Halogen or LED? Headlight Bulb Battle - Flosser Rally vs. Auxito Q16

[@thuggiesdrake4484]

We need more content with the Volvo!! 🔥

[@nikosicapero5294]

Leds is okay, you can find warm white also

[@AUXITOLED]

Cool, Your video is filmed so well.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Thanks guys! Your bulbs speak for themselves, very impressive. What are the chances of making a warm white version (something like 3000k)?

[@AUXITOLED]

@@AndrewDoesCarStuff I did check our website, No 3000k version headlights are sold. But we got a version with lower lumens. Contact our rep if you are interested in something else.

[@Skunkola]

Yeah I'd stay with the halogens too based on the colour. If the LEDs were warmer I'd be tempted to go for some additional lamps to assist with the high beams.

[@MrCaprinut]

I live in Norway and as you may know our dark winters are loooooong! My go to bulb is Osram Nightbreaker. Lot better than regular bulbs but with mid range cost. And we are only limited to 55w bulbs here.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Dang, so what are the rules with LED bulbs there? Are there limits to the brightness you can have?

[@1873Winchester]

@@AndrewDoesCarStuff Likely same as in Finland, totally super illegal to run LEDs in headlights not designed for them. It's common to fit extra lamps on cars here though. They can be leds, such as LED ramps.

[@MrCaprinut]

@@AndrewDoesCarStuff 6000k is the color limit. Only modern cars with automatic light leveling can have led bulbs. Can be only retro fitted if you install all the leveling bits.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

@@MrCaprinut interesting that there's a color limit, but not a brightness limit. I'm sure that will happen at some point.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

@@1873Winchester that's intereesting. I would think that as long as the bulbs have the same beam pattern, and go through some kind of approval process, it should be ok as a safety upgrade.

[@MattOHara86]

Great choice to use the halogen lights. The LED lights did look a little strange. Also, it was very neat seeing the comparison of the lights in black and white. It really helped to be able to see how much light they were putting out.

[@calbackk]

Very nice to find new videos from you, thanks a lot. I really like your relaxed yet "scientific" style. All your cars are very interesting ones, but the Manta A is off course my big favourite. Greetings from Sweden.

[@CollectorOfThings]

Daniel Stern lighting has some good information about LEDs. As you say the colour temperature is a problem. What is also a problem is that the halogen reflectors are designed for the light source to be in a certain position, it is not possible for LEDs to be correctly positioned and is why they are usually illegal.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Right, at least these LED's have the "filaments" in the correct position, and they have the block off "cup" for low beam. So the beam pattern actually looked pretty good to me.

[@kevinrowley2579]

Thanks for the test. I agree that the LEDs look a little odd in classic cars. Just a couple of points: halogen bulbs dim over time and use. I don't know how old your 55/60s were, but simply replacing them with new ones might have given you some improvement. Also, the relays usually add brightness to the lights by themselves. It's hard to tell how much of the improvement was due to new bulbs, higher-wattage bulbs, or the relays.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

All good points. Thanks!

[@1873Winchester]

I think the halogen lamps look better than modern lights, which are often unpleasant as you meet them on the road to boot. Pair of good halogens has always given me enough light to drive in dark finnish winters for decades on dark rural roads as well as more trafficed ones.

[@bobbysims9903]

I agree. LEDs look odd in vintage/ classic cars.

[@gearhead9828]

Never heard about Flösser 🤔 Great video! Greetings from, er, Germany 🤦‍♂️🙃

[@itsvondell]

I really want to spring for JDM glass headlights for my Previa once my budget allows. Her US spec plastic ones are really showing the 33 years no matter how good I get at polishing. Love your Volvo, I've always really loved the 240 wagons. And I agree - I feel like if a reputable company started producing warmer-toned LED headlights, they'd get a lot of interest from people with older cars. It just feels right.

[@-Sam-]

loving the Volvo content, Whens the ls swap coming

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Soon. Just kidding, I don't know if I could pull that off. Fun to daydream about it though!

[@winandd8649]

You made the right choice. I also hate those blinding white lights and above all, they don't suit a vintage Volvo 😉 Also note that here in NL it's not legal to put LED bulbs in headlights that are not designed for it. You probably will not be pulled over and fined for it if they are not aimed too high, but it's a fail on the yearly MOT inspection, so you would also have to change them back to halogen before MOT

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Thanks! I've heard about that rule, it might actually be the same here, but it's never (or rarely) enforced. So many people have blinding LED headlights now anyway it's hard to tell if they are stock or modified.

