93 EX High Beam upgrade

[Slimgoaty]

Hey Guys, been lurking for a few months. Recently bought a 93 EX with 290K and the car is straight and clean. I use it commuting and drive a lot after dark in varying conditions (Lovely Pacific Northwest weather). As is noted all around the interwebs, our cars have crap headlights, something I'm used to with all my Jeeps. I'm looking at upgrading the output of my high beams only at this time. All my driving is done on a lonely 2 lane mountain highway and I just need to most light possible in a cheap fashion.

I'm absolutely against slapping HID's in my low beam, as I'm a firm believer in only using them in a properly fitted projector so I'm not blinding everyone else. With that said, are there any issues in slapping a 4300-5000K setup in my HIGH beam? Obviously I won't be driving around with my high beams on with oncoming traffic and 99% of my commute is done with high beams.

If HID is an OK way to go for this, what wattage am I looking out without having to rig up a beefier harness? 35W? 55w? Do HIDs? still have a warm up time? My buddy put a cheap set of HID ballasts/bulbs in his car about 5 years ago and whenever he switched to his high beam it had to warm up and would be completely useless for about 15 seconds.

Thanks guys!

[Jarrett]

HIDs would be just fine for this application. As you mentioned, you'll be turning them off when drivers approach you anyway. That said, if you are driving in areas that you would have to shut off the high beams every 30 seconds or so, you may end up harming the bulbs or ballasts.

A high quality kit from www.theretrofitsource.com would be a great start along with a simplified harness that draws power directly from the battery instead of the OEM headlight harness. 35W is more than enough for this application.

I wonder, though, that maybe you need to address the low beam issue instead. Why not do a retrofit? You could have HIDs on all the time with a bi-xenon projector.

Either way, you may want to try leveling your headlights on a flat surface first. It's possible that they're just not aligned properly. Just a thought. Plus, it's free!

[CB7NWDD]

I put LED lights in my low beams on my coupe and I'm pretty happy with the light output, they are brighter than the best halogen bulbs with none of the HID glare. They turn on instantly and run completely off the harness. Install took five minutes. I'd recommend them for your high beams too, it sounds like they would meet your light needs and not have the drawbacks that so many HID systems have.

[Kev1990]

Could you please if possible post a link of the LED'S you used? And is it just plug and play? I wouldn't say are headlights completely suck compared to any of the older cars with oxidized headlights even when their clean some of them really suck lol. My lows are pretty good and high beams are amazing I'm still on my stock headlights though now a friend of mine had I think TYC head light assembly new ones installed and they suck even worse.

[mugencivic4dr]

I put LED lights in my low beams on my coupe and I'm pretty happy with the light output, they are brighter than the best halogen bulbs with none of the HID glare. They turn on instantly and run completely off the harness. Install took five minutes. I'd recommend them for your high beams too, it sounds like they would meet your light needs and not have the drawbacks that so many HID systems have.

i would like to see pics of this, i've never come across any LED's that can shine further that a few feet.

Could you please if possible post a link of the LED'S you used? And is it just plug and play? I wouldn't say are headlights completely suck compared to any of the older cars with oxidized headlights even when their clean some of them really suck lol. My lows are pretty good and high beams are amazing I'm still on my stock headlights though now a friend of mine had I think TYC head light assembly new ones installed and they suck even worse.

have you thought of using silverstar ultra's for headlights? i've never tried them but i'm thinking of using them for high beams for my wifes 2006 sonata since i installed 5K HID's for headlights.

[Kev1990]

I've used the silver star ultra's for about a year now in my 90 cb7 they work great a lot better then a standard bulb. I even tested them against the Xtravision bulbs they sell both brand new sets definitely a notice-able difference with the ultra's. It is true what they say about the ultra's they are very bright bulbs but you need to make sure your headlights are properly aligned. My high beams with these bulbs I can see a bit off the side of the roads + at-least 20-25 car lengths if not further and they can literally blind you when coming up to a sign LOL. Just be sure to wear gloves or don't touch the bulb with your skin it'll cause it to burn out a bit earlier then it should. A lot of reviews of these bulbs people were complaining of them only lasting 6-12 months I do a lot of night time driving with them on rough roads at that and hasn't burned out yet.

