Author Topic: GD HID Headlamps (Read 6196 times)

Stikman · « July 16, 2012, 07:41:36 »

Hi All,

A couple of questions on the HID Headlamps I am hoping someone can assist me with, they are in the GD Premium but it may be something relevant to previous models also.

First is the height of the light, they appear very low on the road in low beam. I have read about this problem/concern with the previous models standard lights and the adjustments that can be made but given the automatic leveling in these HID lights is it likely they can/should be manually adjustable? Could they be set too low from the factory and/or the auto adjustment is not functioning as intended? Or could this simply be how they are intended to be (and I am used to my 'higher' lights in the 4wds I am used to driving) 😔 I find them almost dangerous in low light suburban streets so not looking forward to them on country road (the big selling point to myself on the premium was the HID lights for long distance/country driving).

Second is high beam. Am I correct in the fact that the HID are only low beam and the high beams 'distance' light is purely from the standard halogen bulb? When flicking to high the low white spread of light remains unchanged and i got the distance spot from the second standard halogen bulb which is not as sharp and more yellow then white (I.e. standard high beam light). Should the HID change intensity and height to cover high beam, supported by the halogen globe and mine is simply not functioning correctly or are they just low beam? I will be pretty disappointed if this is the case as the "significantly brighter and longer light beam" as quoted is not much use if only focused as low beam and currently points meters in front of the car 😠

Car will go in for its check up service next week before my mother in law drives it to Coffs Harbour so I can check then but thought I would post up here first, if nothing else I can report back any feedback from the dealer.

Thanks all.

PS still love the car 😍

Phil №❶ · « **Reply #1 :** July 16, 2012, 07:59:40 »

I wish I owned the new model so I could reply with authority, but I don't. Don't adjust the lights as this can be dangerous to oncoming traffic. If you're unhappy with them, get your dealer to check them. HID lights are an arc light, so I doubt the the high beam will use that method, as they take some time to reach peak brightness. So I would expect that the high beams are halogen.

brodie · « **Reply #2 :** July 16, 2012, 08:18:47 »

my parnter (who has a Veloster) commented last now on how low the HID on my GD Premium were...i personally have no dramas with them myself, i always have the "fog" lamps on also...the high beams are very very bright, iv used these on my way up the F3 heading north and they work well...

but overall i have no dramas, i suppose it depends on what your used to i guess...

p.s nice choice stikman, hows the black going for you?

Stikman · « **Reply #3 :** July 16, 2012, 09:09:31 »

Thanks Brodie.

Are your high beams the same HID white light that the low beam generates or is it considerably more yellow? I might try to get a pic tomorrow night to explain it more

Black is dirty already 😳 but probably because my wife managed to find the only dirt road around 😃 does look slick though, great looking car.

brodie · « **Reply #4 :** July 17, 2012, 03:15:18 »

Hahaha well done. They are white from what I can see inside the car lol

Stikman · « **Reply #5 :** July 17, 2012, 19:44:27 »

Thanks Brodie.

Some pics against the garage door, hopefully you can see what I mean and confirm if yours appears different. The HID light does not change from low to High, high just brings in the extra halogen globe. I am hoping that halogen is just there to support the HID high and the system is somehow faulty at the moment. I cannot see that the low HID is auto leveling either so hopefully that is another sign that the system is not working properly and is at its lowest height accounting for my feeling it is currently too low.

Low only

Low and Fog

High and Fog

Hope that makes sense 😃

Dazzler · « **Reply #6 :** July 17, 2012, 22:00:26 »

Thanks for that Stikman...

Stikman · « **Reply #7 :** July 20, 2012, 01:44:39 »

Hyundai have advised the HID is low beam only........😒

Car is booked in next week for an early 1500km check up where they will check the light height and function. Hopefully raising the height of the low beam HID will ease my disappointment in the HID not also being high beam. Will be emailing Hyundai advising them of the portions of their brochure that I feel are misleading and ask them to look into a better high beam halogen bulb at a minimum. Can only try 😉

Will post up outcomes to both 👍

brodie · « **Reply #8 :** July 20, 2012, 03:06:08 »

i had alook at mine Stikman, and i can see what your saying now...and like i said, my partner noticed it also...

Definatly worth abit of feedback to them... just in general, doesnt hurt.. and it does make a good point...

i guess it comes down to what your used to or what you like i guess...

druggist · « **Reply #9 :** July 20, 2012, 03:35:03 »

Quote from: brodie on July 16, 2012, 08:18:47

i always have the "fog" lamps on also...the high beams are very very bright, iv used these on my way up the F3 heading north and they work well...

Hi Brodie,

Please turn your foglights off except when in fog. They don't give you further depth to your light, only dazzle other drivers particularly from behind and also are illegal to use when there is no fog. They aren't designed as driving or daytime running lights.http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/roadsafety/saferworkdriving/factsandissues/index.html

2 points $99 fine http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/usingroads/downloads/0712_demerits_general.pdf

brodie · « **Reply #10 :** July 20, 2012, 09:03:02 »

oh really? wow, i had no idea - sheesh, thanks for the heads up - i feel dumb!

i bet theres alot of other peeps out there who have no idea either!

i just thought they looked nice on

Stikman · « **Reply #11 :** July 27, 2012, 04:31:39 »

Not much progress on this unfortunately. Customer Care pointed out I am wrong....."Just to clarify Hyundai specify that the car is fitted with HID headlamps NOT Bi-Zenon" which was not very helpful and also not very clear, and suggested I speak to the dealer or an auto electrician about options to increase the light output of the high beam. 😔

Car went in for first service with a request to check the low beam height (amongst a few other things) which they apparently adjusted but they still appeared uneven from left to right and dangerously low. From a quick look at the ADRs it appears low beam spread, height, and output is measured at a distance of 25m, does this sound correct to anyone in the know? Mine reach about 10m down the road! 😳

Not sure if you can tell from these......thoughts everyone? This was from prior to service.

