These headlights are ####!!!

What the bulb is using causes the voltage drop across the resistance of the wires. Its ohms law......

Unless the laws have been rewritten. I will leave it there as it appears my last 40 years in the electrical and electronic industry have obviously misled me somewhere...:rolleyes:
My limited research into this considers Ohm's law as being too idealistic as it uses a source that cannot maintain a set PD and also favours Kirchhoff's Voltage Law somewhat due to the other components in the circuit. Everything I read in respect to automotive 12 volt circuits suggests you should not measure across the component but instead measure the voltage to the component whilst it is under load......that all said, I am not a Chartered Electrical Engineer so I could be giving out bad advice.

@Dilbert - Rather than leave it there, you are clearly far more qualified and experienced than me in this field so please help me understand what I have been doing wrong so that I do not give out bad advice in the future.
 
I know it has been done to death but I finally found out how useless these headlights are!!! Absolutely shocking on a vehicle that cost me £30K!!!! Rant over!
In November ‘16 I got an ex demo California and I thought the H7 headlights were poor. I researched the possibilities to improve them and with the cost of retrofitting LEDs I opted for GE Megalight Ultra + 130. A great improvement; why don’t VW fit these sort of bulbs as standard?
 
I drove my van at night for the first time yesterday and thought the headlights weren't that bad. No where near as good as my LED BMW lights but 100x better than my lotus elise.
 
In November ‘16 I got an ex demo California and I thought the H7 headlights were poor. I researched the possibilities to improve them and with the cost of retrofitting LEDs I opted for GE Megalight Ultra + 130. A great improvement; why don’t VW fit these sort of bulbs as standard?
From what I've seen, VW fit standard Osram bulbs which are very high quality bulbs and have a very long life. It's the design of the headlight unit rather than the bulb that probably needs improving so they would have been better focussing (pun intended) on that.

Although the GE +130 bulbs do perform better (they are what I have fitted to the aftermarket H7 unit), they don't last as long as standard bulbs and the OEMs do actually try to use components that give the best service life possible.
 
In November ‘16 I got an ex demo California and I thought the H7 headlights were poor. I researched the possibilities to improve them and with the cost of retrofitting LEDs I opted for GE Megalight Ultra + 130. A great improvement; why don’t VW fit these sort of bulbs as standard?
My one is Philips Longlife EcoVision H7 (Life time Up to 1500h)
Just brought OSRAM Night Breaker Laser (Next Generation) H7 (Life time 330h-550h)
Now is bright and long range.

why don’t VW fit these sort of bulbs as standard? Cheap and Long life
 
Can you fit replacement bulbs without without removing the whole light?.
I’m awaiting delivery of a high line Kombi and have a horrible feeling it’s got H4s as standard:(
 
Can you fit replacement bulbs without without removing the whole light?.
I’m awaiting delivery of a high line Kombi and have a horrible feeling it’s got H4s as standard:(
As above, yes, however you'll want to slide the battery to the left for the N/S unit and remove the top of the air filter housing for the O/S unit to give yourself a sporting chance!
 
Not at all - you're not supposed to measure across the bulb. You're actually getting somewhere nearer 12.9V if you do the correct voltage drop test (measure drop on feed to the bulb and then on the earth wire from the bulb), but not across the bulb. Voltmeters only tell you the remaining available voltage between the probes which is why you have to do it that way.
I know this is an old thread but it is still relevant today.
I have a few thoughts on this whole dim H4 headlight problem. My night vision is not the best so I need to get this sorted - no carrot comments please!

In reply to Mooncats post -
Voltage across the lamp is all we are interested in as that determines how bright the lamp is. The system voltage minus the voltage accross the lamp is the total voltage drop. This is the total in the supply and ground parts of the circuit. Doing them separately is only useful to help locate the cause of the drops.
What do you mean by "remaining available voltage"? I am familiar with electrics and electronics.

