Replacement headlights: What did you do??

[01GT eibach]

On my '01, I have already taken the cleaning thing as far as I could. It is time for replacement. I am looking at getting the same OEM smoked housings I have now with some new Silver Star bulbs. Is this a good idea, or do you have a better suggestion for me? What did you do?

 

[nyuk98gt]

01GT_eibach:

I am a fan of Cobra headlights because they have clear lenses. Smoked lenses are OK but I suggest that you go for the maximum illumination you can get (hence, unsmoked lenses). The SilverStars are good bulbs so you can't go wrong there.

HTH,

Chris

 

[Sonic04GT]

Check out the headlight thread over in 4.6 Talk. Some good suggestions in there.

 

[01GT eibach]

... I am a fan of Cobra headlights because they have clear lenses. Smoked lenses are OK ...

We are talking the same thing. I was referring to the housing color and not the lenses. I would never do anything but clear lenses. Smoked lenses look great, but they are not as functional as I would like either. Thanks for the input.

 

[Deleted member 38176]

01GT_eibach:

I am a fan of Cobra headlights because they have clear lenses. Smoked lenses are OK but I suggest that you go for the maximum illumination you can get (hence, unsmoked lenses). The SilverStars are good bulbs so you can't go wrong there.

HTH,

Chris

FYI, on the "smoked" headlights, the reflective background inside the headlight is what's "smoked". The actual lenses themselves aren't tinted or smoked.

 

[nyuk98gt]

Nightfire & 01GT_eibach:

Well, here's another moment of "DOH!" on my part. All this time I was thinking that "smoked headlights" were like smoked tail lights: the lenses are smoked. Apparently, they're not. Thanks for putting me on the path of enlightenment.

Regards,

Chris

 

[GDawg]

Nightfire & 01GT_eibach:

Well, here's another moment of "DOH!" on my part. All this time I was thinking that "smoked headlights" were like smoked tail lights: the lenses are smoked. Apparently, they're not. Thanks for putting me on the path of enlightenment.

Regards,

Chris

I have smoked headlights too. It's the reflectors that are smoked. I'm getting ready to throw the Sylvania Silverlights in. We'll see what they do before I go to HIDs.

 

[fiveoho]

shy away from DEPO brand lights. i bought a set of oem replacement 01+ style headlights and i can throw a cat between the front fender and the rubber stripping on the light assembly

 

[01GT eibach]

Thanks for all the great info!

 

[ItsStock02]

Dont even waste your money on Silverstars. Last time I bought them, they were $20 a piece. For $35 you can get your hid kit and be done with it.

A bulb cannot be brighter if its the same wattage.

 

['03GTinFLA]

I hear what your saying about the wattage but Silverstar's where definitely brighter than OEM. Then I bought HID's and they were night and day better than Silverstar's. I have smoked headlights, from American Muscle and as stated above, they have that gap at the top of the light on the fender side. It always collects wax and bugs the hell out of me. Other than that, I love the smoked with HID's.

 

[cstires]

Where are you guys getting your HID's from? I've been contemplating doing this...

Thx

 

[Twete]

Where are you guys getting your HID's from? I've been contemplating doing this...

Thx

I bought mine from stangmods.com (8000K Dual Intensity)
I have had a few small issues tho, namely the ground wire connectors supplied with the wiring harness. Its a simple fix tho!

 

[03_TrueBlue_GT]

DDM Tuning sells some good HID kits, thats where I bought mine from...

 

[40oz]

Dont even waste your money on Silverstars. Last time I bought them, they were $20 a piece. For $35 you can get your hid kit and be done with it.

A bulb cannot be brighter if its the same wattage.

Yes it can if it has a more useful spectrum of light. You could have 55 watt red bulbs in your headlights and not see squat at night. Put 55 watt clear bulbs in there and you see whole lot more.

I don't really see the attraction of HID bulbs stuffing into a halogen bulb housing. Are the HID bulbs the same shape? Is the light pattern from the bulb itself the same as a filament halogen bulb?

HID is great if the headlight is designed for it, but if it isn't, you're just misapplying the technology and wasting a lot of light and pissing off every other driver on the road.

And I like my car. I'm not sure a $35 Chinese HID kit includes a fire extinguishing system when it shorts my wiring and/or overheats. Ever drive ten hours at night with your brights on? Do you even have brights?

I'm not knocking the kits, I just don't see how you can get OEM quality ballasts and bulbs and have it designed to fit a halogen bulb reflector housing for less than the price of a couple of replacement bulbs.

 

[BillyT903]

 

[Rejekt]

I bought my smoked ones from this seller on Ebay

http://stores.ebay.com/headlightswholesale

The price was great. The shipping was fast and they fit perfectly. He even threw in a set of bulbs.

It was like $80 with free shipping.

 

[Rejekt]

Here's mine after about a year.

No discoloration at all and sealed perfect.

 

[01GT eibach]

Well, they have been purchased ... I went with '01-04 OEM-looking headlight assemblies (smoked housing with clear lenses) with Sylvania SilverStart Ultra bulbs. They go in next week.

Thanks for all the help.

 

[PULMEOVR]

Do they have the clear corners? If so, please let me know how they are & the fit and finish. I'm also looking for a quality set.