US Ellipsoid retrofit kit from The Retrofit Source in development

[Gregolas]

Dude, the outer glass on a BOSCH euro ellipsoid has a clear center. The US and euro Hellas have shit in the center.


If you think there is more shit on a Bosch outer glass, that means that you have not held them in your hand and looked. I own all three varieties, and I can tell you with absolute 100% certainty that you are WRONG. The Bosch has a few painted (and removable) cosmetic lines. The Hella has optical elements in the beam path.

Hmmm...this has got me thinking about making a complete hybrid setup now with a retrofit if they come out with these adapters using the best parts from each manufacturers versions (Bosch, Hella, etc).

I had no idea the Bosch versions have better glass on them (my apologies on the fresnel discussion, I thought you were talking about the actual projector glass, not the headlight glass). This would interest me in using the Bosch versions since there is less interference in the light path...

Damn, and just when I thought I was over my retrofit phase...thanks guys! Haha

[ZoomZoomBoom]

Dude, the outer glass on a BOSCH euro ellipsoid has a clear center. The US and euro Hellas have shit in the center.

I know full well what a projector retrofit is. I've done them before. No shit it's better than the stock one. I was NOT talking about fresnel elements in the projector assembly itself. All of that gets thrown out. I know that because I'm not an idiot.

What I want is the best retrofit possible in an E30, and that requires using the Bosch outer lens. Period. End of story. There is no rational argument other than availability that makes using either Hella lens better for the retrofit.

If you think there is more shit on a Bosch outer glass, that means that you have not held them in your hand and looked. I own all three varieties, and I can tell you with absolute 100% certainty that you are WRONG. The Bosch has a few painted (and removable) cosmetic lines. The Hella has optical elements in the beam path. If you can't understand the difference between that, I'm not sure what else I can say.

Dude, chill out a bit. Thanks for letting me know there's a couple more Euro ellipsoids than I thought. Just buy the housing you want and I'll do my best to make sure they make a mounting bracket for it. Since there are multiple people with each type of ellipsoid (did they make enough damn varieties?) it makes sense to have brackets made. Some housings may have the same mounting points, some might not, but I don't know yet. Feel free to help and then we can make one comprehensive projector lighting upgrade thread to sticky when this is all done so people can make one hell of an informed decision. :)

Most of you know E30's more than I do, so please correct me when I'm wrong about parts so we can get this right and not half assed.

[e30trooper]

Dude, the outer glass on a BOSCH euro ellipsoid has a clear center. The US and euro Hellas have shit in the center.

I know full well what a projector retrofit is. I've done them before. No shit it's better than the stock one. I was NOT talking about fresnel elements in the projector assembly itself. All of that gets thrown out. I know that because I'm not an idiot.

What I want is the best retrofit possible in an E30, and that requires using the Bosch outer lens. Period. End of story. There is no rational argument other than availability that makes using either Hella lens better for the retrofit.

If you think there is more shit on a Bosch outer glass, that means that you have not held them in your hand and looked. I own all three varieties, and I can tell you with absolute 100% certainty that you are WRONG. The Bosch has a few painted (and removable) cosmetic lines. The Hella has optical elements in the beam path. If you can't understand the difference between that, I'm not sure what else I can say.

This is true. Reason I lucked out with my fxr retro in a set of bosch smileys :D. How ever if i do another retro its for full performance. Ebay crysatl clear lens and maybe s2k projectors .

[clavinZERO]

I have dealt with The Retrofit Source a few times now, and I must say I do like them. I will definitely stay tuned for this update! I have hated seeing people slop on silicone or tin-can brackets or junky fiberglass to make other projector units fit into their housings. This idea about using laser-cut brackets (and a sealant) sounds absolutely amazing.

SUBSCRIBED!

[cunninglinguist]

^He goin HAM

[nrubenstein]

The whole projector gets swapped out with a retrofit.

The above Morimoto projector have clear projector lenses.

Below is a fresnel projector lens


The outer glass on the Euro Smiley housings actually has more shit on it than the USDM housings.
USDM:


Euro:



The fact of the matter is, regardless of which housing you have, retrofitting in a projector such as the Morimoto will absolutely destroy both OEM E30 projectors in every way imaginable, including greater light output, greater distance thrown, sharper and more colorful cutoff, far less light bleeding above the cutoff resulting in less glare to oncoming traffic, etc.

Dude, the outer glass on a BOSCH euro ellipsoid has a clear center. The US and euro Hellas have shit in the center.

I know full well what a projector retrofit is. I've done them before. No shit it's better than the stock one. I was NOT talking about fresnel elements in the projector assembly itself. All of that gets thrown out. I know that because I'm not an idiot.

