Which lights

[J400CBS]

Hi

I got my car today, heavy rain so lights on.

I was following my wife who said that the headlights were “yellow” and “dull”

I’ve been reading this forum for info on builds but I’m getting mega confused as to which bulbs to go for.

I don’t want to mess with a HID kit and have to keep changing for the MOT.

The car has an auto light position on the switch so would like to keep that function to.

I just want a nice bright white light, main, dipped and side light. Possibly white dogs to if possible

Any suggestions please


Thanks

[Stuart107]

HIDs are probably the best but LED bulbs are close behind. Advantage of LED bulbs is you don’t need to change for MOT and they give 100%light straight away (HIDs take a few seconds to warm up). A search on eBay etc should give you plenty of choice but don’t go for cheapest cos they are cheap for a reason! Somebody should hopefully give you a link to a decent set of LED bulbs here ����

[marko301]

You need to be careful which you chose because you have pre facelift reflector lights. They rely on the low lumens and capped end (painted) of the halogen bulb. LED bulbs will probably just glare and dazzle oncoming and preceding drivers. You're best off going with HIDs with H7RC bulbs. These are shorter than normal xenon bulbs and have a painted on strip to give a cut off which lessens the risk of dazzling.

There isn't a halogen on the market that will give you the colour you're looking for and enable you to see where you're going. I've been there and tried them all

[J400CBS]

Do you recommend a HID kit that will give me no problems?

There’s that many to choose from. Are they straight forward to fit?

[troublednoodle]

I've got a HID kit fitted by the previous owner, so I can't comment on which ones to buy or not buy, however, when buying the car from a secondhand dealer, they put a full years MOT on it, and DIDN'T fail it for the HID kit being installed.

I thought they had to now fail these?

[J400CBS]

That’s what I’d be worried about. People have said to change the bulbs before the MOT but will the hid kit blow normal bulbs or I’m I understanding it all wrong???

[marko301]

I've never fitted a hid kit to the pre facelift. Only the facelift and my present GS so I can't help on how well the ballasts etc fit inside the headlight housing. I have heard everything fits inside though same as in the facelift. I can't really recommend a kit eaither. Only that some of the more expensive kits come with smaller ballast and error cancellers which should make it easier to fit everything inside the housing for a tidier job.

It's not a big job to fit. It's all plug and play. Remove the halogen bulb, fit the xenon bulb and then tuck everything inside gently manipulating the ballasts and cables until you can get the cover back on. Once you've fitted them you'll know how quick and easy it is to take them out for the mot if you think they may fail.

A halogen bulb won't connect to a hid ballast so no chance of blowing the bulb.

[RBH]

I fitted a cheapo HID kit in my facelift....as I've done to many cars.
Don't be fooled by sellers saying they're canbus compatible and error free.....coz they're talking complete and utter bollocks.

Buy a cheap kit and a set of cancellers.

If you want a nice bright white, then 5k or maybe even 6k is what I'd recommend.

[huey45]

Im with J400CBS

In the respect I want extreme white lights coming from LED's, Im not a lover of HID's as I have a Facelifted model
with Projector headlights, and don't fancy pratting around taking bulbs out for MOT, then putting back when passed
so I am following this post to see what other members have elected for their choice of LED bulbs, and who they purchased from

[marko301]

The problem with LEDs in a normal reflector headlight is it's to bright and the light spreads. A HID H7RC xenon is a shorter bulb with a painted strip to control the light spread. You get away with any bulb in a facelift because the projectors have a metal cut off no matter which bulb you use. In my Insignia Grand Sport I had issues finding the correct beam pattern even though the bulb sits within a metal sheath to give the cut off. Normal HIDs were a no no because they stick out further than the sheath. H7Rs worked ok though. I then tried numerous LED kits but the LED chips on the bulb also stuck out too far which caused spread. I then fitted an LED kit which had the LED chips positioned on the bulb in a way it copped the original Halogen bulb and now have a perfect match with correct cut off and kick up to the left. Here are a couple of pics to show you how different two different types of LED bulbs can look.

Fitted with LED kit where the chip positioning to far forward causing spread.


And with my current LED kit where the chip sits perfectly with correct cut off.

I'll try to get a darker shot but the cut off is still perfect in the dark.

So what I'm really saying is there is more science to it than us lot all telling you we like this kit of that kit. You need to find one that works best for you and other road users. I prefer LED but if you are determined to move away from Halogens I'd advise you to try a HID kit with H7RC bulbs.

[huey45]

Hi I like the second option of LED's which kit did you use, and from where, if they are legal in my facelift will put in..

[marko301]

Hi I like the second option of LED's which kit did you use, and from where, if they are legal in my facelift will put in..

No aftermarket HIDs or LEDs are legal in car headlights really so fit them at your own risk.

I've had a look on the website and they don't do 9012 kits

This is the website https://www.autostyling.com see if you can find them to fit yours.

You may not be able to get the headlight cover back in if you fit LEDs with cooling fans. I had LEDs with mesh heatsinks in my facelift.

[marko301]

Hi I like the second option of LED's which kit did you use, and from where, if they are legal in my facelift will put in..

I can't find the link to the ones I had in my facelift but these look identical. https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?m...2F152777403417

Everything fits inside and the cover goes back on nice and snug. I'll dig a pic out of them fitted. The colour match is bang on.

Edit: Forgot I'd stuck a short video on YouTube.

[golfpaul]

H7c in my reflectors.


just passed mot [emoji108]

[roverspeed]

In my modest opinion, an English MOT isn't worth the paper it's written on.

No HID or LED would pass over here (Northern Ireland) as it's DVA test centres not 3rd party garages.