How to modify Hella projectors to eliminate E-code upward splash.

[Daemon42]

Well, I promised I'd show how this works.
The full instructions with detailed photos can be found here.
http://www.houseofthud.com/cartech/hids
Do check it out.

Here are some snippets..

That's the Hella projector shield. (screwhole already drilled)

That is the new brass shield.

mounted.

Plus alternate orientation (shown above) for a modified splash. I like this one best and will probably use.

Before and after. (Note this is with a 55 watt halogen bulb. The HID kit will be here next week)

The modified orientation..

Took me only 20 minutes to make both shields.. and a couple hours to test
and document everything. Also did a test where I painted the new shield black
to eliminate stray reflections, and found absolutely zero difference in the light
pattern between that and the unpainted one. To be absolutely sure I
took photos of each pattern at F4.4 1/15th 1/30th and 1/60th with
all different configurations so I could look for any stray light, and found nothing.
The area above the cutoff was virtually identical in all of them.
The final shields are thus unpainted.

I'll try to stick the HIDs into the same housing and add some photos of it
when they get here next week.
The brass sheet cost about $2, and 4 screws were $0.07/each,
Need tin snips, a drill and a screwdriver. My hella projector
housing is held together with 3 philips screws. The shield and lens
assemble is held to the rear reflector with 4 philips screws.

ian

[Modified by Daemon42, 2:35 AM 10-15-2002]

[Mex gti]

Thanks for the great info

[audiophile]

That's sweet. One question though. You showed how hot it was in there with a halogen. Does an HID run hotter? Will the housing support an HID? I want to do this, but I don't want to melt stuff. And also, what lights are those projectors in? Looks great.

[CorradoCody]

I'll be doing mine like this in a few weeks. Great write up and pictures. Helped me out a lot.

CC

[dbcoop]

What's so bad about this upward splash? I thought e-codes had a much tighter beam pattern than DOT approved housings.

[Bora20]

Looks great. I would run them with the shield in the position in the 3rd picture.

quote:

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What's so bad about this upward splash? I thought e-codes had a much tighter beam pattern than DOT approved housings.

---

The upwards splash is not too bad with halogen light, but when you put 3x the light in there, the glare can be awful for other traffic. The 3rd picture look just like an OEM HID beam pattern.

[Daemon42]

quote:

---

That's sweet. One question though. You showed how hot it was in there with a halogen. Does an HID run hotter? Will the housing support an HID? I want to do this, but I don't want to melt stuff. And also, what lights are those projectors in? Looks great.

---

Well, the H1 Halogens are 55 watts and the HIDs are only 35 watts. I think the Halogens are generating more heat
and less light, while the HIDs generate more light and less heat. I don't think there'll be a problem.

Those lights are my Projektzwo dual rounds.

They have Hella projector lows and reflector highs just like the normal Hella dual rounds,
but the low beams also have the city lights at the top, and a funy little extra reflector
and opening on the bottom which casts light down on the ground close.

ian


[Modified by Daemon42, 12:37 PM 9-29-2002]

[Mex gti]

Niiiiiiceeeee!!! Now get some pics with the HID´s installed

[GS Audio]

Excellent details and pics! I may have to do this......for my ....uhm.....nevermind. You guys will see soon!

[Bora20]

quote:

---

Excellent details and pics! I may have to do this......for my ....uhm.....nevermind. You guys will see soon!

---

For your HDR projectors that you keep bumping everyday in the classifieds

[GS Audio]

quote:

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For your HDR projectors that you keep bumping everyday in the classifieds

---

I have 4 projectors, not just 2. 2 in the dual rounds, 2 EXTRA NEW ones for sale!

[Slynus]

BTW if you all want to paint the part you should use high temp engine enamel. 1000 degrees handling.

[Daemon42]

quote:

---

BTW if you all want to paint the part you should use high temp engine enamel. 1000 degrees handling.

---

Ya, I noticed that the paint I experimented with got soft in that kind of heat.
However, I've gone over the dozens of photos I took in control conditions, of the
original shield, and the new one both with and without black paint, and I can't
find any stray reflections so I'm not worried about it yet.

I'll check it again when the HIDs are in.

ian

[CorradoCody]

I'll definately be looking forward to seeing those pics. Glad to see some creative people here. Luckily I won't have to buy the dual xenon projectors I thought I had to get to eliminate the right flare these lights produce. Is there a light leveling system you know of that we can use with the HDR's? That's the next mod for the lights I want to do.

CC

[nater]

Ian,
The only concern I have with those pics is the "big ball of light" against the garage door...
Just wondering if it will "smooth out" a bit or not.
I should take a snippet of my HID's in those E46 projectors and show how much smoother a pattern it puts out.
The cutoff is awesome compared to the OEM HDR cutoff-perfect for HID. I'm just wondering if the "splotchiness" will be be there with HID???
Good work dude!!!
Later,

[GS Audio]

Yeah....you haven't shown us the BMW HID's you did.....better post pics soon!!!

[Daemon42]

quote:

---

Ian,
The only concern I have with those pics is the "big ball of light" against the garage door...

