Stock Mazda 3 Xenons...
 

Hey everyone....

How good are the Xenon's in the Mazda 3s Grand Touring model... i guess the 2008 model's specifically but I'm sure they are all the same.... are they really significantly brighter than the normal halogen headlights? how's the bulb life? any feedback from users would be great!

I used to own an Acura Integra that had projection syle headlights that were halogen. I have to say that I really like the output of the Xenon's on my 2008 MS3. They are much brighter than halogen IMO. As far as the bulbs life, I have only had the car for about 5 months, but so far no issues.:)

Once you go HID you'll probably never go back. Lamp life with HIDs should be much better than halogens, certainly better than "premium" halogen lamps like silverstars, etc.

HID's are awesome, more light, and on the 3 they have good coverage to the sides as well. The only thing I know from reading is if they are flashed or left on for short periods it's not as good for them. The starting arc leave deposits and if the bulb doesn't heat up fully they can cause shortened life since the deposits get on the glass, cause hotspots and bulb failure.
Otherwise they use 35W instead of 50, put out more light (and brighter light), and are supposed to have a longer lifetime than halogens. This is why they cost more, but they are worth it.

Does anyone know much about the HID kits from Techone that are sold on Protegegarage? it seems like a great deal for $150? are these things super cheap and bound to have lots of problems or are they pretty legit? if they are no good what other brands are out there?

Not legit, because they're illegal almost everywhere in the world. OEM HIDs are much safer. Halogen projectors are not made for HIDs. HIDs will not focus properly and will cause unwanted glare.

If you get them, at least do yourself a service and get the closest to 4100 or 4300k they offer. Even 5000k is kinda ricer looking and reduces light output. Plus anything that gets toward the blue side of white reduces your night vision ability.

Your choices, if you want to keep it safe, are to get the OEM HID headlamps, ballasts, and bulbs (this would also be 100% legal), or retrofit a different OEM projector into the housing. For the Mazda6, I know the bosche projector (found on the e46 BMW 3-series) is a direct bolt in swap for the OEM.

Read here for more info on aftermarket & HID's in general
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/t...s/Hid/HID.html

I've had my 3 Grand Touring for ~4mos and I love the Xenon projectors. They light the road better than the halogens on my PreRunner that I had before, and hell...that truck was like 10" higher off the ground to start...

Love the HID's on mine. Had it for more than 30K miles now.

One difference it has on halogens are that the HID's lighting edges are abrupt. Anyway, I got used to it and it's perfectly fine for me. :)

Big Difference
 

The difference literally is night and day. The Xenons are brighter, crisper and whiter. It's a very rare event to use the high beams. The regular halogens seem limited for distance. I had a rental M3 with halogen and felt like I had a light out compared to my car.

Here's a company that sells complete HID converter kits for $42, bulb and all with no splicing or any B.S. Yes, it's that cheap, but the product is not. A friend has this kit in his trailblazer and loves it. Has had it for several months and has had no issues at all. Looks great too. Can't go wrong for that price. If they crap out on you - oh well, you lost $42 - not a heartbreaker.
http://vvme.com/catalog/list-s-10145-10146.html