Headlight blew, what can I replace it with?

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mellowyellow
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Headlight blew, what can I replace it with?

Post by mellowyellow »

Headlight blew in my 2003 Baja ... I'm thinking I'll replace both bulbs ... so they match... anyway... while I'm thinking it'd be nice to try something different... i'm thinking purple...

1. Is it legal?
2. will they fit?
Hawk296
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Post by Hawk296 »

If you get the correct bulb, it will fit. You can get the right size bulb in anything from a yellow to white to blue in color. Just look in the owners manual for the correct bulb. (My turbo with the seprate high/low beams uses H1s for low beam)

As long as the bulb is the correct wattage and DOT approved it should be legal. But check local laws.

In reality, if you get any halogen bulb with a tinted lens (thats how they achieve the white,blue or purple look) they generally will be less bright than the clear yellow light producing bulb of same wattage.

Personally I dislike the blue or purple lights for driving. They look kinda cool but I find them too dark, annoying and difficult to drive with at night.

I personally am running HIDs with a 4300k bulb until I finish a projector conversion (which will also be HID) they work surprisingly well even in the reflector headlight. They do not blind other drivers (although noticeably brighter than stock bulbs) and the beam pattern and cutoff are pretty much the same. But technically they are not street legal. The color is bright, clear white. It really makes street signs and pavement markings pop and you can really see good contrast in the colors at night. I personally wouldn't want any hotter color temp.

Ide also recommend a name brand bulb like sylvania or the like. There are a lot of "xenon" or "HID look" blue tinted bulbs out on the market by companies such as APC which are really just garbage and for the most part don't last more than 6 months.
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peiboy
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Post by peiboy »

Hawk is right, stick with clear glass bulbs (if you stay conventional). A tinted bulb will only last a few months.

I tried silver starz and was pleased with them at first, but they blew so fast I knew I was going to spend a fortune on bulbs if I didn't switch back.

My $0.02

Jonathan
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bajasine
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Post by bajasine »

If you have the Sport, then the bulbs are 9007s. If you're looking for a cheap replacement, just go for any bulb at an auto parts store. If you're willing to spend more, go HID.

I got an HID kit not too long ago and am very pleased. My last car had HID lights and I really missed them in the Baja. If you do have the Sport, then getting an HID with which you can still operate high and low beams is pretty easy. I paid $200 for my kit and I have 6000K bulbs. The lights are not legal, so I went with the 6000K color temp because I didn't want my lights to look blue or purple, but I didn't want them to be too bright. 4300K bulbs are factory HID lights and are the brightest...brightness decreases as color temperature increases. The Baja looks new and nice enough that it's unlikely that a cop will stop you for it. I've never been stopped because of them.
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mellowyellow
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understanding color temperature

Post by mellowyellow »

Read the manual... my 2003 Baja requires H1 55W bulbs.

Now i'm trying to understand color temperature.... can anyone explain this to me?

I'm looking at putting in a yellow set to match my yellow baja... however, they only have a color temp of 2500K. Does this mean I'll lose light?

Here's some of the specs of the bulbs i'm looking at: any thoughts...

Halogen - white, 55W, 1550 Lumens, 350 hours, 3100K
Xenon XP - purple, 55W, 1380 Lumens, 350 hours, 4000K
Xenon XY - yellow, 55W, 1500 Lumens, 200 hours, 2500K

If color temperature is any indication of light intensity... I'm thinking the purple would be the brightest at 4000K.
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bajasine
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Post by bajasine »

4000K is a yellowish white. 4300K is factory. You won't get purple until at least 10000K.

Since your high and low beams are operated with different bulbs, you'll need an HID kit that has four ballasts if you want high and low beams to be HID. That will be considerably more expensive, but I know I wouldn't like to leave the highs halogen.

As far as xenon lighting goes, the higher the Kelvin rating, the fewer the lumens per watt produced. Anything lower than 4300K will be leaning towards yellow...I've seen some sellers advertise "golden bulbs" or something like that. They never interested me, so I don't know anything about that except that they have to be rated at fewer than 4300K. 12000K will be quite purple, but will be less bright than 4300K.

My 6000K bulbs produce a very white light that only appears slightly blue when compared to halogen headlights. There's still a bit of yellow in 4300K bulbs which I didn't want. Yes, the 6000K bulbs produce fewer lumens per watt, but the contrast that they provide is better, in my opinon.
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Hawk296
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Post by Hawk296 »

I believe the bulbs the original poster was comparing were all halogen bulbs, not HID. As said, lower color temp is more yellow, higher light output, while higher color temp is more blue, less light output per watt. They really are not that expensive. Just pick a color you want to try and throw them in.

And I am running HID low beams and halogen high beams (I use my low beams 98% of the time, and highs only breifly, the HIDs wouldnt even warm up in that time) I am also running 4300k and they are pretty much pure white, unlike 6000k which have a slight blue tint.

It is also important to note with HIDs, you need to disable your daytime running lights to run them.
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bajabob
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Post by bajabob »

here's a place to get some good info on lights-
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech ... bulbs.html
I use Hella +30 (low) and GE nighthawk (high) bulbs in my own truck

Bob
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bajasine
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Post by bajasine »

Well, I don't know what the "XP" and "XY" Xenon bulbs are. Since they use the same wattage as the halogen bulb mentioned, they're probably "Xenon Look" halogen bulbs. True Xenon bulbs require ballasts to ignite and that's HID.

Like I've said, 4300K is standard, most people go with that. But if the original poster was thinking purple, he or she would definitely be disappointed.

If you want to stick with halogen, but want colors, I haven't heard good things, mostly the same stuff that was said by previous commenters.
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Post by spazchicken »

mellowyellow
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now considering GE Nighthawk, Hella +50, etc.

Post by mellowyellow »

Thanks for all the helpful info... though it'd be great to add a little color... however, I understand that colored bulbs decrease visibility... guess I'd rather see clearly than look cool.

Anyhow... I bought the Sylvania Silverstar which are advertised at 4000K... the package is unopened and i may return them due to all the negative reviews.

I'm now considering GE Nighthawks and Hella Xenon +50... any opinions of these bulbs? The Hella Xenon +50 bulbs offer 3000K and 1780 Lumens... haven't found the specs on GE Nighthawks yet - still looking.

Anyone know the specs on stock H1 bulbs (i.e. lumens and color temp)?

Any thoughts on other bulbs producing a clear white bright light?
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davecoon13
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Post by davecoon13 »

I have the 03 Sport. There is a white plastic ring that twists to lock the bulb in place. I could not get that ring back on there to twist lock in place so I secured it with Gorilla Tape. Is there a secret to get that white plastic ring to twist lock?
Dave Coon
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ebbie97
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Post by ebbie97 »

I have the 03 Sport. There is a white plastic ring that twists to lock the bulb in place. I could not get that ring back on there to twist lock in place so I secured it with Gorilla Tape. Is there a secret to get that white plastic ring to twist lock?
Dave, I have an 03 sport as well and found that you really have to pay attention to getting the bulb seated well in the opening. Than you slip on the white ring and turn it clock wise. You don't have to turn it far, just a quarter turn I believe.
-EB
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davecoon13
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Post by davecoon13 »

ebbie97 wrote:
...I have an 03 sport as well and found that you really have to pay attention to getting the bulb seated well in the opening. Than you slip on the white ring and turn it clock wise. You don't have to turn it far, just a quarter turn I believe.
-EB
OK, Thanks. I will give it a try.
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