Quartz Rear Facing Automotive Lighting

Bob Snow · #1 08-26-2003, 05:52 AM

I have been using 50watt quartz backup lights for almost 20 years. They are much brighter than stock 1156 bulbs and seem to last longer. If left on for long periods, they can probably damage wiring or the plastic housing, but I have had no such problems. I just ordered some 1157 brake/running light bulbs. They are 8/30 watt vs. 5/20 watt for stock bulbs. I am hoping that they also last longer than the stock 1157's which tend to burn out frequently. I suppose a nice long traffic jam in the summer will be the test for the wiring and housings. I have used 100watt high beam bulbs for years with no problems, but have been reluctant to boost the low beams out of concern for the wiring/housings, since they are on continuously.

www.designtech-intl.com

iddibhai · #2 08-26-2003, 02:12 PM

two things you can do to boost low beam range, etc, depending on what kind of lamp tech is in use (reflector, projector, etc). one is, get a better bulb. not the wannabe junk, but premium bulbs from major makers who slightly alter the gas fill and have a different filament aligned tighter with different wire to put out 30-50% more light on the road (depending on application, again). the other option is to mod your light, one of the more common ones is stick an HB3 bulb (1700lm 65w) in place of HB4 (1000lm 55w). optically they are same, just different tabs on the lamp for different applications. the 10w additional will be insignificant, but LOTS more light, generally works well in projector optics. also upgrade the relay and wires, get more volts to the lamp in the first place, since output falls exponentially with decreasing voltage (something like 80% of rated voltage will drop lighting to 60% of specified output).

Bob Snow · #3 08-31-2003, 06:51 PM

The 1157 quartz bulbs arrived. I installed one and it did seem significantly brighter than the stock bulb I left in the other light for a quick visual comparison.

It never occurred to me that a 9005(HB4) could be substituted for the 9006(HB3). In a side by side comparison it has the filament in the same place and by grinding down the tab and the small interior ridges, it fits perfectly in the low beam position. The other obvious difference is the lack of opaque paint at the end of the bulb. I noticed no degradation in the beam pattern, so I assume that the metal bulb shield inside the headlight of my 94 Accord serves the same function, making the paint redundant. This is not a projection light, but it has a faceted reflector and clear lens.

iddibhai · #4 08-31-2003, 10:20 PM

as dan stern says, the cap on the end of the lamp capsule does a half assed job of the shield (preventing light from going straight out the lamp from the filament before being collected and directed by reflector. lots more lumems, about a third of the normal life, but 70% more light. the drop in mod is to get the premium plus as mentioned.

iddibhai · #5 09-01-2003, 02:25 AM

so you've done the hb3>4 mod then. what does it look like driving on the road now, from the driver's perspective? what about have someone drive your accord and u drive ahead of them in a sedan or drive towards your car, it it lots of glare? i'm wondering how it would do in a system w/o the bulb shield (freeform reflector, optic lens (not clear)

Bob Snow · #6 09-01-2003, 03:34 AM

From the driver's perspective, the cutoff pattern has not changed - still the somewhat ragged US mandated pattern. Nothing like the sharp cutoff my old Cibié Z beams had. Since there are more lumens, the light just seems brighter than stock. I am tempted to lower the aim a smidge, because of the increased intensity being thrown into oncoming traffic when cresting a hill or when carrying more load in the back. No flashing from oncoming traffic, but that is really not a good way to judge. I always kept a spare HB3 and HB4 in the car. Now I will just keep one modified bulb. I assume the 1700 lumens vs. 1000 lumens comes from a combination of the 10 watt increase and running the filament hotter, since the quartz capsule is the same size for both bulbs. I suppose the painted end of the bulb also reduces output some. I typically don't run the high beams very much where I live, so I only seem to replace the occasional low beam every two or three years. I am expecting more frequent bulb changes now. If there is no physical shield in the light, I am sure there will be glare to oncoming traffic from the end on view of the filament.

iddibhai · #7 09-01-2003, 03:43 AM

if there is a shield on the lamp reflector assembly (bulb shield) it will do a better job of controlling stray flare onto traffic than the obscuration cap (painted on thingy). i believe the specs for the hb3 lamp are 300+ hours rated, hb4 about triple that. again, depends on voltage, and there is usually a drop in the circuit by the time it gets to the lamp which is rated at 13.2 or 14v.

round here, highway driving is fine, since there are lots of cars, etc. but late night drives back from work (occasionally), and city driving (lots of little critters on the road, in addition to joggers and like), the additional light (with little or no vehicular traffic) would be most welcome, so i am contemplating this mod myself. how hard was it to do? will a pocket knife suffice or something else? most of the mod pages list a dremel type tool.

iddibhai · #8 09-01-2003, 04:08 AM

oh yea, where are you getting the quartz running/brake lamps form? i might get those once the orignals burn out

Bob Snow · #9 09-06-2003, 06:08 AM

I got the Quartz 1157 bulbs from:

www.designtech-intl.com

I did use a Dremel type tool (Ryobi actually) to make the bulb modification to get the HB3 to filt the low beam socket and it takes less than a minute to do. One of the three main "tabs" is moved and you need to grind it down to clear the socket. There are some ridges inside the plug that must also be ground away.

Bob Snow · #10 09-06-2003, 03:19 PM

One last suggestion for HB3 to HB4 conversion. The low beam HB4 bulb does have a larger diameter o-ring seal. I pulled off the thin o-ring from the HB3 bulb after modifying it and put on much thicker o-ring, bringing the overall diameter out to that of the HB4. This should prevent moisture from entering the headlamp.

IsaacHayes · #11 12-13-2003, 04:46 PM

What if your headlights do not have the cap for the low beams and you want to put highs in your lows? Will it be obvious to other drivers? In other words will I be getting flashed and pulled over for driving with "highs" on...