99-00 Bi-Xenon Headlight Retrofit
 

This setup you're about to see may not be quite the same quality/output overall of some we've seen in the past (thinking of Godless Commie's at the moment), however, they are probably easier to complete (no cutting or modification to the housings or projectors required) and the parts are relatively inexpensive while being of very good quality. I highly recommend that while you handle the parts that you wear latex gloves, especially the projector shrouds or any of the chrome pieces. They easily pick up oily fingerprints and when cleaned improperly, can lightly scratch, leaving a hazed finish.

* I assume no responsibility for you screwing up your headlights, getting pulled over, or any other problematic issues you may encounter.

For this project I'm using Morimoto Mini H1 Bi-Xenon projectors (with Mini Gatling shrouds) from theretrofitsource.com. These projectors have low-beam/high-beam capability and include parts to make the retrofit a mostly bolt-in affair.

First, we have the projectors:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4139/...3873a844_z.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/...736d5a6c_z.jpg

Then we have our donor headlight assemblies, remove the rubber boot, bulbs, and unscrew/remove the clip that holds the main bulb in place:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4103/...38ee26ab_z.jpg

Preheat the oven to 220°, while it's warming up, prepare a cookie pan by covering it with aluminum foil (helps prevent the pan from stinking of burnt plastic, although no odor is really produced). Place the headlight in the oven for 10-12 minutes, I found it worked best to use the rack in the middle. Time will depend on your oven obviously, less time is better.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4086/...004c59e6_z.jpg

Put on a pair of soft leather or vinyl gloves and remove the headlights from the oven. Carefully use a flat head screwdriver and pry the lens from the housing, too hard and you'll damage the housing or lens, they're plastic so they get soft when hot. If the housing doesn't want to come apart easily, put it in the oven for a couple more minutes. When it's at the proper heat it will come apart easily with just a little assistance with a screwdriver. The sealant will stretch as you pull the two pieces apart, just let it break, making sure that the sealant doesn't get on the lenses. (Reinstalling the lenses is the opposite of these steps, heat and push back together, but we'll get to that later.)

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4084/...cf9a3bdd_z.jpg

After removing the reflector lens (it's clipped in) I loosely mounted the projectors in the housing to see what things will look like:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4148/...09157889_z.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4103/...80bc530f_z.jpg

My donor headlight lenses were a little foggy so I started some polishing work on them (3M Restoration Kit, goes in your drill, works really well):

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4084/...dd960403_z.jpg

Here's the hardware you'll need: very small M3x8mm flat-topped Philips head machine screws (in stainless) and 7/8" fender washers. The fender washers sit between the projector and the headlight reflector and seat the projector in the correct position. The screws hold the bulb retainer in place and need to be flat-topped so the bulb can be installed properly.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5290/...2e6ce562_z.jpg

The provided H4 adapter ensures that your projector is straight and level. Here's the back side with the hardware installed (note: the top of the screws may end up being slightly above the bulb mount platform, this is ok):

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1111/...faa78d4c_z.jpg

So now your headlights should look something like this (lens on loosely):

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1105/...b28221cf_z.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1413/...b883d954_z.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1375/...cc85ec6d_z.jpg

Here's a couple modifications you should do and are recommended by some on HIDPlanet, but are not required. First here's the cutoff shield as sent by TRS (make sure you do not ruin or change the bend in the actual cutoff shield):

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5288/...22be47ce_z.jpg

Notice that there are 2 "D" shaped holes in the shield, these will throw some light up into the air, so if little things like that bother you, get some aluminum flash and make a block-off plate:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5009/...cc32c978_z.jpg

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5209/...8975054f_z.jpg

Some people reported that most of the Gen I solenoids and some of the Gen II solenoids were sticking when alternating between low beams and high beams, (these projector units are Gen II and Gen III just came out), but preventative measures never hurt. Here's the solenoid plunger as sent:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5284/...7e85af5f_z.jpg

Get your drill, both medium and fine grit sandpaper, and sand the tip just a bit, careful not to take too much material off:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5122/...90429db9_z.jpg

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5203/...b0830f56_z.jpg

Then spray with graphite lube (which is for high-temp use, good here since HIDs create a ton of heat):

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5208/...5fe08911_z.jpg

Then reinstall the spring, after making sure to stretch it out some as well:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5284/...5f29086c_z.jpg

Then reassemble everything.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5203/...437cd500_z.jpg

Now, tear the front end off the car...

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5289/...a25b956f_z.jpg

...and install the new headlights. The bumper is just loosely mounted and the lenses are not on the lights, so ignore the gaps and fitment.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5283/...bf6f8604_z.jpg

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5169/...0c8cbc72_z.jpg

Here, the lenses are loosely mounted to see how the final product will look (I like these headlights a lot more without the amber cover for the turn signals):

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5008/...c00ec654_z.jpg

And here's the cutoff after installation, looks like this will work well when it's completed and adjusted properly:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5203/...1bd590ba_z.jpg

Where things are currently at as of today: I didn't like how the shrouds attach to the projectors. They clip on in three places, are hard to clip on, and seem to pop off easily anyway. People on HIDPlanet suggest using JB Weld, high temp silicone, or other methods to ensure they stay on. Not a fan of that, especially when it would be difficult to fix should one of those methods fail. However the most recent generation of these projectors include a revised shroud that attaches via four screws in existing holes in the projector, which is a lot more secure. So those are being shipped tomorrow and I'm returning these shrouds to them. And I took the lazy way out and asked for a relay harness too, complete PnP. So the final install is put off just a little longer.

