Many people get confused when looking for Hid conversion kits as many manufacturers and suppliers seem to talk in code. What does 55w 1600k mean, what is an h1 or h7 bulb or this word xenon that keeps appearing. In this article I will explain for you what these all these terms mean in a simple non technical way.

What is a hid kit? These are headlight conversionskits containing all the required components to convert your headlights from halogen bulbs to xenon or hid lighting. Why change my lights? Hid lights have been proved to be brighter than ordinary bulbs of the same rating by three times which gives you the ability to see the road ahead clearer. This is obviously much safer and also makes night driving less stressful.

Hid stands for high intensity discharge and xenon is the name of the gas contained within the bulbs. Some people like to use the term HID kits others use the term xenon kits, they both mean the exact same thing. So a HID kit is the same as an xenon kit the wording just varies from person to person.

Your hid or xenon conversion kit will contain all the necessary parts for changing from halogen to xenon light. It will contain fitting instructions as most people should be capable of doing this job themselves, and two bulbs. Also contained in the kit will be all the wiring and connectors needed for fitting and connecting the bulbs and power supply. A dual or two single ballasts will be included which must be used to operate these bulbs and these basically work in the same way as a starter in a fluorescent light tube. They change the power supplied to the bulb to the correct voltage and rating for it to function correctly.

A number preceded by an H like H7 is a reference to the bulb fitment plug and these come in sizes from H1 to H12. These are exactly the same codes as used by halogen bulbs which also come in H fittings. They are simply used to match your bulb to the holder in your car to ensure the bulb you buy fits your car whenever you need a replacement.
The letter W stands for the unit of power called a watt, the higher the number the more power the bulb will use. With hid bulbs being brighter excessively high ratings are not required with 35W and 55w being the most popular ones used in most cars more than 55w is a bit excessive.

K means Kelvin and is a measure of temperature so a 1600k hid bulb simply means a bulb in which the gas burns at 1600 degrees Kelvin. The temperature affects mainly the colour of the light or how white it is. When buying your kit and you want a blue tint check with the manufacturers guide which colour the bulbs give off and buy the appropriate rated kit for your personal preferences.