Driving at night - Dipped beam - Horrific!

[Big Sheep]

The dipped beam on my vRS was terrible, in fact I would go as far to say dangerous as originally supplied. Fitting Phillips Extremes and raising the beam height sorted it out. The message needs to get back to Skoda that supplying cars like this simply won't do. The generic customer satisfaction surveys they send out with loads of irrelevant multi choice questions and answers are no good for getting the real issues across to them (oil consumption and interior rattles being the other big gripes!!).

[mrgf]

I GOT NIGHTBREAKER GOLDS, FROM EURO CAR PARTS, they do them for about £14 when they have a sale, otherwise, CAR PARTS 4 LESS tend to be good. My daughter told me one of my lights seem brighter then the other so i guess one of the lamps has been set high, or low, depending on your viewpoint! (Mine, low, driver in front, high)! I find these bulbs to be as good as most. Brightness will not alter beam length much, though as this is mostly determined by the lens of the lamp!

[Furbytom]

Agree the vRS lights are horrible and verge on the dangerous. I've upgraded our bulbs too but the wife still borders on refusing to drive it at night...... Not cool skoda :-(

[Sparkly]

a man stands at the entrance of a cave

Echo

Both friends and me find the Phillips blue bulbs look nice outside the car but are weak from a vision stand point in night driving.

I have the limited edition Osram Night Breaker Gold and they weren't exactly expensive but the Osram's are a great bulb for me.

Echo echo

Osram have a Nightbreaker Plus (Gold) Limited Edition now, reported to be an improvement over the "Plus".

Echo echo echo, lol

I GOT NIGHTBREAKER GOLDS, FROM EURO CAR PARTS, they do them for about £14 when they have a sale, otherwise, CAR PARTS 4 LESS tend to be good. My daughter told me one of my lights seem brighter then the other so i guess one of the lamps has been set high, or low, depending on your viewpoint! (Mine, low, driver in front, high)! I find these bulbs to be as good as most. Brightness will not alter beam length much, though as this is mostly determined by the lens of the lamp!

......sorry, for those who haven't noticed already, I'm a bit of a knob.

[Brimma]

......sorry, for those who haven't noticed already, I'm a bit of a knob.

 

 

 

 

Had to be done   

[Sparkly]

Had to be done

Well played sir

[Brimma]

Well played sir

 

And I tried so hard not to  

[SytekSam]

I've got two pairs of Osram Night Breaker Plus Gold Limited Editions on order for my Fab (which has the "projector" headlamps).  I shall fit them, adjust the beams and see!

Hope so, anyway.

 

Was there ever a more long-winded name for a light bulb?

[jonro2009]

Aren't there only one set of H7 required for the projector lamps? It's a shutter system on the DE modules.

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Tapatalk 4

[Big Sheep]

I notice that Euro Car Parts are currently running an offer on a Xenon conversion kit

http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/p/car-accessories/car-accessories-products/lighting-accessories/xenon-conversion-kits/?971775285&0&1&cc5_774

Would the car get through an MOT with this and is 8000k a suitable colour temperature choice?

Has anyone experienced error problems with a Xenon conversion? (CANBUS kits are available to address flickering issues or headlight errors).

[R4zb3rry]

I'd say that 8000k is too blue for road use.

Legality wise MOT guide from DVLA states that self levelling and headlight washers may be present with HID and if they are present they must operate.

Ireland is different I believe and insists they are present.

[vRSgone]

I can only agree with you. I too have swapped the OEM bulbs for Philips Xtreme without any real improvement. The last time I had a car with headlights this bad was on a 1952 Triumph TR2. For a so called performance car, the brightness and "reach" of the beam is disgusting. Surely this can't be legal? Isn't there a minimum performance requirement for headlights?

Against all advice (including thatfrom the Skoda dealer I bought the car off), I have converted to HID (Xenons). Now the brightness is much better, but the beam itself is no better. I put it down to the design of the projector headlights, which apparently uses a mechanical shutter, to "mask" part of the main beam when its in its dipped mode.

I have got to say I have no confidence at all when driving at night. I am aware that, probably due to my age, I do have night vision problems, but I don't have any problem driving my wife's Clio, which also has projector headlamps, but separate bulbs for dipped & main.

