Best light bulb replacements?

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Layerz

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Right, I need to replace my front lights on my stock 98 car.

What are the best bulbs to swap for the main lights and side lights? And where/what is needed for clear side repeaters?

Thanks in advance, Lewis
 
Get a 6000k xenon kit and white leds looks good and work really well
 
Any links/ brand recomendations at all?

Edit:

What are the bulb types I need for the side lights and main lights. Thought I best check that important bit also!
 
hrmm gotta have a bit of a think on a hid kit as that is somewhat of an investment and looks a bit fiddly to wire up... althou if it is just a case of cutting and connecting existing wires into new not a problem.

Do these just drop more or less straight in?
 
sidelight led straight in HIDs plug and play no cutting apart from cover on back of headlamp 25mm hole cutter easy , i can fit one of there kits in about 30 mins
 
Another slightly annoying question, but should I want to get the euro clear lamps can I just swap it all over?

You said it is all just plug and play, so I just plug it in and done after the cutting?
What is the bit on the kit that goes into the battery?

What is the improvement over stock bulb set up out of interest.

You know my credit card is taking on all this paini!!
 
not sure about the battery cable never had to use one lol . Improvement over standard is unbelievable trust me!!
Aslong as its same bulb type this and doesnt say specifically no HID bulbs allowed its fine
 
OK I have decided I am gona go for both as recomended, was out last night on country lanes and stuggled on anything but full beam.

I would like to go clear headlamps but I think anything lookswise is gona wait till spring.
I will take some before and after pics and this is prolly gona be at least next weekend as I work long hours during the week.
 
Quick question just checking I want h7's on the hids

Edit: I have confirmed these are h7's is ok now.
 
How can you tell if you have xenon headlamps? Mine is a facelift and has lights that look like this here

So to get the best lighting what would I need?
 
Ahh I meant to ask in the original thread.

I want to replace all the stock bulbs in the rear clusters, does anyone do brighter and clearer bulbs at all?
 
Well the colour is white blue ,and will always start up with a dull blue colour then change to white usually with a slight buzz , check behind headlamp cover does it have a big warning sign on it if so yes they are xenons ,if you have ever replaced the headlamp bulb then no you havent
 
There is a box unit behind the headlight cover but it doesnt have any warning signs. On the headlamp cover it says valeo so are these xenons?
 
Valeo is just the maker of the headlamps, not the bulbs
 
So inside headlight cover is some sort of box unit (looks like some kind of power device) would I be right in saying this is the xenon kit? Is there a way of telling if you have xenons by looking at the bulb itself?
 
The box unit is prob the headlight level motor, if you turn the headlights on and the flash brightly for a second then go dim and get brighter as they warm up then then you have xenon’s (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqRteQDek24).
If you turn the lights on and they stay at the same brightness you have normal bulbs in.

If they are factory xenon’s fitted you would have headlight washers in the bumper as standard,
The headlights you have fitted are just facelift projector ones and even though they have a projector lens this doesn't mean they are Xenon's, but they are a very good headlamp to put an aftermarket kit on as the beam pattern is razor sharp.
 
Cheers Jimbo the video was very helpful! My lights dont flare like that at all so I think its safe to say I dont have xenons.
So on to aftermarket kits then what should I be looking for?
Dont want it to be too expensive but I do want good lighting.
 
Have a look on ebay, i got 6000k bulbs (tint of blue) 8000k are too blue + less light and 4300k are white + maximum light,

[URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HIDkbulbs.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HIDkbulbs.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HIDkbulbs.jpg"][/URL][/URL][/URL]

They have come down alot in price since i got mine i paid £140 for the first set and £95 for second set.
You want H7 bulb type, choose your colour, and keep your eye on the postage costs, they are very simple to install too + don't forget to set your headlamp aim afterwards
 
Can you use xenons in your fogs? I think I read that somewhere but was unclear about it.
 
Anyone recomend some rear bulbs? I have just put some tesco jobbies in.
But I would like something that has more clarity and sharpness to it like I have seen on some other cars.
 
macattax said:
Can you use xenons in your fogs? I think I read that somewhere but was unclear about it.
Click to expand...

You could use them but a bit of a waste of money as your only supposed to use them when foggy / snowing etc, unless you want to take your chances and get a £20 fine for using them when your not supposed to off the fuzz.

I modified mine and fitted some 1watt xenon coloured led bulbs into them so they dont dazzle + dont get hastle from the fuzz, they look more like a marker lamp and you still get the same effect and look quite good with the Xenons in the headlights.
 
Which rear bulbs are you talking about ie stop/tail or reverse etc
 
yes you could go for leds again but will need inline resistors wired in to stop the bulb warning light coming on

These are very bright and light instantly giving you a sharper look
take a look at ultra leds again and choose depending on bulb size ie 382 380 etc
 
ok, where do you wire the resistors? Not that I imagine they are massivley difficault.
 