---

Note those pictures were not taken against a garage door. It's the
projector alone (sans outter housing) shining against a door inside my house from only about
4 feet away, thus the hot spot. It's also only one light so there's no fill from the
second. And ultimately, I don't mind if it puts down most of the light forward
like that as long the cutoff is clean. What shows as a hot spot at 4 feet here will fill
the lane projected 50-100 feet down the road.

ian

[nater]

quote:

---

Ian,
The only concern I have with those pics is the "big ball of light" against the garage door...

Note those pictures were not taken against a garage door. It's the
projector alone (sans outter housing) shining against a door inside my house from only about
4 feet away, thus the hot spot. It's also only one light so there's no fill from the
second. And ultimately, I don't mind if it puts down most of the light forward
like that as long the cutoff is clean. What shows as a hot spot at 4 feet here will fill
the lane projected 50-100 feet down the road.

ian

---

Oh, cool. It looked so much like a garage door. Sorry Ian.
I understand now. That explains why the big ball of light was there on the door. It does show the modified cutoff which is good.
These are still a bit different projectors than the HDR's-but just barely. I think we talked about the small opening at the bottom of them.
And, to whomever asked, I will get pics up within a few weeks of my car with both Ultinons and OEM 4100K setups in my Bimmer's against a garage door and up front.
I think I'll also try to get one 4100K on the left and a 6000K on the right.
Anyway, looks good Ian...and def an improvement over that HID-hating right side cutoff on the HDR's!!!
Later,

EDIT: for spelling...


[Modified by nater, 11:20 AM 10-1-2002]

[Brake_Dust]

GOOD WORK!!!!

Thanks for taking the time to display your talents

[germanrox]

Hey just a thought did you loctite down that screw at all? Any worries of it wiggling itself loose?

[Daemon42]

I didn't and I don't really expect it can come loose.
Both the old shield and new brass one are soft enough that the screw
bites pretty well and the metal will deform a bit when it's tightened down good
so I don't think that screw will go anywhere.

BTW, my HIDs should be here tomorrow judging by the UPS tracking
number. Wythenshawe, GB monday.. Louisville, KY Tuesday.. Denver
tomorrow.

ian



[Modified by Daemon42, 12:13 PM 10-2-2002]

[Daemon42]

Arrived this morning. Not bad. Less than 3 days in transit.

They're *almost* plug and play. The female plug that goes to the stock H1
now will plug into a wire with a male plug that goes to the relay to switch it on.
The relay has two leads going to the battery, and another set of leads going to the ballast
which then has a big thick wire coming out of it which splits and goes to the HID bulb/capsule.
The HID bulb base is thicker and wider than the stock H1 bulb's base so getting the clip that is supposed
to hold it in, to actually clip, is a bit of an adventure but doable with a pair of pliers to manhandle it.

The "almost" part though is that the back of the HID bulbs sticks back quite
a distance more than the stock H1 bulbs and the wires stick straight out the back further
so now the cap that goes over the back of the projector housing will no longer fit
over the back of the bulb base. The projector housing has rubber
seals at every seam including that cap, and a rubber grommet the stock wiring goes through,
all in an attempt to keep water out of there. Since there's an airspace above
and below the mounting point for the H1 bulb it is important that the rear
of the projector be sealed from water. Water on the outside of a Halogen bulb
will destroy it nearly instantly, and I assume that is a similar case for the HIDs.

To fix this, I intend to make a hole in the center of the cap just large enough to fit
the larger of the two plugs on the HID bulb's wires. Stick the large plug through,
then the small plug should fit through next to the wire of the first, then seal it up
with a small patch of black duct tape or similar. I could use hot melt glue and seal
it up that way, but I don't the HIDs permanently attached to the cap just yet.

BTW, I tried to fire up the HIDs in my testing environment above.. projector
out of the car, driven by a battery charger in 50 amp start mode. Problem is
the charger is cheaply rectified (AC -> DC conversion) so it's a pulsed DC current and
while it appears to be able to power the ballast just fine and the HID fires up, it
totally freaks out the relay. *click*click*click*click*....*flash*flash*flash*fl ash*....
Oops. That's not good.

I still think I'll try to find a way to set this up in a testbed so I can get an objective
measure of brightness with the camera under controlled conditions. Need a spare battery
is what I need. I also need to reaim my headlights with the old halogens so I have
a fair comparison. I got some body work done recently and they completely messed
up the aim on my left headlamp. Stay tuned.

ian

[Daemon42]

Some initial photos.
Before.. 55 watt Halogens.


and after with 35 watt 4100K HIDs.

A few things to note.
The camera exposure and white balance were fixed for both photos at 1/15th of a second
at F4.4 and the flash whitebalance (which is actually pretty close to daylight whitebalance).
This gives you a good idea of the difference in color, and absolute brightness.
The HIDs are two full stops (a camera term) brighter than the halogens. To make
the HIDs appear the same brightness (dimness ), as the halogens I shot
at 1/60th F4.4.

The marks on the wall are my aiming marks.

Note that I eliminated the splash on the left light, and the right one has a modified
splash pattern. It's not immediately obvious because of the difference in brightness
but the right side splash goes up, and then cuts off a little early and continues
horizontal. (See other previous photos above).

