Bulbs to replace Halogen DRL

Ash187

Ash187

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Hi Guys,

I want to replace the DRL bulb in the pre 09 Bi-xenon headlight with something much brighter. I have searched and found this thread http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/new-a3...sis/102122-halogen-drls-new-bulbs-fitted.html but the pictures are not there so i have asked for a link to those but i was wondering if LED bulbs were an option? Has anyone already tried this or knows what bulb i could try?
Thanks
Ash
 
There are a few sellers of LED DRLs on eBay, however I've not had a set that don't throw up errors. The bulbs themselves have a long list of names, including:

- 1156 (Straight opposite pins)
- PY21
- 245
- 207
- BA15s
- 382
- R5W
- R10W

A lot of people (myself included) swear by PIAA H-367 Mirror White bulbs, but they are a bit pricey.
 
I'm looking for a set of bulbs that would compliment my Xenons as I am changing the HID bulbs to 6000k/8000k and would like something bright to match.
The link I posted above says that the Nokya bulbs were 7000k which sounds like it would suit perfect but no picture to see how it looks
 
Bear in mind that (far as I know) you can't have DRLs and Xenons on at the same time. The 501 bulbs that show in the DRL reflector when you have Xenons on are much easier to replace with error free LED versions.
 
I didnt think they were 501 bulbs... PS 19 W afaik

EDIT: just re-read this and it finally made sense
 
Last edited:
This is my car with adaptive bixenons. Standard bixenons should be the same. If your car has single xenon or halogen lights, you will have a different setup to this (and probably no DRLs).

Daytime:
DRL%20only.jpg

Dipped beam (night):
Dipped%20beam.jpg

And the switch:
Normal%20use.jpg


As you can see, the DRL switch is seperate to the rest of the lighting controls, and I leave them on all the time. They switch off automatically when the headlights are activated (on auto or manual).

Edit: Yes, it really is that filthy.
 
Last edited:
ahh now i see what you mean... Thats a great help Matsumi... clears it up for me. In that case its ok as i dont need to match the xenon bulb... but still want a LED brightness look DRL.

I need to check the light switch that i have picked up cos i dont think it has a DRL switch... pretty sure i have the auto lights switch with a manual level adjuster switch in place of where your DRL switch is... i wonder if this can this be wired/programmed to work as the DRL switch?

Still lost as to what bulb to get for the DRL... I wanted to get all the bulbs in there before fitting the headlights as its a PITA to fit it later.
 
oh well... at least i didnt bother wasting the time on it. £28 is steep... just thinking if its worth it or should i just use some high powered white brake lights :unsure:
 
audi upgrades
Havn't even picked the car up yet and am desperate to change the bulbs! Not a fan of the yellow lights at all! Is there a how to and also which bulbs are best?
 
going with LEDs can cause issues as not all of them work, the best way is going down the PIAA route, but they are very expensive, but you get what you pay for and the colour they produce is spot on
 
jungleman said:
going with LEDs can cause issues as not all of them work, the best way is going down the PIAA route, but they are very expensive, but you get what you pay for and the colour they produce is spot on
Click to expand...

Cheers. I'd rather spend the money on something that works and the LED's i have heard are very temperamental. How about fitting? Simple to do or a bit fiddly?
 
Those MTEC bulbs look fine. I wonder what shade light they output?
@Boydie - Yep. Using them in mine and they're lovely.
 
I had the silver PIAA bulbs and they were good, but they still didn't look as white as I wanted them to be, so I bought some "CANBUS ERROR FREE" leds for my sidelights, and some LED's from ebay.

The sidelight bulbs work no worries in my S3 8P2, so the built in resistors work fine.

The DRL's needed some resistors fitting to make the LED's work - so I found another thread on here where some guy bought an indicator kit which comes with these plug and play resistors that just clip onto the DRL wires.

Literally took 10 seconds to fit to each DRL.

Sidelights: 8 LED SIDE LIGHT BULBS CAN BUS FREE 501 T10 W5W 6000K | eBay UK

DRL LED's: 2X 27 White SMD LED 1156 382 BA15S P21W Stop light bulb | eBay UK

Indicator Kit with Plug N Play resistors: Prism LED Bulbs - Amber - BNIP! *Bargain!* *LOOK!* | eBay UK

Looks loads better now, no yellow at all!!

Will wang some pix up later if I get chance.....

The smoked Laminex headlight film makes them look more a mad dark purple/white now, but they are a very nice white otherwise.
 
Sorry dude,

only saw the post last night on my iphone, and i can't log in on it.

I went down the bulb route first, and it doesn't cost much to go to LED's, see how you feel.

I love the LED's now, got them on my rear number plate as well (special error free LED's again - no modding needed).

They just make it look more "clean" and up to date.

Some people don't like the LED ones, but I love em!
 
Sorry to hijack the thread (hope you don't mind itwasntme) but my girlfriend's A3 has the following lights:

mediaid956428374.jpg


I want to change all of the bulbs (halogen DRL, sidelights and dipped/main beam), anyone know which bulbs I would need please (would like to replace them with the MTEC/PIAA type)?
 
can u not just but the clip on resistors elswhere? what do they look like? Really want these on mine. Ur lights look spot on now mate, no more wee yellow.;)
 
Vazza said:
Sorry to hijack the thread (hope you don't mind itwasntme) but my girlfriend's A3 has the following lights:

mediaid956428374.jpg


I want to change all of the bulbs (halogen DRL, sidelights and dipped/main beam), anyone know which bulbs I would need please (would like to replace them with the MTEC/PIAA type)?
Click to expand...

This is what I want to know too! Thanks for posting lol!
 