I've just replaced the mainbeam bulbs on my S4 with H7 Osram Nightbreakers - £33 incl VAT with free p&p. Brilliant (forgive the pun) lights; very bright and very white!...... why spend loads on an expensive HID kit for mainbeams that you only use relatively rarely when you can spend £33 on a pair of bulbs that take 15 minutes to fit and get nearly as good a result? ... just a thought ...:icon_thumright:
 
i presume he means main lights as in dipped if not then yep osram or others will be just fine ,i have done this myself
 
I do a fair amount of country road driving to and from work in the dark at this time of year, these hids should make a nice difference to the visability I am getting atm. And I felt like going a bit flash for a change.
 
Hids arrived today, gona have a look in the morning brifely before work but seems straightforwardish, I need a 25m drill bit.

Just need to check a few wiring bits also as I am not to sure where the 2 spade connectors go on the inside of the kit, but I will find out in the morning as I have a fair idea.
 
Nice one hope the install goes well for you.
Take some pics of the install if you can m8,
Good luck
 
Layerz said:
Just need to check a few wiring bits also as I am not to sure where the 2 spade connectors go on the inside of the kit, but I will find out in the morning as I have a fair idea.
Click to expand...

The 2 spade connectors go to the black power connector that you originaly put on the back of the headlight bulb,
(the one you will be replacing)

make sure you get the posi and neg the right way round.
(Dont forget to insulation tape the connection up afterwards)
 
Well temptation and jealousy got the better of me last night so I bought a set of Hids from a hid factory in Hong Kong. Was a nice find actually I was searching ebay Germany and they were selling their wares to the German market. This is what I got on here and it only cost me €77 and thats with postage (nice!). They have a website for the factory and so looks legit and proffessional but I cant read gibberish but I did find a page displaying their automotive regulation certs for various countries including the UK.
Its nice to see the worker ants getting on with it at the factory lol.

Personally I think this was a nice find seeing as they are made up from phillips parts which is a bonus I think correct me if I am wrong.

I cant tell if there is a harness for the battery but it does come with a relay harness. If it doesnt come with the battery harness is that gonna be a problem?
 
The relay harness is the battery harness.

Most of the fused/relayed HID harnesses are a few inches too short for the B5 chassis engine bay, but still fit ok (not enough slack to hide the wiring effectively).
 
macattax said:
I cant tell if there is a harness for the battery but it does come with a relay harness. If it doesnt come with the battery harness is that gonna be a problem?
Click to expand...

The harness that comes with the H7 kit won't come with a relay, this is what the wiring harness will look like:

[URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HIDWIRINGLOOM.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HIDWIRINGLOOM.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HIDWIRINGLOOM.jpg"][/URL][/URL][/URL]

It is a very simple plug and play wiring loom so you won't have miles of wiring to put in.
I have the same kit on my 2 cars and had no problems with it at all.

[URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID2.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID2.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID2.jpg"][/URL][/URL][/URL]
[URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID3.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID3.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID3.jpg"][/URL][/URL][/URL]
[URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID1.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID1.jpg"][URL="http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s76/jimbo_king/HID1.jpg"][/URL][/URL][/URL]

When you come to fit the bulb you will have to remove the spring that holds it in from the 2 lugs it pivots on
and refit it once the bulbs in place, you will see what i mean when you come to fit them

What K bulbs did you go for ?
 
Cool cheers M8.
Much appreciated!
Just out of curiousity how much did you pay for yours?
Well I havent payed for it yet but when I got to pay on paypal I have to specify what I want so I was thinking of going H7 with 4300k just for the clarity and quality of the beam.
Unless you can convince me that the 6000k one is better?
I think the blue tinge is mostly for show as you end up losing light dont you?
 
I had a bit of a look this morning, the only thing I have not seen so far is the bit that plugs into the ballast althou I need a better look.

I am just making sure that I 100% can picture everything before I start.

The only thing that looks like I need that I do not have is the 25mm cutter which is a pain, might be waiting another week to fit them as I am off to mph on sat and then seeing my gf on sunday now.

I went for the 6k kit and it came with the battery wiring harnes. (I take it these are the warning capacitors) I will get some pics of the kit up later so you know what I mean.
 
macattax said:
I have to specify what I want so I was thinking of going H7 with 4300k just for the clarity and quality of the beam.
Unless you can convince me that the 6000k one is better?
I think the blue tinge is mostly for show as you end up losing light dont you?
Click to expand...

H7 with deffo 6000k, 4300k still has a tint of yellow whilst 6000k are ice white with a nice tint of blue, i can post pics if you require, you wont regret !!!!

I paid £140 for 1st set about 2.5 yrs ago and £95 12 months ago.
 
No need for pix m8 I have watched vids of the different ones.
Well you twisted my arm lol I will go for the 6000k ones.
Well I got a bargain then!
I just hope I dont get stung by customs! Is there a way of getting past not having to pay duty by having returned faulty goods written as the declaration?
 
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