ligature Posted September 16, 2002 Share Posted September 16, 2002 Hey all... I haven't driven the wife's es for a while (been enjoying my s2000 too much!) I noticed that the low beams were pretty dull. Has anyone replaced the bulbs? Is there a tutorial on the site? I tried a search but it didn't really come up with anything but using rubbing compound on the lenses (good idea but not what I'm looking for...) TIA! lig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeta Posted January 18, 2003 Share Posted January 18, 2003 ligature, there's really nothing hard about changing the headlights themselves. just pick up a pair of headlights (9006 for low and 9005 for high beams) and just turn the bulb counter-clockwise? and then it'll come out. pull off the stock bulb, snap in the new bulb, and pop it back in and turn the other way. it's really not much harder than any other car. for one side, you may run into a tank for some liquid on one of the high beams. it's really not hard. just try it. if you want a brighter road ahead, check out either sylvania silverstars, nokya's, or PIAA's. the piaa's are more expensive, but good quality. silverstars are a bit less, and nokya's are probably the least expensive mid-high quality bulbs i know of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSypher Posted January 19, 2003 Share Posted January 19, 2003 The reason why they look dull is because they're Halogen bulbs.. Upgrade the lights for yer Wife so she can see at night.. Go with some Philips HID's... That'll brighten it up the road for her.. I have upgraded my headlights to Philips 6000K HID's and you won't hear a complaint out of me... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeta Posted January 19, 2003 Share Posted January 19, 2003 no one complains about HID's... well at least not the people who have them. i'm waiting to get a job, and then HID's will be first on the list... well after fixing the car after an explorer hit my rear end at a red light. as well as a V1. :) HID's are great. i just don't exactly have $300 lying around at the moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSypher Posted January 19, 2003 Share Posted January 19, 2003 $300. for some HID's??? Where and who makes them?? That's cheap... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeta Posted January 20, 2003 Share Posted January 20, 2003 i'm not sure actually. my friend got his HID's for $450 a while back, so i was talkin to him about getting new headlights, since my halogens are too yellow and a bit low... and he was like "you should get HID's". i toldh im i considered them, but $400 was too much (what i've seen online), and he was like "you can get 'em for $300" i'm not sure where he saw that, but maybe. they're getting cheaper these days. (i think.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ligature Posted January 21, 2003 Author Share Posted January 21, 2003 I picked up some SilverStars and popped them in. Needed to move the washer tank and the battery. They are a big improvement over the stock bulbs. Have any of you removed the whole headlight assembly to clean the projector? It looked like it could use some cleaning but I didn't know what kind of job that would be. Cleaned the lens covers and polished with Meguiars Clear Plastic polish and finished with some Rain-X. Ulitmately I may go with HID's. I didn't realize that you could do a conversion for $300! That sounds really inexpensive. That'll be next. Thanks again! 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnetic1 Posted February 2, 2003 Share Posted February 2, 2003 Just be careful of the kit you buy. Not all kits are created equal. Also, Philips does not make a kit. They make components which people bundle and conviently call a "Philips Kit". It might have an inferior bulb, or inferior manufacturing process in adapting the bulb to fit 9006, sometimes using glue. Find one with a molded base. I am installing a 4500K Catz HID kit from http://www.liteswap.com tomorrow. I will post some pics when I am done. The ballast and igniter Catz uses is OEM in Lexus HID :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSypher Posted February 2, 2003 Share Posted February 2, 2003 Mag, how much did you purchase you HID's for?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnetic1 Posted February 2, 2003 Share Posted February 2, 2003 regular price was $490, but there is a group buy going on on a Ford Probe board. If you use the coupon "probetalk-bulkbuy" it knocks $60 off! Im looking at the headlamps right now... man.. there is not much room to work with... I hope I can get the HID bulb in there without removing the headlamp assembly... I dont want the HID bulb to touch anything as it is supposed to be pretty fragile... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSypher Posted February 2, 2003 Share Posted February 2, 2003 Thanks... As for the bulb, don't worry about tapping into something while putting them in... I actually ended up hitting one of the bulbs while I was installing mine and I have no problem after about 6 months.. FYI put the bulb in first then plug the ballast wire into it after.