I did quite a biit of research on HID kits for motorbikes when they first came out and fitted 4 X 35 watt. 2 were Hi/Lo beam and 2 were off road auxiliaries. DDM tuning were one of the few around with decent QA. But things have changed with U.K annual inspection tests:

I've loved the HIDs for 8 years but had to pull out the hi & lo to be legal. In UK the annual test now includes checks on lights, lenses and their markings. HIDs grafted to an H7 lamp holder are not legal and they regard this as a 'serious defect' and won't even allow the vehicle to be driven away on the road!

I replaced both small auxiliary lights aka projectors with aftermarket 30 watt leds in ali housings as supplied and there are no fans. The Chinese sellers claimed they were 60 watts but on test there's no way I would run them > 30 watts. I think they are using a marketing trick that a 30w led is equivalent to 60 watts. On test I lit both the 30W led and 35W HID and could't see much difference and of course with led you don't have the complex power supplies.

One issue with leds is their color temperature. Your HIDs are 5500K and mine were 6K. Not blue but near to daylight, although they age towards blue. To match my 30W bike auxiliaries to tungsten I slipped in some theater light gel. No much light loss and far less conspicuous when lit. I remember when first going to HID on the bike it looked naff with the main beams HID and the parking lamp tungsten so I changed that for 6K led.

I think if I upgraded MY07 EOS I would try to fine a pair of used aftermarket xenons that have the legal OE lamp holders. H7 on a HID capsule is a dead giveaway.and if the lamp holder is spliced to the wiring harness you cannot just swap the HID bulb if it fails. In those countries where you have to carry a spare headlight bulb, how would that work?

 

I did quite a biit of research on HID kits for motorbikes when they first came out and fitted 4 X 35 watt. 2 were Hi/Lo beam and 2 were off road auxiliaries. DDM tuning were one of the few around with decent QA. But things have changed with U.K annual inspection tests:

I've loved the HIDs for 8 years but had to pull out the hi & lo to be legal. In UK the annual test now includes checks on lights, lenses and their markings. HIDs grafted to an H7 lamp holder are not legal and they regard this as a 'serious defect' and won't even allow the vehicle to be driven away on the road!

I replaced both small auxiliary lights aka projectors with aftermarket 30 watt leds in ali housings as supplied and there are no fans. The Chinese sellers claimed they were 60 watts but on test there's no way I would run them > 30 watts. I think they are using a marketing trick that a 30w led is equivalent to 60 watts. On test I lit both the 30W led and 35W HID and could't see much difference and of course with led you don't have the complex power supplies.

One issue with leds is their color temperature. Your HIDs are 5500K and mine were 6K. Not blue but near to daylight, although they age towards blue. To match my 30W bike auxiliaries to tungsten I slipped in some theater light gel. No much light loss and far less conspicuous when lit. I remember when first going to HID on the bike it looked naff with the main beams HID and the parking lamp tungsten so I changed that for 6K led.

I think if I upgraded MY07 EOS I would try to fine a pair of used aftermarket xenons that have the legal OE lamp holders.

H7 on a HID capsule is a dead giveaway.and if the lamp holder is spliced to the wiring harness you cannot just swap the HID bulb if it fails. In those countries where you have to carry a spare headlight bulb, how would that work?

Hello VOX
Your idea of using OEM HID headlights is exactly what I hope to do on my 07 EOS 3.2.
My concern is how to wire in the HID units.
Have you any advice on the circuitry & hook up?
Best regards
Edward

 

Yikes, here in California we only have smog check every 2 years for cars older than 4 years, and they only inspect your emissions and nothing else. I don't know why UK would consider aftermarket HID lights illegal. Here in California you see tons of old cars (even with reflector housing) with after market HID/LED kits that are blinding, and the cops turn a blind eye. I am always respectful of other drivers and check headlights of all my cars annually to ensure they don't blind oncoming drivers, as it is just as much a risk to you as it is to them if you blind oncming drivers.

