So I went on over to www.hidplanet.com (http://www.hidplanet.com) forums, and then to the store at www.theretrofitsource.com (http://www.theretrofitsource.com)

I was looking at their selection of HID projectors, ballasts, bulbs, etc. Basically, the best HID output you are going to get is with OEM hardware like Philips, and TSX projector retrofits, etc.

I found that if you do not want to do any sort of projector retrofit (yes, I too think the stock halogen projector is perfectly fine) then the best HID kit out there is the Morimoto kit.

I've tried MENG Motorsports, and DDM Tuning. Between the 2 of them, I got the wrong set of bulbs, a defective ballast, and a defective pair of bulbs.

I decided to pay a bit extra ~$155 total, and get a better HID kit. So I called The Retrofit Source, and talked to the owner. He set me up with a custom Morimoto Stage II Amp kit with 50w ballasts, 4300k bulbs, and an H11 dual fuse relay with LED power indicators.

Hooked those bad boys up, and night turned into day. It took around 8 seconds for the bulbs to fully warm up. The low beams are actually 2-3x brighter than my high beams! Highly suggest this kit. Would not buy any other HID kit. You get what you pay for, and these guys are serious about QUALITY lighting. Just go over to the www.hidplanet.com (http://www.hidplanet.com) forums and see for yourself.

Here is the 35w kit if you are interested:
http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?products_id=170

A 50w kit like I have will be a bit brighter, but not by a whole lot. It will also lower the kelvin rating of your bulb. (ie. 6000k bulb will look like 5000k)

The 50w ballasts powering the 4300k bulbs are the same color as my Philips CrystalVision Ultra halogen high beams, which are kind of white/yellowish. If you want pure white, I'd go with 5000k color temp, but you will see more lumens with the 4300k which is what OEM HIDs use anyway. The 4300k will be whiter, and less yellow with a 35w ballast, however. OEM also uses 35w ballasts.

Here are the pictures of my result:

Low Beam: (the tree line is ~400 feet away)
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/uu190/kvnhmmd2/For%20others/Morimoto-Low.jpg


High Beam: (notice lows are still brighter than halogen highs)
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/uu190/kvnhmmd2/For%20others/Morimoto-High.jpg

There is just nothing like following behind a vehicle, and seeing the shadow of their own vehicle cast over their own headlights. As I pass other drivers in the next lane, it always puts a smile on my face when my lights drown out their own lights.

Even when passing by someone who is walking on the sidewalk in pitch blackness. All the sudden, their sidewalk turns to day, and they have to turn around to see what's causing such bright light, lol. Makes me laugh every time.

And no. I have not been flashed. Please be responsible when aiming your headlights, and you won't have that problem. (except when coming over the top of a hill with the other car at the bottom :|)

I ordered my Morimoto stage II kit with the 35 watt 4300k but its on back order..

I bought everything you did minus the 55 watt ballast however living in los angeles there's a lot of street light available so I personally dont think its needed.

My question is what are you doing about fog lamps and high beams? that where I am stuck right now. Also how would the kit match up with some LED switchback turn signals? Id like it all to be contrast balanced on the front end.


I do agree on the Morimoto kits being one of the better ended kits however, I find the guys over at HIDplanet to be a bit snobby over there. Like worst than audiophile guys. Its a freakin head light, jesus christ!! I know our projectors weren't designed for HID and the cutoff isnt razor sharp but it looks good enough on your car so I think its safe to say it looks good on mine...


any front shots?

More pics please!

I ordered my Morimoto stage II kit with the 35 watt 4300k but its on back order..

I bought everything you did minus the 55 watt ballast however living in los angeles there's a lot of street light available so I personally dont think its needed.

My question is what are you doing about fog lamps and high beams? that where I am stuck right now. Also how would the kit match up with some LED switchback turn signals? Id like it all to be contrast balanced on the front end.


I do agree on the Morimoto kits being one of the better ended kits however, I find the guys over at HIDplanet to be a bit snobby over there. Like worst than audiophile guys. Its a freakin head light, jesus christ!! I know our projectors weren't designed for HID and the cutoff isnt razor sharp but it looks good enough on your car so I think its safe to say it looks good on mine...


any front shots?

