LED Headlights

[Ken2869]

Hello everyone I am wondering would it be possible to change the halogen H7 headlight bulbs to LED headlight bulbs as my friend recently changed his H7 bulbs to LED headlights and says it makes a great improvement for seeing at night that he doesn’t even need to use his high beams as much, here is the link he sent me for the ones he bought: https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F183894845000

 

also would anyone have tips on getting the sidelights out as they’re hard to reach especially the sidelight near the battery near impossible to reach it. 
 

Thanks

[KenONeill]

12 hours ago, Ken2869 said:

would it be possible to change the halogen H7 headlight bulbs to LED headlight bulbs

Well, it's illegal, and a certain MoT failure when/if the tester notices.

[mrgf]

I have never had an issue with LED's as far as an MOT goes but I have had a few give up the ghost quite quickly (Less than a year) so if he recommends that brand, go for it! You will almost certainly find them cheaper though but be sure they are the genuine article and not a fake "Copy" of this brand. Let us know if you found them bright. 

As for the sidelights, I use a pick tool, from a set from eBay that look like a sort of screwdriver, with a pointy head and not a screwdriver blade. They usually come in a pack of four, with a straight one, an others with bends. A bent one at say, a right angle or sharper, will go inside the bulb recess and you can latch on to the bulb holder and gently tease it out.Be careful not to pull just on the wires as you may break one but others have said they seem tough enough to pull. (I wouldn't trust it, myself).

 

The very first time you change one, the holder is very tight as the fitting was most likely fitted prior to assembly and pushed in hard. On re-fitting, push in firmly enough for the holder to stay put but not too hard to make further changing difficult all over again. I can now change my off side one by hand after a few goes and find it slightly easier if you remove the signal indicator first so as to have just a little more space to work. (Did mine this morning). It IS a job for small nimble fingers, really. A bunch of bananas will have great difficulty here! Battery (nearside) side, you could always remove the battery but on the offside, I have heard of the suggestion of removing the (Diesel) Fuel filter. Unnecessary and more work then the bulb holder! 

 

I am referring to my variant here, Fabia 2 pre-facelift with projector headlights with the flappy-motor-thingy to go from dipped to full beam. You may have the reflector headlight but I think its a similar job.

Edited 11 February, 2020 by mrgf

[Ken2869]

2 hours ago, mrgf said:

I have never had an issue with LED's as far as an MOT goes but I have had a few give up the ghost quite quickly (Less than a year) so if he recommends that brand, go for it! You will almost certainly find them cheaper though but be sure they are the genuine article and not a fake "Copy" of this brand. Let us know if you found them bright. 

As for the sidelights, I use a pick tool, from a set from eBay that look like a sort of screwdriver, with a pointy head and not a screwdriver blade. They usually come in a pack of four, with a straight one, an others with bends. A bent one at say, a right angle or sharper, will go inside the bulb recess and you can latch on to the bulb holder and gently tease it out.Be careful not to pull just on the wires as you may break one but others have said they seem tough enough to pull. (I wouldn't trust it, myself).

 

The very first time you change one, the holder is very tight as the fitting was most likely fitted prior to assembly and pushed in hard. On re-fitting, push in firmly enough for the holder to stay put but not too hard to make further changing difficult all over again. I can now change my off side one by hand after a few goes and find it slightly easier if you remove the signal indicator first so as to have just a little more space to work. (Did mine this morning). It IS a job for small nimble fingers, really. A bunch of bananas will have great difficulty here! Battery (nearside) side, you could always remove the battery but on the offside, I have heard of the suggestion of removing the (Diesel) Fuel filter. Unnecessary and more work then the bulb holder! 

 

I am referring to my variant here, Fabia 2 pre-facelift with projector headlights with the flappy-motor-thingy to go from dipped to full beam. You may have the reflector headlight but I think its a similar job.

I’ve ordered them hopefully arriving on Thursday I’ll let you know if they’re any good and thanks for the tips on changing the side lights  I’ll also have a look into these pick tools.