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Denty,

Not sure what you mean by elsewhere, but mine are tucked away in the back of the light pod of the DRL/Headlight.

They have to bridge the DRL circuit so they fool our fancy Audi DIS into thinking there is a bulb still there, so you are kind of limited for choice.

Works fine though, and makes very little impact on your setup.

If you go to:

Prism LED Bulbs - Amber - BNIP! *Bargain!* *LOOK!* | eBay UK

You can see the resistors at the bottom of the main sellers picture (under the red clips is a kind of white brick).

So easy to install.

Now you can have whatever LED bulbs you want!

TheAshman:

There is a full thread in the "Frequently Asked Questions" topic all about bulbs etc with photo's here:

http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/new-a3...-piaa-silvervision-bulb-change-lots-pics.html

I used it to change mine at first, and to change my indicators.

Nice.
 
Vazza said:
Sorry to hijack the thread (hope you don't mind itwasntme) but my girlfriend's A3 has the following lights:
Click to expand...

Of course i dont mind mate, thats what these posts are for... to help everyone otherwise we would all be PM'ing each other all day :o.k:

@ NME...
Those plug and play resistors work on any bulb right? i mean its listed with indicators but you could still use them on the DRLs? i only ask cos I can't see if it has a bulb connector on the end of it to limit to use of 1 type of bulb?

thanks
Ash
 
NME said:
Denty,

Not sure what you mean by elsewhere, but mine are tucked away in the back of the light pod of the DRL/Headlight.

They have to bridge the DRL circuit so they fool our fancy Audi DIS into thinking there is a bulb still there, so you are kind of limited for choice.

Works fine though, and makes very little impact on your setup.

If you go to:

Prism LED Bulbs - Amber - BNIP! *Bargain!* *LOOK!* | eBay UK

You can see the resistors at the bottom of the main sellers picture (under the red clips is a kind of white brick).

So easy to install.

Now you can have whatever LED bulbs you want!

TheAshman:

There is a full thread in the "Frequently Asked Questions" topic all about bulbs etc with photo's here:

http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/new-a3...-piaa-silvervision-bulb-change-lots-pics.html

I used it to change mine at first, and to change my indicators.

Nice.
Click to expand...

Cheers for that.:drag::sm4: i meant can u not just BUY the resistors elswhere...soz, typo...

thanks for all the info dude.
 
Aaaaannnd, ive just got both the reisters thingies and led's ofa ebay...cant wait to get them! cheers for pointing me in the right diredction NME:salute:
 
Just two things to mention guys :-

Firstly those resistors get very hot (hence the size and ceramic packaging) so should be checked regularly to make sure nothing around them is melting !

Secondly those bulbs (shown in the link) are not approved for road use in the UK hence the advert stating 'for off road use' so be prepared for a question or two ! Whether they will pass an MOT is anybody's guess - just depends on the tester I suppose !

Cheers :beerchug:
 
Good thing they're pretty easy to pop out and replace. Just chuck the standard ones in a little polybag to keep them clean and put them in the boot (plenty of cubbys under the floormat). Come MOT day just wang them all back in for the day. Sorted. Only bulbs that are especially difficult to change on mine I found are the front indicators as you need to go in from the wheel arch. Still, cheaper than bunging the tester a few bob.
 
Mutsumi said:
Good thing they're pretty easy to pop out and replace. Just chuck the standard ones in a little polybag to keep them clean and put them in the boot (plenty of cubbys under the floormat). Come MOT day just wang them all back in for the day. Sorted. Only bulbs that are especially difficult to change on mine I found are the front indicators as you need to go in from the wheel arch. Still, cheaper than bunging the tester a few bob.
Click to expand...

Yeah, yeah, whatever !

That may be your attitude to laws but maybe others may just like to know.

Also they may not have been aware of the resistor problem - but now they are !
 
Actually, mine are all e-marked bulbs, thanks. I took out the LED ones after taking the pics.
 
Ok lets see:

itwasntme187:

Yes they work on any bulb, as you attach them to the wires themselves. They have a clip which you press shut around the wire, they don't cut it, they just close around the outer "sheath" of the wire coating enough to make contact with the wires inside.

Denty: No worries!

Mike: Yeah, they get warm, but nowhere near as warm as the little tiny resistors you can solder onto the LED's to manually mod your vehicle. Their size surely gives them a greater surface area to spread the heat across, and ultimately keeps them cooler than most other options?

Also, I didn't use the LED indicator bulbs in that link, I only bought them to get the plug n play resistors. My Indicators I bought from PIAA.

That makes me a nice and legal little boy!
 
I fitted led drl's with 25w resistors and got errors so have just replaced them for 50w and haven't had any errors yet. They get too hot to touch after about 30 seconds so am concerned about them melting the housing on a long journey.

NME - Are the resistors you bought with the indicators gold with scotch locks? Also, what wattage are they and have they melted anything?!!
 
miv said:
I fitted led drl's with 25w resistors and got errors so have just replaced them for 50w and haven't had any errors yet. They get too hot to touch after about 30 seconds so am concerned about them melting the housing on a long journey.

NME - Are the resistors you bought with the indicators gold with scotch locks? Also, what wattage are they and have they melted anything?!!
Click to expand...

What resistance were they ? It isn't the wattage that stops the error messages it's the resistance.

The lower the resistance the less chance there is of an error message but the problem with that is, the lower the resistance, the higher the wattage needs to be.

Ohms law states, for example, that 12 volts into 6 ohms = 2amps.

Watts = voltage x current therefore to dissipate 2 amps through a 6 ohm resistor at 12 volts then the resistor would need to have a rating of 24 watts.

A continuous rating of 24 watts will get warm !!
 
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