Led or Hid headlights

[Randyparson44]

So ive done some research & read some forums and am wondering what each boils down to? And what you decided to go for on your headlight upgrade?

I know led uses less energy, is an instant on light, usually less distance then hid, but have a better look and life span. Yet hear many say hid is better?? Opinions..

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[1WickedCivic]

I went for Morimoto Elite HID system on mine http://www.morimotohid.com/hid-systems/morimoto-elite-hid-system-h11.html - you want to choose H11B bulbs, as that is the one compatible with our cars.

It may be a cliche but the difference is night & day, compared to the stock halogen bulbs. It does take about 25-30 seconds seconds to reach full brightness but not a big deal for me.

 

[scott5626]

I prefer HID's. Unless you have a refractor that's optimized for led lights your not going to have a very long throw. I went with xenondepot 35 watt hid and confirmed for myself that they use less wattage on start up and much less after than the stock. A lot of the led lights have heat sinks and that concerned me as there's not much room at all behind the stock assembly. I went with 6500k and they are very close to the stock led running lights.

 

[Calibur]

I say go HIDs. LEDs aren't great unless it comes standard in your vehicle. Unless you swap out the head unit to the touring head unit like one of the members here. I don't know his name. Sorry.

Edited : scratch that. I must have read it wrong, they say swapping headlights to touring is difficult because of the wiring is very different and difficult. Go HiDs.

 

[Troy Jollimore]

The stock Touring LEDs are quite impressive. VERY white light, and not a bad projection field. I would imagine a good HID setup would beat them for range, at the expense of width and brightness.

 

[1WickedCivic]

The stock Touring LEDs are quite impressive. VERY white light, and not a bad projection field. I would imagine a good HID setup would beat them for range, at the expense of width and brightness.

The HID setup I had installed is putting out 3400-3500/lumen; do you what the stock Touring LED headlights put out?

 

[Troy Jollimore]

The HID setup I had installed is putting out 3400-3500/lumen; do you what the stock Touring LED headlights put out?

No idea. Hard to find that info with a quick search as well. When I said 'brightness', I meant how things like street signs illuminate. The LEDs really make them react.

 

[Brandons2697]

The HID setup I had installed is putting out 3400-3500/lumen; do you what the stock Touring LED headlights put out?

Link to your HID's?

 

[1WickedCivic]

Link to your HID's?

Here you go, still waiting to take some night shots http://www.civicx.com/threads/request-hids-ballast-mounting-locations.3884/#post-69879

 

[jmat]

HID. XenonDepot xtreme kit either 5000 or 6500k. No issues in the last 6 months, except the tape didnt hold up that well on one ballast. I reseated it and all was good.

 

[Calibur]

I would recommend 4500k. It doesn't have that blue light when looking at a certain angle. 4500k is pure white.

 

[Design]

The light pattern of HIDs in a halogen reflector produces a lot of stray light. Honda's LED is quite good, and produces a MUCH better light pattern than any aftermarket HID kit. Unless you're willing to retrofit a full HID housing within.

With all the issues we're getting with the Infotainment, the last thing we want is a piggy-back ballast causing Honda to question your electrical warranty (however far-fetched that sounds).

 

[thekid23]

Here you go, still waiting to take some night shots http://www.civicx.com/threads/request-hids-ballast-mounting-locations.3884/#post-69879

nice man. i like how you set up your ballasts(from your other post in a different topic). could you post up some night shots? i was a past TRS customer, now that i got a civic, i hate the output. heavily leaning towards getting the xb55 6500k. did the bulb fit right in? no issues with fitting?

 

[Gavnzdad]

Personally, I think there comes a point where a headlight upgrade should be illegal. Some "stock" headlights now days should be illegal. There are lots of vehicle headlights that are dangerous to other drivers because they are so bright. And for what, to see an extra 2 feet? The stock headlights in my car are pretty darn good, so I don't need to irritate other drivers, or cause them to be unable to see when passing me. That's all I'll say on the subject. TETO

 

[Troy Jollimore]

Personally, I think there comes a point where a headlight upgrade should be illegal. Some "stock" headlights now days should be illegal. There are lots of vehicle headlights that are dangerous to other drivers because they are so bright. And for what, to see an extra 2 feet? The stock headlights in my car are pretty darn good, so I don't need to irritate other drivers, or cause them to be unable to see when passing me. That's all I'll say on the subject. TETO

It's how the brightness is measured, and the power is projected, that makes all the difference. I used to get flashed all the time with the stock lights on my Talon. I changed them up for some 'illegal' off-road housings (with a modern-style cut-off) and 'illegal' 65w/135w bulbs... No more flashing. The cut-off kept the light down on the road, and it was up to me to regulate the super-bright hi-beams.

Most of these new lights seem bright, but fall within legal specs.

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