HID Kits with rediculous prices! $100+ Really! wat a rip off!

[Bmore_Raven86]

dont fall for their high prices on HID kits $100+ rediculous...do your research guys..you can get good HID kit for $60 dollars ship to your house..with warranty...

[jbsali]

it all depends on build quality. I used to buy from an online retailer and the kits were around 50 bucks each. They had a five year warranty on them so i thought i had nothing to lose. Bought one kit and it lasted a while so i bought another 4 kits for my other cars. The kits lasted about 3-6 months before either having to replace a bulb or ballast. in 3 years, i replaced 15 ballasts and 3 bulbs! I now buy Volt kits at around 105 each and have had a lot of luck with them.

[Beyer Subaru]

I've never understood these kits. How can a mfr make a quality HID kit for 40 bucks when a comparable oem kit would be in the hundreds to thousands?

What does it matter it if comes with a warranty if you are always replacing broken components?
How is 100 vs 40 a rip off for an inferior product?

I would rather get an oem kit and have piece of mind that it would last the life of the vehicle.

I had my STi for over 7 years. The lights were on all day, everyday that I was driving it. I think that the new owner might have recently replaced one of the bulbs after over 7 years of use.

All the people with these hid kits in my area must have gotten the 20 buck version because they have a weaker throw than a comparable halogen, obnoxious colors and they will blind you from behind and oncoming.

Can someone explain the draw to one of these kits for me?

[wbradley]

I prefer factory supplied HID lighting. It is so much less trouble.

However, what can you lose buying an aftermarket kit? Exactly, the cost of the kit. I hear people on the forum every day condemning the cursed HID installs without opening the light enclosures and installing projectors.

I can attest that from the 2 kits I bought for $60 ea shipped, one ballast went out after a short time. The vendor sent me a replacement and all is well. If they blow out repeatedly, I will take a small loss and go back to halogen.

You *must* bend down the squirrel finder. Just put a finger in the hole where the bulb fits and push the metal tab at the bottom all the way down.

[FR-S Matt]

If you get cheap ballasts, you'll probably watch them die on you at some point. If you get quality ballasts, they will last you.

If you go cheap on an HID setup and get horrible quality ballasts, don't come on the forums complaining about why your headlight went out.

[g0lden]

DDM is cheap stuff, but I've always had good results with them.
I've spent $160 on a kit from www.retro-solutions.com and got a cheap kit and garbage bulbs. Then they wouldn't even warranty it.
I hear retrofit source is good stuff, but i'm just scared to spend that much money again on a kit.

Goodluck

[OmarGC]

Originally Posted by Beyer Subaru

I've never understood these kits. How can a mfr make a quality HID kit for 40 bucks when a comparable oem kit would be in the hundreds to thousands?

What does it matter it if comes with a warranty if you are always replacing broken components?
How is 100 vs 40 a rip off for an inferior product?

I would rather get an oem kit and have piece of mind that it would last the life of the vehicle.

I had my STi for over 7 years. The lights were on all day, everyday that I was driving it. I think that the new owner might have recently replaced one of the bulbs after over 7 years of use.

All the people with these hid kits in my area must have gotten the 20 buck version because they have a weaker throw than a comparable halogen, obnoxious colors and they will blind you from behind and oncoming.

Can someone explain the draw to one of these kits for me?

My $32 5k HID bulbs/ballast are 5 yrs strong on one of my cars. Great output with tsx projector retrofit.

[Vanga]

When I first started getting into the car scene, I just bought ebay HID kits and like @jbsali said, I was replacing ballasts left and right, I would buy extra ballasts so I would have them in stock for when the next one broke. Then I had enough and bought from an actual retailer, Diode Dynamics, I haven't had any problems. Now I don't know if its just because I got lucky or its actually good product. But one thing is for sure, I'll never buy ebay again!

[mezdup]

from my understanding, and as evident above, it's hit or miss with all aftermarket PnP kits. if i'm gonna roll the dice though, i'd rather do it on some cheaper ones.

[whataboutbob]

Originally Posted by mezdup

from my understanding, and as evident above, it's hit or miss with all aftermarket PnP kits. if i'm gonna roll the dice though, i'd rather do it on some cheaper ones.

My HID_PowerHouse kits from @KI_ZN6 have been a hit for me. Not the cheapest in price, and definitely not the cheapest in quality either. If you do your homework you'll hopefully get what you pay for.

[Vanga]

Originally Posted by whataboutbob

My HID_PowerHouse kits from @KI_ZN6 have been a hit for me. Not the cheapest in price, and definitely not the cheapest in quality either. If you do your homework you'll hopefully get what you pay for.

Smartest thing anyone ever said. DO RESEARCH. Pick whats best for you.

[Turbowned]

I've talked to a few people about inexpensive HID kits. Seen a few friends buy and install the cheap stuff. Needless to say they're not running <$100 HID's anymore. It all goes back to "you get what you pay for".

Aftermarket HID's are actually illegal in Massachusetts because of too many goons putting cheap ones on their cars and blinding people.

Originally Posted by Bmore_Raven86

dont fall for their high prices on HID kits $100+ rediculous...do your research guys..you can get good HID kit for $60 dollars ship to your house..with warranty...

The OP's spelling, grammar, and punctuation are the only things that are "rediculous" here.

[Acree]

Originally Posted by Bmore_Raven86

dont fall for their high prices on HID kits $100+ rediculous...do your research guys..you can get good HID kit for $60 dollars ship to your house..with warranty...

This is complete ignorance. Find me a single auto manufacturer that offers replacement bulb and ballasts for both sides for less than $100. There's a reason they cost so much. It's called quality and engineering.

-Acree

[wbradley]

Originally Posted by Acree

This is complete ignorance. Find me a single auto manufacturer that offers replacement bulb and ballasts for both sides for less than $100. There's a reason they cost so much. It's called quality and engineering.

-Acree

Yes, I completely agree, as long as OEM HID replacement components cost several hundred dollars at retail, it just isn't possible to get a reliable and well performing system for less. There is no way a system can perform for less than a few hundred dollars. Most people just don't understand this and instead wind up driving partially blind or causing lifelong retinal damage to other drivers.

I think if you can't afford to pay the highest price possible you shouldn't even attempt to have HIds. I personally bought the most expensive ones I could find but my friend paid more for his so I guess his are better.

Don't even bother gaining technical knowledge on the subject, you just can't buy acceptable HIDs for cheap without being the shame of your peers.

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