Aftermarket HID?

[A6_machine]

I am considering purchasing an aftermarket HID kit for my A6. I hate that blue bulb crap and want the real deal. I have seen numerous brands online and I want to know what to go with, price/reliability/performance etc. Any feedback would be appreciated.

[Pete RD]

for the A6 not equiped with zenons. The lights do not have the amber corner reflectors (clear corners!) and Achtuning has the "silvered" turn-signal bulbs that are amber when activated. The lights are built with a housing for the "city" light rather than having a "corner" light and that may not work with your wiring harness unless some modifications are made. Josh and I took one of my headlights (zenon) out to compare and see if these would be a "plug 'n play" deal with our zenons...they are not, but he will try to get some that are. Achtuning has installed "E" code euro lights on A4/S4s and report that the euro lights are superior to the US versions.

Contact: josh@achtuning or adam@achtuning...he can speak to the changes required to the wiring depending on what light functions you want.

HTH

[A6_machine]

I was looking for plug 'n play so that in the event I ever had a warranty issue i could swap them out without messing with any wiring.

[Pete RD]

holder out of your oem lights along with your 2-element bulb...that's all (again, I think...).

Contact Achtuning...they can give better answers than I.

Cheers,

[Pete RD]

they go back in much easier...but there are some "tricks" involved. The whole operation on a A4/S4 is very quick and easy...but Achtuning can tell you how on the A6.

HTH

[A6_machine]

Thanks for the info Pete...much appreciated!!

[TeddyBGame]

Here is what I learned:

They work perfectly!!! What a difference. Between the OEM Halogen and OEM HID wireharnes...it was a pure Plug N' Play!!!

I had an Audi Tech install these last night - after hours. The auto-leveling motors didn't function (expected). We spent 5 minutes re-adjusting the beam - what a difference!!! I also heard that the low-watt HID bulbs can cause a warning light to come on - didn't happen. The Audi Tech did need to remove the bumper to exchange/install these housings. It made it a lot easier to complete the job. In some cases, you do not need to remove/dislodge the bumper to replace the A6 headlight housings (the Audi tech told me that this varies with each A6...go figure).

The one thing that I noticed with all of those HID kits is that they only include 2 of the 3 main components (bulbs and ballasts). What they don't include are the OEM projectors/optics. The optics are key in projecting the light across an even plane. The Audi Tech and he educated me a bit on the subject; he has worked on A6's with HID kits installed and they all have the same problem - the halogen optics do not distribute the light in an even plan. Most of the A4 guys have installed HID kits with the A6 projectors (purchased from the dealer for $200-$300 dollars).

On another note...
I also noticed that the OEM HID projectors can fit perfectly into my Halogen light housings. The only difference is the auto-leveling function (which requires more parts/sensors etc to work - not worth it - in my opinion). I have my original Halogens and another set of HID housings (bulbs, ballasts, optics) that I will tinker with this Winter. Once I move all these HID components to the Halogen housings I'll probably sell them on eBay.

That's my story and I'm stickin' to it!!

PS - I'll post some pix at a later time.