LED Sidelights vs Philips Bluevision vs Standard Candles

Mike, yes, this is my first effort at posting photos, resizing, compressing etc meant I had a couple of attempts, your vigilance to all new postings meant you responded to a post that I then pulled and redid,
makes it look as if your "force" was extra strong tonight :D

Richard yes - a £100, although you best speak to Mike about the quality as everything was not perfect as it came out of the box

I can provide links again if people want, although I do not want to make it look like I am promoting anything

I have no affiliations to any "lighting" site, just wanted to see where I was going :eek:
 
No 'Force' here Tony, just me being too quick for my own good!

Richard, Tony is being a little harsh on the kit as supplied. The only real area where it fell down was in the explanation of the wire colours (there wasn't any!) and the main loom plug which was too big to fit through the hole that they told you to drill!

A quick bit of modification and a bit of common sense with the wiring saw the kit installed in about an hour.

The actual quality of the bulbs and ballasts was very good indeed and I fully expect that they will last for a number of years. Beam cut-off and colour are very good too and if Tony won't mention the company, I will (I have no links with them either, other than knowing from past experience that they are one of the better bulb and lighting suppliers out there):

Autobulbs Direct (http://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/product.php?productid=17161&cat=622&page=1).

Cheers,

Mike
 
Guys - I have been considering this option for either the A2 or my 2003 X5, but am concerned about the final phrase on the HID info page on the above mentioned website -
" Aftermarket HID systems are not road legal due to the fact you cannot 'E' mark a bulb that is of different type to the bulb it is replacing (ie HID for halogen). Therefore we can only sell these as off road use conversions"
From this, I would assume that I would be taking a risk by fitting, on two counts:
1. 'cos they're not road legal
2. 'cos if I tell my insurance company (which I should), they won't cover me because they're not legal...

Am I getting this right?
 
Strictly speaking, yes.

However, I suspect that legislation will be introduced that will deal with the current situation and the indiscrepancies surrounding the whole retrofit situation.

In the early days (3 or so years ago) of retrofit kits, the quality of the bulbs was such that fitting them was a very hit and miss affair as to whether you'd end up with a respectable beam pattern and cut-off.

The modern kits have improved dramatically and the one I fitted for A2GoldenMiler yesterday was sharp and well defined and perfectly within legal limits.

The popularity of these kits is growing so much that there will have to be some definite word soon, in terms of their legality - Audi Driver magazine even had a feature on fitting them last month!

To me, good night time visibility is a safety feature and there is no doubt that these kits will improve your picture of the road ahead when driving at night. If they can do so without dazzling other road users and they are within respectable colour limits (i.e. not boy racer blue!), then I see no reason why they shouldn't be able to be fitted to any car.

Cheers,

Mike
 
Any one else finding that these ultraled bulbs seem to last quite a short period im on my 4th bulb since feb. I think they are lasting an average of 3 months.
 
The LED sidelights look uberkool

:)

Having followed the forum discussions, I got LED 501 sidelights (from the ultraleds website), popped them in in no time and they really do look well.

They do make headlights look yellow by comparison but its more the quality of light that comes from the sidelights when lit on their own that I really like, much stronger than the dim standard ones and they fit in very well with the design.

Haven't had them long. If they start popping on me, I'll post and let you know.
 
9 LED tower...

Humps,

As you may have suspected I got the 9 led tower, it fits no bother and I am driving around merrily with them on a lot more than before :)

And yes, a lot of it is for pure poser value! I had previously thought it a pity that those standard sidelights weren't stronger. I think the LEDs bring out the best in the design.
 
Hey,
Can someone please guide me to which item is the better buy?

ebay 1
ebay 2

Even though there are 9 LEDs instead of the more common 4, I take it they still don't get hot enough to melt the plastic casing on the sidelights?

Thanks
Edd.
 
Hi Edd, they should be no where near hot enough to melt anything. I would be surprised if each of the small LED can draw more than 20mA. So even 9 of them over ~4V isn't even 1W of energy.

But as I found out with the 4 led configuration, it doesn't illuminate the light cluster enough to make it effective when only the side lights are on. Other drivers can hardly see it. I would recommend a TOWER configuration, for safety and fashionable reasons ;-)
 
The 15 tower LEDs measurements are:
Size 10mm (W) x 20mm (H) bulb from end to end 40mm

does anyone know if these would fit as the sidelights?

Thanks.
 
I have the 9 tower leds, nice white.

These fit perfect, don't know if the 15 tower will fit.
See big picture in my gallery
led-standlight01.jpg


cu,
Louis
 
I've had the 9's in my A2 for a while now and they are very good (and have lasted over a year so far). I've also fitted the 15's to another car and they are awesome, so very bright.
I might try them in the A2 but I have a feeling they might not fit, as the A2 headlight has a sidelight cover and the 15 tower might be too tall for it.
 
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