Any LED bulbs available for MkIV headlights?

[quartersaw]

My wife has a 2016 Subaru,and the headlight brightness,and coverage just destroys my 2002 Jetta Wagon.
Does anyone know of a set of plug 'n play bulbs that might increase the brightness of my headlamps. I've already replaced the plastic lenses with glass. Not interested in spending a fortune for a complete headlight replacement.

 

[panthers89fan90]

HIDs are still your best bet. If you don't want to go down that road, the led bulbs you end up getting will probably be pretty expensive. Be prepared to spend somewhere around $125-$175 on a pair of bulbs. If you are still interested, I could link a few led bulbs.

 

[Aknovaman]

I just bought a set of led H1 headlights for my 01 golf. They work well but some complain of large scatter. It appears there is more than conventional bulbs because the led just illuminates more of everything. They were about $35 on eBay.

 

[Aknovaman]

Here is a link to the ones I use in my 1999 Camaro.

I drive 10 miles in the country on paved roads. They work well.

https://youtu.be/mmjXjlJ8o6I

 

[quartersaw]

HIDs are still your best bet. If you don't want to go down that road, the led bulbs you end up getting will probably be pretty expensive. Be prepared to spend somewhere around $125-$175 on a pair of bulbs. If you are still interested, I could link a few led bulbs.

The HID's appear to be deficient in the red end of the visible light spectrum. Although, very bright, you might not see(for example) a deer on the highway as they are 'dim' at those reflected wavelengths. (I live out in the boonies) I find that 5000K is my visual sweet spot, and are the most comfortable for my aging eyes. My current 4400K headlights are just a lateral move from stock in terms of brightness, - other than the color temperature. There just isn't enough electrical 'oomph' for a filament bulb for the MkIV.
(I would be interested in seeing those links!~)

 

[eddieleephd]

I had done some looking for LED and the issue I have found is they never allow the door on the back to close and will let dust get in.
The issue is the requirement for a heat sink that needs to stick out the back.

 

[turbovan+tdi]

I had done some looking for LED and the issue I have found is they never allow the door on the back to close and will let dust get in.
The issue is the requirement for a heat sink that needs to stick out the back.

Get the ones with the flexible heat sink or adjustable solid heat sinks.

 

[quartersaw]

Get the ones with the flexible heat sink or adjustable solid heat sinks.

I looked that flex heat sink style up, and they are claiming 8000 Lumens, which would be equivalent to a 600 watt incandescent bulb.(!)
If they meant '800 lumens', (more likely) that is about a 60 watt bulb, so about the same brightness as stock 55 watt bulbs.
Just wondering what sort of result you had with this type of bulb, and if you could post a link, that would be great!

 

[JDSwan87]

Quartersaw, have you looked at Sylvania Silverstar Ultra replacement bulbs? They are ~$50 for a pair and are a vast improvement over stock. I ran them for a year before I got my HID retrofits.

 

[aja8888]

$30.21 on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/SYLVANIA-Sil...-1-2099--4-0&sr=1-2&ymm=2003:volkswagen:jetta

 

[quartersaw]

Quartersaw, have you looked at Sylvania Silverstar Ultra replacement bulbs? They are ~$50 for a pair and are a vast improvement over stock. I ran them for a year before I got my HID retrofits.

Unless I get a 4X increase in light output, (which would double the brightness of stock) I don't see the point of another upgrade. I have the 'second tier' Sylvania's, and they are an improvement (Via color temperature) but they aren't much (if at all) brighter than stock. I'm 63 years old, and my night time vision is starting to crap out. I'm thinking that the LED's could give me the brightness that I am looking for since they are much more efficient, but I'm not seeing anything on E Bay that I would trust. LED's posted as '120 watts' are later mentioned to be 2 X 60, but no posted output in Lumens, so it's a meaningless stat.
I know that a lot of people swear by them, but I find the spectral output of the HID's to be very fatiguing. That's just how my eyes react to them..

 

[turbocharged798]

Bottom line you still need projectors with LEDs and retrofit LEDs are usually crap...

 

[quartersaw]

Bottom line you still need projectors with LEDs and retrofit LEDs are usually crap...

Yeah, I'm definitely avoiding throwing good money after bad. I've already bought three different sets of halogens, and wasn't happy with any of them.

 

[WolfgangVW]

Have you looked into ecodes? I put them in my car, huge improvement...