You can give them a call Monday, and ask them why it says it's on backorder. They are very helpful on the phone I've noticed.

The difference between the 50w kit and the 35w kit is not dramatic. It is slight at best, so don't worry about losing much performance by only getting the 35w.

For my fogs, I was thinking of doing a retrofit with their projector fog light kit, but that involves cutting, drilling, and trying to mount the new projector. I might just get another set of 50w HIDs, but in 5000k, and put the 4300k in my fogs since the 4300k look like SilverStar Ultras in yellowness. (the 50w ballast lowers the kelvin rating, 35w 4300k should look whiter)

"Also how would the kit match up with some LED switchback turn signals? Id like it all to be contrast balanced on the front end." Sorry, I'm not sure what you mean with this question. I still havent converted any lights to LED, but I've taken the base off of one of my Halogen head light bulbs, and stuck it in for my reverse light :icon_biggrin:

The people on HID planet will chew you out if you meantion putting HID 'kits' in housings meant for halogen bulbs. They only support putting HID bulbs in HID projectors. The 2011 tC has great projectors, IMO.

I'll post more pics in a little while. So far, my setup just looks just like I have SilverStar Ultras, just 3-4x brighter.

I guess you answered my question. I wanted to know how it looked having the HID and halogens in the front headlamp assembly... and yeah I have noticed how touchy they get about cut off and glare I just never seen someone be some compulsive about it, and I work with engineers in television and they are the WORST and they dont obsess that bad :relief:

Great write up!!

I called The Retrofit Source and ordered the same Morimoto 50W Kit w/6K bulbs, picking them up Wednesday after work.:money: Custom work for $155+TAX

re-wired 50W Morimoto ballasts with Amp connectors, actually just new connectors
re-based DS2 bulbs to H11 - Good quality
double relay harness - Might not be needed

Great Deal!

I'd purchase this kit but I'd like to see more pics first from the front of the car I've been having nothing but problems from the ddm kit. I'm not saying it's a bad kit I just need something more reliable.

35 watt HID bulbs are already, what, twice as bright as typical stock halogens?

From the pictures I'm seeing in the first post, I guess the car is probably inclined a few degrees? Otherwise those projectors are aimed way too high, especially with 50 watt HIDs you'd probably want to reduce the risk of direct eye contact by aiming just a touch lower than you would with 35 watt HIDs.

What is the opinion of those who've faced 50/55 watt HIDs on the receiving end? There are a lot of times I find someone's headlights offensively bright, but I don't flash my highs. I try to reserve that for the most egregious of cases instead of running the possibility of crying wolf too many times, but it sure can be frustrating to have to wait for my eyes recover from an encounter with too-bright or aggressively-aimed headlights, often but not always on hills, precious seconds during which I suffer reduced visibility. Throw in supernova fog lights and it's just another layer of insult. At that point it's either incompetence on their part, or they have the selfish feeling that they own the road and can preen like a peacock at others' expense.

I'm skeptical, but open-minded. I just need to be sure I respect my fellow driver, and that there's a practical point to it all.

Hi backinblacktc2,

Unfortunately, I think DDM Tuning are a victim of their own success. Swamped with demand, they are prioritizing new orders and simply don't give the warranty/support department the personnel required. I can be a pretty patient guy, but it's been almost two months since I ordered my dead-on-arrival DDM Tuning HID kit, and they still haven't managed to fully replace my kit. That should happen this week finally but it shouldn't take this long. My next HID kit will probably be ordered elsewhere.

I'd purchase this kit but I'd like to see more pics first from the front of the car I've been having nothing but problems from the ddm kit. I'm not saying it's a bad kit I just need something more reliable.


From the pictures I'm seeing in the first post, I guess the car is probably inclined a few degrees? Otherwise those projectors are aimed way too high, especially with 50 watt HIDs you'd probably want to reduce the risk of direct eye contact by aiming just a touch lower than you would with 35 watt HIDs.

