Yes! It's done and working great!

So, I attempted a head gasket job on my 99 A4 2.8L V6 30 valve (AHA motor).  It looks like it was successful!  I replaced all the gaskets along the way to replacing the head gaskets.  Man was it a job, but after doing it now, I feel like I could do it in two days .  I'm still working on putting up a write up on how to do it...hopefully I'll have it up sometime when I get some more time to finish it up.  

I just drove to the Twin Cities in Minnesota to visit a buddy with puring rain at night, and I realized I really need to update my lighting system.  I seriously could not see anything at times because my lights suck so much....: (  Time for some HIDs which I'll hopefully install this summer sometime.  I was thinking about getting one of those HID housing kits from ebay .... not sure if i want to spend the money on the ecodes which are redicilously expensive.  Any opinions? 

Congrats on the work! That's impressive.

As for headlights, look for a set of Depo 2-piece headlights on eBay (~$150 shipped) and then pick up an HID kit from vvme.com (or from flashplus, their eBay alter ego with even better prices).

First off, congrats on the successful job.  Definitely get the HIDs, and you can get a kit now that will work in your existing housings, and will transfer to your new headlights (when you get them) with no problem.  Since you have reflector headlights, you can either adapt and get 99.5+ one-piece headlights (you have to grind part of the fender and do some rewiring for them to fit and work), or you can get Depo headlights, which are chrome (or black) housings, clear corners, and projector low beams.  I got mine on eBay from Makotoautotrends (the seller's screenname) for $147 shipped, and they look great and function very well.  A proper HID kit for your existing headlights (H7 bulbs, 4300k-6000k color temp) will work perfectly in the Depo lights as well.  

Congrats on a job well done. If you are considering HID's and dont want to spend the money on ecodes, I would suggest looking on ebay but for used factory HID's and then just do a CC mod. They look and perform great. When my car was hit I was going to get ecodes as the one factory light with the ballast and bulb from the dealer cost more than a set of ecodes. But after I found out that the ballast was still good I decided to buy a factory HID light and I got one for $160 shipped. All you have to do is look. A set of HID's can be purchased on ebay for about $400 but that includes everyhthing ready to go, housings, bulbs and ballasts.

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ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

Congrats on a job well done. If you are considering HID's and dont want to spend the money on ecodes, I would suggest looking on ebay but for used factory HID's and then just do a CC mod. They look and perform great. When my car was hit I was going to get ecodes as the one factory light with the ballast and bulb from the dealer cost more than a set of ecodes. But after I found out that the ballast was still good I decided to buy a factory HID light and I got one for $160 shipped. All you have to do is look. A set of HID's can be purchased on ebay for about $400 but that includes everyhthing ready to go, housings, bulbs and ballasts.

Just to clarify things, when you say "factory HIDs," you're talking about OEM projector headlights, right? Because those don't necessarily have HIDs. To the OP...if you can find a set of OEM Valeo projectors, you won't be disappointed, but you'll probably end up paying more just for the used headlights than you would for a set of new Depos and an HID kit together (and it probably won't come with ballasts and bulbs for an HID setup). I got a smokin' deal on my Valeos, otherwise I would still be happily rocking the Depos.

actually the HIDs aren't great in the rain either. they are better than the regular lights but the fog lights are really what does the trick in th rain. since you have an early 99, it's probably pre facelift so get some fogs for your lower grilles. also gratz on the headgasket, i may need to do that this summer. 

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ORIGINAL: sineo

quote:

ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

Congrats on a job well done. If you are considering HID's and dont want to spend the money on ecodes, I would suggest looking on ebay but for used factory HID's and then just do a CC mod. They look and perform great. When my car was hit I was going to get ecodes as the one factory light with the ballast and bulb from the dealer cost more than a set of ecodes. But after I found out that the ballast was still good I decided to buy a factory HID light and I got one for $160 shipped. All you have to do is look. A set of HID's can be purchased on ebay for about $400 but that includes everyhthing ready to go, housings, bulbs and ballasts.

