Cranky Posted August 3, 2019 Share Posted August 3, 2019 I'm considering switching out the headlights on my Caterham S3 with their newer LED headlights. It looks like its about $800 for a new pair. Has anyone done it? Is it worth the cost and bother? I don't drive at night often, but when I do, the headlights are appallingly dim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vovchandr Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 I'm considering switching out the headlights on my Caterham S3 with their newer LED headlights. It looks like its about $800 for a new pair. Has anyone done it? Is it worth the cost and bother? I don't drive at night often, but when I do, the headlights are appallingly dim. I swapped with the more reasonable amazon/china replica models. I started with 7in and then did 5 3/4in setup. Both have very good output even for the price but I wasn't happy with how 7in ones were sitting in the bucket. 5 3/4 sit perfect and are almost exact replicas of OEM. Hard to tell difference unless you know what you're looking for. It's not quite OEM but it's also not $1000 (after conversion and shipping etc) If you want just the output I'd get better bulbs, even LED replacements. If you want output and style, go replica. If you want best quality and best output then get ready to spend the $$ to get the best of each. Only you can say if it's worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brightonuk Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 Linky? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lightguy Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 As a lighting designer I can tell you that LED choice can be tricky. Forget about the physical fixture look. Concentrate of what lighting is supposed to accomplish; illuminating a dark roadway at night without blinding oncoming traffic. Designing a LED fixture that can maker the road look like daylight is slam dunk easy. To do so without completely blinding oncoming traffic is a completely different story. IMO auto headlight LED lighting is in its infancy. Stick to the tried and true until The Experts have figured it out and offer complete fixture replacements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnCh Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 If you decide to stick with traditional lighting, Daniel Stern is a great resource. I have the Cibie lenses couple with Navra +50 bulbs and have no complaints about the lighting; sharp cutoff and very good output. -John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vovchandr Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 For what it's worth here is a good comparison of good LED vs China stuff and what the difference in beam and light out put is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyMike Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 I was extremely happy with the Harley Davidson 5 3/4" LEDs on my Storker. They did give the front a different look, but the light pattern was spectacular at night. The illumination was very clear. I did have some pretty decent luck with Sylvania XtraVision H4s. Here are some good American made LEDs...https://www.jwspeaker.com/products/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slonie Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 For what it's worth here is a good comparison of good LED vs China stuff and what the difference in beam and light out put is Thanks for this! Now, if only the OEM JL Wrangler headlights weren't also $800... :leaving: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwedleJoe Posted August 9, 2019 Share Posted August 9, 2019 Only an opinion but here is what I did / am doing. The price for "Caterham" LED headlights was harsh so I looked at alternative's and found these on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Wisamic-5-3-5-75-LED-Headlight/dp/B01DZU30S0/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=led+headlights+5+3%2F4&qid=1565319813&s=gateway&sr=8-1 I have run them for over a year and there are a couple of other local Caterham runners Locally using them. They are at least twice as bright as stock and cut a wide-angle, rectangular pattern that is helpful. Plug-and-play for three-prong connections and the price is worth the experiment even if they may be OJ (oriental junk). Two spares in the boot just in case! I also invested in rears and front markers from Just Add Lightness in the UK. In the middle of mounting them on a total rebuild but I can share that lighting them with a battery and comparing them to stock Caterham is scary. Stoopid bright. and it is obvious they cater to Caterham owners. Even have LED plate light replacements and they include . ALL mounting hardware. https://www.justaddlightness.co.uk/why-change-to-led/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranky Posted August 11, 2019 Author Share Posted August 11, 2019 Thanks for all the feedback. I ordered one of the Wisamic lights. It is definitely cheap enough to be worth experimenting with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legs Posted September 20 Share Posted September 20 Any follow-up on these lights after a few years of use? I'm very interested in upgrading headlights for improved safety. As discussed, the Caterham ones are really expensive because of UK certifications which are pointless in the US. But I'm also leery of Chinese electeonics when it comes to safety equipment. