S40 (New) Electrics : HIDs for S40

[GraemeS]

Originally Posted by S Wade

The whole kit is "E" marked and there is nothing in the MOT regs that says that aftermarket kits need to self level.

Government take on aftermarket HID kits here.

[Jonnieb_2009]

I fitted one too last weekend, took 30mins, costr £80 off EB#Y including cancellor kit.
Exactly as S Wade has done and yes couldnt find anywhere to fit ballasts so they are wedged in and have double sided tape on the back. They look awesome. also fitted LED bulbs into the front side lights instead of halogen and rear led bulbs in license plate (like new BMW and Lexus) no problems and looks the business.

[Guru]

Originally Posted by Jonnieb_2009

also fitted LED bulbs into the front side lights instead of halogen and rear led bulbs in license plate (like new BMW and Lexus) no problems and looks the business.

Have ordered these also can't wait till they arrive + interior LEDs too! legs, roof, back seat...

[mikeleicester]

I fitted a kit from hids4us on my 2006 C70and they worked fine until starting the engine and then they just strobbed. Contacted supplier and was asked to check connection and then could I dissable the drl,s. Eventually they told me that they had contacted their supplier and they were not compatible with volvo electronics and so had to return them for refund. If anybody knows of a kit that definately works on the C70 then please let me know.

[S Wade]

I fitted my kit in October 08 and I've not had any problems at all. Did you buy the Ultimate Pro Kit?
Put the car in for MOT last week and it passed no problems with the HID kit or xenon sidelights.

[Flanaia1]

Beware about posting your HID conversions here particularly if there are any links or photos of your car on the forum. On other forums members have actually been prosecuted for fitting and using aftermarket HID and in one of the cases they were told that the information came from owners posts on a forum so he shopped himself

Bearing in mind this is a Volvo Forum and most forces use Volvo, you wouldn't have to be a genius to work out what was going to happen if you posted anything illegal.

And yes Aftermarket HID kits are definitely 100% illegal in the UK

[fenton_jd]

Some S40's have reflector headlamps, I'm assuming these are actually better than projector headlamps if you dont have HID bulbs.

My previous car was a 56' Grande Punto, and the light output was MUCH better than my 05' s40 with projector headlamps.

[Welton]

I think the biggest problem is all the kids going about in their old corsa's, focus's etc with 6000/8000K HID's!! they look far too blue and have lots of glare and a dodgy beam pattern (not that they care much about this) these people should get lifted for this imo.

The S40's projector lens would take a HID bulb much better although they are meant to have self-leveling and water jets to be correct.

If you don't want to draw attention to yourself then you should use something no 'brighter' than 5000K (most OE set ups use 4500 ish).

I'm no fan of these kits and I read a study once that if they're fitted in an old type reflector lens then the foreground lighting can be so bright it causes the drivers pupils to close down reducing night vision

If they're fitted in a projector lens then it's not too bad imo as you're at least 80% closer to the intended OE set up.

Having said all this I wouldn't be at all surprised if the UK's Police Forces all decided on a 'clamp down' on these kits.

My headlamps are standard but with Phillips Extreme White bulbs.

[Guru]

Originally Posted by Welton

My headlamps are standard but with Phillips Extreme White bulbs.

+1

and they're perfect!

[Flanaia1]

Originally Posted by Guru

+1

and they're perfect!

Are you still using DRL with the Phillips bulbs, If so any comments on how they are lasting as they have a poor reputation for being used when DRL is in operation some users reckon they last only 3 months in other models.

Also is the light output whiter than the standard bulbs through the projector lenses?

I really want to change mine but am unsure which wat to go, already swapped the side lights and numberplate lights for high intensity LED. I now want white light at the front

Any comments would be useful

thanks