I am buying my girlfriend some aftermarket headlamps for her 2004 G35. These headlamps say: Use D2S light bulbs for Low Beam and H1 light bulbs for High Beam.

This is the product:





And her left head lamp is out (the high beam still works fine) so I wanted to buy her new bulbs and found this:
I looked at her car and the head light and high-beams are different from each other. The high beam is soft yellow, the regular headlight is bright white. So her car is already equipped with HIDs, and the high beams are I think Halogen. right? I don't know how these cars left the assembly line.

These headlamps say to use an H1 for the high beams, but I think the stock lights on an Infinity are H4? Is this correct? Do the H1 and H4 have the same fitment or do I need to buy some H1 bulbs?

I know a lot about cars, I built a 1996 383 stoker corvette drag car from the ground up; However I know jack crap about lights. I've actually never had to replace a bulb ever (motorcycles don't count) I looked at a thread on HID conversion and it was completely lost on me. Everything I've had always had HIDs already installed so its never been something i've had to dive into researching. So ANY information is much appreciated. I just want to know if this is going to be plug and play thing or if I need to buy something else to make it work.

Also, The HID bulbs that I have linked above, is there a big difference in quality or are the cheaper ones no different than something made by a brand name like PIAA. The saying you get what you pay for is not always correct. Sometimes the brand name is no different than its generics. However, if this is not the case, I would much rather buy the better bulbs. I am trying to stay around 300 bucks since this is a "just because" present, not really for anything special.

So in a nut shell I want to put this aftermarket headlamp set into her car. is this a plug and play item or should I be expecting to buy additional stuff?

Thanks!

 

If your girlfriend has a 2004 she likely has reflector headlights that use the H4 main. The bulb type is printed into the clear plastic of the headlight, so you may look at it to determine what bulb is the replacement to be sure.

If you decide to buy that aftermarket kit, go with a Quality D2S bulb so you can actually see at night. Morimoto bulbs are the best affordable ones I know of, but the Philips Osram's are PERFECT. D2C is a type used by knock off manufacturers to fit in a bunch of holes. Those aftermarket lights are a bit gawdy, but some of our users like them.

BEFORE YOU BUY THESE,

Consider swapping the bulbs from left side headlight to right side headlight to see if the bulb is out, if the ballast is bad (if HID), or if you have a bigger issue. If light follows bulb, bulb is bad, if light switches sides when swapping ballasts you have a ballast issue.

Good luck.

 

great advice!! Thank you I will definitely do this!

 

Your G/F has a coupe? or sedan?

I only ask because you posed pics of coupe headlights, but are asking in the sedan section. The lights don't interchange, so want to make sure you are getting the right parts

 

I disagree with Morimoto's being the best "cheap" bulbs... tried 3 pairs in my G35.. the quality control was laughable and the light aim/output was way off..

finally, Retrofit Source said I am more picky than an average D2R user...

Maybe other sizes are good, but not the D2R pairs (3 pairs to be exact) I used.

 

OH! I didnt' know I was in the sedan section. Yes she has a coup.

 

I'm sorry you had a bad experience with them. Read the reviews from retro fitters... Mine has lit up the night compared to my stockers on my motorbikes.

I still think the MM kit would work well for what he is trying to do. Op, do the diagnostics test I recommend so you don't have to buy anything more than you need.

 

i meant the D2R specifically.. i think all the retrofitters use the D2S or D2C for their projectors, which could be the greatest bulb..

 

Same bulb, but the D2R just has a small painted shield on the top to reduce light output slightly.

The "R" stands for Reflector, so those are the bulbs specifically designed for reflector housings.

D2S is the standard bulb used in projectors


D2C can be used in either. It has notches to allow fitting into reflector or projector housings, but it lacks the glare shield of the D2R bulb. It really shouldn't be used in a reflector housing..but it could if you want to get more light output and don' care about pissing off a few people