TheSamba.com :: View topic - anybody successfully install LED H4 headlight bulbs?

Wed Jun 24, 2015 4:17 pm

I recently purchsased some LED bulbs on ebay and swapped out my sealed beams. when i installed the bulbs, they would only light up when i hit the high beams.

Has anyone ever successfully installed these? FWIW, I'm 12 volt, running the stock harness and 4-fuse block.

Thanks!

unrelated question: how easy is it to install a hazard switch?

Wed Jun 24, 2015 7:26 pm

I have not but I am eager to hear others who may have. So far I understand the light output is not great or they require a ballast box. The light output on most of the kits are 6000k which is still to bluish for my tastes. That may be fine for a new Audi but just does not look right to me on a old beetle.

Wed Jun 24, 2015 8:29 pm

I tend to agree. I didnt want to try the ones with ballasts. I've seen a bug once with ballasts and HIDs. Let's just say it's no bueno. The light dispersement was all over the place.

These ones looked ok but was more 6000k and didnt look like they would put much light to the ground.

Wed Jun 24, 2015 9:13 pm

Good comparison shot of the color of the light output. The 6000k is too new car looking for me. A while back I bought a set of the LED speedometer and gauge lights and the color was two blue on those for me as well. I ended up giving them to a friend who had a newer beetle and was going for a more updated look.

Hopefully in a few years there will more options for us.

Thu Jun 25, 2015 4:44 am

those LED H4s aren't DOT approved and don't put out as much light as a true H4. They might put out more light than the original 6v bulbs though.

Do a google search for LED H4 and you will find plenty of discussions about them.

Personally I would stay away from them.

Thu Jun 25, 2015 1:06 pm

Did you contact the seller to see what they have for advice?

brad

Sat Sep 12, 2015 12:52 pm

Looks like LED headlights are getting better, still not ready to leap but this option is better than the H4 replacement bulb style.

http://www.usa.philips.com/c-p/LED01X1/led-headlamp-7-inch-round

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00H8BWEGM?ie=UTF...B00H8BWEGM

Sun Sep 20, 2015 2:59 am

what about these bulbs from Cyclops?

https://www.cyclopsadventuresports.com/3800-Lumen-H4-LED-Headlight-bulb-_p_83.html

I have ordered one for my motorbike and will try a comparison on my beetle before fitting to the bike and report back.

Wed Sep 30, 2015 1:08 pm

If you are still in the market, we think we have a pretty good product.

http://www.vintagecarleds.com/

Wed Sep 30, 2015 6:56 pm

vintagecarleds wrote: If you are still in the market, we think we have a pretty good product.

http://www.vintagecarleds.com/

I could not see on your website but what color on the kelvin scale are these lights? Further can you explain the fan, is it in the base of the bulb?

Wed Sep 30, 2015 7:08 pm

j-dub wrote: vintagecarleds wrote: If you are still in the market, we think we have a pretty good product.

http://www.vintagecarleds.com/

I could not see on your website but what color on the kelvin scale are these lights? Further can you explain the fan, is it in the base of the bulb?

Evening, I've attached a photo below of the color output of our retrofit kits.

They are bright white, with a small hint of blue (check our website for photos)

The fan inside the heat sink blows air over the fins to cool the bulb itself.

We have had a set of bulbs and fans constantly running for over 3 months straight now 24/7 with no issues.

Our bulbs only draw 1.5 amps (vs 3.07 amps sealed beams)

If you would like more detailed data about our headlight kits please email me at [email protected] and I can send that data (zip file)

Also, our lenses are already fluted, if you use a fluted lens inside of a early 66 and under headlight bucket you must use u.s. Spec clear front lenses, otherwise if you use euro fluted lenses it with scatter the light beam.

Thu Oct 01, 2015 10:01 am

vintagecarleds wrote: If you are still in the market, we think we have a pretty good product.

http://www.vintagecarleds.com/

Wow, those look killer. I especially like how you don't need to find somewhere to mount the ballasts. I may just have to pick up a pair of these to try them out. :twisted: Good to know about the fluted lenses, i would have never known.

Thu Oct 01, 2015 10:12 am

audidood wrote: vintagecarleds wrote: If you are still in the market, we think we have a pretty good product.

http://www.vintagecarleds.com/

Wow, those look killer. I especially like how you don't need to find somewhere to mount the ballasts. I may just have to pick up a pair of these to try them out. :twisted: Good to know about the fluted lenses, i would have never known.

Thank You, So far we have had 100% positive feedback with 50+ kits sold

Check our some of our customer photos/ Videos.

http://www.vintagecarleds.com/media.html

Thu Oct 01, 2015 11:05 am

The video says your working on a 6V version. Any news on those? Thanks

Thu Oct 01, 2015 11:07 am

dlc_b0z wrote: The video says your working on a 6V version. Any news on those? Thanks

Still working on 6 volt kits right now.

