06 Jetta Headlight Options?

06Jetta-Lane

Active member
Joined
Feb 23, 2019
Location
Memphis,TN
TDI
'14 Passat TDI
First time TDI owner here. My headlights are beyond needing to either be restored or replaced. Lenses are faded and night driving sucks (factory bulbs), especially in the rain. I also hate that I don't have fog lights as they've always helped make up for sub par headlights on past vehicles. I'm not opposed to any options thrown out here (HID's, LED's, restore factory housings and upgrade bulbs, etc.) I'm really just looking for quality cuttoff lines, brightness, and lifespan. And also a good source to buy from. As for the fog lights, is a fog light conversion kit and Euro switch a pretty easy process? I work nights so it's 90% night driven. Just looking for first hand experience from the TDI gurus here!
 

relumalutan

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 6, 2012
Location
Michigan
TDI
06 Jetta TDI Special Edition
Fog Lights: if you have the high-line CECM (central electronics control module), you can install them the factory way, but you will need to get an euro headlight switch. That switch lets you turn the fog lights only when the headlights are on. I went the cheap way, using the projector type:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/LED-Work-L...429754?hash=item4d9520b23a:g:yPYAAOSwo6lWI~HI

https://www.ebay.com/itm/VW-2006-20...:Jetta&hash=item41a55ab50c:g:Z1YAAOSwSKtaX7Vr
Connect the harness to the battery, route the harness to each fog light, route the on-off switch inside the cabin.

Headlights: I recommend the OEM HID (plug and play, even better if you buy the 10 to 12 pin adapter. Then you can program them with VCDS). They are expensive, your best bet is to find a set for someone that is parting out a car (vw vortex classifieds section).
 

06Jetta-Lane

Active member
Joined
Feb 23, 2019
Location
Memphis,TN
TDI
'14 Passat TDI
How would I know if I have the high-line CECM? That’s probably a real noob question but I honestly don’t know. I’d like to keep everything as factory-like as possible. I know I could just run a separate switch to energize the fogs but I’d really like that Euro switch function. To me, headlights are something no one should ever cheap out on. It involves safety and vision. How expensive are we talking for OEM HID’s with the 10 to 12 adapter? My Jeep aftermarket headlights were $490 on sale so I know quality is expensive!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
ECS tuning has some genuine Hella Eurospec "blackout" headlights (like the GLI/GTI use) as well as fog lamp kits that come with the lower grills and everything. They'll fit just like OEM, because they are, and they work great for night vision.
 

06Jetta-Lane

Active member
Joined
Feb 23, 2019
Location
Memphis,TN
TDI
'14 Passat TDI
ECS tuning has some genuine Hella Eurospec "blackout" headlights (like the GLI/GTI use) as well as fog lamp kits that come with the lower grills and everything. They'll fit just like OEM, because they are, and they work great for night vision.
I've been looking at those. Just wanted to get good input before making a final decision. I can always add fogs later pending how well new headlights do compared to my current set. Might not even need fogs after the headlight upgrade haha Thanks for quick input.
Do you know if ECStuning does any sales on these specific lights? Like Black Friday etc...
 

325_Guy

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2011
Location
West Central Texas
TDI
MkV Jetta
How expensive are we talking for OEM HID’s with the 10 to 12 adapter?
The biggest thing to shop around would be the housings. They're generally sold as housings only, meaning you need your own igniters, ballasts, and bulbs.

Parts List (pricing from eBay):
2x Housings, price these out. There's some good deals out there.
2x 307 329 076, Igniters, ~$80 each
2x 307 329 074, Ballasts, ~$50 each

Bulbs:
You want to get these from a legit source. Counterfeit bulbs will fail in odd ways and have QC issues that will drive you nuts.
I got these from The Retrofit Source for $110 /pair:
https://www.theretrofitsource.com/d2s-osram-xenarc-66240-cbi-54787.html

The adapters:
Rather than use the harness adapter, I picked up a re-pin kit from an eBay seller. It comes with the 12-pin harness plug and some sealing plugs. You un-pin the old harness and slide the pins into the new one, with the addition of one wire for the high-beam shutter trigger wire.

Hope that helps. I went the OEM route on mine and can help out with any other questions you might have.
 

relumalutan

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 6, 2012
Location
Michigan
TDI
06 Jetta TDI Special Edition
There you go, OEM, they even have the ballast. I would guess they also contain the D2S bulb and igniter. Plug and play for cheap:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2006-2009-...832256?hash=item340bd55f00:g:ngMAAOSw9a1c8vUz

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2006-2009-...582378?hash=item4b65547a6a:g:rrsAAOSwihJc8ehj

As for the fog-lights, I also have the euro switch, but I am not using it to control them. I hate that the switvh is forcing me to have the fog-lights on only when the headlights are also on. That's why I run them separately. I know there is an option in VCDS to program the DRL to run via fog-lights, but I did not bother with it.

10 to 12 pin harness for the headlights. The yellow one is to enable the bi-xenon option:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/AID...lgo_pvid=22fe51db-cfcd-4a65-9692-bbed8c3039a0


List to CECM part numbers, to determine which one you have. You will need to scan the car with VCDS to find out the part number:
https://www.my-gti.com/2269/volkswagen-central-electronics-control-module-cecm

And finally a link to a very important tool, VCDS. You can also look on the forum in the Private classifieds, once in a while one pops op for sale:
https://www.ross-tech.com/vag-com/
 
Last edited:

Windjammer

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 18, 2006
Location
Cinti, OH
TDI
MK4 & Mk5
I went with Hella oem lights in all my BRMs. I think I paid just over $200 for a pair. Totally happy with the results.
 

06Jetta-Lane

Active member
Joined
Feb 23, 2019
Location
Memphis,TN
TDI
'14 Passat TDI
I don't even have a laptop to use VCDS. The only one we have in the house is not Vag-Com capable :( I can't afford a laptop, VCDS module, housings, bulbs, igniters, etc. I didn't know it would take all that. This project might be getting put off for a while.. but hopefully not
 

325_Guy

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2011
Location
West Central Texas
TDI
MkV Jetta
The cool thing is if you put the parts together, you can gather them bit by bit. My HID upgrade project took about six months to put together. But the results are amazing.
 

relumalutan

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 6, 2012
Location
Michigan
TDI
06 Jetta TDI Special Edition
The cool thing is if you put the parts together, you can gather them bit by bit. My HID upgrade project took about six months to put together. But the results are amazing.
Totally agree with you. based on the eBay links I have provided for the complete headlights assemblies, I highly doubt that he can find the complete set cheaper somewhere else ($175 per complete headlight, including ballast).
 
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