9006 to 9005 bulb conversion

[97toyotacam]

so i changed out my 9006's for sylvania 9005's and in the camry faq i was reading it said you had to modify the bulbs but i didn't have to at all i just kinda jammed em up in there and they work fine in the 9006 socket. in the faq it says to cut the inside ridges but i didn't need to. maybe this is because i have the 2001 halo headlights? i dunno just wondering. light output is wonderful though and i wired my shit up a lil differently this time. For my low beams i have all four bulbs illuminated just at a slightly lower intensity than the high setting. i did this by bridging the wires between the low and high beam on only one h4 plug, and then it works for both. kinda tripped me out a lil bit. also nobody flashed there brights on me yet lol

[PortugalFocus]

Post some pics up. Just be careful not to burn out the OE harness. That's a lot of wattage running all the time.

[zppeacock]

The 9005 bulbs will fit in the 9006 housings, but the plug is slightly different. I have to shave the middle ridge off in the plug of the 9005 and then it fits perfectly.

[AlaricD]

The 9006 to 9005 "mod" is an inadvisable conversion for several reasons:

• The lifespan of the 9005 (about 320 hours), is much shorter than the 9006 (about 875 hours)
• The shank of the 9005 is smaller than on the 9006 so the bulb will wobble around in the socket (causing beam flicker and change in focus due to the moving filament as well as shortening the bulb life further)
• Condensation can occur in the headlamp assembly, which can damage the reflector
• On headlights without a full cup bulb shield, it causes glare for oncoming traffic

For my low beams i have all four bulbs illuminated just at a slightly lower intensity than the high setting. i did this by bridging the wires between the low and high beam on only one h4 plug, and then it works for both. kinda tripped me out a lil bit. also nobody flashed there brights on me yet lol

Illegal and dumb. You're running high beams around other traffic, and you're not even getting a proper low beam pattern due to the reduced voltage to the low beam bulbs.

[97toyotacam]

[quote=AlaricD;3229227]The 9006 to 9005 "mod" is an inadvisable conversion for several reasons:

• The lifespan of the 9005 (about 320 hours), is much shorter than the 9006 (about 875 hours)
• The shank of the 9005 is smaller than on the 9006 so the bulb will wobble around in the socket (causing beam flicker and change in focus due to the moving filament as well as shortening the bulb life further)
• Condensation can occur in the headlamp assembly, which can damage the reflector
• On headlights without a full cup bulb shield, it causes glare for oncoming traffic

1. don't care about bulb lifespan if i get more light on the road.
2. never had to replace my 9005's for about two years and i ran them with my drl setting forever, way more than 300 hours. drive everyday
3.i have no flickers or changes in focus even on bumpy roads
4. no condensation or moisture to speak of and i have been driving in the rain. i have washers in my sockets
5.my lights have a "full bulb cup shield"
6. my low beam pattern is brighter if anything from when i had the 9006 in there.
only difference is more light due to the extra bulb illuminated on each side.
7. legal in hawaii as long as you have a low and high setting , and your low is not blinding.
8. its no different than if i had fog lights
9. i will post pics when i have the chance.
10. dude, you drive a previa

[PortugalFocus]

I have been running on my Saturn VUE with 9005s in the low beam for 2+ years with no sweat.

What my concern for your is, running with the highs and lows on all the time.

[AlaricD]

Originally Posted by 97toyotacam

1. don't care about bulb lifespan if i get more light on the road.
2. never had to replace my 9005's for about two years and i ran them with my drl setting forever, way more than 300 hours. drive everyday
3.i have no flickers or changes in focus even on bumpy roads
4. no condensation or moisture to speak of and i have been driving in the rain. i have washers in my sockets
5.my lights have a "full bulb cup shield"
6. my low beam pattern is brighter if anything from when i had the 9006 in there.
only difference is more light due to the extra bulb illuminated on each side.
7. legal in hawaii as long as you have a low and high setting , and your low is not blinding.
8. its no different than if i had fog lights
9. i will post pics when i have the chance.
10. dude, you drive a previa

1. You also don't care about the law and other drivers and your own safety.
2. Anecdotal evidence is not data.
3. You're lucky that they don't-- or you just don't notice it
4. Another thing you're lucky about.
5. I suppose that's common in many low beam fixtures
6. Your low beams, having less voltage, are starved. Intensity of the light changes to the power -3.4 with changes in voltage. Tell me what voltage they're getting and I'll tell you how much less light you're getting from them. (There's a specific method to test actual voltage drop which requires the bulb to be in place.)
7. I'll get back to you on the Hawaii laws.
8. Fog lights are not low or high beams. It is different.
9. Yay for pics (they'll prove nothing, but I guess people LOVE pics)
10. Yes, yes I do! Thanks for noticing! I also drive an '01 Corolla LE.

[projektvertx]

^ You bash every light mod there is on this forum, wether good or bad. What do YOU do for better lighting?

P.S. You might call this "anecdotal evidence" but my car had factory 9005 high beam bulbs from 1995 to 2005, and my car runs DRLs, so they are on pretty much permanently (althought I think it's a low voltage mode, correct me if I'm wrong).

[AlaricD]

Originally Posted by projektvertx

^ You bash every light mod there is on this forum, wether good or bad.

No, just the bad ones.

What do YOU do for better lighting?

For the 9006, I use the Philips X-Treme Power 9006. I also recommend the Philips HIR2 (9012), but this requires a base modification and the vehicle MUST have a full cup bulb shield since the end is not coated.

