changing headlights

Not sure how easy it would be but I have an 05 Legacy and usually the newer models get harder to work on. Just pop the hood and take a look at where your headlights are, it should be relatively easy, if it is just a bulb then all you do is unplug the harness take out the old bulb and replace it. Read your manual, they are usually pretty good. I suggest getting brighter bulbs instead of a whole new headlight assembly, cheaper and less work. I suggest Sylvania Silverstars.

'01 OB headlights ARE terrible. I added "better", as in more expensive bulbs, but the improvement was marginal. A slight upward aim adjustment helped a tad more.

The wiring is pretty much up to the task, nothing more. Adding a more powerful lamp might create other problems, like a fire hazard.

Thanks for the advice. I browsed the manual and it didnt seem to be that hard. I removed part of the airintake that was in the way of one of the lights, but after that everything was pretty straight-forward. I purchased a full-set (2x2) of Silverstar headlights and they seem much brighter. For anyone else considering this, I recommend it. I dont have the best mechanical ability (can change oil, thats about it) and it was still very simple. Took me more time to drive to buy the lights than to install them.

I installed a set of Hella FF50 driving lights in the fairing, on each side of the license plate. Although they are a little low, they augment my high beams for at least 50% longer light path. To avoid overloading the (flimsy) Subaru wiring, I used the wiring in the kit to power the driving lights directly from the battery and wired the relay switch into the high beams. So the driving lights go on automatically when I use the high beams and off on low.

These lights show up regularly on fleabay at low prices.

Sweet!!! Glad to hear it was easy!!! I have to remove the air intake on mine to get at the passenger side lights too. But it is simple.

The new edition of Consumer Reports (Jan 06) has a review of aftermarket headlight bulbs. They also did a test of the most common aftermarket bulbs vs factory bulbs for brightness and visibility. It makes for interesting reading, especially the test results.

The results are also on the

website, but you must be a subscriber to the online edition. Print edition should be in bookstores and libraries now.

Just a reminder.. the silverstars will last just a year or less.. they are "high performance" bulbs. Mine lasted just under a year and a letter to Silverstar stated the "high performance but short duration" fact. Many other uses found the same problem.

Its the f&^%&%$ DRL's that kill them. Silverstars are awesome