LED headlight longevity

[Old n' slow]

I'm thinking of going to H-4 led headlights ( I know the pros and cons....legal and otherwise) just wondering how vintagecarleds and other brands have been holding up now that they have been in daily use for a couple of years.

Anyone have any idea on real world lifespan and not the theoretical 50,000 hours or whatever most claim.... THANKS.
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Currently own : 1969 Beetle w/ 1600cc, Single Port, Solex 30 PICT 2, Dist. 113 905 205 T, stock exhaust.
All my daily drivers gone but not forgotten;

1964(sunroof)1967 & (2)1968 Beetles , 1968 Squareback , 1963 (23 window )Deluxe Sunroof Bus , 1969 Westphalia camper, 1974 Dasher , 1985 Vanagon , (2) 1981 Rabbit Diesels & a 1991 Jetta Diesel .

[Hatracks]

I got about 3-4 months of daily use out of my vintagecarleds before i blew the engine up, then a winter sitting in the garage during rebuild . But they still work and the amount of light they throw down is amazing.
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73 Super Build

[Beeble1]

I put in a set of vintagecarleds on my super last spring and it was the best thing I had ever done. They are super bright and were a huge improvement over the old halogens I had before.

I’ve not had any problems with them nor do I expect to have any. Definitely a worthwhile upgrade for an old VW.
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Beeble1, ‘73 Super (o\_|_/o) 1600cc w/ Dealer A/C
Beeble2, ‘13 Beetle 2.5L Daily Driver

Dealership items from Bishop-Wayne Volkswagen & Turner Volkswagen in Kankakee, IL wanted

[vamram]

Which model vintagecarled did you install?
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Eventually, "we are what we pretend to be.’”
Give peace a chance - Stop Russian-Soviet Aggression!!

'74 Super 9/16 - present, in refurb process.
'73 Super - 6/18 - Present - Daily Driver!
'75 Super Le Grande...waiting it's turn in line behind '74.
Click to view image
Save the Supers!!

[bluebus86]

[Beeble1]

I purchased VC4000, which runs at 6500K (pure white). It came as a whole unit, bulb and lens. The connectors are plug and play as well. Super easy to install.

Here’s the link if anyone is interested.

https://vintagecarleds.com/shop/7-inch/vc4000-ultimate-kit/
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Beeble1, ‘73 Super (o\_|_/o) 1600cc w/ Dealer A/C
Beeble2, ‘13 Beetle 2.5L Daily Driver

Dealership items from Bishop-Wayne Volkswagen & Turner Volkswagen in Kankakee, IL wanted

[mark tucker]

I ordered the ebay leds with the tiny fan in the rear of the units months ago and havent had any issues.(H4 type) they were about $16 to my door. I also got new h4 housings for about $18 or so since the bosch were totaly brown inside, the chrome reflector had gone to shit in about 2 years. for some reason many of the 6014 headkights(h4) that Ive goten have the mounting lugs positioned rong....posiably the 7" vw used wasent a 6014 I dont know, but I dont mind the lugs in the rong places I just marked the ring in the vw headlight bucket(old style) and cut new slots for the lugs to aligine the buld right. the light is fricken awesome!!!!( I have non fluted lenses,I hears you were not supposed to use fluted lenses with the leds) Im as happy as I am cheep.

[Meiang]

HID headlight bulbs still have the edge on LED bulbs so I Use HID in my Beetle.

On cars with separate high beam lamps I use LED as HID don't like to be switched on and off frequently as you would in a high beam duty.

Most LED units are not really "weatherproof" and are designed to be installed in a sealed headlamp unit. PIAA and IPF sell LED units which are weatherproof but you are not going to pay $20 for them - add a zero after the 20.

My HID bulbs have lasted since about 2003 but the kits are US$500-$600.

You pay for what you get. Cheap HID or LED units are not manufactured to a very good tolerance and have real problems with glare and beam pattern.

Below is a picture of my Honda Civic taken in 2005 normal halogen vs HID

Unfortunatly I dont have a picture for my Beetle - something I must do.

[CarlIseminger]

I have the VintageCarLEDs, don't remember the style, but it came as one unit. Plug and Play. Mine are not the "classic" style. When on, just the top half of the lens lights up.

But VERY bright white light. Even my wife is jealous of the amount of light they throw out.

And I have been using them for over a year now. My headlights come on automatically when I start the car so they are always on as DRLs. Very pleased with them.
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1969 VW Beetle Convertible

[TX-73]

Also have Thomas' (vintagecar) CREE leds 6k in the bug. H4 housings. I think they are great, no issues over the past year. My night driving is minimal so they should last till 2042 lol.
I've got all led inside and out on the bug, every build I do gets the led upgrades.
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My 1973 Standard Beetle Build SOLD
Click to view image

[Old n' slow]

.........320 views and only 6 people who upgraded to led headlights.

But 100% positive on the replies.......... I guess that's good enough to give them a try ?
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Currently own : 1969 Beetle w/ 1600cc, Single Port, Solex 30 PICT 2, Dist. 113 905 205 T, stock exhaust.
All my daily drivers gone but not forgotten;

1964(sunroof)1967 & (2)1968 Beetles , 1968 Squareback , 1963 (23 window )Deluxe Sunroof Bus , 1969 Westphalia camper, 1974 Dasher , 1985 Vanagon , (2) 1981 Rabbit Diesels & a 1991 Jetta Diesel .

[MickSz]

I installed these VintageCarLEDs almost three years ago now and I use my beetle as a daily driver. These headlights are amazing and are as bright today as the day I installed them. Highly recommended.

[Cali_Army_Guy]

I would highly recommend the vintagecarleds as well. I run them in my ‘66. I have the VC4000 kit using their housings. This was the best they had at the time. I may swap to their VC5000 kit now though. I’ve had them for about 11 months now. I daily my car in the rain, the 110*+ heat here in the summer, etc. Lights are still going strong.
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2015 VW Passat Wolfsburg Edition
1966 VW Beetle - Sold

[vintagecarleds]

Afternoon,

Thanks for the feedback guys, I would like to mention all of our kits do come with a lifetime warranty IF any issues occur.

We hand check and pack each unit before shipping out for strict quality control.

Any questions my email is: [email protected]

Thanks-

Thomas
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www.vintagecarleds.com
[email protected]
713-853-9644