 

[VincenzaV]

Ak...That output in the video looks even and down right impressive!!! It's not like the output in my TRS (theretrofitsource) BiXenon HID projector retrofit, but you didn't have to spend a few hundred dollars either... How do they perform in your halogen housings???

 

[turbovan+tdi]

I looked that flex heat sink style up, and they are claiming 8000 Lumens, which would be equivalent to a 600 watt incandescent bulb.(!)
If they meant '800 lumens', (more likely) that is about a 60 watt bulb, so about the same brightness as stock 55 watt bulbs.
Just wondering what sort of result you had with this type of bulb, and if you could post a link, that would be great!

I got them here in Canada, they have no name, lol, bought them at an LED store, brown box, say LED CONVERSION KIT, 25000/3000 LM. Had a set in my old sedan and they were great. Aimed them down a tad, even had my wife drives towards me, and didn't blind me. Lit up the road like a Xmas tree.

 

[AnotherPerson]

Silver stars are a pain. Always needing to be replaced. I went back to standard sylvania lights and they have been going strong for a bit.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Aknovaman]

Headlight glazing is shot after 17 years in sun so the light scatters too much. Regulating and they would be perfect. I am too cheap to replace them and hate sanding plastic. Bottom line is that I am lazy.

 

[wonneber]

Headlight glazing is shot after 17 years in sun so the light scatters too much. Regulating and they would be perfect. I am too cheap to replace them and hate sanding plastic. Bottom line is that I am lazy.

I resemble that remark.
I buy the 2 part kit that had the rotary disk you put in a drill.
Much easier.

Rich W.

 

[VincenzaV]

I tried Silverstars years ago. Waste of money IMO. I didn't notice enough of a difference in output color/or lumens. Was it less "yellow" looking at the bulb, sure, but not worth it.

If you are lazy, well there is nothing we can do to help you. But if do get a desire to do it yourself with one of the 3M drill kits, becareful!

Hand drills are very torquey and you can mess up your paint if not careful. Use multiple laters of auto body masking tape too. Rotary tool can easily leave swirls, so try and use an orbital movement while doing it.

 

[wonneber]

I tried Silverstars years ago. Waste of money IMO. I didn't notice enough of a difference in output color/or lumens. Was it less "yellow" looking at the bulb, sure, but not worth it.
If you are lazy, well there is nothing we can do to help you. But if do get a desire to do it yourself with one of the 3M drill kits, becareful!
Hand drills are very torquey and you can mess up your paint if not careful. Use multiple laters of auto body masking tape too. Rotary tool can easily leave swirls, so try and use an orbital movement while doing it.

I think the second part was what made the lens cleaner and last longer.
The 1 part cleaner was not as good.

I prefer to work smart, not hard.
I did use the 1 part a few times by hand before my GF bought me the 2 part kit and it had the drill buffer pad.
A lot more money but worth it.

I have been lucky not to hit the paint to many times.
If I get most of the lens clean it works for me.

Rich W.

 

[WolfgangVW]

The silverstars are a pain in our cars because the low/high beam are the same bulb. So the low beam sees hundreds of hours driving around during the day etc then they burn out and need replacing. My truck has separate low/high beam bulbs. I put silverstars in it like 5 years ago and they still work because they only get used when the brights are on, which is when you need them anyway.

I did the polishing kits a few times, they help for sure. Eventually i bought some cheap ecodes online (<$150CAD). They're 100x better than what i had in it.. Even for that price worth it if it's only temporary til a guy decides on other options..

 

[quartersaw]

I think the second part was what made the lens cleaner and last longer.
The 1 part cleaner was not as good.

I prefer to work smart, not hard.
I did use the 1 part a few times by hand before my GF bought me the 2 part kit and it had the drill buffer pad.
A lot more money but worth it.

I have been lucky not to hit the paint to many times.
If I get most of the lens clean it works for me.

Rich W.

Glass lenses are available on the Bay for about $65. Well worth it.

 

[Lavabo]

Hello
I have on my jetta 2004 wagon mk4 e-code headlight with glass cover
I went from [FONT=&quot]Osram 70/65w: 2000/1350 lumen from daniel stern it was a very good product, but then in oct 2015 i bough from Alixprx[/FONT] SUNNYLIGHT (Cree) LED H4 40 W 4000LM for about 65$ pair. I guess those are made for motorcycle.
It was like day and night.

