looks like i know what im doing now... ive finally seen someone else pull it off, ive been hesitant to dive in but now im def. going to now.
GOOD JOB!
go for it. i was hesitant at first also, but i'm definately glad i did it, sooo much better lighting on the dark unlit country roads and everywhere else for that matter. the streetfire video of hak's retro doesn't do these TLs justice, although his pictures are outstanding.
the video doesn't capture waay up ahead, mostly the foreground lighting... i can see signs and other stuff lit up farther down the road and to the sides, than i could with the stockers. also with the color mod, it puts that blue-purple tint on bumpers, signs and such, it looks outta this world.
go for it. i was hesitant at first also, but i'm definately glad i did it, sooo much better lighting on the dark unlit country roads and everywhere else for that matter. the streetfire video of hak's retro doesn't do these TLs justice, although his pictures are outstanding.
the video doesn't capture waay up ahead, mostly the foreground lighting... i can see signs and other stuff lit up farther down the road and to the sides, than i could with the stockers. also with the color mod, it puts that blue-purple tint on bumpers, signs and such, it looks outta this world.
Yeah, my ride-a-long vid doesn't really capture the performance all that good of HID or lighting at all for that matter. It does show the foreground pretty good but doesn't truelly portray the performance like you said. It really doesn't do it justice. Regardless. if you choose any projector to retro in you guys car, you won't be a ricer with a aftermarket PnP HID kit anymore. You won't have to suffer with hotspots, uneven performance and annoying glare that is unsafe to everyone else out on the road. You won't have to be stuck with equipment that is illegal and unsafe for your car. You will be doing HID the right way, not some short cut route that will get you the ricer "look" of HID. Do a retro and you won't be sorry. You will want to drive your car as soon as the sun goes down LOL.
E-blue, go for it man. You can doooo it! If you don't feel comfortable doing it, I will do the retro for you. My "vacation" is off now so whenever people need help with a retro, just give me a PM.
BTW Jimmy, your link to the hidplanet forums doesn't go there heh. It goes to the store instead LOL. The link to the forums is www.hidplanet.com/forums
I think for my next retro I'm going to have two projectors in each housing. One TSX and then a TL bi-xenon next to it heh.
Last edited by haknslash : 09-25-2005 at 11:20 AM.
i wanna do a retro. but put the projector where the blinker is supposed to be.
it looks like it'd fit
A true HID projector definatly would not fit. For one, there is no HID projector that could physically fit in there without hacking the chrome bezel up and making it not look....well.....factory or decent at all IMHO. Another reason why it wouldn't work is because there isn't much room behind the housing or the housing itself thus would cause fit issues. The only "projector" I could see fitting in there would be like some small halogen foglight like of a newer camaro or even a Audi TT. Even then I'm not even sure if it would fit or work out to where you could even adjust the beam. Basically that space is much smaller than it appears and projectors often end up being much larger than you think once you have one in front of you.
just wondering about how much the entire project set you guys back - with the acura TL HID's, the headlamps, etc etc etc...
Also - is this a one day project, or did you get the second set of stock headlamps so you could work on them, and then swap them out with the ones on the car when you were done...?
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"The Cobalt firmly grabs you and whisks you along your way instantly. It does so with authority and poise, but while slipping relatively unnoticed through traffic, never being violent, or dare I say it, frightening. When you ask the SRT-4 to take you somewhere fast, it punches you in the face, throws you over its shoulder, and runs, screaming, so quickly that its tires can barely keep up."
just wondering about how much the entire project set you guys back - with the acura TL HID's, the headlamps, etc etc etc...
Also - is this a one day project, or did you get the second set of stock headlamps so you could work on them, and then swap them out with the ones on the car when you were done...?
You have to get a second det of headlights (DEPOs). There is no need to rush a retro LOL. You do and the whole reason for doing one right goes out the window.
A TL retro is by far one of the more expensive retros (anywhere from $700-1000). Anyone can retro their car with housings and all for about $400 starting out. It goes up from depending on the type of projectors you buy.
just wondering about how much the entire project set you guys back - with the acura TL HID's, the headlamps, etc etc etc...
Also - is this a one day project, or did you get the second set of stock headlamps so you could work on them, and then swap them out with the ones on the car when you were done...?
I have a bike for commute. The stock headlamps cannot be taken apart, as per hak's instructions, the reason is the sealant used. The heat needed to make it pliable would melt the lens before it's able to be taken apart. That's why Depos are used, it has a rubbery butyl sealant that gets soft enough with heat.
This is probably a weekend project, two days working straight through, maybe one, depending on how ambitious you are and if you have all the parts. At any rate, these should be done at your own pace, nothing should be rushed. Take your time. The most tedious part was the shroud. I couldn't find ABS plastic stock anywhere. So, I improvised and went to Wal-Mart, found two little oval plastic trash cans ($3.50 each), which I used the bottoms of to make my shroud.
The majority of the costs was $850.
Ebay - 2005 Acura TL Bi-xenon projectors with bulbs and ballasts - $650
ModernPerformance - Depo replacement headlights - $200
Taking apart the Depos are easy, just follow haknslash's how-to.
Like I said, the tricky part is fabricating the shroud, everything else is cake.
The alignment is like so, driver side: __/-- pass side: __/--
25 feet from the wall, the top of the beam should be two inches lower than the height of the headlamp, mine's at 23" with my 18" rims and Mopar S1 springs. Be sure to cover the other lamp while leveling and aiming each projector. There was very little tweaking with my set-up, like hak mentioned, "it's like these were made for HIDs".
jimmy, you take notes good. You remember things I pointed out as important and "need to know". This is what helps makes the retro project a heck of a lot easier. Doing your homework and planning in advance makes things go so much smoother when it comes time to actually get to work on them. I'm so glad you took all my info/tips and actually put them to work!! Now all we need is the rest of the community to not be so scared to try a retro and everyone would have true high performance lighting.
Good job ont he trash can idea. If you haven't checked or seen the thread before on hidplanet, we have a huge shroud thread that is nothing but evertyones input and pictures of their variation of a home-made shroud. Lots of ideas and if you don't mind or have pics of the cans and the method you used on them, send them to me via PM so I can add them to the forums sticky thread. http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/view...t=2822&start=0
Last edited by haknslash : 09-25-2005 at 06:29 PM.
alright bastard lets get to the point....whats it gonna cost me for you to make me a set of these. i want to paypal you and have these on my door ready for install. they are AMAZING. i think it completely gives the car a whole different look. It takes it from a neon to a much more sophisticated srt.
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