96 Land Cruiser H.I.D. install question

[NorthStar96]

My rig is a 1996 Land Cruiser. stock headlights. I want to put HID's into her and i was wondering if i need special harnesses or wiring or adapters?
Will the Glass housings accept an hid bulb? {Im trying to avoid the cost of a set of Depot plastic housings.}
Any input will be appreciated.

 

[WUzombies]

Watch what you buy, DOT approval means nothing, there are some who have SAE certification numbers, that actually means it was tested and certified to meet 49 CFR 571.108, which is the federal statute regulating required vehicle lighting. Most states have language adopting that statute, in Texas for instance that would be TC547.3215. Point being, be careful what you buy, there is a lot of worthless crap on the market, much of it not legal.

 

[Spyduh]

Do it right and get projectors.
http://www.theretrofitsource.com

I've bought 3 kits from them. Did my 99 taco trd, 07 sienna xle limited and my 06 tundra dc.

Was about to do my 86 4runner but the 5x7 are to shallow for a projector. So I went with trucklite leds. Pricey buy awesome.


It's fairly easy to diy if you are handy with tools, oven and heat gun and you may need a dremel.

You can buy cheaper projectors kits on ebay. Their Morimoto hid kits are top notch. If you cheap, go ddmtuning.com for a great hid kit as a good price. Stay away from no name brand ebay hid kits.


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[mmnorthdirections]

Just FYI, research HID lighting and the usable light you get without projector lenses (NOT THE REFLECTOR). Without the proper projector the light that is "scatter" not projected far enough away from the driver constricts your pupils and greatly impacts night vision. If you look at the European rally lights they have a yellow tint (and halogen), the reason is the eye reacts to yellow differently than the extreme white of HID and enhances night vision. HID's are nice and I have two on the FJ (long range spots) and I run a PIAA 9004 as my head light.
I will look for the article that I was so schooled from and maybe it will help you!!!!!!

 

[TreXTerra]

Do not put HID lights into the factory housing. Doing so is both illegal in all 50 states, and it is dangerous to other drivers. HID lights must have a projector type housing with a cutoff to prevent oncoming traffic from being blinded. On most cars today that means that the projector lens is actuated and will physically "dip" for low beam and aim itself higher for high-beam. Other vehicles use a metal shield that rotates down in front of or behind the projector lens to create a nice crisp cut-off. My wife's car uses this method and you can hear the actuators move the shield when you click the high beams on and off.

The reason HID lights don't work in halogen housings is because of how the light is generated. In a halogen lamp, most the light is generated at the center of the filament and the housing is carefully constructed around this premise. Lots and lots of geometry goes into refractor housings or (or prism lenses on older vehicles). An HID is actually an arc and there are two points of prime light generation - one at each end. Also, HID "conversion kits" usually are cheaply made and don't sit in the housing the same way as the stock bulb. Between this and the two points of light generation, you have lots of "spill" of light where you don't want it.

If you do switch to HID from halogen you need to change your entire headlight assembly in order to operate safely. In some states swapping HID into halogen housings is an automatic failure on the safety inspection. Even if your state doesn't have a safety inspection, using non-DOT lighting on the street is illegal in all 50 states.

 

[mmnorthdirections]

I found IT......http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html
It's tricky to judge headlamp beam performance without a lot of knowledge, a lot of training and a lot of special equipment, because subjective perceptions are very misleading. Having a lot of strong light in the foreground, that is on the road close to the car and out to the sides, is very comforting and reliably produces a strong impression of "good headlights". The problem is that not only is foreground lighting of decidedly secondary importance when travelling much above 30 mph, but having a very strong pool of light close to the car causes your pupils to close down, worsening your distance vision...all the while giving you this false sense of security. This is to say nothing of the massive amounts of glare to other road users and backdazzle to you, the driver, that results from these "retrofits".

 

[TreXTerra]

One other thing to consider with going HID is the cost of replacement parts. Look at what a full kit will cost for your rig and then go see what replacement bulbs run. My cousin has an Infiniti sedan with HIDs and spent over $150 per bulb when one went out.

You may have noticed cars driving around with pink headlights. This is because the HID bulbs are wearing out and the quality of the light starts to change. Because of this, if one light starts to go pink or fails completely, you have to replace both headlights at the same time. You should really do this with halogen bulbs too, but a a stock halogen bulb can be found at any parts store for a couple of bucks, a dead HID can cost you over $300 just for a pair of bulbs! (depending on which bulbs you need)

 

[dagen]

I just put HID's in my 4Runner and I'll +1 on the use of projector headlamps only. The reflectors were not made to handle HID. Make sure you use a projector with your HIDs to get the cutoff mentioned in other posts so as not mess with other drivers.

