Converting headlights to pop up projectors?

[Drift]

Hey all, I've found a good place to get the Hella low and high beam 90mm projectors. I want to do a conversion similar to the one done on clearcorners.com. I was thinking of using the pilot lazy eye kit to give it the sleepy look when popped up. The only thing I would see a problems doing is the wiring and the mounting. (Basically everything :pface ). I'm sure its not TOO hard, but I need ideas on how to start, mainly w/ the mounting. What kind of brackets would be used, should I just go to home depot and search or ... also for the wiring, would it just be simple plug and play? Since our high beams are mixed in w/ the low beams, how would I just wire it up to where when I push in the turn arm, the highs would come on. Any one w/ headlight wiring experience could help. I would just turn them into clearcorners.com, but I don't want the prolonged downtime or their asking price -- I can get the materials for less than a quarter of the cost.

[Drift]

Bump bump bump.

Anyone?

[RYNO_s13]

where did you find them?

[Drift]

http://www.susquehanna.com

[Drift]

I guess I'll go it alone. =/

[s0ldats]

i think i will go with clearcorners.com, they look like they know what they're doing. let me know how your self install goes.

edit: also, are the lights on clearcorners.com "real HID"?

[Drift]

You have the options for the HID for like $800 dollars more. It uses a D2S Xenon bulb I think.

[s0ldats]

You have the options for the HID for like $800 dollars more. It uses a D2S Xenon bulb I think.

yea, i saw that. i just wanted to know if those bulbs are the "real" HID bulbs because i've read that most are just cheap imitation HID lights that are of low quality.

[SR180SX]

Get the Hella 90mm projectors, and do the D2S conversion yourself, You will notice the Hella 90mm projectors lens will also say D2S on top.

[danvertrees]

Wanted to do the conversion myself also, tried the web site but it didn't work. Can you reference where to get the hella's at such a great deal.

[Drift]

http://www.susquehanna.com/susq/new.htm

[Cyberkreig]

I would love to do that myself. But I live 3k miles from clearcorners, and All-Round went out of business. I wonder how those hellas mount...

[Drift]

The beams are supplied w/ some form of mounting already available. It may work or may not, just have to see what I'm working with once I remove the stock headlights and what I have to work with from Hella.

[SR180SX]

I done it few months ago, didn't do very good job but it's custom made so...

it's Hella 90mm with D2S HID conversion..

[far1002]

how did you mount them can you send me a diagram did you use plexiglass for the the top :ylsuper

[SR180SX]

use Lexan for the top, heat to bent it... You will have to cut some body to fit hella headlights. Here is a helpful site for you:

http://www.rotaryextreme.com/s....html

[Cyberkreig]

That looks great. But i wanna keep the popups.. will they fit in the housing?

[SR180SX]

I am sure they will

[Cyberkreig]

Thanks for the insigth. This sounds like a summer project. Custom made alum brackets, or Lexan and a dremmel hum..

[kouki-gymkhana]

Hey SR180sx, I was wondering if I could e-mail you about your headlights? I've sourced all of the parts for the conversion but I've decided to keep my pop-up housings. I'll also be adding angeleyes to my project. My only concern is wiring it all up. Any words of wisdom? Also, I need to figure out a way to make the pop-ups come up only about half-way to a pre-set point when I turn the lights on so the lights will be aimed appropriately. I'd like to avoid using a pivot controller if at all possible since the reviews I've read have been quite mixed and I don't want to use the DIY toggle switch interrupt everybody uses to make cheap sleepy eyes since it's pretty much a crap shoot each time you want to use the lights. Thanks in advance!:help

[Chingon]

hmm...this thread is interesting...however, what's so special about the hella lamsp? They still seem pretty expensive. I was thinking of just getting the projectors off a bmw to get the angel eyes, but don't know how that would work. Or finding which car has some cheap hid bulbs and getting them from them..

[kouki-gymkhana]

Chingon, I thought about getting the angeleyes off of a BMW too but it's a bit too complex in my opinion. If I'm not mistaken, the BMW uses an underhood light source with fiber optic cables going to the angeleye rings. I found a MUCH cheaper and easier way to do it that does not require the fiber optics and provides the same effect. With respect to why I want to use the Hella's, well, I have seen the pics of others who've done the conversion and I KNOW that it can be done. I don't have the time or the resources to really start a headlight project from scratch using an untested unit. Also, if you got the BMW projectors and HID bulbs, you'd have to fab up a housing to keep out the elements. The Hella 90mm projectors are sealed and weatherproof so no housing is necessary. If I weren't going to keep my pop-ups then I would consider taking the route you suggest but since I'm keeping them, I prefer to use the sealed Hellas.

