hey, i was going to spend what 400 bucks on a CATZ kit back in the day. Turns out i couldn't get the money in time and they closed off.
There are a bunch of HID kits out there. I'm just wondering if there really is a big difference between them. Stuff like Philips, McCulloch, HELLIOS, and small name Taiwanese/Chinese brands. I'm sure it'd be safer to go with a Philips or something of that sort, but for a 100 dollar difference, i could prolly afford another ballast or bulb or whatever. that brings me to a second question. Is mismatching a problem? if i broke a Philips ballast, would it be bad to use a mcculloch one?

thanks for any help.
i'm going to taiwan this week and i'm thinking about picking up an HID kit there. They are like 250 bucks.

 

definately get a high quality kit. the cheaper ones blow a lot and you dont wanna keep dealing with reliability issues and replacement. if u get a quality kit, you dont gotta worry about all that. get Philips.. i think they still sell Catz over in taiwan. only the USA branch closed i think. dont get mcculloch

 

Thank you very much. CATZ or Philips it is... oh man. i saved up my 500 bucks for my suspension... guess i gota blow it all on some lighting. haha.

 

I agree with HKBeef. Don't skimp on HID's if you get them. Cheap ones are full of reliability issues; plus, the last thing you want is a set that can't be properly aimed since that attracts attention from the po po Plus it makes life tough for oncoming drivers too.

 

i'm checking out different sites. i guess all companies vary in light output. I'm looking for clean white with some purple or blue tint around the edges. Some say 6K will do it. Others, 5K....

 

I hear 5k is the minimum you should consider.

 

alrighty. cool. i'll ask the shop there to let me test it out. They have good service over there. a buck goes a long way... but it is hard to make.

 

Don't get anything besides Philips. I have used other things before and basically you get what you pay for. I haven't had a single problem with them. I have also talked to some ppl about Mcculloghs and I have seen them blow in under a year.

www.hidforum.com is a great resource.

 

I love the title of this forum topic. You could rephrase it:

"Driving, having eyes open matter?"

No offense to the original poster, but headlights are one area of a car where skimping is not a good idea. Having your headlights go out on the highway at night would be a hard way to learn this lesson!

 

most def. well, i'm in taiwan right now. going to a shop tomorrow. my uncle says that philips kits run for about 400 bucks here.

 

Be careful tho. There is a lot of fake philips kits in Taiwan and Hong Kong. It says philips on the ballast housing only, inside is not the philips made.

 

Definitely stay away from McCulloch. I have them and I am disappointed. After only 3 months, one of my ballasts took a dump. Luckily, I was under warranty from a local distributor. Now, the 6 month warranty has expired. If either of the ballasts goes, I am going to have to pay a lot more. Stick with the high quality stuff - Phillips or Catz. The saying, "you get what you pay for" definitely applies here.

 

If you're willing to spend a little more for good quality, consider www.xenonfactory.com. When I bought it, they were offering a no-holds barred 3 year warranty, which is pretty incredible. And customer service was awesome at that point too. But its been >1yr since I bought it, so not sure how they are now/whether they exist. Give it a try.

 

thanks guys. anyhoo, i leave for the states tomorrow. school starts on the 7th.




Xenon factory looks real good. but 550 for the 5000K and 6000K is steep for me. I found a guy here who works for mitsu and knows some car guys. He's taking me to see some Philips kits later. Check em out first hand to make sure they are for reals. anything i should look for specifically? he said that 15000 NT was considered expensive for the philips... and that he ONLY gets cheap stuff.......so i'm guessing i should be able to get a good deal.

1 US dollar = ~34 NT

 

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