However voltage drop is only part of the problem. The alternator doesn't give out a constant voltage. Try driving in 2nd gear at fairly high revs with the heater fan on high speed. If you are staying at a steady speed or accelerating then take your foot off the accelerator you will hear the fan speed up even though the revs stay the same or are reducing. This is to save fuel by keeping the voltage low and raising it when using engine breaking. A watered down version of regenerative braking.

Vans with H4 headlights have a combination of 4 problems -
1 - H4 lamps are always going to be a poor compromise as they have to do high beam and dipped beam.
2 - Poor reflectors due to having to do high and dipped beams.
3 - Low system voltage.
4 - Thin wiring for the lamps.

What are the options to rectify the problems of our budget headlights for improved light output?
1 - Swap out the crap for modern LED headlights, rewire and code as required. By far the best solution but unfortunately this is not an option for plebs like me who have to drive leased works vans due to the cost.
2 - Swap out the crap for H7 headlights. They are more affordable and should give a good improvement if you can get them cheap enough. Probably the best option for most people but I think some rewiring is also required.
3 - Add spot lights. A good cheap option until you need to use dipped lights which is most of the time for me.
4 - Run with your fog lights on all the time at night. A pet hate of mine as they dazzle everyone else and I think it is illegal. Also no use when on high beam. Not an option for my fog lightless bottom of the range van - my company knows how to make me feel valued!
5 - Fit 100 watt lamps. No good as the crap wiring and low voltage mean they stay just as dim and they're illegal.
6 - Fit LED lamps. Usually not a good option due to poor quality and the light not being focused properly causing oncoming traffic to be dazzled and they're probably all illegal.
7 - Make modifications to give a stable high voltage and use thicker cables. This is the route I intend to go down. I have bought a pair of 30A DC to DC boost converters, a fused relay box, an aluminium project box, a pair of H4 ceramic connector extension cables and a pair of 100w lamps. Total cost around £90. I could have done it for much less but safety is paramount here. I hope to get away with using Osram night breaker lamps, that I am using now, instead of the 100w lamps, to keep me legal.

If all goes well I will start a new thread explaining how I did it and maybe a before and after comparison. I want it to be safe and keep both headlights as two separate circuits so that a single fault is less likely to stop both headlights working. I also want it to be easily removed as the van is likely to be changed next year and also to allow everything to be easily bypassed if there is a fault. The original connectors will just need reconnecting back on to the lamps in an emergency. I may need to do some coding but hopefully that is not a problem. Choosing the best lamp and voltage combination for light output verses lamp life and dazzle, could be a challenge which will need some research. Even 24v 75/70w Osram truckstar Pro lamps (which I think are E marked) also become a possibility, in fact, anything up to 97v can be used but the lamps would need changing back to 12v lamps if something goes wrong.
This website has a tool to help see how voltage affects lamp life and light output -
It seems to only work in whole numbers making it is too course for 13.2v so I set it to 132v which gave better results but I don't know how accurate they are then. Raising the voltage to 13.8v gives 15% more light but halves the lamp life, which means Night breaker laser lamps average around only 80 hours on high beam, 200 hours on dip or a combination of the two. Still should last me a year or two so I will probably start around 13.8 to 14.0v.

If anyone has comments/criticisms/suggestions they would be appreciated especially before I start my modification in a week or two.
 
I know this is an old thread but it is still relevant today.
I have a few thoughts on this whole dim H4 headlight problem. My night vision is not the best so I need to get this sorted - no carrot comments please!

In reply to Mooncats post -
Voltage across the lamp is all we are interested in as that determines how bright the lamp is. The system voltage minus the voltage accross the lamp is the total voltage drop. This is the total in the supply and ground parts of the circuit. Doing them separately is only useful to help locate the cause of the drops.
What do you mean by "remaining available voltage"? I am familiar with electrics and electronics.

