adding xenon lights to '98 es300?

If you are just looking to have the light from your headlights look whiter, then there are some replacement bulbs that will do the trick.

If you are looking for a true high intensity discharge (HID) lighting system, you will need to purchase a conversion kit.

I tried some of the cheap $10 bulbs off ebay. They LOOKED very high quality and worked ABSOLUTELY GREAT ... for about 3 months. I lost BOTH Hi-Beams at the same time (??) and lost one of the Lo-Beams by the next morning. I can't say why this happened, but it still takes more than a half hour for me to replace the bulbs. As I said, visually they looked well made ... maybe just defective?? I am still pondering whether to replace them. For now, I am back on the orignals that have last for YEARS.

On Thu, 02 Nov 2006 22:52:46 GMT, "Jerohm" graced this newsgroup with:

we have an 00 ES300. I also ordered some of those "fake" Xenon headlights. They *sucked*. And contrary to popular belief. White light doesn't necessarily mean *bright* light, nor will you necessarily see further down the road.

However, I ordered a set of OSRAM 65W Ultra High Output H7 bulbs from Daniel Stern lighting:

And, if you have tried the Silverstars and or other similar bulbs, you were ripped off. They suck as bad as the fake xenons off e-bay. I had a set and they lasted 13 months before they both flamed out. And during the time I had them, they threw off such little light I always had the urge to put on my high beams.

Anyway, he doesn't have a shopping cart. You need to email him and tell him what kind of car you have and what you're looking for. He's probably the most knowledgeable automotive lighting guy I've heard about on the net. He's well known in many automotive circles. Bulbs aren't cheap (I think I paid about $24 a bulb), but the difference in light quality and quantity is well worth it.

Check it out.

Thanks for the heads up. First, I am dealing with a 1990 LS400, so needed a

On Fri, 03 Nov 2006 10:41:14 GMT, "Jerohm" graced this newsgroup with:

Hogwash. What you saw as actually a shorter coverage area that

Here's his actual email reply when I asked him about his bulbs:

Wow! Thanks for the quick response on a Sunday too!

Yes, I'll take your recommendation and order a set of the H7 rallye+65 H7's as recommended immediately. I'll call your voicemail with the information you requested.

Thank you for the education, you're the only resource I've read on the internet that makes sense, not hype. You're doing people like myself (who knows squat about lighting), a great service.

thanks again.

ps. please let me know when you receive the fax.

H7 low beam, 9005 high beam, yes.

Oops, yeah, they do. Big scam.

H7s:

Standard H7: 55w, 1400 lumens, 500 hours H7 ultra "Plus+50": 55w, 1550 lumens, 225 hours, $17.50/ea H7 rallye+65: 65w, 2100 lumens, 500 hours, $24/ea great

True. The interchangeable 1995-1996 projector-beam units are better, but they were more expensive to make than the '97 and later reflector units.

Can ship 'em out tomorrow.

They'll work fine in that car -- as long as the lamps are aimed correctly!

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Thanks for the info.

The reason I was asking is because I see the newer Lexus cars (and the BMW, MB, etc...) at night and those cars look awesome with the Xenon headlights. I really don't need to change my current headlights since they're working OK. I really just want to have that 'xenon' effect that newer high-end cars have. What's the best way to get that? Can I get it by purchasing a good Xenon light bulb like the one snipped-for-privacy@home.com recommended, or do I need to purchase the whole xenon kit?

Thanks.

snipped-for-privacy@home.com wrote:

On 3 Nov 2006 06:12:21 -0800, "VMI" graced this newsgroup with:

actually, I didn't recommend Xenon light bulbs. The bulbs I recommended are halogen, just brighter with a longer life.

The ONLY way you can get what you're looking for is to buy a complete HID swapout kit and replace your existing lighting system. HID kits are pricey but they're much cheaper than even 5 years ago. Probably because of the popularity of conversions but they're still not cheaper by any stretch.

I did a dogpile search and came up with several hits. Here's one:

I have absolutely no idea if they're any good or not but it gives you a basic idea of what's involved and how much it may cost.