[@ArnieeBear]

I agree with you, the halogen bulb and color seem much more period correct. As always such a good video. Looking forward to the next one.

[@Sixty-EightCougar]

Another great video, Andrew! [you know who this is by my handle 🙂] Your explanation of the technology involved was put on a level that even an old guy like me can understand. Oh! And as for your singing: don't quite your day job! 😉

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Hah! Thanks Rich :D

[@Maximum_777]

By FAR the best, most clearly presented headlight video I've seen. I am 100% in agreeance it's the color temperature that bugs me as well, and I am going to totally get LED's eventually because they're clearly the better option from a longevity standpoint, but only once they can replicate the warm white of a halogen with automotive LED lights. I have several LED lights inside my house that are a gorgeously warm color temperature, and they're decorative warm white light bulbs, they look incredible, can get quite bright, and are exactly what I want from the lighting in my car, but seemingly nobody makes warm white bulbs for automotive use, it's like there's a limitation in LED manufacturing or something where they can't get bright enough without looking blue, my hope is this isn't the case, and we'll see it eventually, but for now it's very disappointing to see nothing but cool white lights out there, and I'm indeed going to wait because I just don't like it.

[@joell439]

I agree - you made the same choice I would. 👍👍😎👍👍 (nice tune at the end 🤣🤣)

[@JoakimStenudd]

So glad I found your chanel! I'm really enjoying your content. I've allways loved the 240 (I'm a swede). A brown 244 from 85 was the first car I owned. I'm currently driving an NA miata which i love. When I get the space for it I have the intention of buying another 240 for myself. Great minds think alike ;)

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Thank you! Excellent taste. Miata and 240 are the perfect 2-car solution. :)

[@MapleMarmite]

Great, informative video. I agree wholeheartedly with the modern headlights being too bright, in fact I avoid driving at night because of it. It doesn’t help that in North America every other person drives a truck that has headlights in line with the eyes of anyone driving a regular car. Mine is old and has halogen bulbs and, as I said, rarely gets driven at night. Are the resistors purely for avoiding the bulb out warning lights? I don’t have those on my vehicles so maybe I won’t need them if that’s their only purpose. I agree with you on the glass lenses, too. My 80s F150 camper has the plastic junk but they don’t put glass ones in them anywhere in the world, so I can’t get any for it. I bought some LED driving lamps for it to use on country roads and campsites but I’m going to try restoring the plastic lenses (or buying new) and then the brighter bulbs for around town. I would be interested in a similar video about fog lamps and driving lamps on an older vehicle and the Volvo would be a good candidate for such an experiment with the right lamps, maybe…? 👍🏻

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Ah, the trucks with LED lights are the worst. Anyway yes the resistors / adapters are mainly just to make sure your car thinks the headlights are correct. Probably more important in newer vehicles with "can bus" / obd ii which I think is 1996 and newer. Maybe this isn't what you're looking for, but I did install some Hella driving lights on my 1973 Opel, which use H3 bulbs. That video is on my channel. Would be cool to put some OEM fog lamps on the Volvo though!

[@scottdorey8480]

Keep up the good work old friend.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Thanks dude!

[@TheBlooRayChannel]

That was such a luxurious video. Loved it

[@honestaquarian]

Great video. I am still using the stock US spec plastic headlights. I replaced them due to aging and coloration. At first I was rocking some PIAA high powered halogens with a wiring harness/relay system. Definitely brighter. Then I discovered Nilight and Auxito LED's. Nilight 9004 LED's with cooling fans. I had to go with Auxito for the fog lights, because Nilight doesn't make H3 bulbs. The reason why I landed on these two brands is the fact that they design their LED bulbs to focus the light down on the road, INSTEAD of shining light EVERYWHERE like a lot of brands. Which blinds oncoming drivers. The Nilights were SO bright that I could no longer see the fog lights. So I had to replace them with LED's and landed on the Auxito H3 bulbs. On dark roads at night I do not have ANY problems seeing the deer on the sides of the road!! I still have the headlights hooked up to the wiring harness btw.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Thanks, it's good to hear from another 240 owner with similar experiences.

