[drbass]

Hi all,

Probably more technical so I put it in here.

Being generally extremely happy and impressed with our Eos after 2 weeks (more detailed report to follow) there's one thing that is somewhat dissapointing: the lights, similar to the ones in my Passat, are not quite there.

In the Passat I replaced both low and high beam with Philips X-treme Power. Interesting bulbs. The low beam does not really "illuminate" the road however there's a lot of light happening: any reflecting surfaces like road signs or cats eyes are visible at extreme distances. So the light is there, it's just a little "understated", for the lack of a better description - hope this makes sense. The high beam is simply outstanding compared to the original ones.

Since the Eos is driven mostly in suburbia (I'm doing some limited "country driving in the Passat) I was thinking of getting the BlueVision for the low beam which are supposed to provide a very visible beam, and the X-tremes for the high beam.

Has anyone tried this combination, or is anyone able to provide some feedback on the BlueVision?

Thanks,
Michael

 

[Grosvw]

I found the same, that the standard lights - dipped beam particularily - to be very poor. I have tried most of the standard 'premium' bulbs but wasnt really satisfied. I now use Piaa Extreme White Plus bulbs H7's. They give a cleaner white light and are rated at 110 watts (Standard are rated at 55w) They are also street legal, use less power and a whole lot cheaper than a HID conversion - though more expensive than the standard premium bulbs. Hope it helps. Wendell

 

[drbass]

Wow, had given up all hope to get any reply at all.

Not 100% sure but I don't think you can substitute higher wattage bulbs here in Australia. I noticed that Phillips have the BlueVision in two versions (standard wattage, and slightly higher wattage) but offer only the standard version here in Oz.

Anyway, I have since replaced the low beam bulbs with the BlueVision (standard). There is some improvement but it's not mindboggling by any means. Due to the increased "whiteness" of the light illumination appears to be subjectively better.

However, I now find that even in the highest possible position the beams seem to finish far too close to the vehicle, something that wasn't obvious before. Might have them adjusted slightly up at the first service, it's always possible to lower them with the dial on the dashboard.

I've left the high beams alone for now, seems to be sufficient since we hardly do any night driving in the country.

Seeya,
Michael

 

[silvershadow]

Wow, had given up all hope to get any reply at all.

Not 100% sure but I don't think you can substitute higher wattage bulbs here in Australia. I noticed that Phillips have the BlueVision in two versions (standard wattage, and slightly higher wattage) but offer only the standard version here in Oz.

.............................................................................................

I've left the high beams alone for now, seems to be sufficient since we hardly do any night driving in the country.

Seeya,
Michael

Hi Michael,

You are correct about changing the wattage of light globes due to the ADR regulations however there is an "out" as these rules only apply to normal road use - they do not apply to off-road use so head to your nearest 4WD specialist who will have bulbs to suit your needs. I raised this problem on another VW forum and received advice that high-power globes might affect the vehicle electronics as the electonics monitor the lights.

I have not had time to play with my partner's Eos yet due to other demands on my time however almost all our driving is on country roads and the wildlife score is Eos 1, Kangaroos 0 as my partner hit one not long after she got the car as she did not see it on the side of the road. The roo was small and went under the car without doing any structural damage - of course, I was given the responsibility for cleaning the assorted remains from the underside of the car.

Kind regards
David

 

[Ray W]

When you find out about the electrics could you please post the results as i would like to try this rather than go to the expensive Xenon

 

[drbass]

Hi David,

No intention of taking the Eos offroad .

I am quite happy with the lights as it is now - not ideal but better than before. Definitely not worth playing around and "messing up" the electronics. It may or may not be an issue but if and when it is I imagine it's nothing but hassle involving a visit to the service department etc. etc.

Ray, not sure where you're located but putting in aftermarket xenons is not legal in Australia, as far as I know. I have the Philips Extreme in our Passat - they output more light but it's not as white as the BlueVision. You may find they're sufficient and might be quite useful for you as well, David.

Hope this is helpful.

Seeya,
Michael

Edit:
Just saw that Ray is in Qld - I have to agree with the comments in the "New Buyer" thread: If you do lots of out-of-town driving get the Bixenons. Using higher wattage or higher output bulbs will only get you so far. Worth the investment.

Edit 2:

There's a very useful summary regarding aftermarket (bi)-xenons in this thread over at VWWatercooled (if I may link):
http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/newforum/upload/showthread.php?t=32179

 

[Darren]

I found the same, that the standard lights - dipped beam particularily - to be very poor. I have tried most of the standard 'premium' bulbs but wasnt really satisfied. I now use Piaa Extreme White Plus bulbs H7's. They give a cleaner white light and are rated at 110 watts (Standard are rated at 55w) They are also street legal, use less power and a whole lot cheaper than a HID conversion - though more expensive than the standard premium bulbs. Hope it helps. Wendell

Curious about these PIAA bulbs, I did a search and found this at Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/PIAA-17655-XT...BVUA/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1248987262&sr=8-4

The write up says they are 110 watts of power using only 55w consumption. So basically they would not change the power consumption over normal and thus should work fine without electronics problems, right. Looks like they're priced at about $75 for the pair (US)

 

[drbass]

Hi Darren,

They look interesting. I would say the Philips X-tremes are quite similar (and I'm happy with them) claiming 80% more light output for the same wattage.