BTW if you want to save some money and trust me there is absolutely no difference in the bulb itself buy the bulbs Amazon warehouse used like new it'll save you a bit. It's actually where I got the set that's still in my car the top part of the package above where the bulbs are contained was like rippled but not the bulbs itself.

[mugencivic4dr]

I've used the silver star ultra's for about a year now in my 90 cb7 they work great a lot better then a standard bulb. I even tested them against the Xtravision bulbs they sell both brand new sets definitely a notice-able difference with the ultra's. It is true what they say about the ultra's they are very bright bulbs but you need to make sure your headlights are properly aligned. My high beams with these bulbs I can see a bit off the side of the roads + at-least 20-25 car lengths if not further and they can literally blind you when coming up to a sign LOL. Just be sure to wear gloves or don't touch the bulb with your skin it'll cause it to burn out a bit earlier then it should. A lot of reviews of these bulbs people were complaining of them only lasting 6-12 months I do a lot of night time driving with them on rough roads at that and hasn't burned out yet.

BTW if you want to save some money and trust me there is absolutely no difference in the bulb itself buy the bulbs Amazon warehouse used like new it'll save you a bit. It's actually where I got the set that's still in my car the top part of the package above where the bulbs are contained was like rippled but not the bulbs itself.

hmm, thank you for this.

[CB7NWDD]

I don't have a link because I bought these at vendor cost through a local parts supplier that I used to work for. Curiously enough the box doesn't have any branding on it, just product information. I am going to contact them today for more information about the supplier and part number. I just didn't want to leave you hanging.

As far as the light output, I swapped from silverstars to these LEDs when camping last year and they were noticeably brighter. These are the only LED lights I've ever seen with a built in reflector and heat sink. They claim 2200-2500 lumens on the box, and 5000k color (yellow) but they fall closer to 6000k (white)

I will have the info up asap, I am going to swap the light from my coupe (project on jack stands) to my wagon (DD) once I've got new housings, then I'll post some pictures of night output.

[sonikaccord]

The LEDs in reflectors is just as bad as HIDs in reflectors if not worse. I won't bmc in in this thread though.
*Reflectors designed for halogen bulbs*

I'm sure they are bright, but how is the cutoff/glare? I do want to see those pics.

[Slimgoaty]

Thanks for all the feedback guys. As much as a retrofit kit might be the best option I'm really trying to avoid modding or spending any more money than what's necessary on the car right now. Got enough projects as it is

I think I'll be ordering up a decent quality HID kit for my high beams and call it quits for now.

[CB7NWDD]

Okay, I have my new housings and I'm in the process of modifying them, when they are in I still intend to take cutoff pictures and post them

[mugencivic4dr]

As far as the light output, I swapped from silverstars to these LEDs when camping last year and they were noticeably brighter. These are the only LED lights I've ever seen with a built in reflector and heat sink. They claim 2200-2500 lumens on the box, and 5000k color (yellow) but they fall closer to 6000k (white)

LED's are bright but don't shine too far out from my personal experience, thats why i was asking for a pic of your headlights on to see the output of the LED bulb.

also 4300K is yellow and 5000K is white, 6000k is more bluish white. sorry, not bashing just adding my unnecessary .02 cents lol/

[C91BLX7]

Do a bi xenon retrofit, the miri moto h1 are very easy to install and youll be glad you did.

[CB7NWDD]

LED's are bright but don't shine too far out from my personal experience, thats why i was asking for a pic of your headlights on to see the output of the LED bulb.

also 4300K is yellow and 5000K is white, 6000k is more bluish white. sorry, not bashing just adding my unnecessary .02 cents lol/

Fair enough, I glanced at a color chart and must have been one set off, they are 5000k then because they are definitely white...

I've been very busy with work or I would have my headlights in, and I would show you the LEDs in my current housings but I just bought a wagon and the lenses are cracked down the middle, yellowed, and the locking tabs that hold the lights in position are gone... New housings are here and baked apart waiting for blackhousing.