OEM Valeo HID Headlight Upgrade Options

[ye1low]

Apologizes upfront if this info is contained in an already conclusive post somewhere out there but I have yet to have stumbled on that repository.
The short of it all:
My OEM Valeo 8E0 941 004/003 AS headlights are crapping out faster than my aging eyes. It has become unbearable to drive at night. I am not sure if my DS1s are getting tired or if my ballast has let the magic smoke out (they still work). These are the worst headlights out of my entire fleet of aging cars. I have polished the lenses but that did very little to restore the lumens that the headlights are capable of putting out.

For years I searched for a drop in “fancy” whole assembly replacement but they only seem to be for the halogen guys. The OEM HID guys often seem to reverting to the TL projector upgrade or some other kluged together fix. Being a mechanical engineer with a terrible case of OCD; I’ve always been turned off on the end product posted from the homebrew fabricator. Excellent intentions and A++ for effort but execution is just piss poor with the whole “yea I’ll just dab as little silicone here and there, cover it up and hope for the best”. Not that I’m against baking my lights and cracking them apart, it’s just that I find it super hard to believe that we don’t have some sort of alternative like all the other cheap Chinese crap on Fleabay for the halogen folks. What gives?

Is piece parting this thing together the best bang for the buck? Do Ecodes only come in black? All the chrome aftermarket DS1 headlights I find come from some very shady websites.
Thanks in advance for the input and helping an old time lurker out.

[BumblebVR6]

IMG_2834.jpg
I’ve been happy w/ my e-code Valeos. Pretty good light output compared to the original NA HIDs.


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[ye1low]

Those look sweet but is the reflector behind the projector black? Hard to tell in the pic.

[09SCiduA]

Clean and polish your lens and though HIDs have been incredible, I just swapped over to some LEDs and I have to say, they are incredible...slightly better than HIDs as far as brightness and with the factory projectors, they have a nice, crisp cutoff and there are no issues, at least for me, with getting flashed by oncoming traffic...here's what I purchased: https://www.theretrofitsource.com/h7...E&gclsrc=aw.ds

I understand these are incredibly expensive for "bulbs" but I have never not needed good lighting in any vehicle I have owned...one of the best updates/upgrades I have done on the B6!

...I'm just waiting on the flaming from those who disagree

[Spike00513]

a good housing with a good projector and good bulb
can also put supporting mods like clear lens, cutoff shield paint, etc.

[ye1low]

Thanks guys. After going at this again for many hours; I've finally settled on some D1S -> Led retrofits in my stock housing (in order to retain autoleveling). I'll be popping them apart and changing out the lens as will as removing my amber reflector and installing switchbacks for the turn signals.
I've come to the conclusion that my 20 year old Xenons are just tired and need a refresh. I totally agree on needing good lighting. This isn't even a matter of looks for me. Its a matter of safety for night driving.

That's the plan so far unless I find a nice package that doesn't break the bank.

[Gunnarrrrr]

Thanks guys. After going at this again for many hours; I've finally settled on some D1S -> Led retrofits in my stock housing (in order to retain autoleveling). I'll be popping them apart and changing out the lens as will as removing my amber reflector and installing switchbacks for the turn signals.
I've come to the conclusion that my 20 year old Xenons are just tired and need a refresh. I totally agree on needing good lighting. This isn't even a matter of looks for me. Its a matter of safety for night driving.

That's the plan so far unless I find a nice package that doesn't break the bank.

If you'd rather do the morimoto mini h1 bixenon projector retrofit I have the full kit that I ran for a couple years in some depo black ecodes that I'm getting rid of. I'd let the whole $400 kit go for like $200 maybe less idc. Honestly you can probably just have the depo housings for free too if you want, not really worth anything after chopping them up to install the retrofit kit.

https://www.theretrofitsource.com/mo...4-b6-CRK-RQ-A4

[86turbodsl]

If you'd rather do the morimoto mini h1 bixenon projector retrofit I have the full kit that I ran for a couple years in some depo black ecodes that I'm getting rid of. I'd let the whole $400 kit go for like $200 maybe less idc. Honestly you can probably just have the depo housings for free too if you want, not really worth anything after chopping them up to install the retrofit kit.

https://www.theretrofitsource.com/mo...4-b6-CRK-RQ-A4

Does TRS even still sell that kit? I had lousy light output on my factory HID's. I replaced the bulbs, and got a lot back. HID bulbs lose lumens over time.

[Gunnarrrrr]

Does TRS even still sell that kit? I had lousy light output on my factory HID's. I replaced the bulbs, and got a lot back. HID bulbs lose lumens over time.

