Better headlights lamps

[Bandos]

I've been think of upgrading my headlight lamps to maybe LED as they should give a cleaner light but happy to continue to use Halogen if thats the best option.

I have come to a stand still as there are some many different lamps available I don't know what to decide on. Obviously they must be street legal and ok for the MOT.

What have others fitted to a 2013 Boxer

 

[Manic]

Lenny HB is your man , recently done his

 

[Lenny HB]

I fitted Katur 16,000 Lumen ones they are very good. my van has Hella projector headlamps, bear in mind with standard reflector headlamps you don't always get the correct beam pattern.

 

[ManTheVan]

Lenny's right. If the beam pattern isn't within set limits, the van will fail its next MoT. Don't ask how I know!

The MoT tester (himself a motorhomer), recommended Nightbreakers, which I subsequently fitted. They're lovely and bright and my MH has sailed through her MoT ever since.

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[pappajohn]

Obviously they must be street legal

Then LEDs are not suitable.
You can't legally swap halogen for LED or HID bulbs.
Not that anyone bothers about the law.
I have H7 main and H3 dip halogen.
Both are swapped to KATUR LED (£30 to £40 a pair) and have passed the last 2 MOTs.
As long as the light pattern is correct it's not a problem
Getting the beam pattern correct can be time consuming.

 

[davejen]

Then LEDs are not suitable.
You can't legally swap halogen for LED or HID bulbs.
Not that anyone bothers about the law.
I have H7 main and H3 dip halogen.
Both are swapped to KATUR LED (£30 to £40 a pair) and have passed the last 2 MOTs.
As long as the light pattern is correct it's not a problem
Getting the beam pattern correct can be time consuming.

Basically how do you set them?
Cheers, Dave

 

[Lenny HB]

On ones that are adjustable you need to set the LED's in the same ane as the halogen filament.

I've found they always come out high compared to halogens so you need to lower the beam a lot.

If the beam pattern is wrong nothing you can do.

 

[DJT]

I've been think of upgrading my headlight lamps to maybe LED as they should give a cleaner light but happy to continue to use Halogen if thats the best option.

I have come to a stand still as there are some many different lamps available I don't know what to decide on. Obviously they must be street legal and ok for the MOT.

What have others fitted to a 2013 Boxer

Have a look on Auto Bulbs Direct website.
Have used this firm for a good few years and they provide good info on what bulbs are available for up grading your lights.
Just enter your reg number on there website.
DJT

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[pappajohn]

Basically how do you set them?
Cheers, Dave

KATUR H7 bulbs need an adaptor.....the bulb fits the adaptor and the adaptor fits the lamp where of original bulb sat
They rotate and have 5 positions.
Face towards a dark wall....I used the black garage door....with the original bulbs and mark a line with tape where the flat top of the beam sits.
then change bulbs and turn the bulb one click at a time until the beam is flat on top along the tape.

If it won't go flat turn the adaptor slightly in the headlight.
You may need to adjust the height of the beam up or down, there should be an adjuster somewhere on the lamp body.
If you have H3 bulbs the adaptor shouldn't be needed.

KATUR bulbs have an inbuilt cooling fan......yes, they burn extremely hot, and if the headlamp has bulb covers on the back they will need leaving off or altering so cooling air can get to the fan.....circulating hot air isn't going to cool the bulb

 

[pappajohn]

Night breakers halogen bulbs will give similar results but they burn much hotter than standard halogen so probably won't last as long.

 

[Vikdikdok]

I don't drive at night

 

[Lenny HB]

KATUR H7 bulbs need an adaptor.....the bulb fits the adaptor and the adaptor

The new ones plug straight in no adjustment, I just unplugged my bulbs and push them straight in.

 

[ToGoldlyBo]

I was just looking on Amazon. Tonight, Katur bulbs have a 20% discount .. or is that just to tempt me.....

 

[Neil S]

I fitted KATUR H7’s to both dip and beam on my 23 plate Ducato and they slotted in correctly in place of the original halogen bulbs .
No difference to the beam pattern and i refitted the rubber caps .
The improvement from the halogen “candles" is certainly noticeable

 

[Two on Tour]

Fitting LED headlamp bulbs and getting them through an MOT will depend on your MOT station.
I fitted LED headlamp bulbs (Katur's) for our trip to Spain and Portugal early last year as I knew that we would be driving at night.
I rang my MOT station last October to see if they would be a pass or a fail and they said as they were non standard fitment then they would fail my van as they always check.
Swapped back to my Osram Night Breakers (I know they are non standard) for my MOT for a pass.