Since my original halogen headlights were not modified in any way, I carry the original halogen builbs (and their holders) in the trunk. If any of my Xenon bulbs failed, it is only a 5 minute job to switch it back to halogen. I think you can also carry a spare Xenon bulbs. Yes they can't be removed from their holder, but there are two clips which allows easy removal of the Xenon bulb with the holder/wiring as it is just a simple clip on to connect to the ballast/ignitor. DDM even sell replacement H7 Xenon bulbs for ~$25.

FYI I found some EOS OE Xenon headlights for around ~$400 on eBay including all bulbs, might be a good choice if you are thinking of upgrading to OE HID headlights. Just google "VW EOS OEM Xenon headlights" on eBay and you will find them. Not sure about wiring but I think the original Valeo ballasts are already included. I think it will be a simple job for someone as skillful as you to retrofit and code these headlights.

 

Thanks for the FIY, that's the way I would want to go.

I don't know why UK would consider aftermarket HID lights illegal

When I first put them on my bike I was knocked out by their performance and being daylight 6K the lo beam was much more visible in daylight so I was buying rider protection. However, unlike many cars with dual filament lamps, most bikes have headlamp units that put a 'V' shaped pattern on the road and an accurately made HID bulb with its arc in the correct place does not change that. The only downside from the legal perspective is the front lens has to be kept clean manually because HID lamps can produce more light scatter and in U.K it is a legal requirement to have headlamp washers fitted with HIDs and cars should have self levelling. My bike headlight was tested and met the requirements for beam aim and pattern.

Then all the go faster car freaks started buying cheap (and cheaper HID) imported kits that were mass produced without much quality control. The first problem was the arc centers were all over the place after grafting the HID lamp capsule to the H7 mount. Then others cheaped out on the quality of high voltage cables and connectors whilst their HID ballasts were not to high OE spec. for reliability, internal protection, Rfi and weather sealing.

Then these same car 'enthusiasts' started buying the 55W kits for extreme light output whilst choosing the 9K HIDs because they liked the color, but the headlamp units into which they fitted them were never designed to control the light spill from the sides which cause blinding to oncoming. IMHO the only light unit capable of controlling side spill is a lens based projector. Having now attracted the attention of regulators, they brought in new rules. Nothing stops you replacing units with HID if ALL the parts are OE and properly done, because they visually check markings on the lenses and rear connectors and beam alignment. I assume those EOSs with factory xenon have all this including self levelling? I suspect these new rules will be throughout Europe if not already applied.

I fully agree with the road safety improvement if done correctly and tested afterwards, but always keep the old parts and leave open the option to revert back if you fall foul of any rules.

 

Tom,

Thanks for sharing this. Like you, I had really come to dislike driving the Eos at night- the low beam lights are so dim as to be unsafe.

How did you align the new lights, to make sure they weren’t pointed too high?

 

The low beams are very easy to adjust. If you look at the EOS (2007-2011) with projector halogen headlights, you will see two holes on the top side of each headlamp assembly. The left most hole for the left headlamp (and the right most hole for the right headlamp) will have the vertical headlamp adjustment screw underneath it. Use a flashlight to aim inside the hole and you will see the low beam adjustment screw. It is a simple philips screw and you can use almost any normal size philips screwdriver to adjust it. Turn it clockwise to aim the low beam downwards, and turn it counter-clockwise to aim it higher. You might need to turn it a couple revolutions to see the beam moving. Go to a mall at night with a flat parking lot and aim your beam forward to ensure that at a distance of 25ft, your low beam cutoff doesn't go above other parked car's doors, otherwise you will be blinding other drivers. I generally adjust it even lower as the HID light is plenty bright. As long as the low beam can light up about 200ft of level ground ahead, it should be sufficient for even highway driving.

 

what about adjusting hi beams?

The low beams are very easy to adjust.

indeed they are...there is a gear wheel on the hi-beam housing, but it doesn't seem to have an allen socket:-\

 

Also look at my next thread on upgrading the high beams to LED - together with the low beam HIDs, I have totally transformed my EOS night driving experience. The high beam LEDs are even brighter, putting out a crazy amount of light in a perfect beam pattern. Now when I turn on my high beams, night literally turns into day!

