LED Headlights
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
LED Headlights
https://vintagecarleds.com/shop/7-in...0-classic-kit/
Curious. Has anyone tried this LED option before? I apologize in advance if this was posted prior.
Curious. Has anyone tried this LED option before? I apologize in advance if this was posted prior.
#3
Rennlist Member
OP I would not use them, the lenses are not H4, and with LED the light spread will be all over the place blinding other drivers!
Also that is a lot of shekels for DOT lenses and LED's, you can get a nice pair of LED's for 70 bucks, and two 7" H4 "off-road" lenses for ~ 50 bucks (they come with standard lamps too)..
All plug and play
Dave K
Also that is a lot of shekels for DOT lenses and LED's, you can get a nice pair of LED's for 70 bucks, and two 7" H4 "off-road" lenses for ~ 50 bucks (they come with standard lamps too)..
All plug and play
Dave K
#4
https://vintagecarleds.com/shop/7-in...0-classic-kit/
Curious. Has anyone tried this LED option before? I apologize in advance if this was posted prior.
Curious. Has anyone tried this LED option before? I apologize in advance if this was posted prior.
Last edited by Mrspencer; 03-06-2018 at 02:07 AM. Reason: Mis spelling
#5
Rennlist Member
Yes the newer CREE's LED are great, but only when used with H4 lenses, either 7" H4 or the stock Euro 8" H4, the old DOT type lenses are not H4.
Last edited by davek9; 03-06-2018 at 01:53 PM.
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#8
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Ed may be doing another run of the caps soon.
There are no good options if you stick with H5 lamps (a totally compromised lighting choice made to satisfy the quite stupid USA DOT regulations - the 928 wasn't supposed to have lighting that bad).
Alan
#10
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Both DOT options installed on USA cars were poor - but the 8" are indeed better. Either ROW option e.g. 7" or 8" H4's are functionally much better - with 8" H4s the best option. Having a well defined horizontal cutoff allows brighter bulbs to be actually useful without compromising visibility for others
Alan
Alan
#12
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Alan
#13
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Both DOT options installed on USA cars were poor - but the 8" are indeed better. Either ROW option e.g. 7" or 8" H4's are functionally much better - with 8" H4s the best option. Having a well defined horizontal cutoff allows brighter bulbs to be actually useful without compromising visibility for others
Now take the same DOT-approved crappy fixture and put in a brighter lamp and you will certainly see better, but the glare you are creating for oncoming drivers also goes up exponentially. Which is better: Hitting the deer at 50 mph or hitting the oncoming car at a closing speed of 100 mph, drifting into your lane towards the bright lights? (Hint: Deer are stupid, they freeze for bright shiny things. People are smart, they steer towards bright shiny things).
A choice: Stick with DOT lights (and bulbs) and be happy. Or, upgrade.
If you chose the upgrade path then step one is to get decent light fixtures. The good news is that H4's are still available for 928s from Porsche, cost is not an issue. Marvel at the sharp upper cutoff for low-beams, and their ability to throw light down the road with high beams. Then get brighter lamps, up to 80w is OK with stock wiring. Then add relays and serious (off-road) lamps, or proper LEDs, adjusters if you want to get serious, and light up the night.
A tip for those in deer country, from my uncle who lived in Idaho and did a lot of night driving: Deer freeze in the headlight glare, so if you see a deer then turn off your headlights.
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Alan (03-11-2023)
#14
Rennlist Member
Although I can't comment on the LED 9004 bulbs available from our 928-specific vendors, I can certainly vouch for the results from "upgrading" the stock halogens to brighter HID's in 8" H5 lenses (the factory fixtures in '87 - '95 US cars). It's a bad choice. Don't do it...unless you're in a area where you never meet oncoming cars at night.
Putting the brighter, more powerful HIDs in the crappy H5 lenses without re-aiming, results in really bright light. At first you say "Wow I can see everything!". And you can. It's a flood of light that illuminates everything in front of you, on the ground, up in the trees and down the road. It's light that bounces off of reflective signs to the point where it's hard to see around them or past them. That should tell you that it's also light that blinds oncoming drivers, young and old.
So you think that a re-aiming of your new HID conversion will solve the issue of blinding oncoming drivers.
It will.
You re-aim the lights to the point where they're pointing so far downward that oncoming drivers are no longer blinded. But now you can only see about 50 feet in front of you. And you now have a pair of the brightest driving lights in the state. And you no longer have headlights.
Anyone have a pair of 8" H4s sitting around collecting dust?
Putting the brighter, more powerful HIDs in the crappy H5 lenses without re-aiming, results in really bright light. At first you say "Wow I can see everything!". And you can. It's a flood of light that illuminates everything in front of you, on the ground, up in the trees and down the road. It's light that bounces off of reflective signs to the point where it's hard to see around them or past them. That should tell you that it's also light that blinds oncoming drivers, young and old.
So you think that a re-aiming of your new HID conversion will solve the issue of blinding oncoming drivers.
It will.
You re-aim the lights to the point where they're pointing so far downward that oncoming drivers are no longer blinded. But now you can only see about 50 feet in front of you. And you now have a pair of the brightest driving lights in the state. And you no longer have headlights.
Anyone have a pair of 8" H4s sitting around collecting dust?
Last edited by JPTL; 03-07-2018 at 12:46 PM.
#15
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I'm now realizing that my HID post above has taken this thread off topic a bit. Sorry about that. The OP was LED Headlghts. Is the consensus that an LED 9004 bulb upgrade for the H5 that retains the high & low beam operation still results in a flood of unfocused light that blinds oncoming drivers - even when properly adjusted and on low beam?