Comprehensive Review - XenonDepot 4300K HID kit in 2003 Limited V8 4WD

[L.C.]

The Vehicles:
Install Vehicle - 2003 Toyota 4Runner Limited V8 4WD
Comparison Vehicle - 2000 Lexus LS400 Platinum Edition w/ factory reflector style D2R HID headlights

The Kit:
XenonDepot 4300k Xtreme HID Xenon Conversion Kit
Part #: XT-4k-9006

Introduction:
Because this review is going to be one of the longer ones, I'll keep this section short and sweet. I''ve always been interested in lighting; LED flashlights, HID spotlights, HID headlights LED taillights, etc... Well back in '06 I got my first car with HID headlights and since then I've been hooked, and I'll never own anything without them again. Therein lies the problem... With so many HID kits out these days, how is one to know the difference between the good and the bad of these? The answer to this question is, the forums. The only problem with that is most of the time you can't find your exact model or year of vehicle that a review has been done on, and not only that, the review doesn't cover stuff that you would naturally have questions about. Well hopefully in this review I will have a few questions on things that picky people like myself would like to know answered, and after which you'll have a better understanding of something you already knew.

What's in the kit:
2 Ballasts w/ igniters
2 4300K 9006 Xenon Depot bulbs
2 Wiring harnesses
2 Fuses
2 3M adhesive mounting pads
4 Black zip-ties

First impressions, Fit & Finish, and The Bulbs:
First impressions on the kit were very good, the ballasts looked and felt solid, wiring all looked of good quality, and the connectors (including the bulb leads and bulb itself) had what looked to be very good weather seals. All in all, a very solid build. Now on to the bulbs... There are two different options I had when choosing the conversion kit, number one was to use Phillips bulbs that have been rebased to fit the specific application; these Phillips HID bulbs are what you would find in your car with factory equipped D2S HIDs. Being familiar with Phillips bulbs already and having a few cars in the family with Phillips HIDs I opted to get XenonDepot's own bulbs to see how they would compare. It's worth noting that the Phillips bulbs are substantially more expensive also. The only difference you'll really notice (or maybe not) on the XenonDepot bulbs are very minor cosmetic differences in the glass as compared to the Phillips bulb. But like I said, solely cosmetic.

The most important thing I was concerned about was that the inner capsule (where light is emitted) of the HID bulb
and the filament of the stock bulb lined up, which is very important for proper beam pattern without excess glare, etc. As you can see in one of the photos below, the XenonDepot bulb lines up perfectly... But we'll touch on that a bit later in the 'Output Comparison' section.

The only other thing worth noting is the igniter for the kit is contained in the little black box-shaped protrusion along one of the leads running from each of the ballast. Coming from factory setups I was under the impression that the thin little silver box contained everything, but that isn't the case. No big deal though, and it doesn't pose any mounting issues, just an observation.

Parts installed:

 

[L.C.]

Part 2

Install, Mounting, and Install Time:
As you will notice in the photo above we will only be using the plug-n-play ballast & igniter and the new XenonDepot HID bulbs. With the 4Runner using separate high beams and low beams the factory low beam plug receives full 12V when turned on so the harness included with the XenonDepot kit that would power the HIDs directly from the battery and only use your factory plug signal as a trigger, is not required. Though it is a very simple thing to add into the install if you so choose.

All said and done the install probably took 45 minutes with about 20 or so minutes with me scratching my head when I connected everything and then checking and re-checking everything when they would not turn on. The problem ended up being a stupid and simple mistake of the factory plug being installed 180 out which reversed the leads. Good thing for that reverse polarity protection! This feature is built in with both kits (Xtreme Digital & Volt Kits). What I learned from this experience was the plug on the XenonDepot end is 180* out. Meaning when you plug it into the factory harness where the little nub for the factory clip to click into, it is wrong. The correct orientation is with the plugs pushed firmly together but with the clips misaligned, but I don't know if this experience is unique to me as I haven't gotten a chance to speak with Steve about it yet. Although this does not cause any problem due to the tight seal the plugs make even without the little release clips engaged.

