Official Retrofit Review Thread
01-30-2012, 08:00 PM
#252
well they're in. and i love them. yes, i took the bumper off to install them, takes about 5min max, for ease of running wires and work space. that and the intercooler makes a great shelf 
they fit perfect. not warped or anything from the oven. the only problem i had with the wiring is that because i mounted the bi-xenon box on my fuse box cover, i had to extend the connection to the drivers side ballast. other than that everything went in great.
they fit perfect. not warped or anything from the oven. the only problem i had with the wiring is that because i mounted the bi-xenon box on my fuse box cover, i had to extend the connection to the drivers side ballast. other than that everything went in great.
01-30-2012, 11:00 PM
#259
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I mounted my box to my ECM... it was the best flat surface I could find haha. Worked well as far as the wiring length goes. Unfortunately you SC guys dont have the same ECM lol
01-30-2012, 11:10 PM
#260
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well they're in. and i love them. yes, i took the bumper off to install them, takes about 5min max, for ease of running wires and work space. that and the intercooler makes a great shelf
they fit perfect. not warped or anything from the oven. the only problem i had with the wiring is that because i mounted the bi-xenon box on my fuse box cover, i had to extend the connection to the drivers side ballast. other than that everything went in great.
they fit perfect. not warped or anything from the oven. the only problem i had with the wiring is that because i mounted the bi-xenon box on my fuse box cover, i had to extend the connection to the drivers side ballast. other than that everything went in great.
02-01-2012, 06:51 PM
#262
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Just an update. Since the solenoids in the TLs are fried I'm going to be taking them out and throwing my FXRs in.. So basically i paid $1050 for a set of hacked up headlight bezels painted black 
02-02-2012, 08:47 PM
#266
Haven't looked at this thread for a while.
The problem wasn't necessarily the performance although they didn't shine very far out when raised as high as possible and everything to the left of the car (oncoming lane) wasn't illuminating well.
Most of the stuff Soccer mentioned/reviewed is stuff that I didn't have any problem with in the first place. The wiring was good, the lights fit pretty good, they came packed well, they were easy to install, etc. I didn't have any problems with those things.
The build quality sucked. The chrome portion of the inside kind of sucked and was not as advertised. These were supposed to be modified OEM headlamps. They were not.
Some people are cool with lots of dust, fingerprints on BOTH projectors and loose pieces of plastic sealed inside. It's also a lot easier to accept things like that when you get the item for free. If someone gives you a car and it has issues, it's not really that big of a deal. BUT if you BUY a car and it has issues after the seller told you it didn't have any issues it is kind of a big deal. Luckily buyHIDs doesn't sell cars. (jk)
The main problem I had was with the service (or lack thereof). Seller refused to EVER apologize and downplayed the whole thing.
Anyway, people can just think I'm crazy. The truth is I expect items to be as described when I buy them. I expect good customer service and I'm extremely generous. I've sold three things on here. I sold some coilovers and even then I sold them cheap as hell. I've sold some retros and a downpipe for $0.00 each. I bought a Progress 24MM rear sway bar by accident. It was listed under "Suspension & Chassis" for 08-10 SS Turbocharged cars. It wasn't until later that I read that it's the same size as the stock bar. I keep seeing a yellow SS with black stripes down it that looks pretty cool. I think I'm gonna keep the sway in the trunk. The next time I see the guy I'm gonna flag him down and give it to him.
It's all water under the bridge as far as I'm concerned. I'm sure Mike is a cool guy. He's just not a very good businessman and he won't have me throwing any more money his way.
02-02-2012, 08:52 PM
#267
haha Sorry I didn't mean to offend you or anything. I really do think that if you were to get a set with actual OEM projectors in it you would be much happier. The throw on the EvoX-Rs or even Fx-rs is much better. Something like the EvoX-R, or a set of E55 projectors, while not as wide or as sharp of a cutoff, are much better at throwing light in the distance. If you weren't happy with the build quality of buyhids reach out to Maven or maybe somebody else local next time.
02-02-2012, 09:10 PM
#268
I'm easily offended but I get over it quickly.
All that knowlege you're throwing down about different HID stuff is totally Greek to me. You'll have to simplify things and include pics for me to understand.
I decided to just get some white lights with a slightly more modern looking design. I got the black DEPO projectors (I think they're called Gen4s) with H7 Arctic white 70W bulbs and some fogs that are supposed to match.
Basically I copied what another member on here had and then purchased the stuff from a vendor on here who draws pictures on boxes at the customer's request. Damn. I should have requested a picture of Jesus Christ jackhammering Mickey Mouse in the doo-doo hole with a lawn dart as Garth Brooks gives birth to something resembling a cheddar cheese log with almonds on Santa Claus's tummy-tum. (Bloodhound gang referrence, not my crazy talk).
All that knowlege you're throwing down about different HID stuff is totally Greek to me. You'll have to simplify things and include pics for me to understand.
I decided to just get some white lights with a slightly more modern looking design. I got the black DEPO projectors (I think they're called Gen4s) with H7 Arctic white 70W bulbs and some fogs that are supposed to match.
