1993 Nissan 240sx headlamp

Real xenon HID's cost several thousand US dollars. You will also have to install ballasts, relays, and heavy duty wiring, assuming the assemblies are made for your vehicle. Go here, read, and email this person:

Paul, Thanks for the useful info. I dont think I would spend thousands of dollars on my car that itself isnt worth that much today. I was thinking more of a drop-in replacement such as those sold at

If it's not recommended I might just go for a nissan part.

Be careful of fake HID light bulbs. They use a coating which gives the blue look but also cuts down on light output. To compensate, some bulbs have higher wattage and heat output - not good for plastic housings. Bluish light gives sharper images than yellowish light due to shorter wavelength but also scatters more and you end up with not seeing as far.

$699 for H4 dual beam kit is somewhat short of even $1000 letalone "several thousand".

Yes you need space for a ballast/starter, kits come with wiring to bulb. Relays and heavy duty wiring? HID pulls a high current for a only few milliseconds while starting but less peak current than the starting inrush on a cold halogen bulb. It's not enough to cause problems with wiring unless you have a dim dip unit as per UK models which limits current.

the igniter has started the lamp it needs about 35w = 2.5A @13.8v while the standard bulb draws 55w = 4A @ 13.8v.

As a vendor of Cibie products he may have an axe to grind. There may be some legal issues in the US, a lot of firms suddenly started putting "for off road use only" on their adverts, others just vanished. And yes the H4 moveable capsule is a real bodge. Other than projector type, standard halogen lens units don't really have adequate control of stray light. Looks like US 204SX has sealed beam so new lens units would be needed too. Quad Hella 90mm projectors will give better defined light pattern than rectangular lens units.

Great bit of info. Thanks! Paul.

I agree. Very useful information.

The owner's manual says the headlamps are rated 65/35W. Given that this is a sealed beam, will this be a hazard if I go for say 60/55W? Will this require wiring (and higher amp fuse?) that can carry the extra current or are the standard wiring capable of handling it?

At this point I am thinking of a higher wattage halogen replacement, and maybe when i get some money think about the HIDs.

Thanks

I agree. Very useful information.

The owner's manual says the headlamps are rated 65/35W. Given that this is a sealed beam, will this be a hazard if I go for say 60/55W? Will this require wiring (and higher amp fuse?) that can carry the extra current or are the standard wiring capable of handling it?

At this point I am thinking of a higher wattage halogen replacement, and maybe when i get some money think about the HIDs.

Thanks

It should be ok. 60/12= 5 amps. Anything much bigger and I would probably install relay(s) near the headlamps. Check with Stearn lighting- email him your questions. IMO, he can be somewhat abrasive but is very knowledgable in the area of automotive lighting both US and Euro. He also frequents rec.autos.tech quite a bit.

It is a sealed beam. You have to first remove the plastic covers around the front of the headlight bulbs. Pop up the lights and remove the two screws on each side to free the plastic. It has little tabs hooking it into the top of the pop up covers. Rock it back a little bit to free the tabs (lest you break them off). Behind the plastic, you will see a metal retaining ring holding the light in place. When you remove the screws on the retaining ring, be careful to only remove the screws that hold the ring. There are two adjusting screws also (look carefully - the retaining bracket is cut out behind them). Do not turn them. If you screw on those the aim of the headlights will be messed up.

We put the 60/55 on our '91 240sx. No problems and the light output seems better. the headlights are Your local car parts house (Pep Boys, AutoZone, whatever) will have several choices. You should be in and out for about $20 to simply replace the sealed beams.

On 1/31/2005 11:15 AM US(ET), E. Meyer took fingers to keys, and typed the following:

It cost me $43 to replace the squarish sealed beams with the bulb types and a pair of halogen bulbs for my 97 PU at Autozone in Nov 2003.