What I want is the best retrofit possible in an E30, and that requires using the Bosch outer lens. Period. End of story. There is no rational argument other than availability that makes using either Hella lens better for the retrofit.

If you think there is more shit on a Bosch outer glass, that means that you have not held them in your hand and looked. I own all three varieties, and I can tell you with absolute 100% certainty that you are WRONG. The Bosch has a few painted (and removable) cosmetic lines. The Hella has optical elements in the beam path. If you can't understand the difference between that, I'm not sure what else I can say.

[gearheadE30]

Interested depending on the price.

[StereoInstaller1]

I have both US and Smileys for E34 sitting around. Hit me up when you get the goodies, I gotta make a PDX run pretty soon anyway, we can see how they fit.

My old eyeballs do want better light, even if my 35W HID/ US spec elliposoids does an amazing job for now.

Luke

[ZoomZoomBoom]

The whole projector gets swapped out with a retrofit.

The above Morimoto projector have clear projector lenses.

Below is a fresnel projector lens


The outer glass on the Euro Smiley housings actually has more shit on it than the USDM housings.
USDM:


Euro:



The fact of the matter is, regardless of which housing you have, retrofitting in a projector such as the Morimoto will absolutely destroy both OEM E30 projectors in every way imaginable, including greater light output, greater distance thrown, sharper and more colorful cutoff, far less light bleeding above the cutoff resulting in less glare to oncoming traffic, etc.

[nrubenstein]

Ah, yeah I wouldn't want to run eBay glass.

I will have to double check on mine, I am pretty sure I have clear lenses on my projectors and they are genuine Hella Euro Smileys.

I mean, in the absolute worst case scenario, you can swap the lens, but that seems silly.

[Gregolas]

No, they do not have replacement outer glass for the projectors. You can buy the AWFUL completely clear lenses on fleabay, but they look like ass. The only good candidate for a retrofit that looks correct is a Bosch euro or smiley projector as they have a completely clear optical path.

Ah, yeah I wouldn't want to run eBay glass.

I will have to double check on mine, I am pretty sure I have clear lenses on my projectors and they are genuine Hella Euro Smileys.

[nrubenstein]

I will try to snap a pic of my euro smileys next time I have them out. Any estimate on overall price for a set of these? If you need a tester for the Euro smiley fit, PM me.



I believe TRS sells clear lenses to swap over, given they have the correct diameter for the fresnel you are replacing...

No, they do not have replacement outer glass for the projectors. You can buy the AWFUL completely clear lenses on fleabay, but they look like ass. The only good candidate for a retrofit that looks correct is a Bosch euro or smiley projector as they have a completely clear optical path.

[nrubenstein]

I will do my best to have them make a solution for all the E30 ellipsoid setups. Retrofitting includes replacing the projector which is what is fresnelled and putting in a modern clear lens projector. The front glass of the housing is clear glass with lines but is not fresnelled.

The Bosch smiley is clear glass with lines.

What exactly are the glass patterns on the Hella lenses if they are not fresnel elements? They ABSOLUTELY have an impact on the lens optics.

[ZoomZoomBoom]

I will try to snap a pic of my euro smileys next time I have them out. Any estimate on overall price for a set of these? If you need a tester for the Euro smiley fit, PM me.



I believe TRS sells clear lenses to swap over, given they have the correct diameter for the fresnel you are replacing...

I'll let you know when they have pricing and if they need testers for the other ellipsoids. Thanks.

[Gregolas]

The laser cut brackets they are developing will bolt onto the OEM projector mounting holes, but the bracket will also have the proper hole alignment for the modern projectors to bolt right up.

I only had USDM ellipsoids to send them, so if anyone has both USDM and Euro ellipsoids, please post pictures of the backside of the projectors so I can compare. I also wouldn't mind seeing pictures of the Depo backsides to see how those mount up. Ideally it would be great to cover all of the ellipsoid options for the E30.

As for E34 ellipsoids, I have no idea if they are the same or different, but pictures would help.

What I can do is have them send me an extra bracket or two to test on Euro, Depo, and E34 housings. I know Austin has Euro, and German Audio has E34's apparently, and I'm sure someone in the Portland area has Depo. If fitment is different, I can see about arranging for people to ship a set to TRS for bracket development. We'll get this all figured out and it will be pretty sweet.

I will try to snap a pic of my euro smileys next time I have them out. Any estimate on overall price for a set of these? If you need a tester for the Euro smiley fit, PM me.

I would strongly prefer a retrofit compatible with Bosch euro projectors as they do not have a fresnelled center.

I believe TRS sells clear lenses to swap over, given they have the correct diameter for the fresnel you are replacing...