I was wondering maybe we could put all our headlight questions and queries here. Some members were PMing me about what headlights to use after I posted images of my car with headlights on at various angles.
For starters, there are three main headlights the W123 chassis uses that include two European versions and the US DOT version.
Early European version:
Late European version:
US DOT version:
Owners of the US DOT cars will have difficulty at night because of the outdated and inadequate sealed beams. They are inadequate for today's needs and driving habits. Most of them barely illuminate the foreground but have good lateral distribution (to an extent). They also have glare above the horizontal cut-off since US standards demand above-facing light in order to illuminate overhead roadsigns. This just adds to glare especially in heavy city traffic. The European conversions are the best solutions for your money because they:
1. Provide European quality illumination and dispersion of light onto the road, roadsigns, and foreground.
2. Don't require throwing away the lenses unlike sealed beams.
3. They usually cost $100 or below for a nice pair that includes bulbs. Some, like Cibie are quite expensive but I've heard are extremely good too.
4. Research has shown (as per Daniel Stern's articles) that an increase in foreground illumination allows less stress for the driver and gives him/her the confidence to look further into the distance rather than focus on the road directly ahead. European conversions have an abundance of foreground illumination compared to sealed beams.
The best feature of European conversions is its light cut-off that shows a distinct __/__/. This indicates that the flat line doesn't glare oncoming traffic while the sharp cut-off provides roadside illumination as well as to road signs. I was driving last night and noticed that the angle of inclination is equivalent to the angle at which you approach the road visually, so all roadsigns from the distance up until the front of the car are illuminated!! That is some engineering right there.
I have Osram bulbs (when I purchased the Bosch ones from the Philippines as spares and also have Hella bulbs from there. So far they're great. H4's are what you need for these Euro conversions and are also known as 9003 bulbs. Fog lamps use H3.
H4:
H3:
Sources for headlight conversions:
7 inch HELLA H4 Euro conversion
http://www.rallylights.com/hella/7in.asp
7 inch CIBIE H4 Euro conversion
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/products/products.html
7 inch BOSCH H4 Euro conversion
http://www.mercedessource.com/store/item.php?item=Bosch H4 Headlight Upgrade Kit
What bulbs can you use?
Standard H4/9003 60/55W bulbs should work fine with any of them. Make sure the rubber boots fit in snug to get a good seal.
US members who want hassle-free bulbs might want Sylvania Long Life bulbs for really cheap. Others who prefer German/Euro quality might want the German Osram:
http://www.powerbulbs.co.uk/product...History=cat&strKeywords=&SearchFor=&PT_ID=90
...or Phillips Vision Plus:
http://www.powerbulbs.co.uk/product...eHistory=cat&strKeywords=&SearchFor=&PT_ID=90
Daniel Stern provides a good list of high-quality bulbs too:
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/products/products.html
Wiring harnesses
Many of you might want overwattage bulbs. Susquehanna MotorSports sells wiring harnesses but since I have normall wattage lights on my car, don't know much about rewiring and what connections to use:
http://www.rallylights.com/hella/wiring_harnesses.asp
Daniel Stern has also collaborated with Steve Lacker and David Hueppchen to write a good article on relays and why you should use them:
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/relays/relays.html
Some night shots of my car's headlights with Bosch conversions:
For starters, there are three main headlights the W123 chassis uses that include two European versions and the US DOT version.
Early European version:
Late European version:
US DOT version:
Owners of the US DOT cars will have difficulty at night because of the outdated and inadequate sealed beams. They are inadequate for today's needs and driving habits. Most of them barely illuminate the foreground but have good lateral distribution (to an extent). They also have glare above the horizontal cut-off since US standards demand above-facing light in order to illuminate overhead roadsigns. This just adds to glare especially in heavy city traffic. The European conversions are the best solutions for your money because they:
1. Provide European quality illumination and dispersion of light onto the road, roadsigns, and foreground.
2. Don't require throwing away the lenses unlike sealed beams.
3. They usually cost $100 or below for a nice pair that includes bulbs. Some, like Cibie are quite expensive but I've heard are extremely good too.
4. Research has shown (as per Daniel Stern's articles) that an increase in foreground illumination allows less stress for the driver and gives him/her the confidence to look further into the distance rather than focus on the road directly ahead. European conversions have an abundance of foreground illumination compared to sealed beams.
The best feature of European conversions is its light cut-off that shows a distinct __/__/. This indicates that the flat line doesn't glare oncoming traffic while the sharp cut-off provides roadside illumination as well as to road signs. I was driving last night and noticed that the angle of inclination is equivalent to the angle at which you approach the road visually, so all roadsigns from the distance up until the front of the car are illuminated!! That is some engineering right there.
I have Osram bulbs (when I purchased the Bosch ones from the Philippines as spares and also have Hella bulbs from there. So far they're great. H4's are what you need for these Euro conversions and are also known as 9003 bulbs. Fog lamps use H3.
H4:
H3:
Sources for headlight conversions:
7 inch HELLA H4 Euro conversion
http://www.rallylights.com/hella/7in.asp
7 inch CIBIE H4 Euro conversion
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/products/products.html
7 inch BOSCH H4 Euro conversion
http://www.mercedessource.com/store/item.php?item=Bosch H4 Headlight Upgrade Kit
What bulbs can you use?
Standard H4/9003 60/55W bulbs should work fine with any of them. Make sure the rubber boots fit in snug to get a good seal.
US members who want hassle-free bulbs might want Sylvania Long Life bulbs for really cheap. Others who prefer German/Euro quality might want the German Osram:
http://www.powerbulbs.co.uk/product...History=cat&strKeywords=&SearchFor=&PT_ID=90
...or Phillips Vision Plus:
http://www.powerbulbs.co.uk/product...eHistory=cat&strKeywords=&SearchFor=&PT_ID=90
Daniel Stern provides a good list of high-quality bulbs too:
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/products/products.html
Wiring harnesses
Many of you might want overwattage bulbs. Susquehanna MotorSports sells wiring harnesses but since I have normall wattage lights on my car, don't know much about rewiring and what connections to use:
http://www.rallylights.com/hella/wiring_harnesses.asp
Daniel Stern has also collaborated with Steve Lacker and David Hueppchen to write a good article on relays and why you should use them:
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/relays/relays.html
Some night shots of my car's headlights with Bosch conversions: