candurin Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Ah. Thanks gentlemen. I was thinking one thing and read another. I assumed "retrofit" was hid installed in halogen projectors. Yes, TRS aftermarket projectors can give you some unbelievably sharp cut-offs. I have been nothing but thrilled with my TRS HID kit. Having said that, my wife has DDM 35w setup in her cx-9 and it has been going for over 6 years without issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 to clarify also, I tried to find a pic from about the same distance (120-150ft) I was from the fence in the photo. Tonight I went back with my Fusion (Halogen projector) just to get a comparison from the same distance and also close. I'll eventually go back and get a nice 50 foot(ish) shot with my Edge too. Fusion Halogen from same distance From about 50fthas a pretty flat cutoff the width of the car and then drops on both left and right sides. impressed, doesn't look like direct light is above that cutoff, ideally I wish I had a building around me to look at this more indepth but this gives a pretty good idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Could it be by design, Nick, that the cutoffs for the OEM projectors are crowned that way? To prevent glare to oncoming AND same-direction-but-in-other-lanes traffic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Thats correct. If I had pnp hids laying around I would install them just to see the difference...but I dont. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Ideally the "steps" in the oem hids will/should be more pronounced at 50ft 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omar302 Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 On the topic of HID light pattern, it seems Ford is using a different projector on the MKX (maybe other Lincolns also) versus Ford vehicles. On Ford (seen it on the Explorer, Edge & Mustang), the HID pattern looks like a Halogens pattern only brighter, on the MKX it has a clear cutoff with the right side going up. The light on the MKX also shines considerably wider on the road. I recently rented a Nissan Altima with HID & it also had a similar pattern as the MKX. This is the pattern from my OEM HID lights (sorry for the low quality pictures): Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 My oem 15 hids look nothing like a halogen cutoff...I'm going to assume you have an older Edge cause the 15up have a blue tint in the cutoff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 Couldn't go to my normal fence cause the edge sits to high. Here's my factory 15 HID cutoff. Note4 could capture the blue cutoff on the concrete but it did on a container I found. Factory doesn't have the best steps in the cutoff but it's also not the worst I'be seen either. 1st pic shows steps up close, 2nd from a distance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omar302 Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 If you look at the 2011-2015 Owners manual of the MKX, it shows the difference in light pattern between Halogen & HID. In the 2015 Edge Owners Manual there is only 1 pattern shown and it is similar to the Halogen pattern in the MKX. For color & that bluish line, don't take my photos as a guide due to the cellphone camera I am using, the bluish line/cutoff is there. I have a 2011 MKX with factory HID. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 Do you have fogs on in your pics? The light bleeding in the top left is why I ask. If you don't have fogs on, have you ever taken the drivers HID out? May not be seated correctly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 (edited) Just to bring LED back into light. This is a tuned LED from a 15 prius. Doesn't throw much distance but gosh that cutoff is amazing. Edited January 25, 2016 by Nick Halstead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omar302 Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 Do you have fogs on in your pics? The light bleeding in the top left is why I ask. If you don't have fogs on, have you ever taken the drivers HID out? May not be seated correctly I didn't have them on at the time, and yes, the driver's HID was taken out recently. Thanks for pointing that out, I'll try to re-seat it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dominatron2212 Posted January 26, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 After getting them installed, I took a cut-off pic, but not as far away from objects as you all. It seems from about 20 feet to stay under a sedan's rear windshield on flat ground. I went with the 35w 5500k from Retrofit Source, a 9012 bulb. They said the anti-flicker wasn't needed, and used the HD relay. Turns out my headlight was out because the stock bulb melted the harness, so I went hardwired. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 Yeah thats too close and the garage door doesn't help. If you find a nice blank wall with some distance you can pull up close and then back away slowly and watch how your cutoff changes. Also can look at my pics all from a variety of distances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dominatron2212 Posted January 26, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 What am i looking for? Blurring? There is just a tiny blue line that doesn't show in the pics- I was told that any more blue would be in the cutoff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 For the best observation of your cut off, you ideally want to view it at about 50ft. The garage photo is kinda like sitting 1ft in front of a 80in TV. Here's 2 pics of my oem hids. One right in front of garage and other from about 50ft. Notice the hotspot is more spread out. Ideally you want an even hotspot spread out throught the whole light but only a tuned projector is normally going to accomplish that. The blue line is just for looks but it blures the cutoff as opposed to have a sharp cutoff line. Most people love the blue cutoff and enhance this (see led photo i posted earlier). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dominatron2212 Posted January 26, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 That is very helpful, thank you. I'll get that done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dominatron2212 Posted January 26, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 For people reading in the future, use The Retrofit Source's chat feature to get some specific application questions, they are extremely helpful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Halstead Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 TRS basically runs the group Headlight Junkies. TRS is legit. They don't sell lights over 6500k because it's function over looks 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dominatron2212 Posted January 26, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 Yeah, they even talked me down from 6500k to 5500k because "the brightness is very noticable, and the blue isn't as much". Looking back on it, pure white looks more impressive than a blue tint to me now. I'll be posting a review as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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