D3S66340CBI hids, are they legit?
08-08-2014, 09:43 PM
#1
Member
Thread Starter
D3S66340CBI hids, are they legit?
So I took a chance and bought a pair of D3S Cool Blue Intense bulbs on UK ebay. The first delivery was 2 CBI boxes with HBI bulbs in them. Needless to say I was a little miffed. So I wrote the seller a not so nice note questioning how HBI bulbs ended up in the CBI boxes. They were short, but apologetic and said they would send me the correct bulbs. Well to my surprise, the CBI bulbs arrived today.
My question is, is there a way to spot a fake before I put them in and try them out? I know they get brighter with some burn in time but does anyone have an idea of how much brighter they should be than the oem 4300k D3S bulbs? Sorry about the 3 sideways pics, I couldn't get them to rotate on my phone with the forum app.
My question is, is there a way to spot a fake before I put them in and try them out? I know they get brighter with some burn in time but does anyone have an idea of how much brighter they should be than the oem 4300k D3S bulbs? Sorry about the 3 sideways pics, I couldn't get them to rotate on my phone with the forum app.
08-09-2014, 04:08 PM
#2
Brighter how?
It's a 35w bulb being fired by a 35w ballast. They won't really be much brighter but they will be whiter as the the kelvin rating is higher. If you were to retrofit to a 50w ballast then you would certainly see an increase in lumens that would be significantly more than a 35w ballast. A simple bulb change should net more color change than lumen output. That's not saying the CBI won't be a smidge brighter but I doubt it will be noticed by the human eye. You will however notice the color change quite a bit. Enjoy it too, cause CBI's have a great color output.
I put 4200K Nightbreakers in my retrofit and at times wish I had gone with CBIs but I really do enjoy the less white color of the NB's. The color flicker on the CBIs is very cool and pleasing.
It's a 35w bulb being fired by a 35w ballast. They won't really be much brighter but they will be whiter as the the kelvin rating is higher. If you were to retrofit to a 50w ballast then you would certainly see an increase in lumens that would be significantly more than a 35w ballast. A simple bulb change should net more color change than lumen output. That's not saying the CBI won't be a smidge brighter but I doubt it will be noticed by the human eye. You will however notice the color change quite a bit. Enjoy it too, cause CBI's have a great color output.
I put 4200K Nightbreakers in my retrofit and at times wish I had gone with CBIs but I really do enjoy the less white color of the NB's. The color flicker on the CBIs is very cool and pleasing.
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mwcjr159 (08-09-2014)
08-09-2014, 08:17 PM
#5
Member
Thread Starter
Just got them changed out. The only reason for me to think they might be fake is the price. At current exchange rates I ended up paying just over $110 for the pair. They do look blue compared to the originals and just as bright. Still unsure if they are the real deal or not but for what I paid, if they last a year or two I'll be pretty happy. Plus the seller let me keep the HBI bulbs he sent first so...
The CBI is on the passenger side in the comparison shots below.
The CBI is on the passenger side in the comparison shots below.
08-09-2014, 08:34 PM
#7
Senior Member
They seem to be legit. Can't believe they let you keep the hbi's. That's the only thing that would make me suspicious because those bulbs don't retail for cheap either.
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08-21-2014, 01:11 PM
#8
I also ordered these, probably the same seller, from eBay uk, so I'll definitely check to make sure the right bulbs are in there. Thanks for the heads up. I'm gonna try and get some comparison pics, before and after. Did you get any night shots with them yet? Keep us updated