Just to clarify things, when you say "factory HIDs," you're talking about OEM projector headlights?

In 2000 and 2001 Audi offered Factory 1 piece HID lights with self leveling and these are the lights that I am speaking of as they have ballasts and bulbs. Here is a picture.

Factory Audi 1 piece headlight with CC mod:



With Stealth Auto chrom bulbs

quote:

ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

In 2000 and 2001 Audi offered Factory 1 piece HID lights with self leveling and these are the lights that I am speaking of as they have ballasts and bulbs. Here is a picture.

I'm not trying to correct you, just keep things clear for the sake of people who don't know anything about the subject. Those are projector headlights with HIDs.

quote:

ORIGINAL: sineo

quote:

ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

In 2000 and 2001 Audi offered Factory 1 piece HID lights with self leveling and these are the lights that I am speaking of as they have ballasts and bulbs. Here is a picture.

I'm not trying to correct you, just keep things clear for the sake of people who don't know anything about the subject. Those headlights are projectors with HIDs.

Yes, but they did offer a projector without the HID's so I was not sure which one you were talking about.

fred do your stealth bulbs like up orange? and where did you get them?

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ORIGINAL: hiwords

fred do your stealth bulbs like up orange? and where did you get them?

Yes they light up orange. I got them from stealthauto.com

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ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

Yes, but they did offer a projector without the HID's so I was not sure which one you were talking about.

Right, that's the point I was making. When you said something about buying "factory HIDs and then doing the CC mod," I could envision the ensuing confusion. I think it's more helpful to talk about headlights in terms of being reflectors or projectors and as HIDs being an optional extra because the HIDs are always removable from the housing and I've never seen used OEM bulb, ballast, and headlight combinations advertised as "factory HIDs," which could make a search difficult or confusing.

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ORIGINAL: sineo

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ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

Yes, but they did offer a projector without the HID's so I was not sure which one you were talking about.

I've never seen used OEM bulb, ballast, and headlight combinations advertised as "factory HIDs," which could make a search difficult or confusing.

Actually that's how I found my replacement housing. I went to ebay and typed in "Audi HID" and I found quite a few items including, bulbs, ballast sets, and housings. I did find used stuff as well as new.

I also found a lot of stuff under "Audi head light" which will list all headlights and then I looked for HID specific and found a lot of choises as well.

So after some more searching so as not to confuse anyone because I want to make sure that if someone else decides to do this that they get it right, this is what I came up with. The projector headlight was the non HID, while the xenon headlight was the HID upgrade. Both were offered from Audi but the xenon was an option on the 2000-2001, so technically we were both right.

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ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

So after some more searching so as not to confuse anyone because I want to make sure that if someone else decides to do this that they get it right, this is what I came up with. The projector headlight was the non HID, while the xenon headlight was the HID upgrade. Both were offered from Audi but the xenon was an option on the 2000-2001, so technically we were both right.

Well, except for the fact that HIDs are the same thing as Xenons and neither refers to the housing itself. Whether you run HIDs/Xenon bulbs or halogen bulbs, the 1-piece Valeo headlight is the same.

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ORIGINAL: sineo

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ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

So after some more searching so as not to confuse anyone because I want to make sure that if someone else decides to do this that they get it right, this is what I came up with. The projector headlight was the non HID, while the xenon headlight was the HID upgrade. Both were offered from Audi but the xenon was an option on the 2000-2001, so technically we were both right.

Well, except for the fact that HIDs are the same thing as Xenons and neither refers to the housing itself. Whether you run HIDs/Xenon bulbs or halogen bulbs, the 1-piece Valeo headlight is the same.