The other thing I noticed (which you can see in the photos) was while inserting the HID bulbs into their slots and going to turn them clockwise and lock them in, they would not completely lock and seat. There was about a 3* offset and without forcing the bulb I realized there was no way the bulb was going to lock. The solution; there are three small phillips head screws located on the black retaining ring which provides the guide and lock for the headlight bulbs. Loosen those screws a few turns, keeping in mind they are very short so not too much, but just enough for the bulb to turn to it's full lock position. Then I tightened the screws back up as to make sure they would not eventually work their way loose and fall out. Because the threads they tug on are just plastic, be very careful not to over tighten these back up.

The problem is likely due to the three little 9006 tabs at the base of the bulb used to guide and lock the bulb in being just a half of a MM or so too thick. Again, I don't know if this is just an isolated incident with myself or if others may run into this problem, but don't worry, it's a simple fix.

Mounting the kit is very easy due to the size and thinness of the ballast, there are a number of different places you can choose and I'll leave that up to you to figure out being that it is so easy, if you're hooking this kit up yourself, you shouldn't have any trouble mounting either. When I initially mounted the kit for a functionality test I chose the two sections of the chassis on the inside of the driver and passenger fender directly behind each headlight and used the raised square area to attach a piece of double sided 3M VHB tape. This location would be a perfect spot for permanent mounting but I like having everything all in one little package if possible so I chose the flat section on the back of the headlight in between the high and low beam bulb locations. This spot was perfectly sized for the ballast and it keeps everything nice and neat without extra wires leading away from the headlight. There are also nice little factory ratcheting zip-tie style clips that I used for keeping all of the wires tidy which was nice too so you don't really have to use any zip-ties if you run the wires correctly.

So all in all as a summary, the total install can easily be done in 30 minutes or less. Or as long as you want depending on you're mounting location and whether or not you use the supplied harness.

Remove stock bulb.

Install HID bulb. Notice it is a few degrees off from clicking into place.

HID bulb installed with 3 rings screws loosened then tightened back.

Mock-up mounting spot was the square bulge. There is an identical spot on the driver's side.

Wiring secured, ballast mounted in spot on headlight in between high and low beam bulbs.

Blurry photo of permanent mounting location on driver's side headlight.

Ballast permanently mounted on driver's side.

 

[L.C.]

Part 3

Output comparison:
Now onto the goods! Being that this kit is going on a vehicle with reflector style headlights and not projector, the first question you might have is, "How good is the beam pattern?" This is where the bulb and more specifically the capsule placement is key, if this is correct, to answer this questions simple. The beam pattern will be just as good and well defined as you're stock halogen bulbs. If you have a nice clean cutoff and good beam pattern with minimal spill, that's exactly what the HIDs will look like, except much, much brighter. The light emitted is very true to temp, nice clean, crisp white like a brand new Hane's t-shirt with only a slight sliver of pink at the top and bottom cutoff of the beam due to the way the light is refracted off of the reflector. Which is typical of HIDs since the light source is actually an arc of electricity and not a brightly glowing piece of metal. Think of a welding arc seen from a distance, it twinkles different colors like a star based on the angle the arc travels... If that makes sense.

But the easiest way to show all of this is to skip the blabber and go straight to the pictures. That being said I would like you to please keep these three things in mind:

1. All BRIGHTNESS COMPARISONS, in the driveway, and on the vacant road were conducted with the same camera settings as far as white balance, iso, and exposure intervals to give the best, most accurate color representation compared to the naked eye.

2. All BEAM PROFILE COMPARISONS, including the white wall and garage, and the shots taken during the install where the lights look a bit off-color were not taken using standardized settings and do not represent accurate color as compared to the naked eye. They are solely for you to get an idea of beam profile and what to expect as compared to the stock beam profile.

3. Please pay attention to the descriptions for each photo so you can follow along and not be confused since there are quite a few.

Control.

Stock halogen low beams.

Stock halogen low beams, underexposed to show beam pattern.

Right HID low beam installed, underexposed to show beam pattern. Note the difference in beam height now with HID installed. It is lower and needs to be raised.

Same shot, wider view, still underexposed to show beam detail and still only right HID installed.

Back to 'control' photo exposure length, still only right HID installed. You can really see how much brighter the HID is in comparison now.