Note that while the cutoff is very sharp, there's a little glare above the line.
That's from the very worn "clear" rock protection on the front lens. I know this
because I can stand at a 45 degree angle and still see the entire plastic
cover glowing. It may scatter the whiter light a bit more as well.
My intention is to peel them all off, clean with acetone and apply
new covers (they really do save my lenses in Colorado every year).

I'll put together a page with more photos and documentation to
go along with the one referenced above.

[edit]one extra pic

ian

[edit]fixing some broken links.


[Modified by Daemon42, 12:13 PM 2-8-2003]

[nater]

Good job,
especially with eliminating the right side flare on the left-hand projector.
My E46 projector still has that (but it's the step up-type so it's not a problem) but I'd still like to get the cutoff more flat on that left side.
Looks good, man.
Looks like OEM 4100K, right???
Later,

[sdriver]

The question is... how much does this cost? Just the low beams right?

[Daemon42]

Well, obviously it's most suited to those who already own Hella dual rounds
of which there are quite a few which is why I'm doing all this.
In which case it costs $550 for the H1 HID kit from autolamps-online.com
(for those who were in the recent GB, it cost about $495)
and about $2.28 for the thin brass plate and 2 screws to make the new shields.

The Hella Dual rounds run about $450 from http://www.parts4vws.com
last time I checked. That particular kit somes with complete mounting
hardware. Some kits don't.

ian

[Daemon42]

Couple more pics.
How I modified the caps over the rear of the lights to accomodate the longer
HID bulb bases and their wires.

I've sinced taped around the opening where the wires go through to keep
the water out. The projector housing has rubber gaskets at every seam, so it
really is meant to be sealed up, so don't neglect that step.

And here's a photo of the light they put on the road..

I was a little hesitant to post it because there's no sense of scale.
You have no idea how far down the road that is. Suffice it to say, it's
a long way. What I needed was another car parked next to mine for
comparison, or one halogen bulb and one HID or whatever. Problem was,
I simply wanted to get them installed, and go drive, and that's what you get.
It's great light. I may yet get that comparison up somewhere.

ian

P.S. On a side note.. Don't trust the stickum strips on the back of the
ballasts to keep them stuck to the inside of your fenders. One of mine stuck on
really flat and good, and then fell off twice (the glue just pulled apart, probably because of heat).
I've since drilled holes on either side, screwed those little plastic wire holder loops in on each
side and then a sturdy zip tie through those and over the ballast. That way the holes in the
body are minimal and the zip ties don't go around any sharp edges which may
abrade them though.


[Modified by Daemon42, 2:40 AM 10-15-2002]

[Daemon42]

Ok, so I'm going crazy with pics.
Is there too much of a good thing?

First off. Looking at the before and after pics above, remember how I said that
there was some glare above the cutoff from the dirty/scratched clear covers.
Well, new pics tonight.
First the "after" photo from above.

See all that glare? It casts enough light up to light my address sign.

Now the new after.. after I peeled the old clear covers off, cleaned
lenses and reapplied new covers.

Wow, what a difference. No glare what so ever. Cutoff is razor sharp.
Identical camera settings. (1/15th F4.4 flash WB no flash)

Ok.. Now for some misc shots. I didn't like the road one above because
there's no sense of scale. The camera tends to compress the distance.
So.. parking lot pic. Lights off/lights on.

Can get some idea of distance from far cars, and the fact that each lane marker is
about 10 feet from one to the next.

Next one shows difference between lows and lows+highs.. fence is
150 feet away or so.
(BTW, lights are not aimed quite that high, I founda spot in the parking lot that had
a hump slight hump to park on so the cutoff would show on the fence at that distance)

Next shows the difference looking at the lights from below and above the cutoff.
Identical camera settings in each case. One shot at ankle height the other at belly button height.

Next two are road shots..
First one is a far off sign lit by the right side upward flare. Sign gives idea of distance.

And the last is a shot with lows and highs both on, looking WAY down the road.

It's lightened slightly so you can see what I could see with my eyes.

So there you have it. I'm just about done with the documentation. The
only thing left is when I upgrade to 100W H3 highs, I may retake the last shot for
comparison. The light of the high beams does reach out there now, but it's
pretty pitiful in terms of actual light output by comparison.
And just to be thorough, I'll show you how pitiful.
On the left is highs only (flash mode, when lights are turned off)
(see how far signs are lit up) and on the right is lows plus highs.

The signs are still lit up, but you'd never notice it given the close up light.

ian

[edit]fixing broken links


[Modified by Daemon42, 12:14 PM 2-8-2003]

[SiDeeFung]

Wow

[nater]

Awesome documentation, Ian.
Later,

[GS Audio]

BUMP! Keeping this info visible!

[nater]

Hey,
bumpety bump. It's been 7 hours since a bump!!!

Ok, count one more useless post to my total.
So now half of my posts are useless....

Later,

[GS Audio]

Is this in the DIY thread yet?

[germanrox]

7 hrs is it? better keep it up again

[Daemon42]

Course that comment was 7 hours and 21 days ago..
What happened to the lighting FAQ btw?

ian