However voltage drop is only part of the problem. The alternator doesn't give out a constant voltage. Try driving in 2nd gear at fairly high revs with the heater fan on high speed. If you are staying at a steady speed or accelerating then take your foot off the accelerator you will hear the fan speed up even though the revs stay the same or are reducing. This is to save fuel by keeping the voltage low and raising it when using engine breaking. A watered down version of regenerative braking.

Vans with H4 headlights have a combination of 4 problems -
1 - H4 lamps are always going to be a poor compromise as they have to do high beam and dipped beam.
2 - Poor reflectors due to having to do high and dipped beams.
3 - Low system voltage.
4 - Thin wiring for the lamps.

What are the options to rectify the problems of our budget headlights for improved light output?
1 - Swap out the crap for modern LED headlights, rewire and code as required. By far the best solution but unfortunately this is not an option for plebs like me who have to drive leased works vans due to the cost.
2 - Swap out the crap for H7 headlights. They are more affordable and should give a good improvement if you can get them cheap enough. Probably the best option for most people but I think some rewiring is also required.
3 - Add spot lights. A good cheap option until you need to use dipped lights which is most of the time for me.
4 - Run with your fog lights on all the time at night. A pet hate of mine as they dazzle everyone else and I think it is illegal. Also no use when on high beam. Not an option for my fog lightless bottom of the range van - my company knows how to make me feel valued!
5 - Fit 100 watt lamps. No good as the crap wiring and low voltage mean they stay just as dim and they're illegal.
6 - Fit LED lamps. Usually not a good option due to poor quality and the light not being focused properly causing oncoming traffic to be dazzled and they're probably all illegal.
7 - Make modifications to give a stable high voltage and use thicker cables. This is the route I intend to go down. I have bought a pair of 30A DC to DC boost converters, a fused relay box, an aluminium project box, a pair of H4 ceramic connector extension cables and a pair of 100w lamps. Total cost around £90. I could have done it for much less but safety is paramount here. I hope to get away with using Osram night breaker lamps, that I am using now, instead of the 100w lamps, to keep me legal.

If all goes well I will start a new thread explaining how I did it and maybe a before and after comparison. I want it to be safe and keep both headlights as two separate circuits so that a single fault is less likely to stop both headlights working. I also want it to be easily removed as the van is likely to be changed next year and also to allow everything to be easily bypassed if there is a fault. The original connectors will just need reconnecting back on to the lamps in an emergency. I may need to do some coding but hopefully that is not a problem. Choosing the best lamp and voltage combination for light output verses lamp life and dazzle, could be a challenge which will need some research. Even 24v 75/70w Osram truckstar Pro lamps (which I think are E marked) also become a possibility, in fact, anything up to 97v can be used but the lamps would need changing back to 12v lamps if something goes wrong.
This website has a tool to help see how voltage affects lamp life and light output -
It seems to only work in whole numbers making it is too course for 13.2v so I set it to 132v which gave better results but I don't know how accurate they are then. Raising the voltage to 13.8v gives 15% more light but halves the lamp life, which means Night breaker laser lamps average around only 80 hours on high beam, 200 hours on dip or a combination of the two. Still should last me a year or two so I will probably start around 13.8 to 14.0v.

If anyone has comments/criticisms/suggestions they would be appreciated especially before I start my modification in a week or two.
H7s with uprated bulbs are the most cost effective route, have you read the "H4 to H7 upgrade" thread?

Philips Pro bulbs were the best lifespan that I could find.
 
H7s with uprated bulbs are the most cost effective route, have you read the "H4 to H7 upgrade" thread?

Philips Pro bulbs were the best lifespan that I could find.
As I said, H7s are probably the best option for most people so we agree on that. However I wanted a cheaper option that is easy to remove. Also I like pioneering something that I have not seen tried. I can also use the parts for different projects in the future so not much to lose if it is a failure. Thanks for the tip for Philips Pro lamps.
 