What is the opinion of those who've faced 50/55 watt HIDs on the receiving end? There are a lot of times I find someone's headlights offensively bright, but I don't flash my highs. I try to reserve that for the most egregious of cases instead of running the possibility of crying wolf too many times, but it sure can be frustrating to have to wait for my eyes recover from an encounter with too-bright or aggressively-aimed headlights, often but not always on hills, precious seconds during which I suffer reduced visibility. Throw in supernova fog lights and it's just another layer of insult. At that point it's either incompetence on their part, or they have the selfish feeling that they own the road and can preen like a peacock at others' expense.

I'm skeptical, but open-minded. I just need to be sure I respect my fellow driver, and that there's a practical point to it all.

Ok, here you go. This is what I see from my projector above the cutoff line. It's just a white/yellowish glowing orb as long as you stay above the cutoff point. (the camera's color reproduction shows more yellow than there really is)

http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/uu190/kvnhmmd2/For%20others/IMG_2188.jpg

However, once you go under the cutoff point, that's where the brightness is

http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/uu190/kvnhmmd2/For%20others/IMG_2189.jpg


(this is a better color reproduction, and is relatively accurate)
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/uu190/kvnhmmd2/For%20others/IMG_2182.jpg (http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/uu190/kvnhmmd2/For%20others/IMG_2182.jpg)



As to how my lights are aimed, the pictures in the original post were taken from at the top of a hill overlooking a field below. No, I don't drive with my lights aimed to the top of the tree line.

The cutoff point between 35w and 50w does not change since you are using the same bulbs, so no need to adjust your projectors. Remember, the brightness is only a slight increase when changing to 50w ballasts.

I did compare my 50w 4300k HIDs in my tC side by side to my girlfriends 2008 Dodge Caliber that has SilverStar bulbs with reflectors. Her reflectors had plenty of wasted light (glare) since that's the nature of reflectors. The projector of the tC has none of that from the same angle, just a glowing orb. I'll post a picture up soon, but I can't right now since she is at work. Another thing I noticed, is the brightness would get brighter on a reflector as you got closer to the cutoff point. The tC still had no glare until... bam! ur at the cutoff point. Always make sure your car is outfitted with projectors!

So to sum it all up, as long as your projectors are not aimed at an upward angle, you should have no problems with glare no matter how bright your lights are. Any other car on the road that has reflector headlight housings will always have more glare compared to the tC because... well they are reflectors. My aim allows me to see approx. 500ft in front of me before the cutoff point on the road, so I don't get flashed.

Great write up!!

I called The Retrofit Source and ordered the same Morimoto 50W Kit w/6K bulbs, picking them up Thursday after work.:money: Custom work for $155

re-wired 50W Morimoto ballasts with Amp connectors
re-based DS2 bulbs to H11
double relay harness

Great Deal!

I was also surprised that the 50w rewired ballasts are only $5 more! The wire harness getting thrown in also is a good deal on top of already high quality hardware.

Using the harness is optional, if you really don't want the extra wires floating around, and it can be pretty intimidating at first trying to figure out how it all hooks up.

Also, you will be provided with, I think 2 other wire pieces that you will not need to use, so don't be scratching your head wondering what to do with them. One is an adapter that plugs into something, with 2 wires coming out of it, and the other is in the rubber garment of the HID light harness, you can pull those out of the garment.

Glad you went with 6k bulbs. You probably won't see any blue in them with the 50w kit, they should be pure white. However, if you would have went with the 4300k bulbs, you definitely would see yellow, which most people are probably trying to avoid when upgrading to HIDs, so I'm going to get another kit at 50w with 5k bulbs, and see how that looks. I'll then throw the 4300k kit in my fogs.

Let me know how the 6k bulbs look when you get them! Hopefully you will get them this week! Tell me if you see any blue in them!

My guess is you'd see a touch of blue, if powering a 6000k bulb at 50 watts.

Still trying to make my mind up here. If I could do that, I'd order today, either the 35 watt or 50 watt kit and get it over with. Even though my resolution with DDM Tuning is right around the corner, my experience with them has left me with such a soured taste that I don't want their product in my car.