Left HID low beam now installed also, underexposed to show beam detail. Notice again beam height on left HID now as well, it is too low and needs to be adjusted.

Height now adjusted on both HIDs low beams, underexposed to show beam detail. Notice how crisp the beam looks, exactly like factory halogens.

Wider shot, still underexposed.

Same shot, now back at control exposure length. Notice how much brighter the hotspot is and how much more spill light you get to illuminate your surroundings; namely road signs and ditches when you get on the road.

 

[L.C.]

Part 3.5

Driveway shots...


Control.

Stock Halogens, full exposure.

Stock Halogens, -2 stops underexposed to show detail.

Stock Halogens, -4 stops underexposed to show detail.

Control.

XenonDepot HID, full exposure.

XenonDepot HID, -2 stops underexposed to show detail.

XenonDepot HID, -4 stops underexposed to show detail. Notice even at this exposure the HIDs are about as bright as the Halogens at -2.

 

[L.C.]

Part 3.5.1

Driveway shots cont'd...


Lexus LS400 w/ factory equipped HID headlights.


Control.

Full exposure.

-2 stops underexposed to show detail.

-4 stops underexposed to show detail.

 

[L.C.]

Comprehensive Review - XenonDepot 4300K HID kit in 2003 Limited V8 4WD *Part 2*

Part 3.5.2

Outdoor Shots...

Basically the same drill as above comparing 4Runner Halogen vs. HID in a different setting. I'll save the explanations for each photo and preface this, you'll see a daytime control, nighttime control, Halogen at full exposure then underexposed. Followed by another nighttime control, then HIDs at full exposure then underexposed.

Daytime control:

Halogen:

HID:

 

[L.C.]

Part 4

Conclusion:
As you can clearly see the kit makes a HUGE difference in light output and is easily 200+% brighter than stock. It makes the night look like a whole new world. After driving the 4Runner and hopping into my Evo on the weekends I can honestly say the 4Runner's lights are now easily brighter than the factory projector HID setup, and I wish the factory headlights were a bit brighter. They look dim in comparison. Overall I give the kit an A+ and couldn't do without them now that they're on. It is much easier to see reflective materials like road signs and street reflectors without producing blinding glare to other drivers on the road. With the headlights properly adjusted I haven't had one person flash their brights thinking mine were on.

Color representation is great and they are true to the 4300K temp, no tint shift or anything like that once they're warmed up. It gives you much better contrast and depth perception when driving down the road, especially on really dark nights and in rainy weather.

BTW - Warm up time from cold (when you first cut the lights on) is approx 20 seconds, in case you were interested.

Would I buy again?
Without hesitating. If everything we owned didn't have HIDs already they would have after this.

Progress report:
I've had this kit about a month now and I absolutely love driving at night because of them, I also love how when you're looking at the truck at night with the headlights on, they really make it look newer and more modern with bright white headlights and not dull yellow halogens. Tint hasn't changed at all and they are still true to color.

I'll check back in again and let you know if I experience any issues but I don't think I'll have anything happen any time soon, it really is a quality kit and after jumping in a buddies car with a cheap ebay kit that looked like it had dimmed since he bought it, I'm glad I spent the little extra coin and picked something up I know I can count on.

Follow-up questions:
If there's anything I missed or you'd like to know about the kit, any photos you would like, or anything else you can think of, please feel free to ask and I will do my best to accommodate you guys.

Thanks for taking a look at the review and sorry for the long read but I really wanted to detail this thing so you guys really have an idea as to what you're getting into. And I'm happy to report, it's all good.

And I almost forgot, the cars used in the review:

Dirty 4Runner with wheels I need to off...

And the LS...

 

[Clemsonfan15]

Good review man.

Repped.

 

[L.C.]

Thanks man I appreciate it, I just hope the mods don't get ticked at the way I had to do it and the number of photos. My fingers are crossed!

 

[philsey]

Wow! What an excellent and thorough review - nice job L.C.

I did the same thing to my 5G, and posted my mod over there. I agree the XD kit is probably the best on the market. While the oem reflector is quite good, the kit only whetted my appetite and I consequently opted for an HID Projector retrofit, which I don't regret, but the cost difference is quite significant.