 

Thanks- great info on adjusting the lights!

I don’t take the car out much in the winter- maybe once a month or so is all, on a dry day. I really try to keep it away from road salt- it is our summer fun car, after all! But this something I’ll need to sort out before next spring!

 

I also changed my fog lights to LED and coded them as DRL and cornering lights. Using fogs as DRL means my HID will only come on at night and extend the bulb life significantly.

 

Rc, there are many good HID kits out there. Just research and you will see. Don't skimp and buy cheap. Check the instructions and follow them exactly. If your Eos has projector headlight units, aiming may not be needed. Several of the kits suggest drilling out the headlight covers to run the wires through. It is no big deal and fairly easy to fix if you no longer want the lights installed. I am not a fan of tomgadgets install. Dumping everything inside the light housing may look nice and is convenient but I worry about 2 things. First is the fact that the ballasts will run warmer and may shorten their lives. They are meant to be mounted externally and usually come with the necessary mounting parts. Second. I worry about the stress on the wiring coming out of the back of the bulb. However, how you install the lights are up to you.

 

The DDM Ultra HID kit I got is the top of the line they sell. Everything is very well built and the ballast is metal. Not cheap at ~$120, but you get what you paid for. I have had them on for a couple months now and zero issues (knock wood).

I agree putting everything inside the housing might not be the best way but it is winter now and these are 35W ballast hence heat is not an issue. Had I gotten the 55W then I will definitely mount them ouside the housing. Here in CA the nights get pretty cool even in the summer, and my HID is on only at night, as I have coded my fog LED as DRL. If you live in Florida or Hawaii then you might want to mount the ballast outside the housing, but I really don't want to modify my housing in any way at all.

Also these DDM HID kits have lifetime warranty, so I am not terribly worried about their reliability. I have a set of Light Moses H7 360degree LED that I can swap out in case my HID fails, hence not modifying the housing allows me to switch easily to LED or even the original Halogen bulbs, which I keep in my EOS trunk just in case

 

The cheapest Chinese ballast I got once to try was made in an ABS box and as expected produced radio interference. If you enjoy sounds and Bluetooth in your car it's something to be aware of? High quality OE equivalent spec. HID ballasts from Hella or Philips are usually supplied in finned aluminium enclosures for r.f screening, passive thermal management, sealed weatherproof connections and wiring outlets. If you find a fan on a HID ballast unit, they put it there to use a plastic box and make it cheaply.

 

Haven't seen any of those here. All HID kits I have seen here have metal cases on the ballasts, although when a whole kit (2 bulbs and 2 ballasts) can be had for $29 US, one has to wonder about what is inside the ballasts. From experimenting, I have found all kinds of weird things from brightness to color issues. Kit parts tend to be matched. Any parts fail, you need to get the replacements from where you got the kits.

 

Small metric socket or Philips screw driver?

 

Lifetime is only as good as the company that sells them. I have read of several companies cut you off on the number of replacements they will give you. I paid about the same price as you and have lifetime warranty on my HIDs. They are also made in Germany and seem to be quality pieces. I live in Chicago where we can see 90+ in the summer and -20 in the winter. So unless your garage is heated, nothing gets done in the winter. Back to the quality issue. doesn't matter if not used/installed properly. Other than finding a way to keep the headlights from being on all the time, I don't like the idea of reprogramming the other lights. It defeats their purpose and runs afoul of safety requirements. But you live in California where much of this takes a back seat to CARB. My home state of Pennsylvania would not let these lighting mods to pass their required safety inspections. Like I have said, it's a free country, more or less. Do what you want. By the way the lights you don't push may not considered the best by all. But I am intrigued by the Light Moses. Might try the 35W set. Curious to see the way they react to the CanBus system. They still put out more light than most Halogen Bulbs.

 

Thanks for the info here, tomgadgets

I got the HID kit you mentioned "DDM Tuning Ultra 35W Canbus...."; Much better light output than the H7 Halogens & well worth the (sub-$100US) investment. (My details below.)

