eb2143
Top Post Dawg
I know there's a good amount of information on the subject of MKIV e-codes. There are only a handful of photo comparisons out there though, if any to good stock lights and not stock lights with fogged lenses. These pictures are from a Jetta.
With the recent influx of what appear to be more affordable e-code lights from a number of sellers here and on Ebay, many are asking for reviews and pictures. I jumped on a set of these lights whose authenticity is a bit of a mystery—from all outward appearances they appear to be made from the same casts and components of the genuine $250/each Hella packaged lights (Hella logos scratched off). I have read that knock off e-codes have a plastic arm on the light shield for the H4 bulb and that genuine has a metal arm between the reflector and bulb shield--what I bought has a metal arm. I bought seconds from seller Vancity, and paid $100 for the pair. There were a few cosmetic issues and missing pieces, but nothing that should appreciably change the beam pattern or light output.
Pictures were taken last night and tonight before and after the swap, same spot in the road, same exposure (I found 1 second exposure on ISO 800 was very close recreation). Full tank of fuel, so I set the E-codes a tad high while aiming using Daniel Stern's excellent instructions. The old DOT lights have restored, clear lenses; I actually did not have a problem with their output whatsoever. I decided to try E-codes so that I could have fogs (at a later point) and hopefully a better beam pattern. E-codes have Philips VisionPlus bulbs ($16 for the pair on Amazon--stock wattage) while DOT had basic Slyvania bulbs; one Slyvania was a month old, the other was a year or two old. The Philips were of course brand new, so it's not exactly a fair comparison on the bulb front based on the bulb age differences.
Results,
DOT Low Beam:
E-code Low Beam:
DOT High Beam:
E-code High:
First Impressions:
By the way, even genuine Jetta Ecodes do not have glass lenses (I used to think they did).
Does anyone with the genuine Hella e-code lights feel the lights I bought have a different or inferior beam pattern? I could measure the distance to the mailbox some time. It's probably a little over 100 meters.
Hope this helps somebody.
With the recent influx of what appear to be more affordable e-code lights from a number of sellers here and on Ebay, many are asking for reviews and pictures. I jumped on a set of these lights whose authenticity is a bit of a mystery—from all outward appearances they appear to be made from the same casts and components of the genuine $250/each Hella packaged lights (Hella logos scratched off). I have read that knock off e-codes have a plastic arm on the light shield for the H4 bulb and that genuine has a metal arm between the reflector and bulb shield--what I bought has a metal arm. I bought seconds from seller Vancity, and paid $100 for the pair. There were a few cosmetic issues and missing pieces, but nothing that should appreciably change the beam pattern or light output.
Pictures were taken last night and tonight before and after the swap, same spot in the road, same exposure (I found 1 second exposure on ISO 800 was very close recreation). Full tank of fuel, so I set the E-codes a tad high while aiming using Daniel Stern's excellent instructions. The old DOT lights have restored, clear lenses; I actually did not have a problem with their output whatsoever. I decided to try E-codes so that I could have fogs (at a later point) and hopefully a better beam pattern. E-codes have Philips VisionPlus bulbs ($16 for the pair on Amazon--stock wattage) while DOT had basic Slyvania bulbs; one Slyvania was a month old, the other was a year or two old. The Philips were of course brand new, so it's not exactly a fair comparison on the bulb front based on the bulb age differences.
Results,
DOT Low Beam:
E-code Low Beam:
DOT High Beam:
E-code High:
First Impressions:
- One question I often asked beforehand was, "are E-codes brighter than the DOTs (H4 v. 9007 bulb)?" or "do E-codes throw more light out?" I would now answer these questions with "No, but they do use the light differently"
- Low Beam: E-code wins hands down. DOT headlights have no beam concentration in a given area (low and high are identical, high is just a brighter version of low). As advertised, the E-codes' low beam does a nice job of keeping light out of the opposing driver's eyes, while lighting the right edge of the road better (notice the row of RH trees you can see on the E-code low beam and not the DOT). Also, it's not a deceptive photo, the E-code low beams do seem brighter.
- High Beam: E-codes will take some getting used to. Look at the photos carefully and you can see that the E-code does get light further down the road; DOT actually has a slight deadspot in the center (look just before and past the mailbox for each). What is a little distracting to me is that the E-code high concentrates light at further distances and leaves a dimmer spot in the 30 or 40 feet in front of the car. I also sensed an odd tunnel effect that's hard to describe By the end of my test drive though, I was already getting used to it.
By the way, even genuine Jetta Ecodes do not have glass lenses (I used to think they did).
Does anyone with the genuine Hella e-code lights feel the lights I bought have a different or inferior beam pattern? I could measure the distance to the mailbox some time. It's probably a little over 100 meters.
Hope this helps somebody.
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