Catz ZETA, cheaper & legal alternative to HID

[paultvx]

Because of the recent discussions on retrofitting HIDs into Halogen housings... it occurred to me the other day that there is a low cost alternative: Catz ZETA systems. It uses ballasts and some sort of cycling technology to make halogen H4 bulbs burn slightly brighter... and being a bulb with a filament, it's perfectly legal according to DOT and NHTSA.

Granted, it's not a real HID system, but it will give you slightly more light output... possibly at the expensive of shorter bulb life. However, a halogen bulb is significantly cheaper than a HID bulb (less than 10% of the cost of one HID capsule). The other advantage is that you maintain the same high and low beam filament location so your lighting pattern will not be compromised or affected. With HIDs it's alway a gamble on whether the capsule will be at the right location or not. If the capsule is in the wrong place, you could massive glare.

I have a contact at FET-USA who might be able to offer group pricing on the Zeta kits. Let me know if you're interested. If there is enough interest, I'll take a closer look.

[hchen]

or you can buy Maxima HIDs from me for 250....

[Hotsauce]

The zeta system raises the voltage to the bulbs, thats why they burn brighter. Bulb life will suffer, and good H4 bulbs are $50-70 a set. It doesn't take too many times to exceed the price of a good HID set.

John C.

[Dallas4u]

Originally posted by Hotsauce
The zeta system raises the voltage to the bulbs, thats why they burn brighter. Bulb life will suffer, and good H4 bulbs are $50-70 a set.

Right. I think Paul stated this above. It is an alternative to a HID system as (you stated before) the retrofits are illegal as I;m assuming any "custom" jobs will be left up to DOTs decision.

Originally posted by Hotsauce It doesn't take too many times to exceed the price of a good HID set.

John C.

I have been using Sylvania SilverStar bulbs for around two years now and love them. They were somewhat cheap ($20?) for the pair, and have received good reviews. Maybe over time HID would pay for themselves, but they would probably be illegal anyway.

[johnnyapollo]

I buy cheap 100w/90w Super White bulbs on eBay for $5.50 a pair plus shipping (plus $6 shipping). They are cheap enough that you can keep some spares in case one goes out. I've found that it gives you the most bang for the buck. Here's a link to the seller... he has bulbs for sale all the time:

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...&since=-1&rd=1

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...category=36476

I've been using this type for over 2 years. They have a bluish tint, however the extra amount of light and low cost makes them worthwhile in my opinion.

-- John

[hchen]

yea...the HIDs i get would be illegal but who cares. they fit and they work really well. and it will pass inspection. i dont think there's any laws regarding putting parts that are made for another car onto your vehicle...then whats' gonna happen to all those people who do conversions.

it's only a set of lights...and for 250, theyre worth it

[WyrreJ]

What are you talking about, "they fit?" Not without a lot of work they don't. Does that $250 include ballasts?