My EOS lighting is now on par with my 2007 GTI with factory HID lighting (...minus the factory auto leveling feature, but not necessarily needed if you're adjusted properly...!). the 5500K coloring is a little 'bluer' than the GTI HIDs (< ~45-5000K...?)

Note: DDM may have updated something along the way, because the H7 adapters (those twist rings from Koomtoom) were not needed. (on my 2007 Eos with the factory H7 halogens, the HID just used side wedge spring clips from the factory housing.)

I took the easy* way out...Instead of fitting the driver/ballasts modules inside the factory housing, I mounted them on the outside (* I drilled 1" dia. hole through access cover, used one screw through side of headlight housing to hold metal ballast thing (& used some (strong) double sided foam tape & large zip-tie for good measure (not 'elegant' install, but hey, it's ok for now! .

For wiring connections, I used multi-meter to confirm (& label) positive (+) and negative (-) bulb leads to the halogen bulb, after that I hooked driver plug supply leads to the (factory bulb plug) the White 12v from 'driver' is positive & the Black plug is ground (negative (-)) (as seen on

Zero issues with CAN bus. (& No interference with GPS bluetooth headunit, back-up camera, etc.)

Now those factory halogen high beams / flash to pass look a bit yellow ...maybe some LEDs for the next project!

Thanks again to tomgadgets (I hope these additional details I've added will help others!

(Standard disclaimer: If you blow something up, don't blame me. Although these worked for ME, Research things yourself just to be sure. )

 

Thanks for the info here, tomgadgets

I got the HID kit you mentioned "DDM Tuning Ultra 35W Canbus...."; Much better light output than the H7 Halogens & well worth the (sub-$100US) investment. (My details below.)

My EOS lighting is now on par with my 2007 GTI with factory HID lighting (...minus the factory auto leveling feature, but not necessarily needed if you're adjusted properly...!). the 5500K coloring is a little 'bluer' than the GTI HIDs (< ~45-5000K...?)

Note: DDM may have updated something along the way, because the H7 adapters (those twist rings from Koomtoom) were not needed. (on my 2007 Eos with the factory H7 halogens, the HID just used side wedge spring clips from the factory housing.)

I took the easy* way out...Instead of fitting the driver/ballasts modules inside the factory housing, I mounted them on the outside (* I drilled 1" dia. hole through access cover, used one screw through side of headlight housing to hold metal ballast thing (& used some (strong) double sided foam tape & large zip-tie for good measure (not 'elegant' install, but hey, it's ok for now! .

For wiring connections, I used multi-meter to confirm (& label) positive (+) and negative (-) bulb leads to the halogen bulb, after that I hooked driver plug supply leads to the (factory bulb plug) the White 12v from 'driver' is positive & the Black plug is ground (negative (-)) (as seen on

Zero issues with CAN bus. (& No interference with GPS bluetooth headunit, back-up camera, etc.)

Now those factory halogen high beams / flash to pass look a bit yellow ...maybe some LEDs for the next project!

Thanks again to tomgadgets (I hope these additional details I've added will help others!

(Standard disclaimer: If you blow something up, don't blame me. Although these worked for ME, Research things yourself just to be sure. )

GEETi I really like the way you mounted everything on the outside. I'm currently living in Florida where heat could be an issue so plan to mount mine similar to yours. Being in Florida I don't have access to my multimeter and wonder how important confirming positive and negative is.

Thanks for the info here, tomgadgets

I got the HID kit you mentioned "DDM Tuning Ultra 35W Canbus...."; Much better light output than the H7 Halogens & well worth the (sub-$100US) investment. (My details below.)

My EOS lighting is now on par with my 2007 GTI with factory HID lighting (...minus the factory auto leveling feature, but not necessarily needed if you're adjusted properly...!). the 5500K coloring is a little 'bluer' than the GTI HIDs (< ~45-5000K...?)

Note: DDM may have updated something along the way, because the H7 adapters (those twist rings from Koomtoom) were not needed. (on my 2007 Eos with the factory H7 halogens, the HID just used side wedge spring clips from the factory housing.)