For the 9005, there is no XTP equivalent, but Philips does have the High Visibility +30. The HIR1 (9011) has the same wattage as the 9005, but has 49% higher intensity. It also requires a base modification to fit the 9005 socket.

P.S. You might call this "anecdotal evidence" but my car had factory 9005 high beam bulbs from 1995 to 2005, and my car runs DRLs, so they are on pretty much permanently (althought I think it's a low voltage mode, correct me if I'm wrong).

High beam DRLs run at about 60% of the voltage of normal high beams. That means they'll have a life of approximately 229K hours. (Bulb life changes exponentially to the power of -13 with voltage.) The bulbs will fail due to other reasons (vibration or jarring) long before that, as well as due to the reduced efficiency of the halogen cycle (since the filaments were designed with the halogen cycle in mind). Still, DRL usage will not impact the lifetime of the high beam very much.

[projektvertx]

No, just the bad ones.

For the 9006, I use the Philips X-Treme Power 9006. I also recommend the Philips HIR2 9012, but this requires a base modification and the vehicle MUST have a full cup bulb shield since the end is not coated.

For the 9005, there is no XTP equivalent, but Philips does have the High Visibility +30. The HIR 9011 has the same wattage as the 9005, but has 49% higher intensity. It also requires a base modification to fit the 9005 socket.

Thank you for that. I was always really angry that you never provided an alternate solution and I just kept hearing bad things....

High beam DRLs run at about 60% of the voltage of normal high beams. That means they'll have a life of approximately 229K hours. (Bulb life changes exponentially to the power of -13 with voltage.) The bulbs will fail due to other reasons (vibration or jarring) long before that, as well as due to the reduced efficiency of the halogen cycle (since the filaments were designed with the halogen cycle in mind). Still, DRL usage will not impact the lifetime of the high beam very much.

You seem to have a lot of info about lighting. Would you might creating a thread summarizing availible options and which one is the best, legal method of improving lighting?

[AlaricD]

Originally Posted by projektvertx

Thank you for that. I was always really angry that you never provided an alternate solution and I just kept hearing bad things....

You're welcome.

I try to offer alternate solutions in most of the lighting threads; don't know why I didn't in this particular one until just now.

You seem to have a lot of info about lighting. Would you might creating a thread summarizing availible options and which one is the best, legal method of improving lighting?

I've conversed a time or two with some people who actually contributed to writing FMVSS 108, and also participate on another message board where I've picked up more information (some from one of those co-authors). I don't know as much as they do by far, but I've learned quite a bit from them. I study up on it every day since am collaborating with another person in developing a patent on an automotive lighting device; we don't want to run afoul of existing laws and we want to ensure the device contributes meaningfully and positively to increasing safety.

I'll take your request to heart, and work on something. I'm certainly not against lighting mods and upgrades-- I just want them to be done safely (and, sadly, most of what I'd "approve of" do not set the modded vehicle apart in terms of "style", and so tend to be unpopular with the modding crowd).

[AlaricD]

I also forgot to mention installing relays (something I really need to do on the Previa since it uses what looks like 18AWG wire to the sockets).

Filament intensity changes to the power of -3.4 with voltage changes; relays help minimize any voltage loss. Automotive bulbs are rated for output at 12.8V; for life at 14V. (This the 320 hour 9005 will actually get about 687 hours at 13.2V. Still, compared to the 1880 hours a 9006 will last at 13.2V (since it's rated for 875hrs at 14V), it's quite a difference.)

So if you've got a bulb rated at 1000 lumens at 12.8V (like a standard 9006), and you're getting only 12.7V to it (not at all farfetched on factory wiring), you're already losing 26 lumens. At 12.6V, you're losing 52 lumens. However, edge that up the other way (since alternator output is about 13.8V and higher typically), and you really make some gains. That 1000 lumen 9006 becomes a 1291 lumen 9006-- a 29% increase right there (yet you'll still get over 1000 hours of service on it). That's driving for 125 days with 8hrs of headlight usage each day. Plenty of service.

[97toyotacam]

wow this guy is a lighting nazi! just kidding but hey, i asked my dad if he thought my lows were too bright and he thought they are normal compared to those guys with the ultra blue hid super bright lights. i drove 100 + miles with this setting at night time and nobody flashed there brights at me including 2 police officers. one or two guys did put on their fog lights though, but not their brights. By the way i am a professional rescuer so other peoples safety is a large concern of mine, and i don't think this simple lighting difference compromises it. thanks for all your input though guys.

[AlaricD]

Originally Posted by 97toyotacam

wow this guy is a lighting nazi!

just kidding but hey, i asked my dad if he thought my lows were too bright and he thought they are normal compared to those guys with the ultra blue hid super bright lights. i drove 100 + miles with this setting at night time and nobody flashed there brights at me including 2 police officers. one or two guys did put on their fog lights though, but not their brights.

I very rarely flash people myself. Not sure why anyone would put on their fog lights though... weird.

By the way i am a professional rescuer so other peoples safety is a large concern of mine, and i don't think this simple lighting difference compromises it. thanks for all your input though guys.

Well, I hope your mod doesn't cause more problems than it solves.

[97toyotacam]

lol very funny. i like your sense of humor, rare in a nazi.

BTW i should note that my headlights are aimed more down at the road than up at peoples faces, to make sure nobody is blinded.

I am not trying to solve any issues or problems with this enhancement, just messing around. i might go back to just the low beam 9005s illuminated because i do admit that if you are a fellow camry owner you might think i got my brights on (albeit dimmer) due to all four lights being on.

or maybe i should just get the 9006 hid kit?

only kidding