[@honestaquarian]

@@AndrewDoesCarStuff The catch with my situation is that I never had an issue with the light out sensor being tripped. I have replaced all but one of my exterior lights with either LED's or SMD's. I learned to check before purchase if they are CANBUS compatible. CANBUS being the designation of the system that cars use to alert the driver to a light bulb being out. Not all LED's are compatible with CANBUS systems. When it comes to light bulbs other than the headlights. SMD's [Surface Mount Diode-which are a different type of LED (Light Emitting Diode)] tend to be more likely to be CANBUS compatible. ALWAYS check to see if the LED or SMD that you are buying is CANBUS compatible in advance. Also once you install a headlight wiring harness that allows you to hook up the headlights to the battery, it removes the headlights from the CANBUS system. But at 50,000 hour lifespan (according to the manufacturer) one would hardly have to be worried about a headlight bulb failing any time soon!

[@damons6759]

Great video Andrew.

[@OmbraYSG]

So, in Europe OSRAM has put in sale the “LEDriving® HL Vintage”, wich are 3000K and time-correct colour but waaaaaay more power!!!

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Ah, very cool! I didn't find these during my research. Thanks for the info. I wonder how the brightness compares to the 100w halogens. Edit: It looks like BulbFacts tested this series of Osram LEDriving HL (just the regular Gen.2 version, not Vintage) and they got about 2000 lumens on their test setup. Better than stock 55w halogens, but not as bright as the 100w Flossers (which get about 2900 lumens in the same conditions). Still, seems like a good option with all the benefits LEDs have.

[@mazdamiatafied]

Great video and testing! Modern bright blue LED headlights drive me crazy. The best bulbs I've found are LED but in a warm white (3000k), best of both worlds. The Morimoto/Holley Retrobrights meant for exactly this. 💡

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Thanks! I knew about the Holley Retrobrights, but they only have the "sealed beam" style of lights and not individual bulbs. I do think they're a great option for cars that use those type of lights though. I found one other place that makes H4-type bulbs in a 3500k temp, but I contacted them and they told me straight up they wouldn't be as bright as 100w halogens.

[@johnlorrieboskovic2836]

Thank you for this video! You make some excellent points about the "color" of the light. I find as I get older that the brightness of an led helps me, but since most of my driving requires low vs high beams, I'm wondering if adding even factory fogs to my '14 Sienna would give me the same benefit. Lots to consider here but data is always good to have!

[@username.858]

Great Video. I agree with you, it really depends on the personality of the car. I would be willing to use LED's in my 760 (facelift) tough.

[@jacobneville-smith9741]

Great video! I agree with you the halogens look way better in an older car, and that new car headlights are too bright. Especially when every second person has a truck and you're in an old low car. Did you notice any problems with glare from the beam pattern on the LEDs? It's been made illegal to fit LED bulbs to headlamps which don't have them OEM in NZ due to concerns they don't throw the same beam pattern and blind other drivers even on low beam.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Thanks! Agreed about the trucks... Anyway these LEDs have quite a good beam pattern actually, they clearly made an effort to position the low and high beam chips in the correct spots, and the low beam has that cutoff shield. That said, I did feel a little guilty driving with these, thinking I'm becoming part of the problem that I complain about.

[@jacobneville-smith9741]

@@AndrewDoesCarStuff interesting! Good to know because you did used to see some bad ones here before they got banned.

[@gearhead9828]

Good decision 👍

[@maxorton7709]

love the volvo stuff

[@geoffreycarter3981]

I think you just need to get the correct wiring harness for the Ecode lights and then I'd recommend using Halogen with Wagonmeisters wiring harness. I have that vintage look with warm bulbs but a crisp headlight cutoff and great visibility.

[@toyotabrony]

@AndrewDoesCarStuff I’m truly glad u came across bulbfacts. It truly helps to give us a better idea since they tested multiple led bulbs to see which one is the best that mimics the same beam pattern as oem. I always show this to others if they were not sure if it’s worth it or not, does it mimic as oem. This is very important. 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Glad that was a helpful tidbit!

[@toyotabrony]

@@AndrewDoesCarStuff indeed it is

[@72SSAbody]

Why do I want to be Andrew’s neighbor? Great guy, cool cars and his singing isn’t too bad either 15:05 😂

[@digiternst]

Throw a yellow or orange gel over the LED maybe?