TRS look like they're pretty easy to deal with and wouldn't mind swapping ballasts if you found the 50 watt kit too rich for your blood.

Anyway, I point back to my previous post. Could we get some more feedback from folks as to what it looks like approaching 50/55-watt HIDs on hilly roads & whatnot? Videos maybe?

Just off the phone with TRS, Matt (Owner) is very helpful and can answer/recommend anything you might need.
The difference is only $5 between the 35W & 50W Morimoto kit. Also the dual relay is included in the price, 1 relay for each headlight, I tried to buy the kit w/o but it's recommended because of the ballast draw during startup is 8amp per ballast. I'm picking up my Morimoto 50W kit w/6K bulbs tomorrow, so I will have them installed for tomorrow nights test drive.

A real class act, DP. My problem isn't . . . . staring at bright lights, nor is it aim per se.

Back to the adults in the room, here's my question in a nut shell:

I live in a rather hilly & curved road-area, and somewhat populated too, so I do encounter other cars frequently. Will this be a problem with the Scion tC and a 50-watt kit? It's my experience that hills are prime staging ground for the momentary blinding of oncoming traffic. I'm a respectful sort, so I don't like to blind other people, or mock, smile, or laugh at them condescendingly with my Hyperion headlights on lend from Zeus. I like to avoid being an ___ if at all possible.

At the same time, illumination is great. One of the first words of wisdom my father imparted to me when I got my new car, is don't script on headlights, a nugget of knowledge that seems intuitive enough but often doesn't get emblazoned into your mind till you've been in a major accident which proper illumination would have prevented, the precise situation my father found himself in some years ago. So, I care about this subject very much.

LOL, I sorry was I talking/quoting you? johnmk (http://www.scionlife.com/forums/member.php?u=203414) :flame:
Get it straight before you sh_t on someone's thread.. or maybe you should be posting over on HID Planet with the real serious people.

Hello again DP,

As always, I appreciate your advice, but I'd prefer this conversation here, since we're dealing with the Scion tC projector and we're more familiar with its properties.

Guys, lets stay on topic here.

You guys have some fancy HIDs...

I was going to buy a set of 6000k DDM's but my cousin bought some 6000k Xentec ones for my birthday. They seem to be pretty cheap E-bay ones, but can't complain about free stuff. So far nothing has gone wrong, using them for a few weeks already, just hope they last awhile.

And I can confirm on OP's cutoff line info. Up close (above cutoff line) there is absolutely no glare and the projector looks like a blue glass ball. When I walk a little further away from the car I can start to see some glare, looks like two little bright stars instead of orbs.

I have not changed the aim on the projectors. Am I supposed to change it or is the stock aim okay?

Anyway, I point back to my previous post. Could we get some more feedback from folks as to what it looks like approaching 50/55-watt HIDs on hilly roads & whatnot? Videos maybe?
I don't think there is a way to avoid glare if the incoming car is down a hill as you are coming up over it.

If you are in the path of illumination, you are going to see glare. You can reduce glare by reducing the brightness of your lights, or by using a projector that will take advantage of the extra light by spreading it out in a wider area. This will lower the intensity of the light overall instead of focusing it in a smaller area. This is the difference between HID projectors, and halogen projectors.

You can also lower the aim of your lights to give you more leeway as you go over hills, but if you are concerned about glare, I'd just get 35w if I were you to start. But again, I have not been flashed using 50w, and my aim is higher than it was stock.

Also, there is a thread somewhere with a diagram on how to eliminate the "Squirrel finders" that appear on the top side of the cutoff point.

And I can confirm on OP's cutoff line info. Up close (above cutoff line) there is absolutely no glare and the projector looks like a blue glass ball. When I walk a little further away from the car I can start to see some glare, looks like two little bright stars instead of orbs.

I have not changed the aim on the projectors. Am I supposed to change it or is the stock aim okay?

Those two bright little "stars" you see are those "Squirrel Finders" I was referring to. If you pull up next to a wall, you will see 2 faint boxes above the cutoff line. These are there to help illuminate road signs, when using halogens.