 

[maktruk]

Let's also not forget that if, God forbid, you get in a fender bender where those headlights get smashed/crushed. Most insurance companies will only pay for stock parts, not upgrades. Heck I can barely get them to use OEM.

 

[TreXTerra]

This depends on your policy and coverage. Ask your company about accessory coverage to pay for damaged aftermarket parts.

 

[Overland-Indiana]

Whatever you do, do NOT go cheap on HID's... I bought a cheap Ebay set for my last rig, they sucked. They would take 15-20 seconds for them to warm up to where they were producing light, i think i even got the 55w ballasts instead of the 30w or 35w, whatvere it was... I was just not pleased.

 

[Spyduh]

I'm just about to retrofit some FZJ80 DEPO glass headlights with Quad projectors.
If you're interested in what it looks like and the cost. Check out my build thread here.
http://www.overlandbound.com/forums/index.php?threads/lux450-build-97-lexus-lx450-fzj80-cruiser.493/#post-6050

 

[Kanobee]

Finally completed my HID Retro fit on my 2013 Tacoma, just needs some minor adjustments

 

[Sparky]

Anyone who knows anything about lighting will tell you not to put hid bulbs in a reflector housing. When I bought my 80 the previous owner had installed a cheap hid kid, just the bulbs and ballasts into the factory houisngs. Shortly after owning it one ballast went out so I swapped regular halogens back in. The difference in drivability wasn't huge but it cut down on glare a lot.

I've since done a d2s bixenon retrofit into depo's and they're amazing, it's like driving with suns attached to the bumper. I'd seriously consider saving up to do it right, that and it will give you 4x high beams so aux lights are no longer necessary.. the savings there may factor in.

Whatever you do, upgrade your factory headlight harness to the one Slee sells. It's a common weak link with the 80's, the resistance in the factory harness is too high and chokes performance while posing a potential hazard if you increase current draw with higher output bulbs.

http://www.sleeoffroad.com/products/harness_main.htm

 

[Kanobee]

Anyone who knows anything about lighting will tell you not to put hid bulbs in a reflector housing. When I bought my 80 the previous owner had installed a cheap hid kid, just the bulbs and ballasts into the factory houisngs. Shortly after owning it one ballast went out so I swapped regular halogens back in. The difference in drivability wasn't huge but it cut down on glare a lot.

I've since done a d2s bixenon retrofit into depo's and they're amazing, it's like driving with suns attached to the bumper. I'd seriously consider saving up to do it right, that and it will give you 4x high beams so aux lights are no longer necessary.. the savings there may factor in.

Whatever you do, upgrade your factory headlight harness to the one Slee sells. It's a common weak link with the 80's, the resistance in the factory harness is too high and chokes performance while posing a potential hazard if you increase current draw with higher output bulbs.

http://www.sleeoffroad.com/products/harness_main.htm

I’m confused, this is not some janky hid upgrade kit. It’s the full deal projectors harnessing and all [emoji6]. Cut off were measured at 25ft with the standard 3in drop.


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[Sparky]

Oh for sure, my post was not meant to be in response to yours, I was simply replying to the OP's initial inquiry.

Your retro looks great I'd be super happy with that. Retrofitting the 80 housings is a pain cause they're so shallow, there was a lot of custom dremmeling involved to get mine to fit right. Anyways ya, nice job, light patterns like that are what makes retrofitting worth the effort in my book.

 

[Kanobee]

Oh for sure, my post was not meant to be in response to yours, I was simply replying to the OP's initial inquiry.

Your retro looks great I'd be super happy with that. Retrofitting the 80 housings is a pain cause they're so shallow, there was a lot of custom dremmeling involved to get mine to fit right. Anyways ya, nice job, light patterns like that are what makes retrofitting worth the effort in my book.

Thanks Sparky!! It’s the way the Tacoma should have come from the factory


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[Sparky]

Dug up some old photos from my retrofit, now I want to go drive the cruiser haha. To the OP, I'll reiterate my recommendation to not waste money on HID bulbs in your factory housings, if you're going to do it save up for a proper retrofit, either DIY or hire a pro. It's a hands-on mod so if you can find someone who offers the service it may be worth it. There's quite a bit on 'mud about this.

 

[Kanobee]

Dug up some old photos from my retrofit, now I want to go drive the cruiser haha. To the OP, I'll reiterate my recommendation to not waste money on HID bulbs in your factory housings, if you're going to do it save up for a proper retrofit, either DIY or hire a pro. It's a hands-on mod so if you can find someone who offers the service it may be worth it. There's quite a bit on 'mud about this.

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That looks damn crisp sparky! Yes you are right. Buying cheap knockoffs from eBay will make it a bad experience usually. I planned mine out and did lots of homework before jumping in. Does take some getting use to driving with razor sharp cutoffs though. I’m happy with the increased coverage and denser light pattern


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