My Acura MDX HID Retrofit w/ Clear Lenses & LED Tails

[Yazovets]

Hello guys, just wanted to share some pictures of my most recent Camry mods. I've finally pulled the trigger on something which I believe every enthusiast should do.

I have contracted Brandon @ RetroLite to perform a full Xenon or HID retrofit on my car. Click here for his TN member page.

He has advised me on what would be a good fit for the Camry and how long it would take. We decided on an Acura MDX projector set with clear lenses and a 4300K D2S setup.

For the arranged cost, I also got my headlights to be painted matte black on the inside, re-sealed and also, polished. Brandon also helped to put in some black-lense LED tails.

I've finally snapped some pictures. Honestly, the pictures don't the mod justice. The whole car looks absolutely fantastic in person and the lighting performance is VASTLY superior compared to the previous XenonDepot conversion kit which I ran inside the stock headlights (with squirrel spotter mod).

The Acura MDX retrofit exhibits a FAR wider beam pattern. And furthermore, even at the left and right extremities, the light intensity is far greater. There are no more concentrations of light right in the center of the beam (light spots) since these projectors and lenses are designed to properly disperse HID light. As a bonus, I still retained the factory vertical beam height adjustment function. Despite this retrofit, I can still aim the headlights as I please...

Front view in my garage:


Blacked-out headlight:


Notice the sharp cutoff on those bushes:






Beam pattern with OEM squirrel spotters which light up signs without blinding drivers:


Beam pattern in my garage:


LED tails:


LEDs on a rainy day:




I am very pleased with Brandon's work and would readily recommend his services to fellow members. He is located in the Richmond Hill area and can perform a full retrofit within one working day.

I was pleased with his professionalism and obviously, knowledge and skill. I am considering to give him another family vehicle for another retrofit in fact. He has worked on all sorts of vehicles before - not just Subarus.

To anyone sitting on the fence on this issue, YES a retrofit is a significant upgrade even from a current HID conversion...not to mention over stock halogens.

[BlackCam09]

Nice looks good bro, HID retrofit is def the way to go. How did you aim the headlights after you installed it?

[Yazovets]

Originally Posted by BlackCam09

Nice looks good bro, HID retrofit is def the way to go. How did you aim the headlights after you installed it?

Brandon was able to install the new projectors inside the headlight housing in a way which retained vertical adjustment bolts. So I can still aim the headlights up and down like stock.

[BlackCam09]

Yeah thats how my retrofit is, but i ment how did you determine if it was aim not to low or to high?

[Yazovets]

Originally Posted by BlackCam09

Yeah thats how my retrofit is, but i ment how did you determine if it was aim not to low or to high?

Well Brandon did aim them before giving me back my car but they seemed too low.

So I went with trial and error. What you think is OK for beam height in the garage turns out horribly wrong once you're on the road.

So I keep a small wrench with me. After a few days of driving, I seem to have reached a proper height.

[tengiday]

The rule of thumb for aiming is there should be about 2'' drop from the center of the projector at the distance of 25 feet.

If you have a lifted truck, there should be 3'' drop.

[glenn14]

Yazovets,
I have the same set up that I built myself..its retro or bust for me..much better than a PNP kit. Tengiday is exacly correct you back the front of your car 25 feet on a level surface from a wall..I used my white garage door, measure up from the middle of your projector, then what ever your aiming your lights at make a line 2'' from what you got at the middle of your projector and drop your lights down to the line , using the 10mm bolt in back of your headlight that wat you will have the correct height and a level cutoff. Nice to see you got your retrofit done it adds so much to the look of your car plus much better vision..good luck and have fun !!!!!!!!!!

Glenn

[BlackCam09]

Originally Posted by Yazovets

Well Brandon did aim them before giving me back my car but they seemed too low.

So I went with trial and error. What you think is OK for beam height in the garage turns out horribly wrong once you're on the road.

So I keep a small wrench with me. After a few days of driving, I seem to have reached a proper height.

Yeah thats what i did, i just carried the bit piece with me because at first it seem too low and the light was just wasted pointing down. I think from the center of the projector to the ground is like 27 inches.

[CamrySExxx]

how much did the set up cost you?

I was thinking of a retro, but was unsure of which projectors to go with, the mdx projectors look great. The only thing I was worried about was the aiming, a lot of retrofits I See people do, they gotta prettty much aim it before they reassemble the headlamp and it wont be adjustable! Thats why I was looking into the morimoto mini's ,but the MDX may work. WAs thinking of doing a quad with the MDX or the fx-r? and the morimoto minis in teh high beam.

Both equipped with 50w ballasts and 5000k bulbs... tempting!

[tengiday]

Originally Posted by CamrySExxx

how much did the set up cost you?

I was thinking of a retro, but was unsure of which projectors to go with, the mdx projectors look great. The only thing I was worried about was the aiming, a lot of retrofits I See people do, they gotta prettty much aim it before they reassemble the headlamp and it wont be adjustable! Thats why I was looking into the morimoto mini's ,but the MDX may work. WAs thinking of doing a quad with the MDX or the fx-r? and the morimoto minis in teh high beam.

Both equipped with 50w ballasts and 5000k bulbs... tempting!

It depends on how you mount the projectors. MDX projector may be replaced directly to the Camry's projector, so the old aiming crew can be used. I installed S2K projector and could use the aiming crew as before.

I suggest you do a quad retro of RX330 and MH1. They are a really good combo.

For the bulbs, use the CBI. :-X You will want to have them once you watch the video of a car using them with 50W setup.

[CamrySExxx]

Originally Posted by tengiday

It depends on how you mount the projectors. MDX projector may be replaced directly to the Camry's projector, so the old aiming crew can be used. I installed S2K projector and could use the aiming crew as before.

I suggest you do a quad retro of RX330 and MH1. They are a really good combo.

For the bulbs, use the CBI. :-X You will want to have them once you watch the video of a car using them with 50W setup.

I just did some research and realized that the mdx projectors are pretty the same size and what not of the stock ones. So the bolts line up which is a plus. What about the RX330? I would assume a bit of fabrication will be required to get them to fit?

also sorry for the threadjack!

[haddix]

Looks awesome man! I really love the black housing, looks perfect w/ the black car.

[nj0ywatch1np0rn]

Would've looked nice if he had left the chrome ring around unpainted, but my .02cents!

[tengiday]

Originally Posted by CamrySExxx

I just did some research and realized that the mdx projectors are pretty the same size and what not of the stock ones. So the bolts line up which is a plus. What about the RX330? I would assume a bit of fabrication will be required to get them to fit?

also sorry for the threadjack!

I think there should be some minor modifications to make it fit. Either way, when you want to go with quad setup, prepare to make a hole in the high beam slot and a custom mounting bracket.

[AKM83]

Originally Posted by nj0ywatch1np0rn

Would've looked nice if he had left the chrome ring around unpainted, but my .02cents!

Agreed and the matte looks almost too matte if that makes sense. Maybe it's just the photo though.

But nonetheless, the output results are very very impressive.

Might have to give it a try...