 

[JockandRita]

Since fitting Osram Night Breaker bulbs to both the dipped and main beam lamps, coming down to Spain in January was the first time I had a chance to do any night driving with them. WHAT A DIFFERENCE compared to the previous bulbs. ............. It obviously helped that I was also able to adjust the beam for continental driving, whereas previously, I was only able to lower the beam.

On a 2006 MH with Hella projection lamps, I am very pleased with the change of bulbs, without having to resort to LEDs, which may or may not conform to current MOT Regs.

Cheers,

Jock.

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[jeff4066]

Just fitted the Katur H7 bulbs in my Laika with Hella projector lamps and what a differnce. No error messages and the beam pattern is the same. Even if you had to swap them out for an MOT, its not a big deal for improvement in vision for the other 364 days of the year.

 

[pappajohn]

The new ones plug straight in no adjustment, I just unplugged my bulbs and push them straight in.

It depends on the actual bulb seat Lenny.
On my Hyundai the bulb is held to the seat be a horseshoe shaped spring but as the bulb has a large cooling fan the spring can't be used.
The H3 is held in the original way.
I should have said MAY NEED rather than needs.

 

[Lenny HB]

It depends on the actual bulb seat Lenny.
On my Hyundai the bulb is held to the seat be a horseshoe shaped spring but as the bulb has a large cooling fan the spring can't be used.
The H3 is held in the original way.
I should have said MAY NEED rather than needs.

Mine plugged into the front of the holder.

The new version of the Kutar bulbs the base is like the halogen ones, the older version has a larger plastic base with the fan in it. New ones are also brighter.

Old ones.

New ones.

 

[Guigsy]

Night breakers halogen bulbs will give similar results but they burn much hotter than standard halogen so probably won't last as long.

I've used Night Breakers on several vehicles, including my previous van and never had an issue. It's an easy swap and they're significantly brighter.

The other thing to consider... have the lenses started to yellow and get spinderweb cracks yet? Restoring them can improve the amount of light getting through quite a bit. But in my experience, once you start, you need to do it every couple of years. I think the process takes the UV protective layer off, so they detoriorate faster next time.

 

[pappajohn]

Mine plugged into the front of the holder.

The new version of the Kutar bulbs the base is like the halogen ones, the older version has a larger plastic base with the fan in it. New ones are also brighter.

Old ones.
View attachment 1011992

New ones.
View attachment 1011993

Gotcha Lenny.
I didn't realise they had been updated.
Obviously mine are the old ones.
I had one fail after less than a year. I put it down to excessive heat caused by the rear lamp cover.
I put a 30mm hole cutter to them to let cooler air in.
BUT I just realised I was wrong about the fixing....there is no spring.
Hard to describe but the bulb electrical socket is part of the fixing..
Fit the bulb to the socket then fit the lot to the adaptor.
Mine can't be fitted without the adaptor.

 

[fred_jb]

I fitted LED bulbs which look better as they match the LED DRLs, and seem a lot brighter than the standard bulbs. However, though I don't drive at night normally, after a night drive back from the Portsmouth ferry with the LEDs fitted I decided the main issue was poor alignment. Dip beam was cutting off so close to the van as to be virtually useless, and main beam was more like how dip should be This was the same as a previous occasion with the halogen bulbs. On both occasions I had to use main beam as much as possible to be able to drive at a safe, i.e. not too slow speed, and evidently that didn't dazzle people as I didn't get flashed.

As a result I decided to have the lights professionally aligned, though it took a while to find somewhere with the right equipment and that could accomodate tall vehicles. It took about 30 minutes and cost £30. They commented that both headlights were pointing far too low and the left side was also pointing too much to the side. They didn't seem to have any problem with getting a correct adjustment with the LED bulbs.

I am now looking forward to trying them out soon to see how much difference it has made!

 

[davejen]

I've used Night Breakers on several vehicles, including my previous van and never had an issue. It's an easy swap and they're significantly brighter.

The other thing to consider... have the lenses started to yellow and get spinderweb cracks yet? Restoring them can improve the amount of light getting through quite a bit. But in my experience, once you start, you need to do it every couple of years. I think the process takes the UV protective layer off, so they detoriorate faster next time.

You should also seal the h/lamps after restoring them , some kits have the sealer included, biut I think you can also get it separately.
Cheers, Dave

 

[Guffy60]

I fitted Katur 16,000 Lumen ones they are very good. my van has Hella projector headlamps, bear in mind with standard reflector headlamps you don't always get the correct beam pattern.

Have you notified your insurers of this modification? Otherwise in an accident you may only have third party cover!!