And after (from passenger seat). Might be a meter or so higher if that.

Is it just me? 😊

Doggie 1 · « **Reply #12 :** July 27, 2012, 04:50:02 »

Then why does it say this on the Hyundai Australia website in relation to the i30 premium?

17” alloy wheels with full size spare wheel
HID Xenon headlamps
Leather/leatherette* upholstery
Panoramic glass roof
Electronic Park Brake (EPB)
Electrochromatic rear view mirror
Power driver's seat with electric lumbar support
Heated front seats
Under floor storage box in cargo area and flat folding rear seats

Stikman · « **Reply #13 :** July 27, 2012, 05:02:10 »

Xenon refers to a single beam HID light, Bi-Xenon refers to a dual beam (high and low) HID light. My question/point was that the brochure calls it a HID Headlamp (no mention of Xenon) and a headlamp consists of both the high and low beam light, so a HID Headlamp would indicate that all lights within the headlamp are HID. Waiting to hear back from them on my further thoughts on this.

Doggie 1 · « **Reply #14 :** July 27, 2012, 05:03:53 »

OK, thanks, yet they do mention xenon on the website

Stikman · « **Reply #15 :** July 27, 2012, 05:17:30 »

And if you click on the spec PDF on that same web page it calls them HID Headlamps again, and so does the exterior features tab. Almost like they have updated some parts of their site to include Xenon 😃

rustynutz · « **Reply #16 :** July 27, 2012, 06:08:07 »

It's normal for them to be uneven.......

The right beam is kept low so it doesn't blind oncoming drivers while the left is kicked up so you can see pedestrians etc on the edge of the road....

Bit hard to tell in the pic whether both are still a bit too low though......

Phil №❶ · « **Reply #17 :** July 27, 2012, 06:22:39 »

I'm not an expert on these things, but,

- Xenon is a gas that is inside a light to increase brightness, so HID or not Xenon may be present. So their claim may be correct.

- The new low beam spread looks satisfactory, for town speeds with lit streets.

- HID lamps are illegal unless they're factory fitted. My theory on this is if you are unhappy with the hi beam performance, then fit HID's to your high beams. Be aware, they are blinding lights, but on high beam they should be set to low for oncoming traffic regardless of the bulb type. Careful with the wattage though, as the tent to melt the headlight surround if you get carried away.

Stikman · « **Reply #18 :** July 27, 2012, 06:58:52 »

Quote from: rustynutz on July 27, 2012, 06:08:07

It's normal for them to be uneven.......

The right beam is kept low so it doesn't blind oncoming drivers while the left is kicked up so you can see pedestrians etc on the edge of the road....

Bit hard to tell in the pic whether both are still a bit too low though......

Yeah sorry uneven is probably not a detailed enough explanation. There is a patch of light at the edge of the drivers side light when the drivers light no longer reaches the distance but the passenger side does, so it creates what almost looks like a shadow (basically half intensity). Would probably not be noticeable with a standard halogen light, it is just because the HID has such a distinct edge/cut off. I might need to get ADR measurements and just have them set to that, good or bad that would be what they should be.

i30forme · « **Reply #19 :** July 30, 2012, 06:01:33 »

Hi Stikman,
refer to my report thread to discuss this issue of yours further. You ARE on to something. Same issue on my HID premium.
Cheers,
Steve

RossC · « **Reply #20 :** August 08, 2012, 07:34:38 »

Its not just the premium models the low headlight level affects.
I own the elite model with Halogen headlamps. I drove back from the Gold Coast to Sydney a few days ago (almost 1000km) at night and found whenever the lights were dipped, I kept feeling like I was out running the light in front of me at 110km/h.

As HID is claimed to provide unto 300% more light than conventional Halogen bulbs, I've decided to purchase a kit off eBay.
If you want to add HID lighting to high beams and/or fog lights, have a wee squizz at the easy to install kits offered on eBay. An expensive one is around $80 but most are considerably less.
Hope this helps

Stikman · « **Reply #21 :** October 16, 2012, 07:36:06 »

Hyundai Australia have never got back to my follow up email, or the follow up to that. They called me today about a request I sent questioning the GPS replacement so I had a little chat about this also......

He was not willing to acknowledge my point about the wording and offered no apology for failing to get back to me, he is going to look into my emails....not holding my breath. He advised they had received several queries about the HID only being low beam but no others disputing the HID Headlamp wording as being misleading. He was not willing to offer any advice on a suitable Hi Beam upgrade, like replacement globes, even though they had suggested the dealer would be able to, he said Hyundai would not suggest anything in case it effected the lens etc which I advised that was exactly why the suggestion should come from them as they know the vehicle better then the dealer or an auto electrician (which was there other recommendation on who to go to). He quickly changed the topic every time I asked for anything that involved actual assistance.

On the plus side, had the car serviced at a new dealer today and asked them to check and adjust the height of the low beam (as I had also done at the 1000km service with my original dealer, who I now believe did nothing). Apparently the HID low beam should/can be adjusted via the computer through the self leveling system, he quickly showed me (flipped through so sorry no detail) some printed pages showing the step by step instructions on how this is done. End result is improved low beam height on the drive home tonight, I am about 98% happy with the height and alignment now 😃 I suggest anyone that feels there low beam is too low to request their dealer make this adjustment.