RichieRich

I purchased my GS4 pre-owned, and I am not sure if it has HID headlights. How can I tell if it does have them?

Thanks for any info.

v300

...its like staring at the sun. Supposedly, if you stand eight feet in front of your car with the the headlights on you should see a super white illumination. When you move your head around, the concentration of light should look cystal-like instead of a stationary halogen discharge.

biggie27

basicly what hes trying to say is if it looks white then its HID, if it looks yellowish then its regular.

HID usaully has a bluish tint to it, and if you turn the lights of and let them sit for an hour or so and turn your lights back on your lights should look like there leveling themselfs

CamRen

hid vs. reg halogen...

o0o0o you will know the difference

ever see the new audi's or BMW's see the there healights are all colors including bright blue/purple/white/yellow when you lok at it from angle's.... thats wut hid is... w/projectore offcourse... regular hid are blinding..

and when you first turn them on they are dark purplr/bluish and like after a minute.. they are bright white with a tint of blue..

v300

As a disclaimer I am not a high intensity discharge expert nor I intend to be... the problem is that there are aftermarket "white-HID" 9006 bulbs that look close (almost) like HID these days, i.e., the PIAA Xtremes for instance. I was just trying to make a distinction on how to catch HID from knock-offs even though "HID" looks like HID... I can't verbally discribe it except you see spots if you stare at the source. As for Xenon lamp systems they are bright but I don't think as bright as HID systems. I think MeanGene will have a better answer.

CamRen

you can pop ur hood open and see in the back of the headlight.. lol it should say toyota denso HID on the back....

bulbs of hid and 9006 bulb are very different... hid bulb = thin and long. 9006 bulb short and fat.

fangtl

Or just simply look for the ballast

Flexor

Turn you high beams on. HID will look a blueish white and your high beams will look yellow. If your high beams match the color of the low beams, then you do not have HID.

0260n5.7

All,

So what you are sayin' is that whether it is "long and skinny" or "short and fat", there should be a "whitish color" coming from a "high intensity discharge?" Are you sure your trying to help Rich with his questions? Sounds like a Dr. Ruth answer to me JK

I'm not an expert either but after much searching I think V300, you are right. Many aftermarket 9006 bulbs such as PIAA (Xtreme white 4000 degrees kelvin) and CATZ (Galaxy white 4150 degrees Kelvin) look similar to HID (HID runs @ 6000 degrees Kelvin). PIAA actually has a new Super Plasma 9006 replacement bulb rated at 5000 degrees Kelvin. The degree determines the whiteness/blueness of the light.

If I am not mistaken, HID are elctronic which utilize the technology to burn whiter, cooler and more efficient than Halogen, therefore there should be a ballast to "ignite" the electronic charge. You will know the difference if you look at where the bulb meets the headlight housing. If the lights are Halogen, there will just be the standard wires going into it. If it is HID, there will be other electronic equipment attached. Hope this helps. Also refer to www.hids4less.com for info.

MAC

CoreY2K1

you could also try this: smash one of your headlights with a hammer, then go to your local dealer and buy a replacement. if the dealer tells you it's going to cost a couple thousand dollars to replace it, then you've got HIDs

0260n5.7

Core,

lol... thats BLASPHEMY! :eek:

MAC

xsuperjoex

Excellent...

omegadoug

Are HIDs the same as Xenons, you know, the kind you pay $500 extra for in a BMW?

///MDex

At night, orientate your car so that the front of your GS is perpendicular to a garage door or wall. Turn your lights on, and if you have OEM HIDs, you'll notice the self leveling feature.

up, down, up again level

HTH

RichieRich

My lights do the self leveling thing when I turn them on, and they do have the blueish tint to them. I thought they were, but wasn't positive.

Thanks for the Info: