2nd gen Dodge Ram Hid Projector Retrofit DIY tutorial, with pics.

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01dirtydzl

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Alright, ive been asked multiple times now on the forum, and in Pm's to do this..i already had the majority of this finished, but the pics will show everything needed to do, this isnt that hard, the time consuming part is the paint, and aligning the projector correctly.

Tools needed
Small and large phillips screwdriver

heatgun, or oven large enough to fit the headlight housings

Dremel multi tool with cutoff, and sanding drums

Butyl rubber sealant strips

black silicone sealant

1 1/8 socket for the projector nut(or 26mm)

10mm socket/ratchet to remove/reinstall the housings to the truck

If you are also painting, you will also need

rubbing alchohol

masking tape

paint

hobby knife(for clean sharp masking lines)




First off, start with these headlights, the quality of them, and ease of assembly/disasembly is damn good for the money! I got them off amazon for less then 100 bucks shipped.

tal-1-piece-style_95a882a06b76a0b8004f69d9fa6f9191.jpg


Now we have to use a heatgun, or bake them to dismantle the housings, I chose to use a heatgun for more control...turn the heatgun to the low setting, and just slowly run the heatgun around the outer channel of the lens where it sits into the groove of the actual housing...do this for 3-5 minutes..do NOT keep the heatgun in one spot for more then a few seconds, it WILL warp and melt the plastic.

After using the gun for 3-5 minutes, try to pry the lens from the housing in the corner by the turn signal...if it starts to separate, work at it GENTLY...if it doesnt budge, go back to the heatgun and apply more heat for 2-3 minutes.

A tip i found to keep the lens from getting gooed up from the rubber sealant, Once you get the lens to start separating from the housing, a helper comes in handy for this...have your helper hold the lens in one hand, housing in the other...and gently try to pull them apart, while you use the heatgun and run it in along the channel, you will notice it literally melts the sealant...and keeps it from smudging on the lens, or on the housing...and the lens will quickly start to separate from the housing..just becareful with the heat, to not damage anything, or burn whoever is helping you. I did this myself, a helper would have made it easier, but its not needed.

If you do it right, you end up with this.
577192_3348779418522_871177036_n.jpg

424752_3348778058488_443623951_n.jpg


alright, now that the housings are apart, we can prep the housing's for the projectors..

first you need to use the dremel with a cutoff wheel, and later a sanding drum to remove the halogen bulb shield mounting pedestal, this interferes with the projector sitting flush in the housing, and must be removed.

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/404643_3348775938435_591782289_n.jpg

You also need to drill a small hole, for the Bixenon solenoid wires to pass through, here is the location i chose for that.

734699_3662899631331_1118395046_n.jpg


Notice that the pedestal is cutoff, and hole drilled, this DOESNT have to be perfect, as the shroud from the projector will cover it, dont completely hack the area up, and becareful not to cut through the housing.

Next we need to trim the rear section of the bulb holder, for clearance of the nut/socket...you dont have to do this step, you could use pliers to tighten the nut, i chose to just use the socket to make things easier.

should look about like this when you're done, do not cut too deep, or the locating washer wont have anything to sit against to properly locate the projector into the housing.

537452_3662895351224_1288094701_n.jpg


here are the projectors i used, they are Morimoto Mini h1 projectors

603315_3652527372031_1424957065_n.jpg


Notice the protective sheathing on the bixenon solenoid wires, i snipped the wires plug off as it wont be used, and slid the sheathing off, this allowed for a much smaller hole to be drilled into the housing for the wires to slip through



Now is a good time to test fit the projector into the housing before you start to prep for paint(if you so choose)

This is how they need to be assembled ( at least for the housings that i have)

When you get them, they will have the bulb adapters installed, it needs to be removed in order to remove the mounting nut, and to be able to slide it into the housing...3 small phillips screws hold it on.

165802_3662904271447_1115071257_n.jpg


remove the bulb holder, and the mounting nut..

open the hardware baggy up...
154502_3662903071417_1670300285_n.jpg


We wont be using all of these, so dont worry when you have leftover pieces..

Find the smaller round silicone washer, and assemble it onto the projector as shown...

224923_3662901231371_1811181381_n.jpg


Find the FLAT metal washer with the locating tab

Now slip the entire projector into the headlight housing from the front, and place the flat metal washer with locating tab onto the shaft of the projector, make note that it is "keyed" in a way, and only goes on one way,while looking at the backside...it should look like this..keep in mind the orientation of the tabs indent...it should face UP in the housings, and away from the headlight adjusting screw.

47669_3662898191295_1022010728_n.jpg


next place the retaining nut on

734094_3662893951189_798711246_n.jpg


front side should look like this...

295254_3654148852567_873216894_n.jpg



After you are at this step, and everything fits together nicely...you can dismantle everything, and do your painting(if you choose)


Once paint work is done, and headlights are ready for final assembly, you need to put the bulb holder back on...remember those 3 little screws from before...toss those back in along with the bulb holder, grab the spring clip from the hardware baggy, and assemble as shown with the HID bulb in place..in the pic i have an H3 bulb just for pic reference, H1 bulb will be slightly different, but procedure is the same...should look like this when finished.

