HID vs LED Projector Retrofit Guide - Get it Right The First Time! 

Appreciate it! When it's "real talk" - it comes out naturally. This is the same conversation we have with customers daily. Easier to put it on a video and send people the link.

2011! Thanks for chiming in, always a treat to hear positive things from old school customers. A true example of how laying down the right foundation for the business makes for the best customer experience.

Lucky! Easiest platform to work with. No need to worry if something goes out :)

I just ordered NHK V for my 17 Chevy 2500… should be install in a couple wks. Did u run into any issues on the install?

@@GoldGunner1122 Not really, you will need the CBD (Custom Bracket Designs) adapter brackets to fit the projector into the housing. Do you have those yet?

@@l.w.c.2519 yeah I ordered the kit from which included the bracket from lightwerkz

@@l.w.c.2519 yeah I do. I just failed miserably trying to get the bracket and projector to line up. I contact light werk and they said to install brackets first. Then slide projector onto the post. Did you do this? I tried installing brackets to the projector then slide in and couldn’t get the holes to line.

Thank you for your support!

That's what we want to hear! Thanks for chiming in.

H1 is like that. A bit inconsistent. Earlier versions had some bowl issues. You rely on aftermarket rebased H1 bulbs. Its good enough for most people but far from the best solution. Thanks for chiming in.

Ability to control color temp and ease of change over during a failure is a huge positive!

Yes sir, glad you are happy with it!

Haven't seen any around in quite some time!

Everything has increased since covid but we have always tried to keep our offerings fairly priced. The test data is using the latest version. We will update it. Thank you!

Depending on the model you have to buy model specific brackets, but some can get away with universal brackets

Would be great to see a MLED 3.0. I need to give them a nudge! The issue with the smaller projectors is they never perform as good as the full size versions. Size limits everything.

There are only a few reasons why a shop would recommend H1. #1 Reason - They just don't know any better since they don't truly specialize in custom retrofitting. #2 - They want something budget friendly and easy to install. The H1 requires less work all around. #3 - It's an easier sell to the customer when the product and labor comes in at a lower price point. There are many companies out there that offer "custom lighting" but truly have no idea how to perform a proper retrofit.

Sorry nothing that we offer and nothing I can recommend.

You just get an EMGO headlight bucket which allows you to replace bulbs like a standard headlight (assuming the bike has an old school sealed beam headlight) and then just retrofit like normal?

@@Dude13450 Will not work in the space constraints I have. This will probably finish with a 3d printed part or a mix of machining and welding keeping the front side of a 90mm module. Waiting for one not working led module to show up and be the donor.....

I would retrofit in new projectors as the original ones may be burnt up.

Every hid bulb color shifts. The 5000k bulbs are very neutral white indeed. Hard to say how long but they should whiten up a tad once fully broken in.

Remove the rear cover and send us a photo of the rear of the projector. We have a few Valeo brackets - lightwerkz.net/collections/retrofit-brackets/Valeo

HID conversion if you want plug and play. They work best on projectors.

Very reliable.

NHK M1 is a power house! You will like it.

Sorry no side by sides of the Micro D2S and the latest H1. G5EXL was not super popular and just created confusion so we stopped offering it.

Spot on feedback !

Glad you've made an educated choice to stick with HID. Everyone has different needs.

Pretty much ! But we do have adapter brackets for you to convert to g5-brt or the LED projectors.

For the 7" round we recommend the Holley Retrobright. lightwerkz.net/collections/7-inch-round/products/holley-retrobright-headlight-modern-white-7-round - sorry we dont offer projector retrofits for 7" round lamps

Eventually it will. Always a risk.

Could very well be brighter, just like most of the NHK projectors.

Downgrade in every sense. Always use Osram or Philips bulbs inside a factory xenon projector. That is what it is optimized for. Its definitely not more reliable. They will fail in 1-3 years while high grade xenon bulbs can last a solid 5-10 years if you really want to push it.

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It could. That is solved with a anti-flicker module.

@@LightwerkzGlobal Yes; additional point of failure not made easily-replaceable

I would recommend these brackets to use with your choice in LED or HID projectors - lightwerkz.net/collections/retrofit-brackets/products/valeo-new-style-to-d2s-5-0-g5-r-brackets

NHK Iv plus would be awesome and easy to install as it doesnt require much else - lightwerkz.net/collections/led-projectors/products/bi-led-nhk-iv-plus-lhd

Absolutely. Which model is it for?

@@LightwerkzGlobal 2002 Camry. I really liked the OEM projectors in the about 2016 Corolla. I need new housings for the Camry anyway but I could also just use a standard reflector housing and convert it. I don’t have much use for all the halo and related mods (I just want lights I can actually see with 🤣)

@@gtcam723 For sure, thats the way to go. Update with the best projectors you can fit inside.