If any seasoned Fabia owner can offer any further advice, apart from bolting a pair of 6inch spotlights on the front. I am tempted!

[jonro2009]

8000K is a noticeably blue light, the standard colour temp for HID is 6000k, that is very much like OEM HID bulbs.

 

I have an excellent kit on my 2013 Fabia and the light output is more intense and the road is better lit but I would not say it enhances the reach or beam pattern until full beam is activated and, as stated above, the 'shutter' is lifted. The DE headlight IMO is fundamentally flawed, separate bulbs would be better. 

 

Legally, IF washers and self levellers are present then they MUST be in working order. If they are not present and never have been it will pass an MOT....checked this with 2 different testing bays. 

 

After I fitted mine, which is simple, I took the car off to the testing station and had the levels checked......way off from when it rolled off the ferry!!

 

The kit has made a difference and for me it has been well worth it, I work shifts and the majority of my driving is late at night and early mornings in the dark on quiet unlit A roads where I can use my main beam most of the time. 

 

6000K have a slight blue tinge, 4000K are more 'true' white and 8000K are actually described as purple in many reviews which is not natural for the eye and may give you problems with reflection on road signs. 

 

http://www.car-mod-shop.co.uk/35wcanh7-6k-h7-xenon-hid-conversion-kit-canbus-6000k.html This set has worked for me and should be ok on 2004> models but I cannot be held responsible if not  :think: 

[Sparkly]

Aah, I just realised, and therefore thought I should mention.

Given that this poor beam issue may relate to the shutter system for full and dipped beam.......

My 2010 vRS has two sets of H7 and no shutter system, the light from my bulbs was naff but I hadn't thought the spread or reach of my beam was all that bad.

Think depending which headlights you have my 2010 oldies or the newer monte set up this thread will mean different things to you.

Older models might see a fix from new bulbs, new version might just be a bad system.

Can anyone with the new system confirm if you have the little adjustment wheel to the right of the steering wheel on the dash near the light on/off switch that allows you to lower/adjust the beam for having a fully laden vehicule and what difference adjusting this makes. On my car 0 is fine, I assume noone is driving around with this on the lowest setting.

[R4zb3rry]

Aah, I just realised, and therefore thought I should mention.

Can anyone with the new system confirm if you have the little adjustment wheel to the right of the steering wheel on the dash near the light on/off switch that allows you to lower/adjust the beam for having a fully laden vehicule and what difference adjusting this makes. On my car 0 is fine, I assume noone is driving around with this on the lowest setting.

Just thinking the same, my 13 plate has the wheel and with it set to -/0 the beam length is ok, brightness of the bulbs could be improved no doubt however.

[Big Sheep]

http://www.car-mod-shop.co.uk/35wcanh7-6k-h7-xenon-hid-conversion-kit-canbus-6000k.html This set has worked for me and should be ok on 2004> models but I cannot be held responsible if not  :think: 

 

This looks like a good choice but I may be tempted to go for 5000k for a whiter light and higher lumens.

The other question is a 35W or 55W kit?

[jonro2009]

This looks like a good choice but I may be tempted to go for 5000k for a whiter light and higher lumens.

The other question is a 35W or 55W kit?

I emailed the guy, James, at Car Mod Shop and spoke to him on the phone before buying and asked his advice on the 35W or 55W variations. His advice was to go for the 35W as they had no problems with the CANBUS system where the 55W occasionally caused some 'issues' 

 

Delivery was within 48 hrs and free. Packaged well. The first time I fitted them I got a bit stuck....no idea how as they are simple but it was about 5 years ago in my Megane RS so I rang him up and he talked me through the error of my ways so I cant fault their service and knowledge and trust they are less likely to screw me over than flea bay.

[GLENT54321]

Aah, I just realised, and therefore thought I should mention.

Given that this poor beam issue may relate to the shutter system for full and dipped beam.......

My 2010 vRS has two sets of H7 and no shutter system, the light from my bulbs was naff but I hadn't thought the spread or reach of my beam was all that bad.

Think depending which headlights you have my 2010 oldies or the newer monte set up this thread will mean different things to you.

Older models might see a fix from new bulbs, new version might just be a bad system.

Can anyone with the new system confirm if you have the little adjustment wheel to the right of the steering wheel on the dash near the light on/off switch that allows you to lower/adjust the beam for having a fully laden vehicule and what difference adjusting this makes. On my car 0 is fine, I assume noone is driving around with this on the lowest setting.