Footnote: Steve from XD just bought a 2011 4R. http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/79144-im-officially-part-family-now.html

 

[Uneek]

That's fine with pics. It's relevant to the review.

Do you want to merge the the two threads or leave them separate?

 

[XenonDepot]

wow Lawrence! Great review!! You said you would put together a nice review but I certainly wasn't expecting anything this detailed. I'm glad to hear/see that you are happy with the product. Thanks again for taking the time to post this and for doing such a fabulous review!!

Steve

 

[L.C.]

That's fine with pics. It's relevant to the review.

Do you want to merge the the two threads or leave them separate?

Ok cool, and as far as the merge goes, whatever is easiest and most organized for the forum, I don't want to take up too much bandwidth or whatever with people trying to load one massive picture filled thread, I think the easiest thing would be to just lock the first thread so all of the comments and questions come here so there's just one thread to keep track of, if that's not too much to ask.

To Steve - Thank you again for letting me pick your brain a bit prior to ordering, you guys really turned out a great kit and I'm just happy to share my experience with others.

Glad everyone has liked the review so far, thanks for taking the time to have a look!

 

[Nashvillerunner]

I have the same exact kit and LOVE it!! I wouldn't hesitate buying from Steve again. Quick transaction and great customer service. I ordered my kit and 3 days later I received it in the mail. Anytime I have ever had questions regarding lighting Steve is the first person I message.

 

[XenonDepot]

My pleasure guys!!! Enjoy your Xtreme HID Kit

Steve

 

[Uneek]

Ok cool, and as far as the merge goes, whatever is easiest and most organized for the forum, I don't want to take up too much bandwidth or whatever with people trying to load one massive picture filled thread, I think the easiest thing would be to just lock the first thread so all of the comments and questions come here so there's just one thread to keep track of, if that's not too much to ask.

I merged it, so people can seen the beginning to the most recent post. I'm lazy so one less click to get to part 1 the better.

 

[L.C.]

I merged it, so people can seen the beginning to the most recent post. I'm lazy so one less click to get to part 1 the better.

Haha, I'm the same way, and yeah definitely a lot easier to keep track of this way too.

Thanks!

 

[rfc]

L.C. - thanks for the great review. Was looking at going to HID's but wasn't sure about the extra price for this kit being worth it. After reading your write-up, I PM'd Steve immediately and shortly afterward placed my order.

Got the same kit, but with the Philips bulbs. Hooked everything up, turned the lights on, and....*nothing*. :wtf:

Fortunately, you'd mentioned the polarity swap in your review, so I tried reversing the connectors and everything fired right up. They seem to hold together pretty good in that orientation, but I applied some electrical tape as a bit of insurance.

Amazing difference - well worth it!

 

[L.C.]

L.C. - thanks for the great review. Was looking at going to HID's but wasn't sure about the extra price for this kit being worth it. After reading your write-up, I PM'd Steve immediately and shortly afterward placed my order.

Got the same kit, but with the Philips bulbs. Hooked everything up, turned the lights on, and....*nothing*. :wtf:

Fortunately, you'd mentioned the polarity swap in your review, so I tried reversing the connectors and everything fired right up. They seem to hold together pretty good in that orientation, but I applied some electrical tape as a bit of insurance.

Amazing difference - well worth it!

Thanks and no problem man! Glad you got some info out of this that you could apply first hand. Yeah when I first hooked everything up and nothing happened I wanted to pull my hair out, I thought... "Great, just my luck, I get the one defective kit and I do the initial install when I'm out of town about to drive 500 miles back home, half of the time at night when I could really use some good headlights." Haha, lucky enough for us XenonDepot makes a stand-up kit.

How do you like the Phillips bulbs? I'd love to see how they compare as far as color and 'crispness' (if thats a word?) to the XenonDepot bulbs. I know Steve they're supposed to have a break in period though where the tint needs to settle but just curious what your initial thoughts are. :hatsoff:

 

[XenonDepot]

rfc - Please send me an email and I will email you pictures to show you how to reverse the polarity on the connector that plugs into your OEM headlight wiring. This way everything plugs right in.

L.C. - Philips bulbs take approximately 100 hours to color shift. Once they do, they will reach color temperatures of up to 4700.

Steve