Oh my god......this has been a gripe of mine since 2016!! I pushed it as far as I possibly could with VW......I even contacted another agency, the name of which I can't remember. If a certain number of people complain, the manufacturer is forced to look into it......not saying the outcome would have been positive, but VW got away with murder regarding these appallingly cheap and in my opinion, dangerous light units. Anyhow, too late now but good luck @chang1......keep us posted!!
 
Oh my god......this has been a gripe of mine since 2016!! I pushed it as far as I possibly could with VW......I even contacted another agency, the name of which I can't remember. If a certain number of people complain, the manufacturer is forced to look into it......not saying the outcome would have been positive, but VW got away with murder regarding these appallingly cheap and in my opinion, dangerous light units. Anyhow, too late now but good luck @chang1......keep us posted!!
Just waiting for the relay box and aluminium box then once my tax returns are done I will make a start.
 
It's not VW.
The headlights are obviously good enough to pass vehicle type approval so why would they cut more out of their profit margin if they dont have to?
If people want to moan and start some kind of petition/class action then speak to the DVSA and get the regulations changed!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Bav
It's not VW.
The headlights are obviously good enough to pass vehicle type approval so why would they cut more out of their profit margin if they dont have to?
If people want to moan and start some kind of petition/class action then speak to the DVSA and get the regulations changed!
This is not just a VW problem. So I doubt there is a legal claim possible. My Vauxhall Omega lights were rubbish and that was a car capable of over 140mph. Changing them to zenon HID headlights sorted that easily.
My Outlander has excellent LED dipped lights but as they stay on, the poor main beam is almost unnoticeable. An LED light bar has sorted that.
The standards set by governments need to be raised to stop people having to improve lights or driving with fog lights on. Having people fit LED bulbs that dazzle oncoming drivers is a big problem which if cars had decent lights to begin with would be greatly reduced.
VW obviously know their H4 lights are rubbish as they are only fitted to low spec vehicles. The difference between VW fitting those and the acceptable H7 headlights is probably negligible.
 
Also I like pioneering something that I have not seen tried. I can also use the parts for different projects in the future so not much to lose if it is a failure. Thanks for the tip for Philips Pro lamps.

Good on ya for having a go at something different. I look forward to seeing the result, i personally went down the aftermarket H7 headlight route as i own the van and intend keeping it indefinitely.

Well worth getting some photos/videos in the middle of nowhere in the dark so you can do a comparison as opposed to the placebo effect of thinking they are better? @Stay Frosty did a good video of before/after fitting LEDs to his headlights to compare before/after which was cool.
 
It's not VW.
The headlights are obviously good enough to pass vehicle type approval so why would they cut more out of their profit margin if they dont have to?
If people want to moan and start some kind of petition/class action then speak to the DVSA and get the regulations changed!
I think that may be who I contacted. There were quite a few of us "moaners" back in the day........obviously not enough though. In this day and age, H4's are not good enough. I believe they dropped them altogether for the 6.1......certainly on the Highline......I suspect feedback from owners/moaners may have played a small part in this decision. It was a penny pinching act by VW who, at the time were struggling to recover from being caught with their pants down in the whole emissions cheat software scandal. It's the one aspect of my van that for me, lets it down.......other than that, I still love it.
 
Cheers for the reference Garry but the bollocks that people come out with regarding the H4 headlight on the T6 is by turn valid and not valid. There are literally thousands of these H4s in daily use without the roads being waist deep in the carnage caused by drivers with these headlights unable to see the road ahead.

I get told off for daring to say that the H7 type headlight on the T6 is no better than the H4 on dip with standard lamps fitted, you then hear it's better when you fit non standard lamps or code main beam and dip to run at the same time on the H7 which I think is probably true but a next to useless advantage 90% of the time, fit decent non standard lamps to the H4 and it stacks up against some more expensive replacement H7 headlights and non standard H7 lamps instead of just better lamps for the H4.
Hopefully I've linked to my original video showing winter roads here in Northampton, apologies for the video duration if it's there.

 
Back
Top