It does refer to the housing. The xenon/hid factory housing has an opening on the bottom of the housing. This is where the ballast bolts onto the bottom of the light housing and the wiring for the HID bulb feeds through to connect to the HID bulb. On the projector light there is no hole. That's why you see so many people who convert their projector head lights to HID mount their ballast some where else in the engine bay. Others buy a factory ballast and cut open a square hole like the factory HID opening and mount the ballast in the same place but still without the mounting holes. You can convert your factory proctor lights to HID with a liitle cutting and work, but why when there is a factory one that already has it done the right way for you.

If you go to LLtek's website and look under lighting for the B5 you will see that Valeo offers two different housings. One is for 1 piece halogen headlight while the ohter is for the 1 piece HID headlight. It's the same with the factory headlights offered from Audi. Again they will both work, but one requires a little modfication.

quote:

ORIGINAL: fred2ka4
It does refer to the housing. The xenon/hid factory housing has an opening on the bottom of the housing. This is where the ballast bolts onto the bottom of the light housing and the wiring for the HID bulb feeds through to connect to the HID bulb. On the projector light there is no hole. That's why you see so many people who convert their projector head lights to HID mount their ballast somewhere else in the engine bay. Others buy a factory ballast and cut upen a square hole like the factory HID opening and mount the ballast in the same place but still without the mounting holes. You can convert your factory proctor lights to HID with a liitle cutting and work, but why when there is a factory one that already has it done the right way for you.

Haha, okay. Look, there are like 50 questions a week asking about the subject and most of them barely make sense because of how confused people are about what HIDs actually are, etc. Maybe someone will have some questions answered by your previous posts in this thread, but I think they won't clarify much for anybody. But it's okay with me if I'm wrong on that because, like I said, I wasn't making the distinction for the sake of correcting you.

quote:

ORIGINAL: fred2ka4

If you go to LLtek's website and look under lighting for the B5 you will see that Valeo offers two different housings. One is for 1 piece halogen headlight while the ohter is for the 1 piece HID headlight. It's the same with the factory headlights offered from Audi. Again they will both work, but one requires a little modfication.

Okay, for pre-facelift A4s, ANY 1-piece headlight will require modification to the fender, regardless of whether or not it is also equipped with an HID bulb and ballast. Their 2-piece headlights require no modification, but either is HID compatible, as stated on the website. And by HIDs, I mean high intensity discharge bulbs and requisite ballasts. All of the 1-piece Valeos have a cutout on the underside of the housing to accommodate an HID ballast...whether an aftermarket ballast ends up fitting perfectly without any trimming is a different story.

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ORIGINAL: sineo

quote:

ORIGINAL: fred2ka4
It does refer to the housing. The xenon/hid factory housing has an opening on the bottom of the housing. This is where the ballast bolts onto the bottom of the light housing and the wiring for the HID bulb feeds through to connect to the HID bulb. On the projector light there is no hole. That's why you see so many people who convert their projector head lights to HID mount their ballast somewhere else in the engine bay. Others buy a factory ballast and cut upen a square hole like the factory HID opening and mount the ballast in the same place but still without the mounting holes. You can convert your factory proctor lights to HID with a liitle cutting and work, but why when there is a factory one that already has it done the right way for you.

Haha, okay. Look, there are like 50 questions a week asking about the subject and most of them barely make sense because of how confused people are about what HIDs actually are, etc. Maybe someone will have some questions answered by your previous posts in this thread, but I think they won't clarify much for anybody. But it's okay with me if I'm wrong on that because, like I said, I wasn't making the distinction for the sake of correcting you.

I understand where you are coming from and I am not the kind of person to say who is right and who is wrong. As far as I am concerned we are both right but talking about two different things. The only reason I bring it up is because when I had to look for a housing for my passenger side light after my car was hit I did not want to have to cut up the housing since my car came with factory HID's. (As with most people, I bought my car used and the previous owner had opted for the HID's) I found plenty of 1 piece housings but they were not the HID ones.

Again I am like you in the sense that I do not want to try and confuse anyone and hopefully give some helpful information, just speaking from my own experience.

You're making me crazy! lol