HID projectors do not have these because when you are putting extra light through, it can cause glare. There is a thread somewhere that describes how to bend down the piece of metal in the projector that creates the squirrel finders. This will fix the little bit of glare that you are describing. Cosmetically, however, the squirrel finders also give your headlights more of a twinkle, and better color flicker.

As to adjusting your aim from stock. There is no need for that. The stock aim is a bit low, so you do have room to adjust it up a bit, but be careful. If may not look like they are being raised much, but as soon as you hit the open road going over small hills, you will definitely see that a small adjustment goes a long way.

Thanks for the info.

If stock aim is okay then that's just dandy. I'm not planning to get HID projectors and if problems arise I'll just put my halogen bulbs back in.

Just curious about one more thing.

My rear-view mirror gets blindingly bright when somebody with reflector HIDs is behind me, but when people see my squirrel finders in their rear view, will it be blinding if their car is low enough? Or will they just see two little stars in their rear view mirror while their interior is brightly lit? Or is this unlikely since stock aim is low enough?

Basically, when I look at the squirrel finders head on from far away I get a little bit of glare, but I'm wondering how big the effect will be when people see it in their rear view mirror.

Thanks for the info.

If stock aim is okay then that's just dandy. I'm not planning to get HID projectors and if problems arise I'll just put my halogen bulbs back in.

Just curious about one more thing.

My rear-view mirror gets blindingly bright when somebody with reflector HIDs is behind me, but when people see my squirrel finders in their rear view, will it be blinding if their car is low enough? Or will they just see two little stars in their rear view mirror while their interior is brightly lit? Or is this unlikely since stock aim is low enough?

Basically, when I look at the squirrel finders head on from far away I get a little bit of glare, but I'm wondering how big the effect will be when people see it in their rear view mirror.

Usually the stock aim will only show the very bottom of their bumper, so they should only see the little stars, unless you are both going over a hill, and your cutoff raises up to their rear view, but this is only a few seconds of glare, and the driver ahead of you probably won't think anything of it.

Definitely will not light up their interior with the squirrel finders, but you definitely will light it up if your cutoff raises up into their windows, which is rare on stock aim.

All in all, most people won't look in their rear view to inspect what your headlights look like. Only the obviously bright lights get their attention, but when you are following them in the tC, the projectors are definitely within the "average" category in terms of brightness, even with HIDs, so they most likely won't be bothered.

I guess you can follow a friend, and get their opinion, but the problem with that, is they will be looking, and concentrating too hard on your lights, and might point things out that they wouldn't normally point out, whereas if you followed them, and then asked them about your lights afterwards, they wouldn't remember if your headlights were bright or not, since it didn't catch their attention.

Just remember, "normal" joe blows won't be examining every other headlight that passes by, they will only get irritated with the ones who drive around with the 10,000k blue HIDs in a crappy honda civic foggy reflector. So all in all, you should be fine.

Very helpful information. If you go two weeks without flashing, I'm sold. At first I thought you were a little cocky, doing this just to dazzle your neighbors, but I think I was mistaken. It's clear you've done your research and didn't take this lightly. Quite the contrary, and I respect that.

Good to see someone using the Morimotos. I plan on using them when I start my retro. Although I wouldn't make the claim that they are the best, but rather just as good. Let's not forget about Denso, Philips, and Matsush(i)ta.

Having seen Kevin's kit in person now, I can see why he's interested in going with 5000k. The 4300k, 35 watt bulbs he has, end up being around 3900k, I'd say, when receiving 50 watts. Hopefully the 5000k bulbs strike the right balance he's looking for, which I think is somewhere around 4300-4500k.

Regarding glare, the Scion tC's projectors acquit themselves rather well under the pressure of the 50 watt kit, I'd say it's nearly a non-issue.

I'd like to see a closer cut-off "20ft on a wall" picture instead of a distance shot across trees and grass. TC1 oem projectors had a "squirrel spotter" window that caused glare, if this has been removed from the TC2 projectors that would make these quite useful for PNP hid kits (Minus the width you probably don't get).