[@Topo42mh]

i have an 80 series and went to LED's but the look isnt the same. Been wondering why no one makes a off white LED. I'd grab some in a heart beat.

[@villejussila1599]

I've been thinking the same thing!! Why aren't there warm white LED lights for cars? That would be so nice. Xenon's used to hurt the eyes already and now these ridiculously bright LED's... :/

[@manujadesilva22]

You hit the nail on the head with every point you made. New car headlights are way too bright.

[@leoademayyyne4979]

Very interesting video. If you ever find LEDs headlight bulbs that emit light whose colour resembles halogen, or maybe even with other features that would make them "halogen-like" (such as soft switching from on/off), please let us know ! 😁

[@j.harvey3228]

I get it

[@LoserSnoozer]

There was one company I found that did tricolor led lights, 3000k, 4300k and 6000/6500k for low beams and the high beams is 6500 but they're 120 for the set and are a little unconventional looking.. If it's something you want to do, they're called the "Boslla Bullet B4"

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Interesting! Looks very "yellow" from their pictures.

[@LoserSnoozer]

@@AndrewDoesCarStuff I think thats the 3000k which is like a rally yellow which is supposedly good for eye strain but the 4300k seems interesting as thats about the color temperature of a halogen bulb so I wonder if it actually is comparable as led vs halogen with similar color temperatures

[@saakey]

It's funny, I can drive around with my high-beams on in my '89 245 and no one flashes me... todays cars are so bright, i think people don't even notice i'm high-beaming around town. lol edit- meant to add, I agree with your viewpoint--no pun intended. But the modern LED lighting looks strange on the older cars. I would use the halogens... in fact, my '91 has the LEDs right now and I don't like the look and will switch--once I get my car back from the shop!

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

Half the time I curse out other drivers because it seems like they have their high beams on, but it's just that modern headlights are that bright. Really not ideal as it makes it impossible to see pedestrians, bikes, etc when bright blue LEDs are shining in my eyes. And agreed, I've done the high beam experiment too with my old cars and it seems like it's not even noticeable. Still try to be a good person and avoid it though, haha.

[@toyotabrony]

@AndrewDoesCarStuff What size is ur reflector style headlights? Since it’s a sealed beam type headlights. If u want to retain a nice 3000k warm/classic color temperature on a super bright led. Enter, Holley Retrobrite. Holley was teamed up with Morimoto and they make period correct sealed beam style led headlights for classic cars and trucks. Or any vehicle that uses round and square and rectangle headlights. They offer 25W 2500 lumens led headlight housing. They offer 3000k warm/classic white, 3000k golden yellow euro style. And 5700k modern white. I really hope they the size u have on ur Volvo. I think they are $180 a piece. But they are truly worth it. In compare to modern vehicles with full led headlight assembly. Price comparison like Toyota Corolla 2024. It’s $1100 a piece. With aftermarket from Holley retrobrite. They are much brighter and gives u a full width of distribution of light. I think ur gonna love it.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

These are not sealed beam headlights on the Volvo, so I'm out of luck in this case. I've seen the Holley Retrobright lights though, they look like an ideal solution for a lot of classic cars. Pretty expensive though.

[@toyotabrony]

@@AndrewDoesCarStuff I wish there aftermarket headlights that had modern reflector style, like the modern cars. It will remain classic just modern touches.

[@toyotabrony]

@AndrewDoesCarStuff U truly get ur money’s worth on second brightest in their line up, Auxito - Q16. These will not be truly reliable as they get warm from around 160 degrees Fahrenheit. According to car light reviews. So hopefully they still hold up well. With very power light. Keep this in mind. Don’t believe the lumens they claim. As much as I love Auxito. 15,000-35,000 lumens each is a lie. If it’s 30W it’s 3000 lumens each, if it’s 50W it’s 5000 lumens each. Keep that in mind. But these are incredibly bright. Especially that nice 2 year warranty.

[@HelloImMaxxHennard]

LED's are simply a superior product. I would rather make sure I don't hit people, event if it means not staying true to the "vintage" vibe. Life>Looking Cool. Nice vid though.

[@stuudio]

I'm ready to subscribe to your next YT channel: "Andrew Does Silly Songs."

