. this special lens filters the light from the xenon bulb so that you get a clear, clean cut off pattern as the light emanates from the bulb to the street. without this lens, the light will look like crap and just go everywhere.

so, to conclude, the average automobile xenon bulb puts out twice the luminosity of the average automobile halogen bulb. the benefits of a xenon upgrade are obvious. however, to make the most out out the xenon advantages, the projector lens is necessary to control and filter the light. this will give you that straight, clean edge of light. without the projector lens (say if you just stuck HID bulbs in your headlight housing) then the light would just go everywhere and would not be concentrated on the road ahead. visibility would not necessarily be increased.

i strongly urge you and anyone else to read up on this at the wikipedia online: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headlight

there is so much more to tell and explain, so please do the research. also, another valuable resource is www.hidplanet.com/forums . sign up here, you can use a free web e-mail address like hotmail, gmail, yahoo or whatever. read and research everything. very valuable info and you can see pics illustrating what i've described.

Thanks for all the help. I'll check out the links.

here are some more useful links for auto lighting and HIDs for all interested:

great overview. many questions answered. FAQ...nuf said http://faqlight.carpassion.info/index.html

wikipedia--great overview in one article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headlight

different type of HID bulbs http://faqlight.carpassion.info/hl-hid-bulbs.htm

HID Planet-University (faq section, great write-ups, plenty of pics) http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=21&sid=7812f6eb45a31089ee82c382cc870810

HID Planet - sells certain projectors, bulbs, ballasts and other lighting options http://www.hidplanet.com/main.html

retailer that makes wire harnesses http://www.suvlights.com/index.php

1G HID retro install (PICS) http://www.3si.org/forum/showthread.php?t=291237

sl if you dont mind me hijacking your thread i got a headlight question also..im getting some discoloration on my passanger side headlight, kind of a light yellowish film on it..can take pics if it will help..just want to know what can cause this and how to resolve it..thanks for any help guys

Wetsand and buff

thanks stealthee..should I start off with 800grit and go lighter then buff or do I want to start off with something a little more corse?

http://jagvr4.8m.com/hrestore.htm ;) :)

stealthee..i am in your debt......