To MTEC or not to MTEC?

[chopsticks]

Is it worth it to pay the extra to get the MTEC setup hid system made for the b7 and bypass all the bulb out warnings or would you say to just get the cheaper one and put in the resistors or whatever is needed to get the warning out? Keep in mind I don't have much experience with this type of thing. Thanks

[LimiTed]

are u getting projectors or just throwing some hid's into the halogen housing? if its the latter, dont even bother. u think glare is no problem but its fuckin annoying to others on the road and its pretty dangerous to yourself in the rain/fog

[chopsticks]

looking for responses not lectures. It doesn't matter what I am using it for just asking if anyone had experience with it. Thank you for you input though.

[jayM]

yeah, experience being on the receiving end of the glare. If you want to get HIDs, do it once, do it right.

Unless if u don't mind getting flamed, cuz that's just gonna be unavoidable...

[redlabel81]

MTEC is a great product! No bulbout warnings.

[Unleaded20T]

I don't understand why people cry everytime somebody with halogen wants to install HID. I don't see anybody crying when a fucking Cadillac Escalade stops right in your ass on a light or drives behind you on a highway.

Go with MTech, they have good warranty.

[GEkido]

I wouldn’t say people here are crying about it, they are just offering friendly advice so the person installing the HID in a halogen housing doesn’t become that asshole on the road blinding people...

[Unleaded20T]

Well, Im not trying to be superman here and Im dont mean it in a bad way but I get a little upset when they say that its illegal to have HID in halogen housing when they know that is not true. Im sorry if I what I said was offesive to anyone.

There are only restrictions for color and that your headlights are not aiming too high in case it blinds the driving coming in the opposite way.

You can have halogen housing and install HID kids without causing any harm, just make sure that after you do so realign the headlights.

[Quattro]

what does mtec sell? hid kits or bulb warning displays?

for hid, you could just go the cheaper route: VVME, its about 50 buck or whatever shipped.

To edit, Mtec sells hid kits, according to eBay it says its a direct fit? Seems very pricey 300 bucks?

I have seen people install vvme kits in their housing with no bulb light warning....and you will save a pretty penny.

[Sanjman]

It is illegal.. but it is isn't as blinding on our cars as we think... someone here took pics of their cars with HID kit and the height seemed okay. If you're paying extra for HID kits you might as well get projectors from lowestA4 (jens).

[Unleaded20T]

There is nothing that says that its illegal, otherwise there would be a huge lawsuits agaisnt General Motors, Acura, Honda, many companies that have many cars on the road with Factory HID without projectors.

Sorry to tell you Sanjman, that what you are saying is BS.

Believe its fantastic to have Bi-xenon, i bought mine from Jens and he's a great person but everybody can.

[Lewie06A4]

There is nothing that says that its illegal, otherwise there would be a huge lawsuits agaisnt General Motors, Acura, Honda, many companies that have many cars on the road with Factory HID without projectors.

Sorry to tell you Sanjman, that what you are saying is BS.

Believe its fantastic to have Bi-xenon, i bought mine from Jens and he's a great person but everybody can.

Actually it is Illegal, because the HIDs you get in a kit are way to bright and a Halogen bulb and Xenon bulb both have 2 different focal points, and are not compatible as far as how they are focused. Hence why xenons usually use a projector lens and a halogen can use a reflector. See note below about some manufacturers and using xenon's and reflectors.

It is also illegal to sell HID's for onroad use. If you look every single drop in HID "kit" always says for Offroad use only and doesn't have the "seal of approval" from the DOT. If it does it's a cheap chinese imported kit and it's faked. Trust me on this, DOT is not going to give their seal of approval to a drop in HID kit no matter what you may think.

http://www.dot.gov/affairs/nhtsa4304.htm


The retrofit you have from Jens is an actual projector set isn't it?

GM and Acura won't get lawsuits because they designed the reflector housing to be compatible with the way the arc on a xenon bulb works. You don't need a projector lens to use Xenon bulbs, a properly aimed reflector will work, a halogen reflector is not a properly aimed reflector. This is why it will dazzle oncoming traffic and people in front of you.


It's cut and dry.
"HID Kits" are illegal and for offroad use only.

This topic has been beaten to death. Use some common sense, do it properly if you are going to convert to Bi-Xenon's or buy the car with the xenon's from the factory. Anything else is just irresponsible and disrespectful to other drivers on the road.

[chrislane31]

Actually it is Illegal, because the HIDs you get in a kit are way to bright and a Halogen bulb and Xenon bulb both have 2 different focal points, and are not compatible as far as how they are focused. Hence why xenons usually use a projector lens and a halogen can use a reflector. See note below about some manufacturers and using xenon's and reflectors.