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

That could probably be arranged 😆

[@foyrees]

blue light isn't "harsher", it's just part of the spectrum our brains are programmed to associate with daylight. if I'm driving at night, I give significantly less fucks about my circadian rhythm than I do about my ability to see as well as I possibly can while piloting a couple tons of steel around in public.

[@9fiveb180]

Plus...... it's technically illegal to install L.E.D's into a reflector style headlamp housing.

[@toyotabrony]

Well both projector and reflector. Led bulbs are illegal but who cares. As long as u get the right ones and mimic the same beam pattern as oem. Ur fine.

[@9fiveb180]

@@toyotabrony That's not how it works. Because the "beam pattern" doesn't change with different bulbs or diodes. Just the color temperature and intensity. LEDs aren't illegal. But using them as your forward facing driving lights, in a headlamp housing that was not designed to mitigate the glare to oncoming motorists (as in, ballasts, auto leveling systems, and the proper projector style lens assemblies with partial baffles to block the upper half of the emitted beams, like say you'd find in vehicles with HID, Xenon type headlamps) definitely are illegal. Special care also needs to be taken to keep both R/L forward facing headlamps properly aligned in any vehicle no matter the type of headlamp. Especially in lifted vehicles. The taller the lift, the steeper the adjustment angle downward you'll need to make to your rig.

[@toyotabrony]

@@9fiveb180 pretty much it does how it works. If u get the right type of two sided led, with tiny little led chips. Such as ZES,SMD, and CSP led chips. With a very thin dead space of two sided led. Or even if it’s an H4 dual beam bulb, u need an exact match dual beam H4 led bulb. Take Auxito - M3 or on the video the Q16. They truly do mimic the same beam pattern and not just brightness. If u have just brightness but not a great distribution of the light output, than it’s not the right one. And yeah pretty much all led bulsb are not DOT approved. But again. That’s ok. This implies to HID, and some halogen bulbs. Like he has or similar to Philips - rallyvision 100W halogen bulb. Those are also not DOT approved which is funny.

[@paulimorrison62]

i going to update my systems looks better

[@anthonybell6344]

Halogen reflector units are not suitable for led , the light scatter is blinding to oncoming traffic.

[@toyotabrony]

U don’t blind others if u get the right ones. He got the right type of two sided led bulb of Auxito - Q16. And they are indeed suitable for both halogen projector AND reflector headlights.

[@Google_Is_Evil]

Your test drives actually show that the LED lights at the low beam setting give off a lot more stray light to areas you are not supposed to shine for reason of blinding opposite traffic. Your light fixtures were not designed for LEDs but for glowing filaments. The beam is formed in your fixtures expecting a very point-shaped source spreading light 360 degrees around and not one or two rectangles on opposite sides of a flat piece of metal. Any light source outside of what the design calls for will not stay within the designed area and possily blind other people you might encounter. Regardless of personal preference and how much you can see inside the area most of the light is coming, you causing other people to get blinded is the (valid) reason why retrofitting LED in halogen systems is officially illegal in (most of) Europe. Doing the relay setup was the proper way to do the halogens, kudos for that. You may want to monitor temperatures of your enclosures since the heat design is based on the 55/60W bulbs and you practically doubling that might get temperatures so high that plastic could melt and/or metal will corrode much faster than by design. Don't expect aftermarket LEDs or high wattage halogens to give you anything over or in some cases, even close to the lifespan of your regular Halogens. The design parameters simply don't allow for that. The high power halogens will get pretty close if they are designed correctly, the LEDs most often bake themselves since they are very intolerant to any heat and the cooling environment inside a halogen fixture just can't be compensated for with a flimsy little fan or small heat sink. Ideally you want the LEDs themselves not to get over 100F, they will do fine up to about 180F (depending on type/manufacturer obviously) but above that the lifespan goes down super rapidly.

[@AndrewDoesCarStuff]

All good points, thanks for that.

[@toyotabrony]

Led two sided bulbs works way better, as long as u get the right ones. For both projector and reflector headlights. As long as it mimics the same beam pattern as oem with tiny CSP, SMD, and ZES LED chips. Ur fine. We will still upgrade with led no matter what.

[@dmitry1830]

The led lights are great, just not for this car.

[@toyotabrony]

If it mimics the same beam pattern as oem. It’s also great