After learning the joys of involuntarily running Gorman without lights (video to be posted soon), I find myself needing some new lights. I know very little about the state of the art of lighting and need to make some decisions. My desert friends like the KC products and I am seeing more and more of the LED technology coming to market at unobtanium prices.

I would love to get a simple bar mounted with 2 or 4 compact lights (5"?). What should I look for and what should I spend? I really can't see myself paying $600+ for a pair of lights.

(oh, I searched and found some stuff about Hella 4000's but not much else).

state of the art for normal folks is still HID - I imagine there may be industrial grade LED stuff out there that might come close to HID, but I imagine it's much more expensive (and purpose built HID stuff ain't cheap).

My plan (for what it's worth), is to pick up some Hella 500FF or 700FF lights ($60-$75 / pair), and then pick up some of the HID kit bulbs that all the ricer kids use (~$75 / pair). So, HID's @ $150/pair. Are they going to be as good as the Hella HIDs? Probably not. Are they going to be an order of magnitude cheaper? Yes.

or if you are really thrifty you can scrounge them from wrecked ricer cars at the junkyard

Eduardo Mayhem did some ghetto HID kit on his WRX rally car (since sold) and he had Quebeqois coming up to him asking what they were because they looked like the brightest thing out there. 2x pencil, 2x Euro Hellas 4000 lenses with some eBay ballast setup and HID bulbs is all I can remember.

Here's the video showing why we need new lights. The whole light pod got bounced off of the clips on the hood and I didnt notice it until it got sucked under the car.

http://www.youtube.com/user/Car49WhereAreYou#p/u/0/Pi8mjhWSgd0

KC Hilites Pod for $1400 a pair? I think not.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/KC-POD-HID-70-Watt-Universal-Long-Range-Driving-Lights-/220748145826?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item33659d64a2

Looks like you need a new mounting solution before you need new lights...

What did that poor sagebrush do to you to deserve that anyhow?

(There was a decent thread a while back on light mounting on that other forum...)

Quote
aj_johnson
or if you are really thrifty you can scrounge them from wrecked ricer cars at the junkyard

what cars have H3 bulbs on them?

Yikes!

I watched that happen to his self Ken Block at Oregon Trail, the pod got stuck under the outside front tire and they went into the big rocks. Pretty sure the codriver left on a back board.

On a lighter note, that was some fun looking stage.

Bummer.

We run two PIAA HID's (55W, I think) and two PIAA Halogens (90W/135W hi/lo). Works nicely. The HID's are nice because they are bright- but also because they use a lot less power.

Good lights aren't cheap. There are some DIY options that might work if you are so inclined and have the time to do the research and get the right parts.

You might consider this light pod from Road Race Engineering: http://www.roadraceengineering.com/lightpodinfo.htm. I talked to them when I was building my pod and they were helpful and knowledgeable.

Paul Eklund / Primitive Racing also sells light pods and PIAA's, including the light ring kits needed to secure the lenses.

Did you ever get the pod back? Was there anything left of salvageable?

Doug

Pod went under my car (you can see it happen in that video) and then got crunched by Chuck Wilson behind me. My theory is that Chuck was pissed that a newbie was besting him on times and he AIMED for the pod when he saw it on the stage track

Sweep picked up the Pod and showed it to me. All glass shattered, the fiberglass in several mangled pieces. I kept a piece for the trophy shelf.

Is it desireable for a pair of spot and a pair wide beams?

Looking at the cheap made in china stuff:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/7-HID-Off-Road-Light-Kit-3-Lights-Wiring-Package-/360335057328?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item53e5a4a1b0

You give Chuck too much credit. I bet he can hardly see at night!

Two spots and Two wide beams is common. Everyone has a strong and different opinion on what's best. We have the HID's aimed far out, and the Halogens aimed more to the sides. I think all four lens are are designed for the light to be further out, though. Still have the stock headlights too, of course.

Plenty of folks just run two aux lights, too.

With lighting- you really get what you pay for. The expensive stuff really has much better optics. That's also one of those things that's hard to notice unless you have them side by side... kinda like a good pair of speakers.

On the flip side... we rarely use our lights. At Oregon Trail on Friday night, and then the last few stages at Mt. Hood. You may see more nighttime stuff where you are at... I'm not sure.

Doug

Funny you mention that, Doug. I posted some of my best times on the three night stages running with just the cars headlights, including tieing the time of the fastest 2WD. I had competitors telling me I should ask marshalls to be re-seeded to the end so I don't slow down the others.


http://www.rallydata.com/Results/Gorman_2011_NatScoreBoard.htm

I am going to try the china HID's and report back.

Doug: the majority of events in the southwest have night stages.