It's still there in the 2011, but IMO, the 15 watt increase doesn't appreciably change the dynamic. But yes by all means, pictures are always appreciated.

I just saw Kevin's setup personally last night, and it wasn't offensively bright, as I had half-expected it to be. Overall I don't think you need worry about the squirrel finders, but if you do, then rest assured that you can tweak them to suit your preferences. It can be done without too much fuss, from what I hear.

It's still there in the 2011, but IMO, the 15 watt increase doesn't appreciably change the dynamic. But yes by all means, pictures are always appreciated.

I just saw Kevin's setup personally last night, and it wasn't offensively bright, as I had half-expected it to be. Overall I don't think you need worry about the squirrel finders, but if you do, then rest assured that you can tweak them to suit your preferences. It can be done without too much fuss, from what I hear.

Yes they can be modded without parting the headlights, however you will need to move the shield to the right angle. HOWEVER, if you choose to do a complete mod, u can cover up that small slit.

Per picture below, this is my 08 OEM projector during testing, color shield mod WITHOUT spotter window covered. i can show what I currently have later tonight after work if interested ;)

http://i.imgur.com/oqfJp.jpg

Just off the phone with TRS, Matt (Owner) is very helpful and can answer/recommend anything you might need.
The difference is only $5 between the 35W & 50W Morimoto kit. Also the dual relay is included in the price, 1 relay for each headlight, I tried to buy the kit w/o but it's recommended because of the ballast draw during startup is 8amp per ballast. I'm picking up my Morimoto 50W kit w/6K bulbs tomorrow, so I will have them installed for tomorrow nights test drive.

Morimoto 5Five 6k kit installed w/o harness yesterday, no power problems at all, but will be installing the harness next time the front bumper off for peace of mine.

Morimoto 5Five Ballast is very well made, connections are good and clean, I would estimate the startup to full brightness is about 5 seconds, very fast.

Morimoto 6K H11 bulbs are also well made, connectors and rubber seal are topnotch. The 6K bulbs at 50W look pure white w/o any blue.

TC1 projectors being made for halogens are just alright for cutoff, but nothing like "True" HID projectors is have seen demo'd yesterday at TRS!

Here's a kit TRS (http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?products_id=254) sells for the simplest retrofit w/o aiming or mounting, cutoff was extremely sharp. $150 w/o ballasts

to be honest, I believe branded or not, PNP hid kits will still perform the same others at the given wattage ratings. Of course unless you opt for cheaper HID kits <$30. I hear a lot of talk about Morimoto kits, however the wiring and such looks very similar to other ebay brand kits, VVME, etc, that range in $42-75 and the bulbs are still based the same. "Brand name" doesn't justify the price unless you are going to stick with OEMs such as Hella, Valeo, Denso, Phillips, etc. I've searched around ebay quite a bit and googled up the model numbers / letterings on pictures sellers use, you will see a lot of the PNP ballasts come chipped from China (even google links you to ebay-type sites detailing the production region in China!). Some sellers will just paint over the ballasts and add a few things, pick a cool name, and then charge ridiculous $$$ for what you could have paid $50 or less.

Not bashing on Morimoto and their fans... my final say is, I'd like to see the ballasts / ignitors of Morimoto dissected in comparison to say, VVME, DDM Tuning, etc. Then we can talk about branding for quality measures.

I remember my first high end HID Kit I bought locallly for $175 55w 8k from TR Lighting from a chinese guy in Burlingame, CA I believe! which are extremely bright vs my current 3 other brand 55w HID Kits which i've never seen any head turn ever since owned for 3.5yrs. I get almost 80% head turns on the street whomever I passed by with TR Lighting kit installed. but sad thing is it's not reliable got the bulb replace 2x in it's 1yr warranty, then ballast defective right after 1yr... so base on your review that you recently got the kit and wrote the review base on the output... so I hope it's a reliable kit, as of now I had been running HID on my car for about 5yrs, I'm still in searching for another kit which give me my head turners back but are reliable...

Yes the Morimoto is a expensive aftermarket PnP kit, but they warmup fast, stay a consistent color, re-ignite fast...etc..

