Cobalt08LS

iTrader: (15)

can anyone help me. my sister has gen 1 headlights and i got new hid bulbs because she said her passanger one wasnt working. i replaced the bulbs and now the passanger one wont turn on. all the wires are connected properly. i pluged the hid bulb wire into the highbeam end of the harness and when i put the highbeams on the hid turned on. she went to get it profes looked at today and the guy told her it was the bulb. she got the bulbs from buyhids i have a feeling it is the wiring harness but i dont know because i took the driver harness into the passanger side and the bulb still didnt turn on.

anyone know why this isnt working like i said when i plug the hid bulb wires into the highbeam end and the hid bulb went on when the highbeams were turned on.

Acey

iTrader: (3)

Might be the ballast.

Cobalt08LS

iTrader: (15)

she got the car looked at and the guy claims it the bulb. the ballasts work

TommyP

iTrader: (2)

You just said you plugged the hid into the high beam wires, and when the high beams come on, the hid comes on. Something sound like an obvious issue to me?

What hid kit are you using?

Cobalt08LS

iTrader: (15)

yeah thats why i told my sister it cant be the bulb since its her car and lights. i pluged the hid into the highbeam end of the harness to test the bulb and the hid went on wen i turned the highbeam on because it didnt turn on when i plugged it into the lowbeam end of the harness so i wasnt sure if it was the harness or not and still dont know.

and i have the bulbs from buyhids because i replaced the orig bulbs.the ballasts i orig bought locally so idk what kind they are.
next time i look at the car im going to have to take the pass bulb which lowbeam wont turn on and plug it into the driver side just to make sure 100% its not the bulb.

i myself think its the gen1 harness that connects to the stock harness. but i am
not sure at all

royce777

iTrader: (29)

any one have Gen2's with HIDs and the little bar that lights up for sale?

JWhit197

Bump? Hahahaha

jeremydale84

I'm about to buy the Gen 4 headlights off of ebay.

Can anyone tell me how much the visibility is improved over stock?

I hate these dual beam headlights they use out of the factory. I live in a rural area, and I can't see a thing with the brights on (compared to my 2000 Camaro SS that had separate highs and lows). That's the main reason I'm buying these lights.

I will likely upgrade to HIDs later on, but not at the moment.

I also have a question about the HIDs.

Is there any reason that I can't use an HID kit for the high beams as well? I've scoured the internet for an answer to this question, but I can't seem to find one. I'd like to have HIDs for my highs, and for my lows. Not HID lows and halogen highs like I see so frequently.

Any help is appreciated. Thanks!

TommyP

iTrader: (2)

Well if you don't put hids in them, you're gonna lose visibility, they are dimmer than stock without hids. Just get them from the start. You really don't want to put hids in the high beam because hids need to warm up, so for the 10 sec that they're warming up, you wont be able to see much. Order a retrofit kit for the best quality, that way you'll get both hid low and high beams using the same bulb, so no warm up time on the high beams.

paudashskier

A few questions:

1. I'm reading that retrofits are the best. Do people like them because they are more stylish or because they actually perform better?

2. My stock lights are broken (drunk vandalism grrrr) so I need to buy a whole package, lights and housing.... I want to get much brighter lights than my stock lights used to be and I think that means going HID instead of halogen.... I also like the look of the CCFL halos - is there a package that will give me the Halos and HID's that includes the entire housing?

Thanks

TommyP

iTrader: (2)

1. Retrofits are MUCH better than anything else. They focus the light from an hid bulb and concentrate it onto the road, giving you the maximum brightness. They have a cutoff line which keeps the bright light from the hid bulbs out of other drivers eyes. They also have a VERY wide beam, so you can see more than just what's in your lane in front of you.

2. You can get retrofits with CCFL halos in them. Go to buyhids.com and order a set of retrofits. You can order them from them with an entire brand new housing, painted however you want it, with retrofits preinstalled.

jeremydale84

Sucks that they're dimmer than stock. I had some similar ebay headlights on a 98 Civic that I bought, and they actually had pretty good visibility, especially on the brights.

I thought the warm up time might be a problem with having HID highs, but I just couldn't find any info on them. I've never purchased, installed, or owned anything with HIDs before, so I don't have any experience.

jeremydale84

I'm pretty sure I'm gonna go ahead and buy the retrofits. I almost hit a wild hog tonight because I didn't see it until the last second. These headlights aren't cutting it.

How's the visibility of the retrofits with the high beams on? I'm looking at the 6000ks. I would get the 3000ks, but it's not listed in the options in the shopping cart (though it is listed on the retrofit page).

thedude411

iTrader: (1)

they preform wayy better. word is the retrofits using mini H1 bulbs? are brighter than the d2s bulbs like what im running. check out buyhids as they now carry the newer mini H1 style.

paudashskier

Thanks for your help, I'm going to order the Retrofits - just a few questions:

1. Any idea how long it will take to actually get them?
2. I have the option of adding SLIM ballasts - what are these and do I need them?
3. Does anyone have a picture of the stock Chrome and/or Black painted retrofits?
4. I have the option of adding halos for $35 - but it doesn't specify CCFL or LED - do I have a choice here?

Also, are there any coupons I can use right now while ordering?

Thanks guys - I'm pretty excited about getting these lights!

jeremydale84

I'm in the same boat with you. I sent the guy at buyhids.com an email asking about 3000ks a couple days ago, and I haven't heard back yet. I could care less about the halos, but I would like to know if there are any advantages to the slim ballasts (other than taking up less space).

TommyP

iTrader: (2)

All slim ballasts are are slim. That's it. No change in output, no better quality, no longer lifetime.

TommyP

iTrader: (2)

1. That pretty much depends on how buisy Mike is and how soon all the parts come in.
2. Slim ballasts are just thinner ballasts. Not really necessary. I would however recommend getting the morimoto hids instead of mike's cheaper brand of hids, the morimotos put out more light and last longer.
3. Probably just have to search around.
4. They're ccfl halos.

paudashskier

I really like your headlight setup Tommyp - what do you have?

paudashskier

One last question. If I get this option from Mike

Option 3: Complete Retrofit Headlights Stock Chrome ($379.99) - We install and retrofit the projectors in stock OEM headlights.

are the lights DOT and SAE certified?

Thanks!

b00sted06ss

iTrader: (10)

Anyone have a link to these?

MastaShaKe_88

iTrader: (5)

Yes

They sell em on Ebay, jus look up Cobalt Coupe Taillights..

TommyP

iTrader: (2)

The headlights are a stock replacement, so technically they are. The entire retrofit though, is not. No aftermarket light setup is DOT certified technically. Only a completely OEM setup is completely legal.

Seven11

Anyone seen the new Buck Verano headlights? They look identical in shape to the cobalt's. They are GM factory HID's. Anyone know if they will fit in the Cobalt? If they fit and are plug & play.. that is the way to go.

snoftall

^not the same shape. Very close, but the top of the headlight is a slightly different shape. It also looks to be a bit longer then ours.