Anything over 6000k is ridiculous. You should slap him for using obnoxious blue bulbs. 5000k is perfect IMO, bright white no blue except when starting up. There's two reasons yours are brighter. His "55-watt" kit is most likely 35-watt ballasts driving 55-watt bulbs - he's not getting true 55 watts of output. Also, the higher in the color spectrum you go the less usable light is generated. Hence the reason they use 4300k as OEM bulbs.

The HID fogs are a pain to install. Driving all the time with both the headlights and foglights turned on is just as annoying as the blue and purple HID bulbs.

 

Oh I know, trust me, I have sat here and told people on the other forums I belong to that 4500-6000k is the only realm you want to deal with. His 8000k, at 55w are not as blue as you'd expect. Obviously, higher wattage can wash out some of the blue tint of bulbs, but defeat the purpose of the upgraded bulbs. I actually took the time to look up light outputs of the bulbs before ordering to make sure I was actually upgrading my setup.

 

That is exactly what's got me on the fence with the HID's ... I don't need no stinkin' Active Anti-Theft OR Locking Lug Nuts ... and don't like the idea that $525 HID's are really $920 !!

Another way to look at it is ... $801 HID option on Mustang (@ invoice) is cheaper than the V6 Camaro HID option (only w/RS pkg.) that forces you to also get Staggered Fast-Wearing Summer-only tires for $14/1200 additional (1LT/2LT invoice from last Spring).

I also do most of my 400 miles/week driving between 3-6AM & 8-11PM on semi-rural interstate so I think I would really appreciate the improved visability.

Doug

 

I remember my old 1981 Mercury Capri with the old box lights where after awhile the reflective surface on the back would wear away. Talk about some dim headlights. People wouldn't flash me when I had my brights on. Having lived with that for years, modern day regular head lights seem plenty bright to me, so I've never had any interest in the HIDs.

I agree with the sentiment that the HIDs look better on the GT500 and the regulars look better on the GT.

I could also see people flashing you regardless of which lights you have if you drive with the fog lights on. To non-Mustang knowledgable people, I find many think they are brights and not fogs due to their location; people expect fog lights to be lower on the front.

 

We're talking easily 2-3 times more light output (candela) with HID versus Halogen. LEDs are still struggling to compete against HID for light output. The only car that is affordable and has optional LED headlights is the Toyota Prius. The Audi R8 isn't exactly affordable for everyone.

The color temperature of HID (OEM is about 4300K-6000K) allows human eyes to pick up the light better, so it appears "brighter" even if the candela were equal. Halogen is about 3200K, incandescent is 2200K (very yellow). Your typical white LED headlight/foglight/flashlight is about 6000K.

HID lasts about 6 times longer than halogen. High power white LEDs are rated 60 times longer than halogen.

The power consumption is kind of a moot point. We're talking 35W versus 55W from halogen, and white high power LEDs still draw a considerable amount of current!

The drawback to HID and LED is that they're not hot enough to melt snow/ice from the lens, so you need assistance from wipers/washers. HIDs aren't as bad, but LEDs are almost ice cold. These are also mandated by UNECE for projector/HID headlights on European/Japanese cars to prevent excessive glare from road salt/debris collecting on the lens. Americans (NHTSA/FMVSS/DOT) are very very slow to adopt and enforce these standards, so we end up with 10 year old tech on our current cars. As an example, I don't see pressure washers on the 2012 Mustangs for the projector HIDs unless I missed it in the brochure.

Cliff's Notes, Bottom Line Up Front: HID > Halogen. End of discussion.

 

I had no interest in getting hid's for my 2011, but the car I found with the options I wanted ie: brembos, entertainment & comfort also had the hid's and rear camera. Now I love the look of my hid's. Changing out the grill and chin spoiler make them look sick!

I am now officially a big big fan. HOWEVER, clearly a to each his own thing.

 

That's because they aren't fogs - they're driving lights.

 

I put 4300K's in my '95. Stock are pathetic. I just have the standard halogen lights on my '11. They are tons better than I could ever get on my '95. I ordered mine through hidguy.net. I see no reason I'll ever need to upgrade mine to HID's.

 

My 2001 Acura 3.2CL Type S came with standard (not optional) HID's... and that was in 2000. TEN YEARS AGO.
There were very few cars with HIDs back then, except high end cars, and almost none in the price range of my CL-S.

A lots changed in 10 years (side note - cool graph on a recent geekologie post), and I couldn't imagine buying a new car without them, but like Eric said, to each their own.

No offense to those who don't want them or like them.

 

We actually sell these kits for wayyyy cheaper on our website. check it out.
www.hidguy.net

 

do your kits work with 2010+ 'stangs or just 05-09?

 

If you're selling HID kits that merely replace the halogen bulb without replacing the reflector then they are not only illegal but dangerous. Halogen reflectors are not designed for use with HID elements. The light source is incorrectly positioned and the orientation is wrong. This causes excess glare for other drivers.

 

Yes our kits do work for the 2010 mustangs. We also sell all the interior LED white lighting to match the look of your HIDS

 

White Bird we will totally agree with you that if you replace the halogen bulb without replacing the reflector that is illegal and dangerous. We do sell aftermarket projector headlights for the 2010 and the 05-09 mustangs that cut the glare down unlike the stock headlights and at the lowest prices on the net. It is merely up to the buyer if they would like to buy these headlights. If anyone would like prices for aftermarket and or pictures of what we sell feel free to Pm me.

 

In for later on this thread, I'll need another kit when my BOSS arrives; love the dual-beam kit on my '06.

 

Only thing is have to find some whiter bulbs for my fogs they look yellow (standard incandecant bulbs) compared to the HID's (in Canada the fogs are you DRL's with HID's).

 

In europe most of the countries have requirement to drive all time with lights on. We usually use low beam for that. Since 2011 there is new law that all cars coming from factory should have Led daytime runing lights. Similar to new audi. In my GT 2010 i have instaled them in the fog light place and passed the inspection ok

 

Check my mod list, i got the HOEN bulbs for my fod lights. It is very similar to my HID's. I got a US spec built car and brought it here, installed a temporary relay for the DRL's to pass inspection and got rid of relay afterwards.

 

If you do mostly city driving, then it makes no difference if you go with halogen or HID. The city lights will illuminate the roads quite well. If you are out of the city where there is minimal street lighting, then HIDs make a big difference over the halogens.

I have halogens on my Mustang, and HIDs on the S4 I drive. In the city, I don't see any difference between the 2 systems.