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Headlights

21K views 81 replies 16 participants last post by  cardoc 
#1 ·
Ok, i know that there are plenty of different headlight threads, all kinds of information about bulbs and housings and the like. i have been having some problems with mine burning out way faster than i think that they should. i had a 94 ranger and used the same brand of bulbs for years with out them burning out, but in my subaru i have gone through them alot faster. Before somone blames the always on running lights i always ran my ranger with them on.

since one of them has burned out that housing has filled with quite a bit of condensation. could that be the reason i am having problems?
 
#2 ·
Look for electrical problems, particularly voltage regulation. Another possibility is a mechanical issue- vibration. Pinholes or cracks in the lens can allow for too much cooling, which can knock out the bulb with thermal shock.

I'm surprised by the number of headlight replacement posts I see on this board. I have changed 3 headlights in 3 friends cars (none subies) in the past 10 years, and never needed to replace one of my own going back through 7 cars over almost 25 years.
 
#4 ·
If a drop of that condensation hits a hot bulb, its all over for sure. You should never have visible moisture in your headlights, else there's a problem. Same really holds true for taillights... which is my problem.
 
#5 ·
I think that i might be having that same problem. i took a trip through a good snow and rain storm recently, and when i arrived and opened the hatch to unpack, it was like the hatch was draining on the driver side. I need to figure that out too. The guy at that repair place mentioned the same thing for that, a bad seal between the black and transparent plastics.thoughts?
 
#8 ·
dunno if it helps, but I had to have a taillight changed out under warranty on my 06 WRX wagon for collecting water. I THINK I've read of one or 2 other similar problems so, maybe there was an 'era' during which Subaru had some bad light assemblies?
 
#9 ·
All I can tell you is it doesn't sound normal. I changed out both low and high beams when I bought my 2004 (they all went within days of eachother). In the 26,000 miles I had it after that, I never went through another bulb.
 
#10 ·
Ok, now on to other questions, i have found the different posts about headlight bulbs and i am wondering if there is any use looking around for different brands for bulbs for my car or should i just get my self some narva +30's and call it good. Are there different Brands that make quality lights that are brighter than factory and don't burn out all the time? And has anyone ever tried led bulbs, it took forever but i found a manufacturer that makes low beam and high beam replacements
 
#11 ·
The +anything bulbs are overdriven, and will not live as long. The HIRs do not sacrifice lifespan and give more light. Also, if you make your low beams as bright as stock high beams, I hate you. Don't think its smart to blind people coming at you. Upgraded high beams are great, since you shouldn't be using those when someone is coming toward you.
 
#12 ·
I've got Phillips CrystalVision bulbs for my low beams, and I have 3000K HIDs in my fog lights. Work great, I hardly ever need to use my high beams any more, and I've never been "flashed" by other drivers coming towards me. I plan on repeating this in my Grand Prix (factory headlights on that car are terrible) and my dad's car as well.
 
#13 · (Edited)
these are the led bulbs i was talking about

High Power LED Headlights Upgrade | Replace H4 H7 H11 9006 Halogen

since they only have led's on one side i think that i will be able to focus the light just on the part of the reflector that goes where i want it to so i wont have to worry about blinding people so much. how hard is the mod to run the HIR's? that's the one that re directs heat back toward the filament right?

Euchre* i totally agree, i want a bit more light just because i drive a lot at night.
 
#14 ·
Yes, HIRs relfect IR back at the element to increase the output. The mod to the tabs is dead easy.

The stock fog assemblies and design are really good at creating fill lighting close and wide. The bulbs can be upgraded, and would help without putting too much light high up. There are HIRs that will fit them. Something I've noticed since I replaced my driver's side fog housing which included having a stock grille on it again, is that I don't get flashed when I do have my fogs on. I got that occasionally before, so apparently aside from some additional protection, those grilles reduce the upward glare.
 
#16 ·
I'm not sure about LED headlights. I am thinking they may be too focused to produce the wide beam you want as a low beam light. This is the same reason why those LED replacement bulbs for your tail lights are a very bad idea.
 
#19 ·
that's a good idea, i hadn't thought of that. i have seen some manufacturers that make bulbs that seem to put fairly even light all the way around that might work well. i would definately need to see those led's in our housings to want to blow 100+ on them after what has been said. where did you buy those HIR's.

good idea on the fog lights but i have been thinking of switching them out for hella black magic's anyway.
 
#18 ·
There's not just one manufacturer to my knowledge, but they aren't the most common bulbs. The 9011s seem less common than the 9012s, the latter being used in John Deere tractors, thus a whole extra market for them.

Those LED units do look a bit odd and very directional. That could be a good thing for the addition of brightness in your fogs though, as you might be able to orient them to keep the light lower and wider.
 
#20 ·
If you want good lighting at a reasonable cost, I installed projectors with HID. It took 2 hours to retro fit the projectors into the light housing. I got the projectors from Retro Fit Source. The HIDs I already had with ballast.
 

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#21 ·
I assume pix 4 is low beam, pix 5 is high beam operation. Were you able to still fit in the 9005 high beam bulb below the HID projector enclosure, or are those HIDs bi-Xenon? I cannot tell from pix 2 & 3.

I've been running low beam H1 Philips Vision+30 & Vision+50 bulbs that I bought from Autolamps-Online in England for years. Recently I found that CandlePower (from a link on Daniel Stern's page) was selling the newer Vision Xtreme H1XV for comparable money and no importation issues. These are ECE bulbs, a little whiter and a bit brighter than the stock US DOT 1,000 lumen products. How much brighter? My guess - maybe 1300 or so, but with the same spread pattern and cutoff as stock. The cutoff is probably actually better, as the filament placement is guaranteed to be spot on by sort.

On the subject of HIR bulbs - I'm not really sure if they are worth the premium price. REAL Toshiba brand with the round bulbous chamber surrounding the filament are no longer available. Searching for an upgrade to the 9006 low beam bulbs in my Toyota, I ended up buying the modern replacement made by Philips (HIR2 9012). It looks externally like a conventional bulb, although it might have some of the heat reflective coating that made the Toshiba such a powerhouse. Subjectively, there is an improvement in output, but it isn't as substantial as i would have expected.

I run regular 9005's in my OBW fogs (replacing the 9006), tipped up slightly. They still work great as fog lamps - keeping the reflection that the high beams produce in snow and fog at bay, while illuminating the deer and other hazards off to the sides and slightly wider and further down the road than the low beams. I do not run them all the time for show - only when I really need them. It isn't my intention to torture other drivers. I got really tricky and added a relay so that the fogs also come on with the high beams (dash switch defeatable), so I get tons of light out there on dark, lonely country roads.
 
#22 ·
To give you an idea of what I achieve with these mods, here are some pictures I took prior to the snowfall this past year. My driveway is about 500 ft long and lined with bushes and trees. To keep the snowplow from running astray I edge it with reflectors paced out every 30 ft. About 250 ft from where the car is stopped, the driveway drifts left and descends down a slope. The very last dot in the bottom photo - low and centered in the image - is at about 350 ft away. The car is sitting with a set of markers to the left and right around the front doors, so the first markers visible are around 25 ft away.

 
#23 ·
The projector is both high and low beam. There is a motor in the projector that moves the light reflector within to alter the light angle. Works off the high beam switch, plugs right in. The projector from Retro Fit had the necessary plug for connecting to the high beam, the bulb is just a 5k HID with the slim ballast.

High beam bulb was done away with.
 
#27 ·
WOW I thought just the housings would run between 500 and 1k, or at least that's what i was told. I could get new reflector housings and everything to install HID projectors for about 400.
 
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