33881_3662891791135_1750010532_n.jpg




I strongly suggest leaving the lenses off of the housing's...and reinstall the housing with projectors into the truck...get your cutoff, and aligning set BEFORE you seal the lights back up..

Cutoff should look something like this, you will need to play with the adjustment screws, and the rotation of the projectors into the housings..its not difficult though, Rotation of the H1 bulb in the holder will also adjust where the "hotspot" on the cutoff is.



Low beam..
x-r+projector+hid+retrofit.-picture152319-img-0987.jpg

High beam..
x-r+projector+hid+retrofit.-picture152316-img-0999.jpg


Once you get the cutoff set, and alignment done...you can reseal the lights.

Before doing this, completely clean the inside and outside of the lens, the projector lens..make sure there is no dust/dirt/grime anywhere inside the housing.

I used a dab of silicone in the hole for the bixenon wiring, along with a bead of silicone on the rubber gasket that goes on the back of the light..

When reinstalling the lenses, place the butyl rubber strips in the channel where the lens will sit, and heat it up with the heatgun evenly....do not use alot of it...press the lens back into the housing pressing gently evenly around the housing/lens...use the heatgun to warm the sealant back up, you will notice the lens will sink farther and farther into the channel as you do this...i used small clamps to clamp the lens to the housing and keep tension on it, wihle heating the sealant up..once you get the lens to sit flush all around the housing...let it sit for 30 minutes or so...

I then run a small bead of black silicone around the edge to completely seal them up and eliminate the chance of fogging up.


I know this isnt a 100% thorough write up, but it should help the majority of you...any questions just ask...here is the final end result...housings in the truck just mocked up, for pictures...i am doing some other things before i bolt them in completely, but you get the idea..

Went from this...
150898_3619111336651_1662725375_n.jpg

487284_3439890576244_244792145_n.jpg



to this...

531460_3662462740409_1130417075_n.jpg

564787_3662460700358_641238403_n.jpg

251216_3662459020316_738334373_n.jpg

154401_3662455060217_235263196_n.jpg



Please excuse the panel gaps, and dirtiness, i had to lower the bumper to get the lights out, hoods not latched, light housing is just placed in kinda hanging to grab the pic...and it rained last night on my way home :confused013:

Big thanks to Jeremy at RetroShop.us - Custom Lighting for supplying the parts
 

0212353

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nice write up!

what did you snip off on the bix wiring?
 
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01dirtydzl

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nice write up!

what did you snip off on the bix wiring?
The pin terminals that were on them, The connectors on my Bixenon are much much smaller, I can grab a pic, but im sure ya know what im talking about.
 

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here's what ya needed:

MorimotoWiringBits-9374.jpg

;)
 

ramhunter9

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Looks real nice man .. good work and thanks for the DIY
 
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01dirtydzl

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thanks for the compliments guys, overall im happy...but i think theres a bit too much white, and i should have upgraded the shrouds to the GG2.0, i still may since its not much work to pop the lenses back open.

Hopefully it helps others who are considering this mod, its well worth it for sure.

This could be done in 30-45 minutes if you aren't going to do custom paint work..

aligning the projectors takes another 10-15 minutes....its not hard at all.
 

the codes

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man spectacular job, I think the lights look great. this will help me for sure in the future
 

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30-40 minutes? jeez.....lol - I must roll like a grandma then........but I'm pretty particular on how I do stuff too. ;)
 
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01dirtydzl

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30-40 minutes? jeez.....lol - I must roll like a grandma then........but I'm pretty particular on how I do stuff too. ;)
well my lenses popped off within 5-10 minutes, doesnt take long if someone wants to rush things lol.


I ordered another set of lenses of ebay, going to have those professionally painted by my painter once i get a paintjob worked out..
 

WhiteExpress

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It almost looks like you have your projectors upside down...

The foreground should always be lit, and the background gets lit up when you hit your highs...
 

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they are in right, based on this pic anyway

734094_3662893951189_798711246_n.jpg
 

Happ!

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Digging the headlights and that bumper is crazy!! 2 thumbs up!!
 

ram1500rocks

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why didn't you buy projector headlights from ebay? wouldn't it just be plug and play if you did that?
 

lucemsequimur

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Would there be a way to do this while making the headlights still appear stock from about six feet away?
 

0212353

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why didn't you buy projector headlights from ebay? wouldn't it just be plug and play if you did that?

the output on the ebay ones stink.......these, don't

Would there be a way to do this while making the headlights still appear stock from about six feet away?

sure. keep things chrome, or even with the clear lens 2 pc units - it can be done.
 

lucemsequimur

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the output on the ebay ones stink.......these, don't



sure. keep things chrome, or even with the clear lens 2 pc units - it can be done.

I'm about to do this same sort of project, already ordered some Mini H1's and shrouds. So, from what I gather, the eBay one piece lights have no adjustment capabilities. How is adjusting the projector in the headlight supposed to work? Isn't it glued into place? Isn't it possible to transfer the mounting brackets over from the stock headlights to have easy adjustment? That's what I'm wondering at the moment. I'm gonna do chrome:) Probably going with 55W 5000K H1 bulbs.
 
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