HID
Traditional Halogen lights produce their light by an
electric current which flows through a filament.
This is a tiny mechanical piece of wire. Over time
it loses it's initial brightness and becomes brittle
and fails. The newer fancier halogen (filament)
bulbs last even shorter periods.
In contrast to this, the HID bulb does not have a
filament. Instead, the bulb is filled with Xenon Gas
and Metal Halide particles. This system requires
23000 Volts to ignite. This high power is provided
by a Ballast. When power is supplied to the bulb,
the electrons inside the bulb collide with the Metal
Halide particles. The subsequent action is a
beautiful bright, even, and constant light.
Colour Temperature
Light has a "colour temperature". Colour Temperature
is a measurement in Degrees Kelvin (K) which
indicates the hue of a specific type of light
source. Many people believe (incorrectly) that
colour temperature is a rating of the brightness of
the bulb or light source. This is incorrect, however
the whiter light definitely helps to give that
impression.
Halogen is rated as +/- 3200K (Kelvin). Normal
halogen lights may appear to be white, but in
comparison, they actually still fall into the
"yellow" category.
Xenon HID falls into a higher category, namely 4300
to 12000K. At these levels, the colour is yellow to
white / pure white / white blue/ white purple -
which is considered daylight. The actual brightness
of a light source is measured in "Lumen" and has
nothing to do with the colour temperature of a light
source. HID lights generally have a 3 times higher
Lumen output than Halogen equivalents.
Why Use HID Xenon in your vehicle?
As with most new things, technology will bring us
bigger, better, faster more than we are used to.
There is always a tradeoff.
HID draws 60% of the electrical power, gives 3x more
light output and lasts longer than Halogen, however
it is more complex and more expensive.
It is a scientific fact that a person of around 40+
years of age, needs 10x more light to see with the
same clarity as a 20 year old. installing HID lights
in your car will probably give you the extra light
you have been looking for. HID lights are proven to
reduce night-time driver fatigue. Needless to say,
this improves safety, since the driver is more alert
over longer distances. Improved safety is also
evident in the fact that better light provides
better visibility at night (road markings, warning
sings, pot-holes, crossing people and animals, bad
weather conditions etc).
Of a pure technical advantage is the fact that the
HID system actually runs cooler (heat/temperature)
than Halogen, and the power draw from the alternator
is reduced by 40% - For Defender owners this is a
great thing as the headlight switch on a Defender
melts and eventually becomes erratic then
dysfunctional. The substantially lower power draw of
the HID Upgrade kit will save your switch
indefinitely, naturally it is also a lower load on
your alternator, leaving more available power for
extra spotlights or fridges.
So,
maybe you do not need a set of driving lights after
all - An HID Upgrade kit fitted to your car is a
cost effective way to overall better safety and
piece-of-mind for driving at night.
The HID
Upgrade Kit
This kit contains all
you need to upgrade our lights. Two bulbs, two
ballast units, wiring and connectors.
The H4 Hi/Lo kits need to cater for high and low
beam in the same bulb. What they do is to use one
single H4 bulb fitted to an electrical mechanism
which moves the bulb mechanically from the Hi to the
Lo position inside the headlamp housing. H4 Hi/Lo
kits will therefore be shipped with additional
controls for the hi/lo function. All wiring is
supplied and installation is very simple.
Various HID bulbs are available to suit most
applications
Which kit do I need ?
H4 Hi/Lo - This kit is for
Defenders and Disco 1 and early Disco 2
H7 - Disco 2 Facelift models
and Disco 3. You will need two of these kits - one
for low beam and one for high beam.
H1 and H3 are also available
so that you can upgrade your spot lights to HID !
HID SPOT LIGHTS 
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