Very nice.
My only question: how much did those run you?

Damn, I forgot to post that. The projectors are $120/pair from TRS, the hardware was $8 (had to buy 100 screws, lol), the relay harness was $30 from TRS, and I ordered some cheap eBay HIDs ($40) so I could test all of this first and not be out a ton of money for some higher quality HIDs. And the donor headlights were provided by a local forum member in exchange for my current housings when I'm done with all of this.

wow very nice work

That's awesome Eric. Thanks for making me want to spend more money. Are you going to paint the housings black? Would look boss if you do.
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Looks great!

I would not paint the housings black. The car would look like an angry monster.

Awesome!
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wow painless. I might look into this.
Do you have a photo of how you connected it to the wiring harness.

This should give you an idea:

http://www.geceucusu.com/index.php?a...e=post&id=2471

so how deep are the projectors from where they sit in the stock housing to the front of the lens?

Sorry Phil. lol But the difference in light output is worth it (especially where I live with no street lighting)! I'm going to leave everything chrome. I did 4 test pieces with different shades of smoke, shadow, black chrome, and black and I didn't really like any of them in the end. I think the all chrome works well against my black car.

Thanks! :) And agreed.

Right now I have male H4 connectors (with the +/- HID ballast spades in them) hooked up to the OEM connector which just powers the low beams. I was going to make a relay harness for everything, but after adding up the cost of the parts needed, I decided to spend a little more and get the pre-made plug-n-play harness from TRS. It powers the HIDs and properly controls the low- and high-beams. I'll post up pictures when it gets here, but this is their stock photo:

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/ima...20Harnessl.jpg

This is the only picture I have at the moment that shows it the best, they don't protrude past the reflector bowl that they're mounted in, I think the tip of the projector lens is actually about 1-1.5" behind the line:

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1105/...b28221cf_z.jpg

I can try to get a better picture from the top.

Sweet. Thanks.
I have an NA and I have some spare aftermarket H4 7" housings that I am thinking about trying to stuff some of these in.

They might fit then. The projectors are about 4.5" long from the tip of their lens to their base. Then about another 0.5" of threads for attachment hardware.

Got the new shrouds and my harness in today, the shrouds definitely will add some peace of mind to the project. Want to finish it this week, but more than likely will be a weekend project.

Old vs. New:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5281/...6bc4e2f8_z.jpg

Relay Harness:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5047/...7087d06f_z.jpg

8 connections total: one 12v supply, plug in the headlight harness, plug in each ballast and bi-xenon solenoid connector, and a ground at each ballast connector.

The new shrouds are now installed, definitely a much better design for keeping them in place.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5289/...521d4c17_z.jpg

I then reinstalled the projectors into the housings (they had to come out in order to secure the new shrouds in place) and figured it would be a good time to figure out how to seal the rear rubber bulb cover. It was easy, I put three 5/8" rubber washers (find them on the plumbing aisle) onto the back of each bulb and then popped the cover into place. So now these are ready to go back onto the car (going to check them one more time with the lenses off to make sure everything is still ok) and stay there.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5008/...ee0b7fe9_z.jpg

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5089/...f3c9c095_z.jpg

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5089/...c972a5fb_z.jpg

Do they come with the new shrouds or would I need to request them. Is that harness just for hi-beam?
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Looks like there are two pairs of leads for the solenoids, meaning, you would have low and hi-beam capacity.

From what I read, if you order the projectors now you get the new style shroud that I now have (you could always call TRS and make sure, great customer support from them!). With the new gen. they also supposedly include a thick rubber washer that does the work that the fender washers did (seems to be a common issue with H4 headlights), but I haven't seen what it looks like and I don't know if it works. Godless Commie is correct, you'll have low and hi-beam capability and it will all be controlled like stock.

that looks tittays

:) Thanks Jared.

They're officially done and in the car! Ran out of light so I'll have to take some daytime shots later. But I can definitely can see much better at night after taking a quick test drive.

I hid the ballasts up under the headlights, so this is all that's exposed if you look behind the headlight housing:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5210/...ea314c47_z.jpg

And here's a quick blurry shot using all the light I had left:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5248/...25e2cb89_z.jpg

That's great. I'd love to hear more about specifically how you mounted the ballasts under the headlights. Or at least where you bolted them down (to the headlight itself?).

Mine are chillin behind the headlights and annoy me greatly, so I want to "clean it up" and mount them somewhere thats not visible.

overall I think this came out looking great for you man.

definitely a good alternative to better lighting for the 99-00 folks that don't want to switch bumpers or run the newer lights.
the ONLY thing I would have done differently is paint the housings black, but thats just me:D

The ballasts are attached to the flat portion of the car's body just under where the turn signals are. I should have taken a picture, but I was really wanting to get everything installed before it got dark. They're also the slim ballasts, so if you have the huge boxes, they won't fit under there.