Of course they won't last as long as standard bulbs.

Seeya,
Michael

 

[Patti&George]

Caution when upgrading lights

White and blue give great "clear air" visibility....but once it starts raining the light is reflected back on every raindrop.
Yellow does not exhibit this same characteristic due to the wavelength and in rain and fog is when you need it the most.
Its a fine line to walk for legal long range visibility and inclimate weather visibility.
I tried many combinations on my jeep but found the best method was to install aux lighting.

 

[GTiceman]

PIAA bulbs are great for those who do not want to do an HID upgrade or full oem retro. A buddy of mine had them on his RSX and they lasted forever and put out a great white light. as Patti&George said, yellow is a great color for foggy conditions. This is why a lot of JDM automakers use that color in their fogs.

I am considering an HID fog upgrade with 2500k bulbs to give me the yellow output as well as either a full oem hid retro or just an hid kit into the oem projectors, about a 6000k bulb temperature, to give off a very pure white color. If I just go the bulb route I am doing a 35w kit to keep headlight temperatures down. Its $160 for the HID kit or $2500 for the full retro kit, kinda a sucker for autoleveling and adaptive lighting.

It's illegal to do aftermarket HIDs in the US if it isn't a factory option, but with some halogen bulbs being close to HID output, unless you buy the ugly purple or full blue color, its hard for the po-po to get you, especially with stock projectors.

 

[ThomasNJ]

How much are we talking about?

Does anyone knows how much $ exactly the OEM AFS(wisher, leveling and cornering) kit cost? And how long (for labor) to install?

 

[GTiceman]

Does anyone knows how much $ exactly the OEM AFS(wisher, leveling and cornering) kit cost? And how long (for labor) to install?

$2500 from oemplus for the housing, bulb and ballast, and the sensors i believe

labor, i dk of any dealers that will install it but you a vag-com to reprogram the car to know it has the bi-xenons

 

[ThomasNJ]

Thanks the info, I now know where to get it.
Sorry not quiet understand the second sentence....

labor, i dk of any dealers that will install it but you a vag-com to reprogram the car to know it has the bi-xenons

Does it means that I need to go ask a VW dealer because it involves the ECU reprogramming, so the price may vary. Right?

Thanks again

 

[GTiceman]

wow sorry, typed that way too fast. You need to reprogram the car, yes, to enable xenons and that way the DRLs activate the xenons at 100%. I see SJ as your location and I can tell you that if you got to Prestige in Turnersville they wanted $99 to reprogram my DRLs to 100%, said they didn't know anything about making them the fogs.

I can't speak anything about the install of the new lights themselves, some dealers won't do work like that because they don't want to be liable.

I plan on doing just xenon bulbs and ballasts and maybe buying a Ross-Tech Vag-Com unit so I can program the way I want whenever I want

 

[ThomasNJ]

Thank you so much for the information. I noticed that you are from Philly, which is about 30 minutes away from me.
I'm currently is hunting an EOS either used or new, and found a 07 3.2L online, looks very good, but has no Bi-Xenon, nor GPS. So I was judging that how much money I should put in if I going to install it after I buy it, or be patient wait for another one that has it, AND, also in a good condition and low price..... Ha Ha Ha.... fat chance....huh.......

Anyway, Thanks for the info, we shall get together sometime after I got my eos and exchange the homework/ info.

Thomas

 

[GTiceman]

My parents live in SJ, I put a GPS in mine and it did not have bi-xenon, as much as I want the autoleveling and the cornering I can't see spending $2500+ on a lighting upgrade when I can do just the bulbs and ballasts for $2k less

 

[ThomasNJ]

Yes, that is very ture. Now, after some search, I seen that some of the conversion kits aren't even more than $250. Wow, I can do ten of them....Cool! Although there also some complications of the brightness, angles, or possibilities getting pull over. But think that's also the differences we're taking between the two.

I see your Mods, man, that is exactly what I going to do if I get this car I'm currently looking. and plus the ABT skirts perhaps. Anyway, I had add you into my buddies list earlier, I'll PM you when I get the car.

Thanks

 

[GTiceman]

ok. I need to do some suspension work to mine. I have a buddy with xenon bulbs in an rsx and has no problems. I am going to do a 35w kit probably to keep the bulbs from being too hot, cut-off shouldn't be an issue. The car can come with xenons from the factory so there is actually a loophole in the law.

 

[Darren]

Getting the bulb out of the bulb holder ?????


I have the Lux with standard projector beams, not Xenons.
I gained access to the bulb but had a hard time getting the bulb out of the holder. I'm relatively mechanically inclined but couldn't figure out if I need to take the wires off the bulb holder/socket first or if the bulb should just pull out of the socket (albeit with some force).

Any tricks? Am I missing something?

 

[cb391]

I have never had any problems getting the headlight bulbs out. They usually come out when you try to get the wires off. The only real problem is the reinstall. The bulb is keyed to go in one way and you need to make sure the bulb is fully seated. I do one bulb at a time so I can power the lights up and check for alignment. I have been using the Sylvania Silverstar Ultra bulbs and have liked the light but hate the poor durability. Have been considering the PIAA bulbs.