I took the easy* way out...Instead of fitting the driver/ballasts modules inside the factory housing, I mounted them on the outside (* I drilled 1" dia. hole through access cover, used one screw through side of headlight housing to hold metal ballast thing (& used some (strong) double sided foam tape & large zip-tie for good measure (not 'elegant' install, but hey, it's ok for now! .

For wiring connections, I used multi-meter to confirm (& label) positive (+) and negative (-) bulb leads to the halogen bulb, after that I hooked driver plug supply leads to the (factory bulb plug) the White 12v from 'driver' is positive & the Black plug is ground (negative (-)) (as seen on

Zero issues with CAN bus. (& No interference with GPS bluetooth headunit, back-up camera, etc.)

Now those factory halogen high beams / flash to pass look a bit yellow ...maybe some LEDs for the next project!

Thanks again to tomgadgets (I hope these additional details I've added will help others!

(Standard disclaimer: If you blow something up, don't blame me. Although these worked for ME, Research things yourself just to be sure. )

GEETi I really like the way you mounted everything on the outside. I'm currently living in Florida where heat could be an issue so plan to mount mine similar to yours. Being in Florida I don't have access to my multimeter and wonder how important confirming positive and negative is. If it were backwards would it burn things out or merely not work? Or does it matter? I see the wires are white and black and am guessing it wouldn't be that way if it weren't important.

 

Hey GEETi, you are most welcome! Glad you are enjoying your new and vastly improved headlights! These DDM Ultra kits are really well made. Have mine over 3+ months and not a single issue (knock wood) and really changed my night driving experience.

Your factory GTI HID bulbs have a color temperature of 4300K, which is a bit more yellowish. I prefer the 5500K DDM bulbs as they look much whiter and provide better color contrast when driving on darker roads.

I like how you install your HID kit, nice and neat! For me I want the flexibility to switch back to halogen, hence I didn't modify the housing and put everyting inside. Perhaps in the summer I will reinstall it your way for better heat ventilation.

Looking at your projector headlight housing, it is quite different from mine. What year is yours? For 09' you will definitely need to have the LED adapter ring. The HID bulbs and kit looks identical with mine, so it is not DDM but VW that changed things around.

I have updated my high beams to the Light Moses 360 degree bulb and they literally turn night into day. I have posted my experience here: https://www.vweosclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35978

Have also changed the small yellow bulb (parking lights?) next to the low beams to LED to better match the HID and high beams. Also switched the halogen fog lights to Light Moses 360 degree LED bulb as well and VCDS coded them to be DRL. In the day time, my HID will not fire up at all as my LED fog lights serve as DRL. The HID low-beam will only take over when it gets dark. In this way I get super bright DRL and hopefully double the life of my HID.

Do you know with VCDS you can code your fog lights as turning lights, so that when you turn your steering wheel to the left or right, the corresponding side fog light comes on to provide extra illumation towards the side you are turning into? It is pretty useless with the factory halogen fogs, but once you upgrade them to LED, the turning lights feature really makes a huge difference in night time illumation when you turn into dark roads / parking lots.

Have fun with your EOS lights adventure. It is an addictive hobby and I have changed most every bulb to HID or LED (low beam, high beam, parking, fog, trunk, license plate etc...), just can't stand the dim yellow halogen light anymore

 

I followed your post instructions and updated my 2011 Komfort headlights. I am in love with the results!!! So amazing to be able to see so well at night now. Thanks a million for the information that you provided.

 

Pondtreader, this is exactly why I posted my experience so others could benefit. These HID lights are absolutely amazing and totally transformed our EOS and made it way safer to drive at night, and looks pretty cool too! If you want even better results, swap your high beams for the Light Moses LED (see my other post) and you could literally transform night into day. Be sure to aim your now much brighter headlights correctly and don't blind oncoming drivers!

 

If memory serves, polarity is important but hooking it up wrong will not cause any harm. It simply won't light up. You won't be damaging anything.

