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Angel Eyes & HID's FAQ's

82K views 187 replies 41 participants last post by  ramsman 
#1 ·
Im setting this thread up to clear up the majority of questions asked :)

Are HID's illegal?
Yes and No. This is a very grey area and is down to the headlights you currently have.



If you have halogen headlights (see pic above), it IS illegal.

"In summary it is not permitted to convert a halogen headlamp unit for use with hid bulbs..... The entire headlamp unit must be replaced with one designed and approved for use with HID bulbs"

It is also because the beam pattern cannot be aimed properly and cause glare (See pics below)






What about these H7R bulbs made for halogen headlights, and stop glares?

While these are made to stop glares, they still don't focus the beam properly and scatter light. In reality, they're just a bodge to try and fit HID's in halogen headlights. HID bulbs are brighter than "off roading" bulbs, which are illegal for road use because they are so bright. So theres no argument regarding the legality of HID's in reflector headlights.

And at the end of the day….

"In summary it is not permitted to convert a halogen headlamp unit for use with hid bulbs..... The entire headlamp unit must be replaced with one designed and approved for use with HID bulbs"



I already have HID's fitted (properly!), but i want to change the colour

OEM HID's are around the 4300K mark. If you wish to make the light whiter, 5000k-6000K is what you should be aiming for. The higher the Kelvin rating, the bluer the light output is. (Cool blue lights!) While you can make your headlights blue, you risk yourself being pulled by the police and possibly failing the MOT as the front lights must be white. Also 6000K onwards, your actually losing usable light and making your headlights worse.


What HID's are people using on here?
Quite an easy one, most users are using this kit (with depo headlights) which doesn't throw up can bus errors

I currently have halogen headlights and want HID's, what can i do?
There are two options:

Fit OEM xenons (£1500+)
Contact
Or (what most have done) is buy Depo headlights and use the HID kit previously recommended. While its still not technically legal, it will stop you from blinding every driver and attracting the attention of the police. Plus you won't look like a Chav in a MaxPower Corsa!



What are Depo's and what do they offer?
Depo's are a brand of headlight that gives you angel eyes without the cost of fitting Xenon headlights. You can use halogen bulbs in them, however light output isn't great. Due to this, HID's are used to get a better light output. The light output with the HID's fitted is roughly the same as OEM halogen headlights.

V1


V2


The difference between V1 Depos and V2 Depo's is the halo rings. The V2 Depos have LED's built in giving it a crisp white light, however if a LED fails, it isn't replaceable. The V1 Depo's take 4 small bulbs in each ring. They are a tad yellow and dim, but upgradable to LED. The benefit of V1 Depos over V2, is if a LED/Bulb fails in the V1, you can simply change the offending bulb. With the V2, you have to buy a new headlight

Fitting Depos

Ben GT said:
So i have Depo's (V1) and want to upgrade the rings to LED
Simple :) Delivery is slow but worth the wait. When you fit them, make sure you get the + and - right as they only work one way

5000K

6000K

If i fit HID's, do i need self levelling and headlight washers
Technically you should. However you will NOT fail an MOT if you don't have them at the moment (Nov 2013). However in time, this could be clamped down on in the future. So be prepared…

How do i know if i have headlight washers and self levelling
Headlight washers are simple to spot

Static


Pop up


Self levelling is harder to spot. You can look for the lever connected to the wishbone which monitors the pitch of the wishbone, however theres no real test to check whether it is working correctly. You could try a bumpy road, but I'm not sure how effective or accurate that test is

 
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#2 ·
Finally someone's decided to do this.. But the fact of the matter is most new members won't even bother doing a search and will just make a new thread for it like they have been already.
 
#3 ·
:lol2:

I'm hoping lee will stick it to the top on the lighting section. I hope it stops all these recent HID threads, but also the conflict that comes with it :) I'm tired of giving advise to people that dont accept what I'm saying is right (according to previous threads and experience)
 
#5 ·
118ddk said:
Some more facts...

If your have ordinary reflectors, you must go for "r" bulbs. Eks. "H7R" these are made for reflectors, and stop glares.

Some of these have been found to still glare. So it's not a good option unless you know the bulbs are tried and tested.
 
#6 ·
Good writeup, but you mentioned DEPOs but included links to Mstyle which are (usually, unless they've changed) Sonar units.

DEPO v1's are usually sourced from Raj at PPCGB here - :redface: :redface: - err I would usually put a helpful link here but I can't currently view their site as it's claiming that my browser (IE:cool2: is out of date. :redface: :redface:

DEPO v2's are souced from Germany (I can't be arsed to trawl through the forum for a suitable link).
 
#7 ·
redwizard said:
Good writeup, but you mentioned DEPOs but included links to Mstyle which are (usually, unless they've changed) Sonar units.

DEPO v1's are usually sourced from Raj at PPCGB here - :redface: :redface: - err I would usually put a helpful link here but I can't currently view their site as it's claiming that my browser (IE:cool2: is out of date. :redface: :redface:

DEPO v2's are souced from Germany (I can't be arsed to trawl through the forum for a suitable link).
Fixed :)
 
#8 ·
Hopefully it does work and cuts down on the HID threads. Sick and tired of reading the sand old questions and the same old debates about it in every thread
 
#9 ·
Dan, some questions that numpties like me need answering that may be worthwhile to go in the top post.

1) Those links say for cars for headlight levelling, how do we know if we have it?
2) what do depo's offer if you have to attach a HID kit to it? Just angel eyes?
3) I've seen posts that say depo's give out poor light. Is that different between models? Is this improved by adding a HID kit?

I know the above is kind of linked but not directly to your post but may be ideal to have it all in one post as its something i've been researching today!

Thanks xxxx :)
 
#17 ·
Ben GT said:
Going to the states though, worth me picking those up?
Personally i would keep it simple and go for what everyone else has done. Then you know you won't have any issues :) And if you do, you don't need to send the item back to the US
 
#21 ·
I wouldn't say their worse, but depos are tried and tested. Plus the Sonar headlights are LED, and if they break, you'll need a new headlight just like the Depo V2
 
#23 ·
You can try ebay. The unique feature of the depos V1 is the fact they take four bulbs in the rings rather than fixed LED's unlike all the other brands (from what I've seen). So just have a search and see what you find :)
 
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