Can someone recommend some? Will they melt my housings?

 

A projector retrofit with built in cutoffs is the only right way to do this.

Slapping HIDs into a regular open halogen housing just blinds everyone else on the road.

Below is a nice pic heavy thread of a projector install:

https://montecarloforum.com/forum/ge...etrofit-29841/

I've had a few friends use this site for parts, and they were happy:

https://www.theretrofitsource.com/projector-kits/retrofit-kits-universal.html

I think the biggest thing is to stay away from the dirt cheap bulb / ballast kits. I used to run 2 different DDM tuning kits (back when they were the big budget HID place) in my old 99 gtp. It gets super frustrating to constantly be changing bulbs and ballasts. I had a 35W set in projectors in the lows and probably went through 2 complete kits of replacements (4 bulbs, 4 ballasts) over the time I owned the car. I had a 50W set in the fogs (for instances where no traffic was coming and I wanted a lot more light - so it was rarely used) and still went through 1 ballast on that kit. Theres definitely a reason why the factory stuff is so much more expensive.

 

Ok thanks.. Not what I wanna hear but.. Dont wanna blind everyone. Guess I probably go LED then. Regular bulbs just look dated to me..

 

As for LEDs, I believe the issue is the same as HIDs. See con #1:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...nrNX6X&ampcf=1

It's going to be the same issue for anything that puts out brighter light but is still using the (relatively) low light output halogen reflectors.

If you notice in cars with these ultra bright bulbs, they generally use a projector style housing with a cutoff shield (see hard cutoff line in link below):

https://www.ledfactorymart.com/blogs...-which-is-best

That keeps the crazy bright light on the road where you want it, but not blinding everyone else like driving around with your high beams on.


IMO it depends what you're looking for. If you just want different color light to not have the standard yellow look, just buy some tinted regular bulbs. If your purpose was to improve visibility, I'd strongly reccomend looking into a projector conversion, it's seriously worth it. You dont have to get a brand new kit from a site like that, it's getting to be relatively common tech so they're getting more common in junkyards. You're going to pull it all apart anyways, so you can always clean / paint when you pull it apart.

 

I tried two-three different brand LED headlight bulbs in my Grand Am. First set I loved best of all, but each one interfered with the radio, so I sent them back (I have since found there is some thing you can plug in-line to possibly prevent the interference).
But, when I was looking at those, it was recommended that if you are not using a projector housing with them, then adjust the headlight itself to aim just a few hairs downward. Because the LED light will broadcast out, you still gain with visibility, and by re-aiming down a few hairs, avoids the light being focused directly into oncoming traffic.
Just some food for thought!

 

IMO due to the myriad of designs, shapes, and sizes of reflectors out there, I'd disagree that it's always a good option. Never having owned a 6th gen, I cant comment on his specific car though.

The upper light cutoff on most reflectors is much higher than a projector cutoff would be. If you cranked it down to where the light stops where a projector cutoff would, the focus of the beam could be aiming 15-20 feet out at the pavement.

What's worse is that many reflectors dont have uniform distribution of light. There are often brighter and dimmer areas as you move through the lit area. That's problematic if you've got headlights like in the hypothetical example above - you could end up pointing the brightest parts of the beam at the ground leaving a dimmer portion for your long distance driving light.

I guess I'm just a bit jaded against 'that guy' with the HIDs rolling down the road blinding everyone because I've just had my fill dealing with it while driving. Luckily it has become less frequent as the fast and furious craze died down, but honestly used projectors are so cheap nowadays that it really pays to just do it right up front. Plus some local municipalities have laws against aftermarket headlights blinding others as it really can be dangerous.