LED Recommendation

HID Conversion kits are good in comparison to other. They are little expensive but they are worth it.

 

LED light replacement
I've ordered my LED light replacement from this web page:
Auto LED Lamp|

1.) HSUN-20W Cree LED(4*5W Cree Q5) (H11) qty. 2 @11.00/ea
2.) HSUN-20W Cree LED(4*5W Cree Q5) (9005) qty. 2 @11.00/ea
3.) HSUN-T10 5 LED SMD5050 Super Quality qty. 10 @0.84/ea
4.) HSUN-PCB 48 LED SMD5050 qty. 3 @8.80/ea (dome lights 1-rear 2-front)
5.) HSUN-PCB 24 LED SMD5050 qty. 1 @4.40/ea (mirror lights)
6.) HSUN-7440 60 LED SMD1210 (white) qty. 2 @4.18/ea (turn signal lights)
7.) HSUN-7440 60 LED SMD1210 (amber) qty. 4 @4.18/ea (turn signal lights)

Note: replacement for door and license plate should be this part number:
HSUN-T10 4 LED SMD5050(PCB) A (W5W 194/501)
HSUN-T10 4 LED SMD5050(PCB) A (W5W 194/501)Auto LED Lamp, car led light, Automotive LED,Super bright LED, xenon white led,led bulbs for car|HSUN Lighting Co.,Ltd

Shipment via DHL was $30.00

I used 1 & 2 for head lights.
The low beam H11 is not good at all. It maybe the fact that the lens is not suitable for this bulb, one can hardly see any light coming out of them.
The light coming out WILL NOT illuminate the road at all. In fact I'm thinking on putting the original back some day.
They are OK in City driving where you have a lot of street light. But driving on roads without street lights they are futile.

The 9005 bulb (high beam and daylights) are just OK (nothing special) more energy will flow to the battery instead of incandescent bulbs.

#3 I used on door, front marker lights (4pcs) and license plate light and they are OK much better than the originals.
The #4 I used for rear Dome passenger light and the 48pcs board are 500% better than the wimpy original bulb that takes 8W and the board takes only 5.28W. Replacement of this interior lights is highly recommended.

The #2 I just put one of these boards inside mirror light and the difference is like night and day. The original bulb is 8W and the 24pcs board is 2.88W and much brighter.

The 7440 I did not install they yet as I think I'll need to replace the flasher as well.

 

How do you think the H11 would perform as a fog lamp on the v Five?

 

I re-command you "CANCEL" the order. The are not worth the shipping cost.
I've taken the H11 I've ordered out and replaced them with standard bulbs, I can hardly see any light going out of the headlights, never-mind illuminating the road.

The brightness of H11 Cree is the same as 9005 Cree. Though, I'll keep the 9005 as DRL as they save considerable amount of energy in comparison to standard bulb.

I can sell my H11 if you want "at cost" + shipping.

If you want to try it look for "LED SDM-120 5050" you might have better luck.
Anybody wants to share their opinion on SDM-120 LED's?

 

Thankfully, asked before ordering!

As earlier asked, how about the LED SDM-120 5050?

 

After replacing my internal lights with some of those SMD LED boards I have noticed that they run extremely hot, after 10min ON it is almost impossible to touch the plastic cover, they are as hot as my frying pan just after using it.

 

All of those H11 LED replacement bulbs/lights aren't meant for regular low beam applications. That's why they are listed as foglight or DRL bulbs, because they put out pathetic amounts of actual light. I believe the H11 CREE 5w LED only puts out 400 lumens. Compare that to a standard halogen H11 at 1350 lumens.

In addition to the HID upgrade, some ppl put an H9 65w bulb (with modified base) into an H11 socket. I'm not condoning this, as you definitely will get shorter bulb life out of an H9 bulb, and you might get into issues with your OEM wiring not being able to handle the extra amps the H9's draw.

You can read more about H11 to H9 comparison here:

Difference between H9 and H11 bulbs?

 

Try Xexon Supply for an HID conversion kit. Just installed a pair on my Prius and the light output is fantastic. I went with 4300k to have the whitest light with only a very slight blue tint, not interested in the "HID blue look". As impressed as I am about the lights, I'm more impressed that I actually installed them myself! Their installation video shows you step-by-step how to.

 

Me too! Thanks for the recommendation. Also got the 4300K color. Their installation video is very helpful. The only part of the installation that tripped me up was installing the bulb itself. Wrestled with it for a good 10 minutes! Then I discovered that the orange rubber flange had come un-seated, and was interfering with the tabs fitting into the fixture. Once I seated that orange ring properly, they went right in. (Well, still a hassle, because access to the low beam headlight fixtures is very limited and awkward, but at least it was do-able).
Looking forward to trying them out! The v is my wife's daily commute vehicle, and we don't have any family trips planned in the immediate future, so I might have to take it out some night just to try the new headlights!
Andy

 

A quick question, for those who have installed HIDs - do they always flash quite bright when you first turn them on, then dim down to running level?

Tried mine for the first time tonight, and while this was a very short trip, I think they are a significant improvement over the stock bulbs. The most obvious difference is visibility off to the sides of the road - your peripheral vision is very well-lit with these new bulbs. The brightness and evenness of illumination in front of the vehicle is much improved also. I would say it's at least as good as the very best traditional headlight systems I've used.
Before converting to HIDs, I would definitely rate the v's low beams as below average, but high beams are very good. With HIDs, low beams become very good, and high beams seem even slightly better than before! Very impressed.

$140 (approx., shipped) seems like a lot to pay for headlight bulbs. BUT - if you think about it as an option on your new car - do you want the $140 "good headlights" option? Yes, please. No question.
Highly recommended.
Andy

 

UPDATE: After only about 3 months of use (March 2013), one of my HID bulbs died. Xenon Supply was quick to respond to my email and fantastic about replacing it at no charge! The replacement worked fine. I won't complain about a manufacturing defect, as long as the retailer backs up their product. Glad I purchased from a respectable vendor. All was well for about a year and a half after that.
But this summer (July 2014) my v was in an accident, and the shop said there was something wrong with one of my HID setups, and since they were an aftermarket item and the work was being paid by my insurance, they wouldn't reinstall or replace the HIDs. They put in stock bulbs. This just reminded me how bad the factory headlights are...
I still haven't had a chance to troubleshoot the HIDs, but at least I got some H9 bulbs to put in. These are noticeably brighter than the stock bulbs, and at $7 each, are a MUCH cheaper and simpler upgrade than HIDs. Fitting these bulbs required minor snipping of a few tabs, but nothing difficult - just snip the tabs to match the factory bulbs. According to a little light-meter app on my phone, the factory bulbs (after ~2 months use) read 1007 lux, and the H9 bulbs read 1386 lux. These numbers are somewhat arbitrary, but the placement of the meter/sensor was consistent between bulb types, so I think it's fair to say the H9's are at least 30% brighter.
I'm aware the H9 bulbs might not last as long as stock bulbs, but I've been using them for ~1 month without problems.

hope this helps!

 

I agree, the H9 upgrade is easy and definitely worthwhile. I've been using them for about 8 months in both our cars with no problems whatsoever.

Very happy with this inexpensive upgrade. Premium light output without the premium price of so called premium bulbs (PIAA, Sylverstar(sp.?), etc.)

SCH-I535