Just my $0.02...

If anybody else is in the process of doing the conversion, please send me a PM or an e-mail. I'd love to brainstorm with someone.

[Cyberkreig]

Also, I need to figure out a way to make the pop-ups come up only about half-way to a pre-set point ...

I know that the pushrods the motor uses to raise the lights can be modified/shortened/replaced.. But i have never gotten the guts to do it.. as I dont have spares..

[kouki-gymkhana]

I thought of doing that straight away but I thought I read somewhere in here that modifying the rods (either lengthening or shortening them) makes the motor crap out? Hey Cyberkreig, did you do the conversion yet, meaning, have you actually built the mounting brackets for the Hellas?? If so, any advice before I start building my mock-up?

[Cyberkreig]

i have not. I am serious about it.. but Money and where to get aluminum or plexiglas has kept me from going anywhere with it

[Chingon]

ok...so i see why the hellas are nice. In fact i was gonna get a landcruiser projector for 5 bucks and try something with it. However since it was just one, i didn't. And kouki, how do you get that angel eye effect you are talking about? I suppose you do it using the hellas you are getting?

[vwluv10338]

I kept my popups and tried to install an audi hid into plastic stock replacement headlights. The non-sealed beam ones you can get at Autozone or ebay. The problem with that was I didnt mount the projectors far enough foreward so I could not adjust the beam. I had to make them again installing the projector in a piece or PVC pipe and used epoxy to put plexiglass over the front. As for wiring I made the wiring harness on this website http://faq.auto.light.tripod.c....html and then just connected to my stock harness. It was only one wire because I dont have high beams.

Eric

[ndskz]

sr180sx ..u 'had the pop uos and mod them to the ones you hace now?......if so how with out the glass...dont want that ... i heard there a kit for it but i cant find the kit to change my opop up to the others

[kouki-gymkhana]

ok...so i see why the hellas are nice. In fact i was gonna get a landcruiser projector for 5 bucks and try something with it. However since it was just one, i didn't. And kouki, how do you get that angel eye effect you are talking about? I suppose you do it using the hellas you are getting?

Yeah, there are two options for making homemade angeleyes. One is 1/20th the cost of the other but much easier. Check out this site for the cheap way (http://students.washington.edu...s.htm). The other way is an exact replica of the clearcorners.com upgrade and involves using a flexible white LED array. I found the array for sale at http://www.radiantz.com but a 1 ft circuit board is like $100 and you'll probably need at least 2 feet if you're going to make rings for both the high and low beam housings on each side.

One more thing you need to realize is that to insert the rings into the housing you'll have to use a dremel tool to remove the outer plastic lens and then glue it back together. It's not difficult but once you start the cutting you're pretty much committed to finishing the mod so be sure you REALLY want to do this. At $54 a pop, those housings ain't cheap, my friend.

There is another great website that literally walks you through how to modify the Hella housing to fit the D2S HID bulbs and insert the angeleyes. E-mail me for the address if you want.

If anyone else out there is doing this conversion, hit me up. There's always strength in numbers! :ylsuper

-kouki

[Chingon]

Yeah, there are two options for making homemade angeleyes. One is 1/20th the cost of the other but much easier. Check out this site for the cheap way (http://students.washington.edu...s.htm). The other way is an exact replica of the clearcorners.com upgrade and involves using a flexible white LED array. I found the array for sale at http://www.radiantz.com but a 1 ft circuit board is like $100 and you'll probably need at least 2 feet if you're going to make rings for both the high and low beam housings on each side.

One more thing you need to realize is that to insert the rings into the housing you'll have to use a dremel tool to remove the outer plastic lens and then glue it back together. It's not difficult but once you start the cutting you're pretty much committed to finishing the mod so be sure you REALLY want to do this. At $54 a pop, those housings ain't cheap, my friend.

There is another great website that literally walks you through how to modify the Hella housing to fit the D2S HID bulbs and insert the angeleyes. E-mail me for the address if you want.

If anyone else out there is doing this conversion, hit me up. There's always strength in numbers! :ylsuper

-kouki

wow, thanks for the info, really helpful. However, I wonder if i'd be cheaper to buy some of that neon tubing ricers use. You know, the one that they decorate the seats with.. I wonder if there's white kind. If there is, i think it'd be just as easy as well.