Basically I copied what another member on here had and then purchased the stuff from a vendor on here who draws pictures on boxes at the customer's request. Damn. I should have requested a picture of Jesus Christ jackhammering Mickey Mouse in the doo-doo hole with a lawn dart as Garth Brooks gives birth to something resembling a cheddar cheese log with almonds on Santa Claus's tummy-tum. (Bloodhound gang referrence, not my crazy talk).
02-02-2012, 09:15 PM
#269
I bought a Progress 24MM rear sway bar by accident. It was listed under "Suspension & Chassis" for 08-10 SS Turbocharged cars. It wasn't until later that I read that it's the same size as the stock bar. I keep seeing a yellow SS with black stripes down it that looks pretty cool. I think I'm gonna keep the sway in the trunk. The next time I see the guy I'm gonna flag him down and give it to him.
02-02-2012, 11:05 PM
#270
Well, now I'm really confused. Even though this sway was being sold for 08-10 turbocharged SS if you read the description it says:
"Not for 2008-2010 Cobalt SS Turbo (they come with a 24mm rear sway bar from the factory)."
Weird.
Well, don't want to muck up this thread with swaybar talk because this is a retro review thread. I'll just wait and see what the vendor says. I've pm'd them twice and emailed their customer service once.
"Not for 2008-2010 Cobalt SS Turbo (they come with a 24mm rear sway bar from the factory)."
Weird.
Well, don't want to muck up this thread with swaybar talk because this is a retro review thread. I'll just wait and see what the vendor says. I've pm'd them twice and emailed their customer service once.
02-02-2012, 11:17 PM
#271
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the ss/tc has a sway bar built right into the rear axle that is non-removeable, just like any balt does. when you buy a sway bar its in addition to what your car has stock because it gets bolted onto the rear axle beam..
in essence the place you bought it from has no clue what they are talking about
in essence the place you bought it from has no clue what they are talking about
02-03-2012, 03:46 PM
#273
Retraction / Apology to Mike at buyHIDs
So after talking to Mike I found out that I did not pay anything extra for a dome kit not received.
I didn't add the retrodome kit to my cart but I used the code. That took 58.99 off the total due and wasn't fair to Mike. So then Mike asked for 58.99 back and I sent the money. That put me back at the original total due. So then the amount I paid was equal to:
The amount I would have paid if never using the retrodome code -or- The amount I would have paid if I had added the retrodomes to the cart and then used the code.
Mike does not owe me money. I'm pretty sure I used a code for free shipping so if only one code was allowed per order then I am not owed a retrodome kit either. I can't remember. Either way, I said that Mike owed me money for an item not yet received and he did not.
The lights still sucked though IMO.
Also, since I didn't/couldn't use the retrodome code and there were only a few given out that means Mike owes some random person who bought a set of retros with no code a free set of HID dome lights, license plate lights and reverse lights. I'M KIDDING.
So I will STFU in this thread now because my review is complete and anything else related to this transaction doesn't belong here.
So after talking to Mike I found out that I did not pay anything extra for a dome kit not received.
I didn't add the retrodome kit to my cart but I used the code. That took 58.99 off the total due and wasn't fair to Mike. So then Mike asked for 58.99 back and I sent the money. That put me back at the original total due. So then the amount I paid was equal to:
The amount I would have paid if never using the retrodome code -or- The amount I would have paid if I had added the retrodomes to the cart and then used the code.
Mike does not owe me money. I'm pretty sure I used a code for free shipping so if only one code was allowed per order then I am not owed a retrodome kit either. I can't remember. Either way, I said that Mike owed me money for an item not yet received and he did not.
The lights still sucked though IMO.
Also, since I didn't/couldn't use the retrodome code and there were only a few given out that means Mike owes some random person who bought a set of retros with no code a free set of HID dome lights, license plate lights and reverse lights. I'M KIDDING.
So I will STFU in this thread now because my review is complete and anything else related to this transaction doesn't belong here.
02-03-2012, 04:26 PM
#274
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yea idk what everyone is talking **** about buyhids for.........
i think that mkulrey13 is a great guy. and he has amazing customer service!
im not his friend, not his buddy. he did not pay me or anything to say this. never met the guy before.
i would show you some of the stuff he has said. and i think he is a great guy!
he made a mistake, and forgot to ship 1 thing with my retrofit order. and he shipped it out next day and apologized. also, i was a huge annoying ******, and kept messaging him every 2 minutes asking him where what goes. and what wire i gotta solder etc....... and within minutes after i asked the question, he would pm me back with the answer.
my retros i got from him were flawless! and they look very similar to the picture of his subaru.not quite that bright. but still VERY bright. i got morimoto 35w 5000k
i think that mkulrey13 is a great guy. and he has amazing customer service!
im not his friend, not his buddy. he did not pay me or anything to say this. never met the guy before.
i would show you some of the stuff he has said. and i think he is a great guy!
he made a mistake, and forgot to ship 1 thing with my retrofit order. and he shipped it out next day and apologized. also, i was a huge annoying ******, and kept messaging him every 2 minutes asking him where what goes. and what wire i gotta solder etc....... and within minutes after i asked the question, he would pm me back with the answer.
my retros i got from him were flawless! and they look very similar to the picture of his subaru.not quite that bright. but still VERY bright. i got morimoto 35w 5000k