My DDM kit had zero issues, the bulb quality was the my problem, I could have just paid for better bulbs, but having TRS in my backyard (ATL), like Glock, If there is any problems I can go to them directly with any issues and have them resolved instantly.

Reliability we will see, 18 month warranty with the Morimoto kit is also a good thing.

to be honest, I believe branded or not, PNP hid kits will still perform the same others at the given wattage ratings. Of course unless you opt for cheaper HID kits <$30. I hear a lot of talk about Morimoto kits, however the wiring and such looks very similar to other ebay brand kits, VVME, etc, that range in $42-75 and the bulbs are still based the same. "Brand name" doesn't justify the price unless you are going to stick with OEMs such as Hella, Valeo, Denso, Phillips, etc. I've searched around ebay quite a bit and googled up the model numbers / letterings on pictures sellers use, you will see a lot of the PNP ballasts come chipped from China (even google links you to ebay-type sites detailing the production region in China!). Some sellers will just paint over the ballasts and add a few things, pick a cool name, and then charge ridiculous $$$ for what you could have paid $50 or less.

Not bashing on Morimoto and their fans... my final say is, I'd like to see the ballasts / ignitors of Morimoto dissected in comparison to say, VVME, DDM Tuning, etc. Then we can talk about branding for quality measures.

I did just that. I hooked up a DDM ballast and a Morimoto ballast next to each other. The Morimoto ballasts warmed up in half the time as the DDM kit, and was much brighter. Both were hooked up to thesame relay harness also

That was a DDM Tuning 35-watt ballast, though.

Took awhile, been busy..


Here is the OEM 08-10 TC1 projectors modded, eh goal was really to just cover up the squirrel window. u can see it still hotspots and isn't as far spread in regards to width. camera phone pic, sorry digital cam is somewhere still in my luggage from weekend trip.

http://i.imgur.com/yK883.jpg


Just another note, it's a cheap 2 yr old $30 ebay kit running 5000K HIDs, no relay harness.

I'm probably sending my kit (50 watt ballasts w/ 5000k bulbs) back and exchanging it for a 35 watt ballast and 4300k bulbs. IMO, more is not better. I find my pupils contract and make my night vision worse, so anything outside of the lighted area, I'm less inclined to see, not more. And there is no more useful lighted area than with my old 35 watt ballast, the projector sees to that. 35 watts just seems to be ideal with HIDs, I believe -- should have stuck with my intuitions here. It certainly feels brighter at first, but I believe this is somewhat deceiving, since the added brightness isn't helpful.

Oh well, free no-hassle exchange, TRS are great to deal with.

I'm probably sending my kit (50 watt ballasts w/ 5000k bulbs) back and exchanging it for a 35 watt ballast and 4300k bulbs. IMO, more is not better. I find my pupils contract and make my night vision worse, so anything outside of the lighted area, I'm less inclined to see, not more. And there is no more useful lighted area than with my old 35 watt ballast, the projector sees to that. 35 watts just seems to be ideal with HIDs, I believe -- should have stuck with my intuitions here. It certainly feels brighter at first, but I believe this is somewhat deceiving, since the added brightness isn't helpful.

Oh well, free no-hassle exchange, TRS are great to deal with.

Let us know how that goes, and what you think of your next headlight setup.

I'm probably sending my kit (50 watt ballasts w/ 5000k bulbs) back and exchanging it for a 35 watt ballast and 4300k bulbs. IMO, more is not better. I find my pupils contract and make my night vision worse, so anything outside of the lighted area, I'm less inclined to see, not more. And there is no more useful lighted area than with my old 35 watt ballast, the projector sees to that. 35 watts just seems to be ideal with HIDs, I believe -- should have stuck with my intuitions here. It certainly feels brighter at first, but I believe this is somewhat deceiving, since the added brightness isn't helpful.

Oh well, free no-hassle exchange, TRS are great to deal with.

I totally agree with this statement if your sticking with the TC OEM Projectors. 35W w/ 4.3K or 5K if you want a little less yellow. 55W just is too much light for a halogen projector.