Headlamp bulbs - -96 LHS

Bulbs wear out and get progressively dimmer way before total (filament breaks) failure. If you drive at night a lot, new bulbs once a year wouldn?t be excessive maintenance. I see the SilverStar Ultra ads also; still a marketing scam to sell blue-tinted bulbs at an outrageous price. If you like the Sylvania brand of bulbs, go for the XtraVision model(s).

I've owned a '94 LHS and a '97. The headlights on the '94 were about as bright with the switch in the "off" position as they were in the "on" and I'm not kidding when I tell you I was nervous driving the thing at night, especially on roads without streetlights.

I had the original headlight assemblies swapped out for a revised design, under warranty, and this improved their performance considerably. It never had an issue with the '97, so I assume the problem must have been corrected sometime after your vehicle was built. In any event, your dealer should be able to provide you with more information.

And, no question, the high-performance halogen IR lamps provide a noticeable boost in light output and are well worth the extra dollars.

Cheers, Paul

True enough on the modified Toshiba 9011 & 9012 HIR bulbs; I have the

9011 bulbs in my (9005) high beam sockets. The increased light output is amazing, but will only retrofit easily to headlamps that take 9005 or 9006 bulbs. Another thing that works well to increase headlamp light output is to install headlight relays, which puts close to system voltage at the headlight bulb sockets; just a 5% voltage increase at the socket will produce close to 20% more light from the filament. The relays can be bought just about anywhere, but the easiest thing to do is spend $50 or so to buy a commercially available harness from any of several Internet vendors.

Hi Sharon,

Hmm... something about headlight relays that sends chills down my spine. I had so many problems with my SAAB but one that caused me particular anguish was the failing headlight relay (that should read plural, as was true for most issues with that car).

With its demonic sense of humour and uncanny timing, it loved to play the "let's-see-if-we-can-get-him-to-crap-his-pants-again" game. Flying into a curve on Route 6 in northern Maine at 3:30 in the morning and ***CLICK***, total darkness.

Sorry, won't put my life in the hands of BOSCH ever again. ;-)

Cheers, Paul

Well, Bosch had some problems a few years back (late '80s) and the reliability of its automotive relays wasn't the highest. Since I?ve almost always used Hella relays, I wasn?t affected. Every vehicle I own has had headlight relays added by me, and have had a problem with exactly ONE relay in 30-odd years, and that was most likely caused by me by mounting the relay too close to the windshield washer reservoir. In addition to producing more light at the bulb (at some bulb life expense, of course), relays also take almost all of the electrical load off the headlight & MF switches, either of which is a lot more trouble & expense than to change a $5 socketed relay.

Hi Sharon,

OK, I'll accept everything you say, except that last part about the $5.00 relay. You've obviously forgotten this is a SAAB (you know, the car where every replacement part is hand crafted by Swedish elves and sent over here on Viking sailing ships). Those relays were over a $100.00 each. Yes, call me a fool for having it serviced by the dealer, but they (Budd's in Oakville) were the only ones I could trust to do the job right.

I have to tell you I loved that car ('84 900 Turbo, black) and I took exceptionally fine care of it, but it bled me to death and every time I started it up I asked myself what fresh hell it would bring. Eventually, I gathered my senses and returned to Chrysler (is that snickering I hear among the crowd?). :-0

Cheers, Paul

I once owned a SABB Turbo 4 door. Parts were more expensive than those for an expensive Italian sports car. Great seats. Never again.

Richard.

Hi Richard,

I hear ya. It's a shame because there were so many things I truly loved about that car beyond its quirky, "ugly duckling" styling (mine was a two-door). A huge, wrap around window for a commanding view of the road; a seat you could push so far back you couldn't touch the pedals with the tips of your toes (and I'm 6ft 1); the kick-ass acceleration when you engaged the turbo; the superb handling in just about any kind of weather; a simple, clean, no-nonsense dash and instrument panel; and, yes, even the placement of the ignition key between the front seats. I also greatly admired the company's commitment to vehicle safety and its emphasis on environmental responsibility, long before those two things became so highly fashionable. But at the end of the day, that wasn't enough; I needed something more reliable or, failing that, a vehicle that could be serviced by any competent mechanic and one for which parts were both inexpensive and widely available.

Twenty years later, I sometimes feel the urge to buy another SAAB but like you, I also remember why I swore "never again". Moreover, you get the impression GM has sucked the very soul out of the company and its products -- styling has become bland and mainstream and there isn't the same spark and passion. You might as well buy a Buick. :-0

Cheers, Paul

That's right, it's a GM European product called a SAAB.

thanks for all the advice.

I see I have to remove the panel above the headlights, and the headlight assemblies themselves to change the bulbs.

I'll wait until the temp is out of the teens......which will give me time to shop for some good bulbs!

The bad news is, those two bolts that hold the headlight bucket in won't really come out. Then you'll be stuck. You might want to figure out if you can spray any penetrating oil on the threads ahead of time. I'm not sure you can actually get to them. I just know they don't come out when you want them to.

The problem with the LHS is not the bulbs, its the lamps. They're cheap plastic junk with terrible optics. No amount of re-aiming will help (it'll just piss off oncoming drivers). And overwattage bulbs will ruin the lamps completely, as well as the wiring harness. About the best you can do is Sylvania Xtravision bulbs (NOT "Silverstar" or other blue-colored bulbs) or the new GE high performance bulb.

Sorry, but that's it.

It shouldn't. What sends chills down *my* spine is the fact that most carmakers try to get away with running the full headlamp current into the cabin, through all the dash wiring harness, THROUGH the very switch you turn with your fingers, back out through the firewall connections, and out to the lamps. It wastes power, heats wires, and is generally Bad Design (tm). I say this as an electrical engineer by profession.

Relays are far better because they minimize the wire lengths that the heavy currents have to run through and guarantee a robust switch contact (if good relays are used).

The fact that Saab couldn't get relays right doesn't mean that it still isn't a superior technique.

Of course, GM Saabs are actually reasonably reliable for the first time in the history of the company. Whine all you want, but GM has improved Saab almost as much as Ford has improved Jaguar and thats a LOT.

Hi Steve,

I'm sure this is true. I know six individuals who own current generation SAABS and I haven't heard any horror stories thus far. Of the six, one has told me he won't be replacing his 93 with another SAAB at the end of his lease and another is leaning towards something else. The other four seem perfectly content and, in fact, one of these individuals owns three -- he, his wife and their daughter all drive a SAAB.

So, yes, GM has done a remarkable good job in this area and deserves full credit.

Cheers, Paul

Hi Steve,

I'm not an engineer but all of what you say makes sense. I've only driven one car with a headlight relay system and, unfortunately, on two occasions the relay failed and one of these times I was very nearly killed as the result. When you beat a dog with a broom, they never look at it the same way again.

Cheers, Paul