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnetic1 Posted February 2, 2003 Share Posted February 2, 2003 Thanks for the tip. I'll get pics posted tomorrow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnetic1 Posted February 2, 2003 Share Posted February 2, 2003 ok... got it in, but I didnt get a chance to take pics because it was daylight out. I will get some later. The pic on the left is the Catz 5500K and the pic on the right is our Acura Integra w/ Silvania Silverstar 65W bulbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSypher Posted February 3, 2003 Share Posted February 3, 2003 Very nice..... What a difference, huh?? I had a ES300 not long ago for a loaner and at night I'd have to check and see if the lights were even on sometimes... Thank God for Xenon... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeta Posted February 26, 2003 Share Posted February 26, 2003 aww dang... now i feel bad. i'm falling further and further away from HID's... that's what i get for trying to mod a Lexus as a high school sophomore... lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted March 3, 2003 Share Posted March 3, 2003 i think piaa's are too expensive i have hid's in my es and silverstars in the high beams used to have cool blue by sylvania also but put them in my winter car the silverstars are much better than most bulbs i keep one of each in my civic to see differences and there is a huge one especially after a week with the silverstars just good luck finding them not too many places have them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steviej Posted March 4, 2003 Share Posted March 4, 2003 I have HID also and opted for the PIAAs in the high. The color was very close to the HID so I stopped my comparison shopping there. As for the PIAAs, the only thing I can say is WOW!B) They were $75/pr from a performance shop compared to the $30/ea for Silverstars from Lappens (general autoparts store). I am very pleased with the PIAAs but cannot comment on the Silverstars (9005ST) cause I haven't tried them yet. steveij Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted March 4, 2003 Share Posted March 4, 2003 from what i have learned about HID's the ballasts are all made by phillips they have the patent but their are 3 generations of ballasts alone for hids i have gen 3 i have no real idea of what is the difference except longevity the bases of the bulbs are also owner by phillips 900? and h? so pretty much all goes back to the same company,someone says hella makes there own but they don't i have the same ballast as that kit to a "T" just like spark plugs( no one ever belives me) 2 companies in the world make spark plugs Champion as in "Albert Champion" and AC delco as in "Albert Champion" sounds odd, delco bought his first company and he opened another funny enough all the other companies out their like ngk splitfire all are made by them for others like i said no one ever belives me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steviej Posted March 5, 2003 Share Posted March 5, 2003 skp....I believe you! The first known spark plug was invented on February 2, 1839 by Edmond Berger. France dominated the spark plug market in the early 1900s, supplying gasoline engine manufacturers with only a limited line of plug configurations. They were also known to be quite costly and had substandard quality. Albert Champion was born in France in 1878. In 1889, a renowned bicycle and motorcycle racer, Champion came to America to compete in a series of races. He had brought several bicycles and motorcycles, but found parts very hard to find in the United States. As a result, Champion made his own. To help pay bills and cover expenses, Champion began making spark plugs and sold them to friends. Champion's love of motors slowly turned towards automobiles and he later returned to France to open a shop that manufactured spark plugs and magnetos. In 1900, Champion returned to America after being hired by Charles Metz to race bicycles and motorcycles for the Waltham Manufacturing Company. In 1904, Champion moved to Flint, Michigan where he founded Champion Ignition Company for the manufacturing of spark plugs. With the help of investors, Champion was able to turn his racing hobby into a successful business. Unfortunately, problems with the investors soon lead to a break up. Champion soon found himself without a company. The investors continued to manufacture the spark plugs under the Champion name, but Champion himself was out of a job. In 1908 with the backing of the Buick Motor Co., Champion began a new company called the AC Spark Plug Company. Albert Champion was appointed president. In 1916 Alfred P. Sloan formed United Motors Corp. and eventually acquired Buick and AC Spark Plug. On October 27, 1927, Champion died of a heart attack. General Motors purchased the remaining stock held by Champion's estate and took over the AC company. On December 1st of that year, AC became a full division of General Motors. In 1971, United Motors Service was renamed United Delco Division. A few years later United Delco and the AC Spark Plug Division combined to form the company we know today as AC-Delco. To this day Albert Champion's name lives on with every AC and Champion spark plug made. I believe you on the Phillips lighting thing too. Phillips I think is also the original manufacturer of the laser for CD players when they first came out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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