H4 headlight conversion kits

[oasis]

I know there is a lot of activity going on about HID systems ... and for good reason! And I am following it intently and hope the participants post pictures and reviews.

I am in the final stages of making my final decisions as far as brakes, suspension, etc. is concerned. My next major step will be the interior. (No sense in cornering like a demon if I'm going to slide across 34 year old seats like a demon. )

In the meanwhile, I would like to upgrade the stock sealbeam headlamps even if I later upgrade to the pricey HIDs. What would be better:
. . . (1) clear or "crystal" headlights using H4 bulbs, or
. . . (2) projector headlights using H4 bulbs?

Both would be a plug-n-play replacement for the seven-inchers; neither is an HID system with ballasts and such.

(It's pretty bad to geeze about town accidently leaving the brights on, and nobody flashes you to cut them down!)

[beetle1303]

Im using the clear ones with H4 osram 90/100w lamps along with a lamp amplifier for the high beam only
if the sealed beams get 5/10 on the high beam mines i would say get about 7/10
thats if the xenon ones get 12/10 or at least 10/10


Chris

[Bill K.]

I experimented with different headlight lenses. I have pre67 front fenders. I removed the glass from the H4 and tested different headlight lenses, so my tests might apply to your question.

When testing different lenses with the bare H4 housing, I notice the fluted lense gives a wider and more evenly distributed light pattern than the clear lens. I judged this by looking at the light pattern on a flat surface about 3' from the light. The clear lens gave an intense center with a narrow distribution while the fluted lens gave a diffuse, but larger distribution. I went with the fluted lens (with the H4 housing lens removed) partly for the looks of the lens (911), but also because it seemed like a diffuse output would light the road more evenly.

The "clear" or diamondback H4 may look better/different, but I'm not sure the light output/distribution is better. The diamondback facets may project the light better than the flutes do, or the Bosch H4's with fluted glass may turn out to be the best for light quality (intensity and distribution). I've got an extra Bosch H4 unit if you want it (as long as you post your test results ). Then you could buy a clear/diamondback unit, test them side-by-side, and buy a second unit of the winner.

[justdubbin]

I'm in no way an expert in these things but logically thinking you would be better with both wouldn't you??

If you have the "crystal" lights you can then install a projector without the risk of the light pattern being disturbed, this would then be ready to install a 'plug & play' HID kit when you have the $$$$$$
Ricola did a similar thing on his daily driver, take a look here


Rob.

[Kataplun]

funny i see this post the day i buy my new H4 Lamps, i just got them for a mere 13bucks in pesos, there not clear but blue :P round diamond back, the bulbs i got are H4 11/90w Plasma Xenon, HID color appearance, says is the box there xenon gas filled, is its true i dont know have to wait for night time

[oasis]

Here are three I am considering:

and

and


All are available as a 7" round replacement; just no pics. I know I have seen the fluted before, and I know I have seen many different patterns for the fluted. I couldn't find a pic for this post, though.

The "halo" unit above, a JCWhitney unit which has a city light and fog light, and a unit I saw on eBay with an H4 and a city light make me wonder how they are plug-n-play. I mean, how does the wiring have to be handled to activate the light(s) desired?

[Bill K.]

Oh, I misunderstood what you meant by "projector". Now I see... I was talking about the standard H4.
Blimp has better pictures of the rounds.
You would need to run extra wires for the city lights, etc. You could piggyback off the parking light circuit or run a new circuit off a dash switch for independant control. For city lights, I would piggyback on the parking. For fogs, I'd run another switch. If you're going with the 100W high beam, make sure your wiring is in good shape (flexible insulation, not patched badly, good grounds, etc) or you could have a really bright fire

[Racelook]

Originally Posted by Bill K.

If you're going with the 100W high beam, make sure your wiring is in good shape (flexible insulation, not patched badly, good grounds, etc) or you could have a really bright fire

I have to agree!!! PLEASE KEEP THAT IN MIND!!! My friend his headlight burned totally out (lucky not his car)... he can not put bigger lamps in it than 80 wats (ps is not an bug or volkswagen)

Grt Wiebrand