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legs Posted November 3 Share Posted November 3 @TwedleJoe or @Cranky do you happen to have any updates on how your lights are still performing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranky Posted November 3 Author Share Posted November 3 7 minutes ago, Legs said: @TwedleJoe or @Cranky do you happen to have any updates on how your lights are still performing? I never did anything with them. I eventually sold the car. One of the dumbest things I ever did. I miss that car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legs Posted November 3 Share Posted November 3 Haha aww man, sorry for your loss. There is surely still time!! Thanks for the update Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slowdude Posted November 3 Share Posted November 3 3 hours ago, Legs said: Haha aww man, sorry for your loss. There is surely still time!! Thanks for the update Paging @Outbound, I think he's the most qualified around to give advice. Check out his post a few threads down about his road trip from the port. Devolved into a good LED discussion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outbound Posted November 3 Share Posted November 3 To fill this thread up with my rambles, here is what I posted regarding the Caterham OEM lights: Quote They are rebranded lights manufactured by Sirius (http://www.ns-sirius.com/products.php?page=9&plevel=2&pmid1=1&pmid2=4&pmid3=&keyword=) but when I fired them up on my power supply they looked like they have a plenty solid beam pattern. I have a friend who is the optical engineer for Morimoto lighting, and he's shown me all the optical data on these 5.75" headlights he designed and it looks amazing. https://www.morimotohid.com/housing-morimoto-sealed6-led-5-7-5?quantity=1 However, I wanted the OEM look. If I am not thrilled with these oem ones, I might spring for the Morimoto. Or I'll get them anyways and do a back to back. Ultimately I don't plan on driving the car too much at night (it'll be put away for the winter) so ultimate lighting performance wasn't high on my list. A clean OEM look was the ideal one, and there are a lotttttt of bad looking 5.75" options out there. As far as 5.75" vs 7". If sticking with halogen bulbs, then yea the larger the lamp the better. However with LED it doesn't really matter much. Ultimately could even have a tiny 2-3" headlight with a proper projector and it'd outperform a 7" halogen. Just would look very odd on these cars. 5.75" I think modernizes the look and makes it look lower and wider, so that's why I went down that path. You can get these NS-Siruis lights from Summit Racing: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/upd-31267 I have been running around for a few weeks with them on, and have been pleasantly impressed. The beam pattern doesn't look promising on the wall, but on-road performance is good enough. If I wanted outright performance and beam pattern I would go with the Morimoto listed above. I just wanted the modern OEM look, so went the NS-Sirus (united pacific) route. I got headlight lowering brackets, new bowls, and got it all wired in along with the Caterham rear LED kit. I am quite happy with the lighting. Now just sorting out drivablity and oil leaks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vovchandr Posted November 3 Share Posted November 3 32 minutes ago, Outbound said: To fill this thread up with my rambles, here is what I posted regarding the Caterham OEM lights: You can get these NS-Siruis lights from Summit Racing: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/upd-31267 I have been running around for a few weeks with them on, and have been pleasantly impressed. The beam pattern doesn't look promising on the wall, but on-road performance is good enough. If I wanted outright performance and beam pattern I would go with the Morimoto listed above. I just wanted the modern OEM look, so went the NS-Sirus (united pacific) route. I got headlight lowering brackets, new bowls, and got it all wired in along with the Caterham rear LED kit. I am quite happy with the lighting. Now just sorting out drivablity and oil leaks. Good info. Website doesn't have pricing. How does it compare to OEM? I've been driving with the knock offs for years now and for how limited my night driving is, it's certainly good enough. I probably have 100 miles where I don't have headlight covers on my car total. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outbound Posted November 4 Share Posted November 4 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/upd-31267 Can get them here. Wildly better over OEM. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vovchandr Posted November 4 Share Posted November 4 1 hour ago, Outbound said: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/upd-31267 Can get them here. Wildly better over OEM. I meant OEM pricing for the same units. Surely better than halogen no matter what LED Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outbound Posted November 4 Share Posted November 4 They are the OEM units, only difference is that doesn’t have the caterham logo silk screened on the lower lens. Unless you mean buying direct from them? You’ll likely need to buy at minimum 10-20 units as companies like that don’t sell retail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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