IO know it now because i had and accident last week and broke one of my glass headlight. I then put back for now my pair stock 9004 sylvania silverstar headlight i was keeping as a backup. I feel like im blind!

at first i thought i had to use projector, but even if the lightning is far superior, i dont feel i blind the crossing cars.

Now im looking to replace my glass cover headlight asap.

I had to cut the back to fit the heatsink, i have picture i will post ...
But definitely, cree led are best bang for the bucks now, no fizzle with xenon stuff for me..

Now i just plan to fit those LED to my 7" westfalia 1973 headlight... i saw they make some great LED 7" headlight for trucks...

Heres how i fitted them





and my headlight with city light

 

[WolfgangVW]

Lavabo where did you get your glass covered ecodes and how much did you pay??

 

[SWerner]

Quartersaw, have you looked at Sylvania Silverstar Ultra replacement bulbs? They are ~$50 for a pair and are a vast improvement over stock. I ran them for a year before I got my HID retrofits.

these bulbs are still halogen, which means that they will not be much brighter than your stock bulbs, according to the comparison chart they are much better than stock but in real life it's not much brighter. If you want a noticeable improvement HID or LED conversion kits are your options. Since aftermarket HID kits may not be legal in all states, you better look at LED just choose the optimal bulb size so it could fit properly in the headlight housing. This one seems to be a good replacement for stock 9007/HB5 size: https://www.carid.com/2000-volkswag...n-led-headlight-conversion-kit-175100700.html

 

[JDSwan87]

these bulbs are still halogen, which means that they will not be much brighter than your stock bulbs, according to the comparison chart they are much better than stock but in real life it's not much brighter. If you want a noticeable improvement HID or LED conversion kits are your options. Since aftermarket HID kits may not be legal in all states, you better look at LED just choose the optimal bulb size so it could fit properly in the headlight housing. This one seems to be a good replacement for stock 9007/HB5 size: https://www.carid.com/2000-volkswag...n-led-headlight-conversion-kit-175100700.html

I respectfully disagree with you that the Sylvania Silverstar Ultra bulbs are not better than plain ole regular halogen bulbs. I personally ran them in my Jetta and my Ford Ranger, they are are huge improvement over stock for the cost. As for LED, I have no experience with those. I bought Midwest Light retrofits for both of my MKIV VW's and haven't regretted a penny spent on them yet.

 

[misternoggin]

The design of the Jetta headlights is poor to begin with, and the 9007 bulb it uses isn't great. So even with clean lenses, you're just not going to get good results.

There are two types of Silverstars. US Silverstars have a filter to cut some of the yellow light. How much do you think that's going to help you see better? Euro Silverstars are actually brighter, but you're still stuck with a terrible headlight design, and the 9007 still isn't going to be great.

The only real upgrade you're going to get is to go to HID projectors. It's not that expensive (I think I paid a hair over $300 with shipping for mine) and it makes a massive difference. Here's a comparison I did before and after installing them. It's a massive difference. Before the change headlights behind me often lit up the road in front of me better than my own. After riding with me one night, my wife insisted that I do something about the headlights or get rid of the car, so I did the HID upgrade. Here's a thread with some comparison shots I did - http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=453727

 

[Chris B]

I still vote for a decent set of E-code lights for the Jettas. I had heard the U.S.-spec Jetta headlights were lousy before I got mine, and indeed, I drove it about a week before I realized I'd kill myself driving at night with all the deer around. I installed a set of Hella E-codes I was fortunate enough to pick up while on business in the Netherlands and the difference was astounding!

15 years later, I'm still running them (tried the Silverstars and Vision Plus bulbs...meh) but had to polish them with the 3M kit probably 5 or 6 years ago. I hit them with Plexus plastic polish on a cloth every few months and maybe twice a year I'll use the foam 3M pad with the polish for a little extra. It only takes a few minutes and brings them back to almost crystal clear condition. Those lights were the best investment I've ever made to a car.

Chris

 

[JB05]

turbovan, can you please elaborate on this heat sink. I looked at some of the conversion kits on line, but I don't see how the rear cover for the HL's would fit. Does a hole have to be drilled? Anybody got pics of their conversion installations. I'm considering buying a kit.
OK, the above pics do give me a better idea about installation. Looks like a hole will have to be drilled in the cover to accommodate the heat sink.