 

Since I had all the parts ready to be installed, I decided to not wait for a reply and take my chances.
Your memory serves correctly, as the bulbs didn't light up at first connect, so I reversed the connections and voila they came on.
I found that was also true of the Light Moses 360 degree bulbs that I installed for the high beams.

 

Glad you are enjoying the same experience I am having on my EOS. These lights totally transformed my EOS and I am really excited to share it with fellow EOSers. So happy for you and others who tried the same installation, it is my hope to be able to contribute to this forum and extend the longevity of our EOS as much as possible! My EOS now looks like a modern, brand new vehicle at night. The lights totally transformed the vehicle!

 

Hey tomgadgets, I just wanted to give you a shout out. I just swapped out the factory low beams with the DDM kit. For anyone out there reading through this post, I'm not much of a DIY'er when it comes to car repairs and maintenance, but If I can do it, you can do it. This whole thread is a great resource, plus the videos available on youtube and the install instructions at DDM really helped.

I did end up mounting the ballasts and else outside the housing. Hoping mounting to the fuse box cover isn't a big deal. I definitely need to swap out what I believe are the fog lights with LED's as suggested.

Thanks again Tom and everyone else who contributed insight. This site is amazing.

 

Hey Morinmt, you are welcome. I am in the same boat as you, not much of a DIY when it comes to car maintenance and upgrades, that is why I choose the DDM kit that is so easy to install. By the way make sure you are not mounting the ballast on something that is generating heat. They like to stay cool. If the fuse box is warm after driving for awhile, I would mount the ballast somewhere else that is cooler.

Just be forewarned this is an addictive exercise. Very soon you will be upgrading every single bulb in your EOS

Enjoy your new EOS!

 

You need the EOS shop manual wiring diagrams. I know ETKA is generic for different EOS years and versions. The online pdf manual source is VIN specific and may not have wiring diagrams for Xenons. I just checked MY07 VIN specific pdf I bought and it does include wiring diagrams for Xenon option. I also think you have to have headlamp washers?

There will be module and coding changes to do. I would research the V.W parts list first and if you are looking at a used take off, make sure you get everything, because a missing part could be expensive to buy on its own. You will need minimum the headlight units with lamps, the Xenon control gear with high voltage connectors and cables plus any Xenon specific electronic control boxes and may need to do some vcds coding adaptation?

If you see any genuine aftermarket kits that look OE compatible with OE markings (not the Chinese/Korean modified H lamp kits), see what they put in the kit.

 

I went this same route, although there was no way all of the components were going to fit inside the housing, regardless of how hard I tried. Ended up attaching the ballasts to the side of the headlights, tying up the rest and tucking them under the headlight housings. The 5500k DDM Ultra bulbs are more blue than listed and are no match to the 6000k Led driving lights (which are much more of a pure white) so I probably will change out the bulbs to 4500k Ultras.

Video will follow once I have some clips of the HID's at night.

 

Revisiting this thread from a year ago- how are the HIDs holding up?

 

As the original poster - my Xenon HIDs are still working wonderfully (knock wood) after being installed almost 2 years ago, although I didn't drive my EOS as much as I would have wished due to covid. I am still leaving everything including the ballast inside the lamp housing, as there is no need to modify anything at all and I can always switch back to the original H7 Halogen anytime (which I kept a pair in my trunk - just in case).

My daughter was driving my EOS behind me a few days ago on the highway while I was in another car, and from a distance her EOS looks like a brand new car with nice bright Xenon lights compare to others on the road. My wife even commented that they look brand new and very high tech

One important factor I believe extended my Xenon life span is the fact that I have switched my fog lamps to very bright LED blubs (see my other thread about LED high beams and fogs) and are using them as DRL. So in the day time, I never have to use my Xenons at all unless it is very cloudy or raining. It gets hot here in California in the summer and can exceed 100F daytime but at night when I need my Xenon low beams, the temperature cools to around 60F, so they are never heat stressed.

If you are living in another part of the US where it is always warm and humid, you might want to modify the housing and mount the ballast outside to keep heat at a minimum, but overall I can't be happier with the HID and LED mods.