I toyed with the idea of darker or black housings, but didn't like the results against the black car and the chrome helps break it all up. I've got to put the eyelids back on there, so that will change it some too.

EDIT: I meant to add that the relay is mounted on the passenger side behind that headlight and that the power source for the relay was taken from the fuse block up near the firewall. If you unbolt the box, there's a large red w/ black stripe (IIRC) wire that carries 12v+ when the key is in any position, that's the power source I used. Each ground wire is bolted to the ground distribution block underneath each headlight.

Why don't these have the usual slanting up to the right light that H4 halogens have, for lighting high up street signs to the right?

It does (see attached picture with red arrows). The car is so close to the garage, about 1.5 car lengths, that the slant is not as pronounced. I think the slant for halogens and projectors are also different.

No, Euro halogen low beams typically have faint light in the pattern I drew in green:

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1295988938

My stock 2000 has it with stock halogen bulbs on low beam.

Like this:

http://www.members.shaw.ca/trust.no....tternClose.jpg

Looks like your light pattern is DOT, the above is Euro.

Thread discussion here:
http://www.nastyz28.com/forum/showpo...0&postcount=14

The rationale of the Euro pattern is to produce this on the road:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...raffic.svg.png

DOT vs Euro low beam comparo.

Left is Euro, right is DOT

http://tychl.txf.com/europerf/highre...0right%202.JPG

Green area lights up road straight ahead while minimizing blinding oncoming drivers.
Red area (faint) lights up street signs up and to the right and pedestrians to the right.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1295989968

More.

Euro:
http://www.dirte30.com/dirte30/docs/headlightaim/5.png

DOT:
http://www.dirte30.com/dirte30/docs/headlightaim/6.png

The Euro pattern is known to be better at reducing glare for oncoming drivers.

Good grief, how hard would it have been to hit "Edit"? lol

I see what you're saying now, these projectors are definitely not the Euro cutoff, but they are able to light up street signs (or anything else) up and off to the right just fine as is. I don't believe the chart with the "glare" comparisons, with projectors made for HID use, the cutoff is extremely sharp and as long as the oncoming driver's eyes are below that line, all they see is light coming from the car. There is no unusual beam or glare hitting them in the face.

I don't recall my '99 or my g/f's '00 having the Euro cutoff stock either, but the lighting just sucks so all I knew is that I wanted to change it and paid no attention to it.

*edit* Also looks like in your picture posted above (attached with an edit) that you would actually be casting light above the cutoff line on the left side. That's no good. That would be in oncoming driver's faces.

So that particular beam pattern is an imperfect implementation of the Euro pattern.

Some interesting comments about what situations E-codes are better than DOT and vice versa:
http://forums.audiworld.com/showthre...ad.php?t=41004

Sounds like DOT is better in the rain, but E-codes are better for dark twisty backroad bombing when it's not raining. Having said that, if said backroads are empty you would use hi beams.

Hey it looks like the shield in your pic is what produces the low beam pattern. It should be a simple matter of modifying the shield. See the pattern of the little diagonal step up then flat again?:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5288/...22be47ce_z.jpg

BTW thanks for a great DIY thread.

Yep, that is the shield that creates the cutoff, it is pulled down out of the way to create the high beam. It's also curved but I don't have a picture looking straight down on it. You could probably either modify it or just create your own shield to get the desired effect. Probably some trial and error and lots of test fitting.

BTW I realized you don't have high beam pattern photos... ?

Nope, haven't had the time to take the car out in the evening to find a good large wall and shoot some pictures. I will though.

i'm doing/did the same retrofit with the same exact parts. i have the harness from TRS. I asked on cr.net where i could get power from and you have the answer right here for me ... only thing is, i looked in the place you said to look for this red w/black stripe wire and there are two of them (well i took a quick look, i didnt remove anything since its getting dark already and i cant really see).

Did you splice into the wire?

If you're seeing 2 of the red w/ black stripe wires, you're probably looking under the relay pack (next to the fuse block). I didn't tap into any of those wires, but you can check those in the various key positions with a voltmeter and use one of them if they're easier to get to for you.

I tapped into the wire with no cutting. Pull the sheath back, open the center of the wire and loop the HID relay harness' 12+ wire through and around it. A little solder if you'd like, although it's a strong connection if you can't. Cover it and you're done.

So today I took some time out of my day off to unbolt the fuse box and look under. I saw two wires that have black in red ... one is red with a black stripe while the other is black with a red stripe. Which one did you solder too? I don't have a voltemeter so I wouldn't be able to check that way

Thanks for your help btw

hmm, I was looking on the TRS and thinking hard about picking these up and ditching my 01+ conversion

You want the red w/ black stripe.

very well done i like it

I don't know how much space you have under the headlight housing, but when my friend and I installed HID's on his RSX, we velcroed the ballast to the bottom of the housing. Worked out quite nicely, and kept it out of site.