[Ken2869]

Got the LED headlights onto the car at first the black ring that is suppose to go over the headlight socket didn’t fit so I basically pushed the LED light into the socket then tucked away the leads then put the rubber cap over the lights, so the rubber cap is acting like a holder keeping the lights pushed in then took it for a bumpy drive to ensure the lights wouldn’t jiggle or move to which they didn’t and boy they do make a huge improvement to seeing at night barely  need to use the full beams.

[Madvlad65]

Was thinking of upgrading my lights as well can you post any pictures

[Ken2869]

1 hour ago, Madvlad65 said:

Was thinking of upgrading my lights as well can you post any pictures

Yea I’ll post some pictures soon as I’m at work but definitely worth the investment. 

[Emaharg]

Using the above link, it does say that the bulbs don't fit my 2010 Fabia Estate. Shame as they look very good.

[Ken2869]

41 minutes ago, Emaharg said:

Using the above link, it does say that the bulbs don't fit my 2010 Fabia Estate. Shame as they look very good.

Yea it said the same for me, technically they don’t but it 100% works look at the photos below 

[Ken2869]

The black rubber cap basically just keeps the LED lights pushed into the head light socket. I’ll add some picture of me using it in the dark tonight.

Edited 17 February, 2020 by Ken2869

[Bertie90]

What's the beam pattern like? Did you get a chance to look at the headlights from a distance to see if they are dazzling? 

[Ken2869]

1 hour ago, Bertie90 said:

What's the beam pattern like? Did you get a chance to look at the headlights from a distance to see if they are dazzling? 

Not yet but I keep the lights positioned between 2-3 on the headlight level dial to ensure it doesn’t point too high towards other drivers 

[UrbanPanzer]

56 minutes ago, Ken2869 said:

Not yet but I keep the lights positioned between 2-3 on the headlight level dial to ensure it doesn’t point too high towards other drivers 

 

I don't see the point of upgrading the lights and then winding them down, you'll lose any benefit, it will just be brighter right in front of the car.

 

You really would be best to take it to a garage and A) see what the pattern is like (if any)  and B....set them correctly on the 0 setting

 

PS  make sure that heatsink does not get to hot and melt the rubber cover, could be a fire risk.... Does the clip not fit to retain the bulb ?

Edited 17 February, 2020 by UrbanPanzer

[Ken2869]

34 minutes ago, UrbanPanzer said:

 

I don't see the point of upgrading the lights and then winding them down, you'll lose any benefit, it will just be brighter right in front of the car.

 

You really would be best to take it to a garage and A) see what the pattern is like (if any)  and B....set them correctly on the 0 setting

 

PS  make sure that heatsink does not get to hot and melt the rubber cover, could be a fire risk.... Does the clip not fit to retain the bulb ?

I would’ve still kept my halogen lights at a 2-3 around towns and city’s as theirs adequate lighting already but once I go to the back roads / dual carriageways etc where there are no street lights then I’ll point the lights back up to 0 and I’ve poked tiny needle holes on the light caps to help with ventilation and yea unfortunately the black clip won’t stick to the light so the rubber cap just keeps it pushed in place.

[silver1011]

LED's are not designed to work in headlights with projectors or reflectors, this is why there aren't any road legal versions approved for use in the UK.

 

The light scatter will be uncontrollable and very unpleasant for other road users.

 

The benefit of you not having to use main beam as much, is to everyone else's disadvantage.

[Bertie90]

I was also going to say, if the heatsink is touching the rubber, it might end up melting it (possible fire). You/we don't know how hot this gets. Ideally you would poke it through the outside of the cap. I know you drilled holes for some air, but you might end up with steamed headlights. It might be all ok and we are overthinking everything. Good luck 👍

[mrgf]

I got a set of domed rubber caps just to help the fans work better and prevent this. They are like older cars, domed caps made of slightly softer rubber but they stay further away from the bulb, giving a larger area to cool. I think even then, the LED's seem cooler then halogen filament bulbs anyway!