 

Ye, i have this wheel and its set at '0'. chaning it to 1,2 or 3 just brings the light closer to the car, to allow for towing and extra weight etc.

[vRSgone]

I have converted to after market Xenons (from HIDS DIRECT). I was advised to go for 5000K bulbs, which I find are greeny blue in colour, & I wish now I had gone for 4300K, which apparently are nearer to conventional halogens in colour.

One other problem I have noticed, is that the headlight flasher is slow to respond. I only noticed this when flashing people to proceed & they took no notice. I presume this is because the xenon bulbs do not instantly illuminate? Also for some strange reason the light output from the drivers side headlamp is brighter than that of the nearside - to quite a noticeable degree. Maybe I have a faulty bulb or electronic module? Now that the dark nights are coming fast I am seriously thinking of replacing my Fabia vrs for a car with some decent headlights. A shame really because in all other respects it's a great car. THERE MUST BE AN ANSWER TO THIS PROBLEM SOMEWHERE?

[XK140]

Lot of stuff written on here already so I'll keep it simple.

Leaving the Hid conversion aside for the more adventurous,this is the way to go.

Fit a new pair of uprated bulbs,the best you can find,so-called 90/100% uprated.

Then adjust the range upwards by your own judgement and trial and error,easy enough to do via the two adjusters.

Don't worry about garage beam setters,not necessary,if they are a bit too high fine tune them down via the dash adjuster so they don't dazzle other road users.

You will then have headlights that have gone from poor to adequate and are no longer any great issue.

That's it.

[jim157]

That is the main drawback to hid's, they take a second or so to 'warm up' and reach operational brightness.  Hence they dont work in a flashing capacity; unfortunately this can also apparently shorten the life of them too.

Edited 9 October, 2013 by jim157

[Big Sheep]

Lot of stuff written on here already so I'll keep it simple.

Leaving the Hid conversion aside for the more adventurous,this is the way to go.

Fit a new pair of uprated bulbs,the best you can find,so-called 90/100% uprated.

Then adjust the range upwards by your own judgement and trial and error,easy enough to do via the two adjusters.

Don't worry about garage beam setters,not necessary,if they are a bit too high fine tune them down via the dash adjuster so they don't dazzle other road users.

You will then have headlights that have gone from poor to adequate and are no longer any great issue.

That's it.

 

Totally agree and well said. This is where I am at the moment and as such the lights are not so bad.

 

However for some us it would be good to go from 'adequate' to better for more confidence inspiring night time driving. I'm currently weighing up the pros and cons of HID conversions.

[Brimma]

 

One other problem I have noticed, is that the headlight flasher is slow to respond. I only noticed this when flashing people to proceed & they took no notice. I presume this is because the xenon bulbs do not instantly illuminate?

 

Simple

 

Don't flash 'em  

 

You're clearly a far too well-mannered driver, just treat every car as if it's a BMW  

[R4zb3rry]

Lot of stuff written on here already so I'll keep it simple.

Leaving the Hid conversion aside for the more adventurous,this is the way to go.

Fit a new pair of uprated bulbs,the best you can find,so-called 90/100% uprated.

Then adjust the range upwards by your own judgement and trial and error,easy enough to do via the two adjusters.

Don't worry about garage beam setters,not necessary,if they are a bit too high fine tune them down via the dash adjuster so they don't dazzle other road users.

You will then have headlights that have gone from poor to adequate and are no longer any great issue.

That's it.

What are using to gauge the range adjustment?

Is there a set pattern to work to at a certain distance from a fixed object, wall etc?

[Big Sheep]

What are using to gauge the range adjustment?

Is there a set pattern to work to at a certain distance from a fixed object, wall etc?

 

What I did was park a set distance away from my garage door and then marked the original position (top of pattern) with a bit of tape. This gives a reference starting point that you can always return to. You can then raise the beam by a few half turns using the adjusting screw on the light housing noting how far up the door it goes without over doing it. Take it out for a drive. If you have over done it you will soon get flashed, in which case use the headlight adjuster on the dash to bring it back down until you get home and can lower the beam setting a tad. I soon got a noticable improvement in dipped beam range without upsetting oncoming traffic.