You can but it doesnt work properly and its considered a downgrade over using HID bulbs.

Honestly, the NHK units are already so bright. Not much need to go any brighter for every day low beam use.

I thought the nhk v had the best width and low beam output until i order the sinolyn 18chip projector. High beam on the sinolyn is about the same as the nhk iv and hot spot witdh is nearly double. At half the price of the nhk v. The nhk does have better glass and color flicker. Nhk did not come with heat braid on the wire like the sinolyn.

@@OPretrofits can you leave me a link please?

No. What model are you looking to upgrade? We may have a specific fog light assembly we can offer.

@@LightwerkzGlobal 2016 4runner

@@nematrafat4084 We've got street legal fog light assembly replacement for your 2016 4Runner. Check out the Elite Series - lightwerkz.net/collections/diode-dynamics-elite-series-fog-lamps/products/elite-series-type-b-fog-lamps-white-pair-diode-dynamics , lightwerkz.net/collections/diode-dynamics-elite-series-fog-lamps/products/elite-series-type-b-fog-lamps-yellow-pair-diode-dynamics also the full SS3 line up - lightwerkz.net/collections/diode-dynamics-ss3/products/stage-series-3-sae-dot-type-b-fog-light-kit-toyota

Good catch! FX-R can likely still be found but not being produced any longer. They were highly used by the community for many years!

Appreciate the love!

For E46 .

@@RubenSalazar-t7l Ultimately HID due to serviceability. We have options for DIY and for mail in service. Email us with any questions! lightwerkz.net/products/lightwerkz-bmw-e46-m3-projector-retrofit-service

You would be much happier with a premium D1S bulb such as a Osram. They are optimized for the projector. Aftermarket LED bulbs inside a projector designed for xenon is just not as optimized. As long as you are happy, all that matters but just know there are other options.

HID with motorcycle is tough. They draw a lot of power upon start up. There are no good D2S LED bulbs. Its just not ever going to be optimized. Stick with a compact LED projector.

Thats correct. Still a valid concern. The smaller bowls are close to the heat source and 50W really heats things up.

Which HID projectors have you used that you considered a waste?

@@LightwerkzGlobal Morimoto 4TLR and OEM HID projector for Toyota Venza. When you come from a halogen to HID, you get the wow effect. Now with latest LED bulbs, it blows away aftermarket or OEM HID's on an OEM projector halogen housing with current LED bulbs from Amazon 2-3 times better in terms of clarity and performance. The problem is the kind of light spectrum LED's offer. Label rating of 6000K HID bulbs does not produce the same light spectrum of the 6000K LED bulbs. Majority of test out there are test with a white background and that is not a realworld test. There realworld background out there is mostly brown. White background is gound for testing the beam pattern and light coverage but not the visual effect you see at night. LED's are way to go. I have rried all bulbs from 4300K to 6000K HID's and it cannot beat the 6000 or 6500K LED bulbs. Problem with most people is that, they don't have anything to compare with in realworld and just go by what they see online. What you see online is not you see in the realworld. 2 weeks ago I had a chance to do all that. So I removed the 4TLR's and put back my OEM projector for my Sienna back with after market LED bulbs with latest LED technology. Outcome - 2-3 times better than OEM or aftermarket HID projector. HID may do a little better with high beams but not far from my LED high beams. It's about the kind of light spectrum LED offers that you cannot get from HID's no matter the Kelvin rating or color. Light color is not the same period. Light color from LED's improve contrast on what you see outside. I would suggest that you make your testing with a brown background and you will see what I mean.

I explain the reasoning for this way of thinking in the video. Definitely don't expect everyone to agree with this logic. I appreciate the feedback and real talk! Little feedback of my own experience on "Laser" projectors- Back when (5 years ago?) the UPS Laser projector came out we were testing and offering it. Reliability ended up being poor. The product was extremely expensive at the time. Yes it was extremely powerful in high beam mode. Laser function offers the wow effect when it comes to raw intensity. High beam is the only time "laser" function is used. This is only good for when you are driving in the middle of no where. High range distance at high speeds. Laser function is less important for every day practical usage for our customers. Again, I see this is another potential trade off for reliability. There is a reason why reputable companies like Morimoto never chased a Bi-LED projector with a Laser high beam function. The majority of people aren't going to buy it and don't need it. Will be interesting to come back to this video in 5-10 years and see where the market is at! I am retrofitting NHK V in my personal vehicle as we speak. Trying to step outside of that comfort zone a bit!