They still sell it. It’s nothing special, just morimoto mini h1 projectors and some morimoto ballasts. They just throw in these adapter plates to bolt the new projectors onto your old reflectors. I wonder if there’s a projector you could bolt onto the OEM HID reflectors to get a better output and sharper cutoff, while retaining the factory ballasts, with no need to hack up the housings


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[BumblebVR6]

Clean and polish your lens and though HIDs have been incredible, I just swapped over to some LEDs and I have to say, they are incredible...slightly better than HIDs as far as brightness and with the factory projectors, they have a nice, crisp cutoff and there are no issues, at least for me, with getting flashed by oncoming traffic...here's what I purchased: https://www.theretrofitsource.com/h7...E&gclsrc=aw.ds

I understand these are incredibly expensive for "bulbs" but I have never not needed good lighting in any vehicle I have owned...one of the best updates/upgrades I have done on the B6!

...I'm just waiting on the flaming from those who disagree

You have oem halogens w/ H7 correct? This is a thread for upgrading OEM HIDS...

[09SCiduA]

You have oem halogens w/ H7 correct? This is a thread for upgrading OEM HIDS...

Correct...one can upgrade/update their OEM HIDs with LEDs is all I'm suggesting...

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[ye1low]

Correct...one can upgrade/update their OEM HIDs with LEDs is all I'm suggesting...

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...and that was the route I took... for now.

[BumblebVR6]

Correct...one can upgrade/update their OEM HIDs with LEDs is all I'm suggesting...

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Wondering what the additional heat from the LED bulbs/fans will cause to the housing since the bulb compartment is sealed.

...and that was the route I took... for now.

Any fitment issues? Have any pics of the install? I've looked into trying this on my euro set even though the output is pretty good, but could always be better.

[09SCiduA]

Wondering what the additional heat from the LED bulbs/fans will cause to the housing since the bulb compartment is sealed.



Any fitment issues? Have any pics of the install? I've looked into trying this on my euro set even though the output is pretty good, but could always be better.

I had extra covers and dremeled some holes through them which duals for heat exhaust and wiring portals...so they're not sealed now but the heat is managed well...

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[ye1low]

The leds I bought are mounted to large finned aluminum blocks the size of the HID brick on the OEM D1S lights. It plugs into the factory HID harness too so I don't have to worry about piggybacking onto anything.
They are still in the mail but I will post pics in terms of fitment when they arrive.

[BumblebVR6]

The leds I bought are mounted to large finned aluminum blocks the size of the HID brick on the OEM D1S lights. It plugs into the factory HID harness too so I don't have to worry about piggybacking onto anything.
They are still in the mail but I will post pics in terms of fitment when they arrive.

Please do, interested in seeing these being put into use in our application.

[Kevin C]

Wondering what the additional heat from the LED bulbs/fans will cause to the housing since the bulb compartment is sealed.



Any fitment issues? Have any pics of the install? I've looked into trying this on my euro set even though the output is pretty good, but could always be better.

The LED's should put out less waste heat so the housings should run cooler. The extra cooling is because the LEDs themselves are heat sensitive. On my OEL HID's the len's were OK. I found that giving them a washout using alcohol helped a lot. I'm assuming that the reflector had a film on it. I eventually put in a set of new Bi Xenons. The changes was amazing. I'm going with most of that was because they were new.

[BumblebVR6]

The LED's should put out less waste heat so the housings should run cooler. The extra cooling is because the LEDs themselves are heat sensitive. On my OEL HID's the len's were OK. I found that giving them a washout using alcohol helped a lot. I'm assuming that the reflector had a film on it. I eventually put in a set of new Bi Xenons. The changes was amazing. I'm going with most of that was because they were new.

I ordered a set and will give them a try. Thanks Kevin.

[BumblebVR6]

They fit a bit loose in the housings but definitely brighter than the HIDs.


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[ye1low]

Looks decent! Thanks for the update. Mine have yet to arrive.

[Turbo510]

What is that LED unit in your HID mounting? And to the OP, yes, HID bulbs do wear out and get dim. If you were to replace them, the main thing is to get OE-quality D1S. That made a huge difference on my '05 about 8 years ago, which is now ready for another refresh. I've already replace the high-beams with LED.

[BumblebVR6]

What is that LED unit in your HID mounting?

LED bulb assembly that I installed instead of the D1S HID bulb:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9NV7J3J...roduct_details

[86turbodsl]

That was drop in? No errors? I get dipped bulb warning occasionally on my car when the bulbs don't restart.

[BumblebVR6]

That was drop in? No errors? I get dipped bulb warning occasionally on my car when the bulbs don't restart.

No issues so far. Great light output compared to my HID bulbs. You may need to do a basic settings adaptation. Is your car lowered?

[86turbodsl]

No issues so far. Great light output compared to my HID bulbs. You may need to do a basic settings adaptation. Is your car lowered?

Eibach sport springs, maybe 1" lower.