Long story short, we are making a custom wire harness that replace the headlight wiring that feeds from the fuse box, to the headlight buckets.

In the middle of this harness there will be a box that increases the voltage from 6 to 12 volts.

Just got to finish production. 8)

Wed Oct 14, 2015 4:00 pm

I would suggest checking out candlepowerforums.com before making any decision about headlight upgrades. The guys there are the most knowledgeable you'll find and they know what works best, and what is a waste of time and money.

I will go ahead and say that drop-in LED's in a poor-quality Autopal housing will not be the best choice, and they likely perform more poorly than a good quality halogen sealed beam. "Brighter" doesn't equal better night time visibility, the beam pattern (where the light is aimed) is equally important.

The LED in an H4 housing will not have the light source projecting from the exact same location as a H4 bulb's filament, and the light source won't be the same size as and H4's filaments. Any variance in location or size of the light source will compromise the beam pattern. The beam pattern of an Autopal is already highly inferior to a quality H4 housing (Cibie, Marchal, Hella, Bosch, or Koito). Adding LED's to the mix can't improve the beam pattern, only hurt it. Google "LED H4" to see just how far off some LED's are from replicating the location and size of a H4 bulb's filaments.

Another issue with LED's in a H4 housing- an H4's high beam filament is not shielded like the low beam filament. Again, the size, placement, and shielding (or lack of shielding) of the filament creates the beam pattern from where it is placed in the housing. The high beam filament is not shielded, so it can illuminate 100% of the reflector. A LED H4 bulb may have separate low/high sections to create different beam patterns, but the high beam can only illuminate half of the housing since the LED is only one sided. How can that be better?

H4 bulb with small, precisely located filaments and a half-sheilded low beam filament:

LED H4. Single sided, the high beam can only illuminate half of the reflector.

Info on Autopal housings here:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?356517-Where-does-Autopal-fit-in

Here are shots of my old daily driver's headlights. They were Cibie H4 housings, Hella 80/100 watt clear bulbs, and a relay harness I made myself from ceramic H4 sockets, 50 amp dual-87 relays, and 12/14 guage wiring. The low beam pattern was very wide and evenly lit (no hotspots or dead areas), had a very sharp cut off with very little light above the cut off. The high beams were very distance-focused with just enough foreground and peripheral lighting.

Amazon currently has the best deal on 7" round Cibie housings.

http://www.amazon.com/Cibie-082440-Light-Unit/dp/B008DQV88Q

Low beams, from different distances.

High beams.

Sat Oct 17, 2015 11:35 am

I have used H4 LED replacements from VLED in my buggy. They seem to be holding up fine, but I don't do a lot of night driving. Mine where older closeout units where the power supply is separate, but it was small enough to fit inside the chrome headlight shells. My headlights are not DOT approved, so I cannot really comment on the optics except in comparison to how they worked with H4 bulbs. I had to lower my aim a little but get a pretty good road pattern on low and high. The cutoff is a bit soft and a small optical problem within the reflector is a little more noticeable. Still, no one has flashed their lights at me and I get a view of the road at least 90% as good as I did with the H4 bulbs (a lot better than the non-halogen sealed beams I started with.)

I was looking at replacements from Delta Tech as they indicate that they sell DOT LED 7 inch round headlights, including one with an additional internal amber LED light. I haven't followed up on this lately as my current lights don't seem to offend other drivers (and buggy driving season is about done for western Washington.)

Sat Oct 17, 2015 11:52 am

Delta Tech likely resells another companies' LED lights. I bought a set of H4's from them before I knew better and they ended up being Chinese housings with a very poor pattern compared to Cibie or Hella lamps. Look at Truck-Lite's LED's if you want LED's. They're one of the leading LED headlight manufacturers at the moment.

Sat Oct 17, 2015 2:57 pm

theastronaut wrote: Delta Tech likely resells another companies' LED lights. I bought a set of H4's from them before I knew better and they ended up being Chinese housings with a very poor pattern compared to Cibie or Hella lamps. Look at Truck-Lite's LED's if you want LED's. They're one of the leading LED headlight manufacturers at the moment.
So they are full of B.S. on the DOT approved part? They show the markings, but that doesn't really prove they are approved unless a person runs the number.

My current headlights are these ones from Speedway Motors. I then switched to LED H4 bulbs from VLED. Neither is DOT approved. I use amber 194 bulbs for turn signals and parking lights.

Sat Oct 17, 2015 3:44 pm

The DOT doesn't issue approval on aftermarket headlights... Like I posted earlier, check out candlepowerforums.com.

Here's a topic on the subject of dot "approval".

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?387801-DOT-approved-headlights