It is also illegal to sell HID's for onroad use. If you look every single drop in HID "kit" always says for Offroad use only and doesn't have the "seal of approval" from the DOT. If it does it's a cheap chinese imported kit and it's faked. Trust me on this, DOT is not going to give their seal of approval to a drop in HID kit no matter what you may think.

http://www.dot.gov/affairs/nhtsa4304.htm


The retrofit you have from Jens is an actual projector set isn't it?

GM and Acura won't get lawsuits because they designed the reflector housing to be compatible with the way the arc on a xenon bulb works. You don't need a projector lens to use Xenon bulbs, a properly aimed reflector will work, a halogen reflector is not a properly aimed reflector. This is why it will dazzle oncoming traffic and people in front of you.


It's cut and dry.
"HID Kits" are illegal and for offroad use only.

This topic has been beaten to death. Use some common sense, do it properly if you are going to convert to Bi-Xenon's or buy the car with the xenon's from the factory. Anything else is just irresponsible and disrespectful to other drivers on the road.

Amen

[SEXICÄN]

looking for responses not lectures. It doesn't matter what I am using it for just asking if anyone had experience with it. Thank you for you input though.

The response of a true retard

[Unleaded20T]

Actually it is Illegal, because the HIDs you get in a kit are way to bright and a Halogen bulb and Xenon bulb both have 2 different focal points, and are not compatible as far as how they are focused. Hence why xenons usually use a projector lens and a halogen can use a reflector. See note below about some manufacturers and using xenon's and reflectors.

It is also illegal to sell HID's for onroad use. If you look every single drop in HID "kit" always says for Offroad use only and doesn't have the "seal of approval" from the DOT. If it does it's a cheap chinese imported kit and it's faked. Trust me on this, DOT is not going to give their seal of approval to a drop in HID kit no matter what you may think.

http://www.dot.gov/affairs/nhtsa4304.htm


The retrofit you have from Jens is an actual projector set isn't it?

GM and Acura won't get lawsuits because they designed the reflector housing to be compatible with the way the arc on a xenon bulb works. You don't need a projector lens to use Xenon bulbs, a properly aimed reflector will work, a halogen reflector is not a properly aimed reflector. This is why it will dazzle oncoming traffic and people in front of you.


It's cut and dry.
"HID Kits" are illegal and for offroad use only.

This topic has been beaten to death. Use some common sense, do it properly if you are going to convert to Bi-Xenon's or buy the car with the xenon's from the factory. Anything else is just irresponsible and disrespectful to other drivers on the road.

Yes, my retrofit are OEM and they actual Audi OEM headlights with projectors, but before the getting projectors I had HID on my halogen housing with aftermarket 6k McCulloch HID kit and since they were properly aligned never had a problem or ticket or anything similar.

I agree with you in a couple of things but most of them, I don't think that you are correct.

You NHTSA link, which by the way is from 2004, states that the HIDs manufactured by a specific company in texas (ASTEX USA) does not comply with the federal standards. "the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced its decision that high intensity discharge (HID) conversion kits produced by a Texas company do not comply with federal safety standards."

And again, there are no laws agaisnt the use of High Intesity Discharge System or any other lights in any state as long as aligned properly. There are laws that prohibits the use of yellow lights and bright lights that are not properly installed and aligned in general. This last part does not only applies to HID and yellow lights but for halogen lights as well.

It would be the same as having halogen and driving with high beam all the time.

[Lewie06A4]

..... and since they were properly aligned never had a problem or ticket or anything similar......

No offense but you saying they were properly aligned is simply your opinion.

I'm going to try a couple diagrams here so bear with me.

A halogen bulb has a filament that runs side to side, transverse like the engine in a A3/GTI.

A Xenon bulb has a discharge arc that goes front to back, or longitudinal like the 2.0T's in our A4's.

Knowing these two FACTS, how can you even think that a reflector housing would properly reflect a xenon arc the same as halogen filament. It's a square peg in a round hole. Give your nearsided glasses to a person with farsightedness.

I'm not saying it's like reflecting light everywhere, and it may look alright for the most part, hell 95% of the light that get's reflected does so in the proper manner, it's that 5% of the light that goes right into oncoming traffic or that poor soul in front of you that does the damage.

Again, look at the websites that sell the HID Kits, they all say somewhere on the website, you may have to dig, that the lights are for offroad use only. They have to say that somewhere. Why? Because it's illegal to tell people you can use these onroad. Drop in HID kits are definitely NOT approved for on road use by DOT. They are Illegal, and just because you don't get ticketed for it doesn't make it right in any way, shape or form.

I got a favor to ask of some fellow Audi owners. If you have a HID drop in kit, not factory bi-xenons, but the kit you get off of ebay or those 200 buck kits you get online somewhere, can you snap some photo's of your car pointing at a wall or garage door, at night of course.

Props Unleaded for getting the proper retrofit done.