Projector Retrofit in progress

[gshadow32]

I've done plenty of retrofits, this is one of the easiest ones to do!

probably can get this done in 1 hour for both headlights if i had it planned out.
instead i spent 20 minutes thinking what i wanted to do and didnt have all the parts LOL

Plan is now to go to TRS when they open in a few hours and buy parts.
-paint the bezel black
-choose a shroud, might go naked and run a nice halo ring since we have fluted lenses
-modify my existing H4 LED headlight bulbs to fit the existing d2c projector i have.

pictures, i know you love pictures

[cvtroger]

Awesome man.

I absolutely hate the lens. I've polished it and now it is yellowish again... California....

[gshadow32]

They are DONE.


Here is a play by play.


Pop 6 clips off





i use a heat gun and go around the edge. this is where the screw driver is pointed at. this is also the seam you will stick your screw driver in and start prying it apart. this is also where patience is required. you will google, youtube different methods to separate the two pieces. some recommend a oven and various temps. i dont like doing that since the whole thing is hot and can melt if not at the right temp. with a heat gun i control the temperature. i go around the whole seam and get it nice and warm to the touch. if you go holy crap thats hot and get burned right away, its too hot. LOL



these have not been separated since birth, so you'll find they have a great bond and are hard to separate. with some slow persuasion you can get them separated.



this is how it looks separated. see the old glue, its a iso buytle. kinda hard soft doesnt totally cure into a blob like silicone, softens up with heat.



you need to remove this hood around the H4 bulb



this ring twists off the rear



pull the rubber cap off to expose the rear of the bulb



if anyone ever tried to replace a headlight bulb. this is what it looks like up close. super slick clip that will drive you bonkers when you cant see it. double clip on top of a clip





remove the 3 phillips screws to from the above picture to get this below




now for the mods. painted the inside black with Hi temp paint found at the local hardware store. i used spray paint meant for the bbq grill. why? it gets hot in there.


PRO TIP:
since you got a heat gun to do this project. use it to accelerate the drying process of the spray paint. spray one layer, heat gun to dry it. then repeat till done. suggest wiping the inside with some acetone to clean the surface.




i chose to use left hand drive D2S bi xenon projectors, basically a hi and low beam projector. these are the wires you need to fish thru a tiny hole at the back of the bexel for the highbeam motor






this is what a complete out of the box morimoto mini d2s 3.0 looks like



this is it seperated.



this is that triangle looking ring and its now seated inside where the old H4 bulb would sit in. its a adapter bracket to seat the projector.



now pushe the projector thru the front of the bezel to come out the rear. it can go only one way. since the adapter triangle looking plate has a notch and it corresponds to the same notch on the projector



this is a metal ring that comes as a ccesory in the box along with a 9006 adapter plug.



you see what i did there? took the ring and threaded it around the projector. btw the rubber white ring thats in a few photos above is still on the projector side of the bezel. its acts like a rubber bumper.



i push down on the projector to get the threads to come out more on the back so i can thread the ring on more by hand.



projector in and some mods. thats a super bright white led ring mounted around the projector. i chose not to use a shroud since the bezel is black, and since we have a fluted lense. cant see the projector anyways.




the buytle is laid into the channel where the lense and rear housing meet.




this is the housing and lense on top of each other.



using some clamps. the band between headlight can go back to the way they were for the last 20 years. using a heat gun you again soften up the buytle, and the clamps do their thing and you reinstall the 6 clips from earlier. you will have excess goo start coming out. thats ok, you use a razor blade and trim it off. dont skimp with the buytle and go out and buy some silicone at home depot since you cant find it locally. silicone dries into a huge mess and pita.




completed and closed up.




wiring will be another day. now these are done i have a huge list to get done in the next few days. i have 5 days left before my road trip.
-usb outlet in passenger door
-power inverter install
-dual battery install
-train horns install
-EBC brake pad install
-headlight install

[gshadow32]

Proof in concept! Projectors are fitted and installed and wired up!

Nothing but awesome light output!


Parking lights and ONLY halo rings on in headlights. Those are NOT the HID system on. the rings a awesome bright!!


Wired the Halos to alternate flash when the turn signals are on. and stay on when the parking lights are on.
Video will play if you click on the photo below

[89TownAce]

It's a shame you had to put back on the old, dated looking lense covers back on. Projectors should be going through a non-diffusing lense really. I wonder how difficult it would be to fabricate smooth clear covers to replace the diffused style?

[gshadow32]

It's a shame you had to put back on the old, dated looking lense covers back on. Projectors should be going through a non-diffusing lense really. I wonder how difficult it would be to fabricate smooth clear covers to replace the diffused style?

Yes it's a shame but output is 1000x better than the halogens inside the old headlamps.

Fabbing, a clear lexan would be nice thing to do. I'm not trying to spend that much time or money in this van.

It's not that hard actually, plenty of you tube videos on it

[TheMAN]

putting the stock fresnel lenses back on defeats the purpose of the projectors... you might as well just cram HID bulbs into an H4 headlight without doing anything else to it... the light output will be bright and uncontrolled... you're doing yourself a disservice as well as to others as the amount of glare these lights now produce makes hazardous road conditions for you and others, especially in bad weather... not only are they now unsafe, they are now also illegal.... better to be safe although illegal, than just illegal and unsafe

your best bet is to sand the insides down so they are smooth and you have a clear lens

or you can attempt to modify the JDM 98-99 headlights, which have clear lenses

[cvtroger]

Looks good to me!

The guy on previadiaries bought a previa with smoked headlights and some "well executed xenon bulbs", which he mentioned wasn't too bad.

[gshadow32]

putting the stock fresnel lenses back on defeats the purpose of the projectors... you might as well just cram HID bulbs into an H4 headlight without doing anything else to it... the light output will be bright and uncontrolled... you're doing yourself a disservice as well as to others as the amount of glare these lights now produce makes hazardous road conditions for you and others, especially in bad weather... not only are they now unsafe, they are now also illegal.... better to be safe although illegal, than just illegal and unsafe

your best bet is to sand the insides down so they are smooth and you have a clear lens

or you can attempt to modify the JDM 98-99 headlights, which have clear lenses

Lol, I'm so lucky to have the resident expert chime in.

did you see the picture of the beam pattern on my garage door? Do you even noticed the SHARP DEFINED LINES OF A PROJECTOR THRU THE FACTORY FLUTED LENSES? it's just a mere two post above


Let's think about this constructively. Let's debate it, instead of arguing about it.

If I put hid into a halogen headlamp. That would be a higher power bulb that would scatter light everywhere like you were saying. That I agree is dangerous and unsafe.

A fluted lense would take a halogen bulb in a reflector housing then scattered the light properly on the ground.

A replacement projector that has a sharp cutoff line would send a controlled focused beam of light thru that fluted lense that already is aimed properly.

Have you seen one of these things in your hands? Your comments make me think you have not.

Send me your headlight, buy your parts and I'll install them for you.

[TheMAN]

Do you have photometric testing equipment that SAE labs and ECE labs use for testing beam pattern at various spots of the field?
Pictures can't provide definitive information on the efficacy of headlights. But, since you're keen on sharing with us how the headlights look on the garage door, I will tell you that there is unacceptable light flare/gradient above the cut off line, and there's excess light above the hot spots. This is one of the multiple reasons which produces glare.

Anyway, enjoy your illegal and unsafe lights. I have no desire to send you my safe and illegal euro spec glass headlights which has excellent performance in rain and fog