Brighter headlights
- Thread starter Fenman
- Start date
Eurovettes
Supporting vendor
put 100w bulbs in 9006/ 9005 for USA spec and H4 100/80 for export, there are other eagle eye conversion out there but remember these are for the US market and may not be brilliant ( !!) for Uk rhd - keef@eurovettes,com for more cost info
97BlackC5
CCCUK Member
I've been looking at changing headlight bulbs on my C5 (again), in particular Osram Night Breaker bulbs. When looking on their web page there are lots of different 'Night Breaker' bulbs H4, H7 etc. My question is does it matter whether or not I buy H4 or H7 bulbs? Is there an optimal bulb in their range for the C5 Corvette?
BobbyV8
CCCUK Member
I put these in mine which made a big difference:
www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk
Also make sure your headlights are for left hand road use and not euro right hand road use.
H4 Philips RacingVision GT200 12V 60/55W Halogen Bulbs (Pair)
H4 headlight bulbs from Philips boasting 200% more light, H4 Philips RacingVision GT200 headlight bulbs will make a real difference on the road.
plastic orange
CCCUK Member
I'm looking forward to your results as first time at night in my recently acquired C5 I had to get out of the car to verify they were on. They are about the worst headlights on any car I've had in 50 years - matching the original 5 3/4 inch ones fitted to my 1950 Morris Minor. I consider them quite dangerous on country roads as they completely miss the verge on right turns.
Pete
Pete
BobbyV8
CCCUK Member
That's how mine were Pete. I think candles would have been better
. I'm not saying they're now brilliant with these new bulbs but soo much better than they were.Bob
plastic orange
CCCUK Member
When I bought my Corvette I was told it was a UK model, but since checking the info in the glove locker it appears it's euro spec, being imported into Belgium. I'll have to inspect the headlights to see what they actually are.
Pete
Pete
BobbyV8
CCCUK Member
If you look on top of the headlight unit there should be a sticker on it. T84 is euro spec and T85 is for UK.
plastic orange
CCCUK Member
I've ordered a pair of the phillips bulbs and will hopefully see an improvement. My lights are marked E13 which i believe is europe, but better bulbs should enhance the night experience.
Pete
Pete
Stingray
CCCUK Member
Oh the joy of C5 headlamps.
You'll probably need a new set of blanking plugs that go in the side of the pod housing and prevent the lamps illuminating your hood better than they illuminate the road. C5 99L-04 CORVETTE HEADLIGHT ADJUSTMENT BEZEL ACCESS PLUG CAP COVER | eBay
Part of the problem with headlamps in all these cars is they're so close to the road surface and trying to illuminate things from a very shallow angle. By the same token there's a real risk that all overbright bulbs will achieve is to dazzle oncoming drivers.
You'll probably need a new set of blanking plugs that go in the side of the pod housing and prevent the lamps illuminating your hood better than they illuminate the road. C5 99L-04 CORVETTE HEADLIGHT ADJUSTMENT BEZEL ACCESS PLUG CAP COVER | eBay
Part of the problem with headlamps in all these cars is they're so close to the road surface and trying to illuminate things from a very shallow angle. By the same token there's a real risk that all overbright bulbs will achieve is to dazzle oncoming drivers.
plastic orange
CCCUK Member
I'm well used to low headlights. Both my V8 Morris Minors are the lowlight variety and have low slung 5 3/4 inch headlights with halogen conversions and they work great. Original fitment pre focus bulbs were similar to what I'm experiencing with the Corvette.
Pete
Pete
97BlackC5
CCCUK Member
So.........
Fitted the new bulbs yesterday, here is a quick explanation of how I did it but first a 'before' picture:
OEM bulbs:
OEM full beam:
My car is a Euro spec car & there is only one bulb that goes into the head light (I have seen some US Youtube videos where they talk about 2 bulbs).
First I removed the plastic surround by undoing 3 screws one on the outside & two on the inside of the light.
- outside screw
- inside front screw the third screw is just at the back of the light obscured as I have the bonnet raised.
Once the screws are out holding the sides of the plastic surround, pull it forward & downwards to remove it, there is a clip on the underside of the headlight lid that the plastic surround slide s into, it has a groove to fit.
- clip in underside of headlight flap.
- plastic surround with slit that slides into clip.
I then was able to reach behind the light & just pull off the connector for the bulb. I then had to remove a rubber gaiter from the back of the light, there to protect the back of the light / bulb from debris.
- rubber gaiter
The bulb is held in place by a sprung clip which you need to unclip before you are able to remove the bulb. Once this is unclipped the the bulb will slide out.
- Old bulb on left replacement new bulb on right.
- Drivers side new, passenger side old.
When refitting the bulbs they have 3 tabs that need to seat correctly before the sprung catch will be able to be fastened, be aware that one of the 3 tabs is slightly bigger than the other 2 so it might take a bit of fiddling to get the bulb seated correctly.
After pictures:
- full beam
In conclusion.......
I was hoping for a better result than I got, saying that the road I used to test the lights was a farm track with almost no lighting at all. I was out last night in the car on motorways etc & in real world driving I think they are an improvement. I guess if you want much better then you probably need to swap out the lamps for LED's, but that is a whole different ball game.
Fitted the new bulbs yesterday, here is a quick explanation of how I did it but first a 'before' picture:
OEM bulbs:
OEM full beam:
My car is a Euro spec car & there is only one bulb that goes into the head light (I have seen some US Youtube videos where they talk about 2 bulbs).
First I removed the plastic surround by undoing 3 screws one on the outside & two on the inside of the light.
Once the screws are out holding the sides of the plastic surround, pull it forward & downwards to remove it, there is a clip on the underside of the headlight lid that the plastic surround slide s into, it has a groove to fit.
I then was able to reach behind the light & just pull off the connector for the bulb. I then had to remove a rubber gaiter from the back of the light, there to protect the back of the light / bulb from debris.
The bulb is held in place by a sprung clip which you need to unclip before you are able to remove the bulb. Once this is unclipped the the bulb will slide out.
When refitting the bulbs they have 3 tabs that need to seat correctly before the sprung catch will be able to be fastened, be aware that one of the 3 tabs is slightly bigger than the other 2 so it might take a bit of fiddling to get the bulb seated correctly.
After pictures:
In conclusion.......
I was hoping for a better result than I got, saying that the road I used to test the lights was a farm track with almost no lighting at all. I was out last night in the car on motorways etc & in real world driving I think they are an improvement. I guess if you want much better then you probably need to swap out the lamps for LED's, but that is a whole different ball game.