I got my blue visions for $8 today at Kmart...they rung it up wrong at the counter!!!

 

wow.. sounds like a heated debate over headlights! i too always wondered which headlamp was actually better for light output. From previous threads that i read, it seems like 97-99 headlamps are more for looks (since they look alot better than 95-96 headlamps). How does the 95-96 headlamp work? Because from wut i noticed on 95-96, it seems like there's like a smooth chrome finish inside the headlamp as opposed to the different shaped chrome lenses in the 97-99. I also noticed that there is a circular thing that controls the beam pattern. In the 95-96, the hole is open. But in the 97-99, the hole is covered by the chrome. Any idea which of the devices make it a better headlamp? I definitely noticed the material difference (glass lense vs. plastic lense).


Also, i was thinking of installing an aftermarket HID system in my 96 Max, but which would headlamp do u think is better for HID? Yea, i know it will glare 3x times as a normal bulb, but i don't care. I just want a big improvement in lighting. I think my bulb is D2S and NOT D2R. What do u guys suggest? Would the D2R bulb be a big difference over the D2S bulb? Any experiences with the two? Thanks for your help guys.

 

Talk to this guy, he's KNOWS headlights;

http://lighting.mbz.org/

DW

 

I guess things are usually more costly on the west coast. I checked-out two K-Marts. The Philips Blue Visions were $13 and $15 each. STILL, a heck of a lot more cheaper than PIAA's.

 

I went to K-mart last night and picked up a pair. They are currently on Special for $9.88 each! They had a ton of them.

 

Dwapenyi, you raise a very interesting point. I inspected a friend's 1997 Maxima and DID notice that the headlight housing seemed to be more plastic intensive than the 1995/96 model. And you're right--BMW and Mercedes have glass "lenses" not covers. I've always found their non-HID lighting to be excellent. I had thought about converting to the '97 look, but your point has changed my mind. Thanks a lot for the useful info!

 

Glad you were able to "see the light"

DW

 

i just bought "hyperwhite" bulbs today at pep boys. theyre by american auto accesories, i havent noticed a difference yet, but keep in mind its 4 in the afternoon. so maybe tonight ,,, the 3A driving lights i have are good, but i still am waiting to see how these bulbs work. they were 20 bucks a peice, and if they arent good , im gonna just put them back in the original cases , and staple them back together and take them back for the philips blue visions. ill post later tonight about the performance.

 

the 3A lights are awesome. highly recomend them. I havent seen the philips blue visions yet , but theyre probably around the same. There is no blue tint in the day time when the lights arent on with these , just clear white light at night, very bright, and looks good to oncomming trafic

 

There are plenty of posts on the issue of melting wiring or connectors. All of these cases were where the owner used 80/100W bulbs without a harness. I would definitely use the harness if running overwattage bulbs...better safe than sorry.

I agree with you on your statement concerning the headlamps; '95/'96 VS. '97 to '99. The plastic used is acrylic...about four times stronger than the etched glass used in the older lamps. The only drawback is the fact, like Lexan/plexiglass, it scratched rather easily compared to glass.

 

I too am not an expert on lights (if ya'll still talking about it) I sell eurolite brand for a chicago distributor. I only started selling them because of ALL the complements and requests to get "my car like yours!" I rewired the cornering lights and have eurolite 1157's so they match perfectly and driving at night has NEVER been SO clear!!
I got mine for about $20 and I sell them for the same price (for now)

 

speaking of rewiring the corners , how do you do it ? and can you get hyperwhite bulbs that will fit them ?

 

Ok.. you rewired the cornering lights to do what exactly? I have a '90 maxima and I'm looking for the same function in my '97. In the '90, when I turn on the blinker, the corner light comes on and it's bright like a headlight. Makes it so you can see the side of the road very good at night. The '97's don't do that.

Is that what you did or something else?

 

I know EXACTLY what you are talking about. Bad news. You can't make a 97-99 Maxima's cornering lights do what the 95-96 and previous Maximas did.


Good news is that you "adjust" the wiring so that your cornering lights go really bright when you turn on the parking lights, and you don't even have to change the bulb.

Check it out here;

http://web2.airmail.net/scutchen/max....htm#97corners

I did it to mine and they are almost offensively bright. It keeps anyone from staying next to me in traffic, which is fine by me!!

Oh yeah, one more thing, if you make this mod during the day, when you look at it, you'll prbably think, what changed??? But at night, BIG difference!

Have fun.

DW

 

Rewire: www.maximadriver.com in the How2 section

Hyperwhite 1157 bulbs, but sometimes its really hard to match them with headlights.

 

I heard of people with mitch-match headlights and corners. I don't have that problem since I bought the same name brand of bulbs for my headlights and corners. Seriously, as DW said, it captures eyes!
yea, on the 97's and 99's you just rotate the 1157's from what I hear. Another trick on 95-96's is to swap the 1156 socket in the turn signals to a 1157 socket which will make the turn signals STAY ON at a low level! The look SCCCHWEET!
I haven't done it yet! Basically, my whole fron matches from headlight to fog.

 

If you don't want to do the rewire you can get a 1156 and file the extra **** off of the bulb. But the rewire is really easy.

 

Ok..that's interesting and useful information but I don't particularly like having super bright cornering lights on all the time. There's *GOT* to be a way to wire the darn things up to work on the turn signal. I mean.. this isn't rocket science! lol Anybody have any ideas or heard of them working like the older models?

 

You can, but it would require extra wire, a relay, and time to trace the wire patterns to find the correct relay switches. Most people don't think it's worth the time or money.

 

as per the instructions in Steve Cutchen's MaxFAQ, Nissan
"removed the lead in the turn-signal switch to send
a voltage to the cornering light signal wire; they removed the cornering light signal wire itself; they removed the cornering light relay and relay harness in the relay box; they removed the wiring in the cornering light assembly to light up the cornering light itself."

So, to get that effect back in 97+ you'd work backwards and start by getting those relays and wiring harness from a 95-96 Max from some junkyard, I guess.

DW

 

Does the main headlight have wider range on sides, so no need for corners?
I have 96. What I want to do is change the setup so both corner lights turn on, regardless of what turn I am making.
If I am not turning, I want the lights off.

 

Where did you buy your bulbs. i have xenon superwhites 100/890 and i keep burning up my grounds on my harnes. Harnesses are not cheap they are $13 each . im on my third one.

 

I just love bringing up old threads.
My opinion on 9004 bulbs --> HID! haha. realistically, I like my mtec 80/100 overwatted bulbs at 4350k. Talk to Nabil cuz he's had like 3 diff bulbs recently.
Jae

 

I've had many bulbs in my car and this is my experience:
80/100 Watt Blue Visions worked good, burned my harness then burned out.
PIAA's superwhites worked OK, not worth the cash, burned out prematurely.
Eurolite Xenon Fusions, stock wattage, good light, great price, lasted about 9 months to me they were the best pick out of the bunch. People asked me if they were real HIDs.

If you want real performance light go HID, you'll loose high beam but who uses it when your lights are bright as hell.

 

I got asked the same thing about my Mtecs. Got some bmw and merc owners commenting on them too, like "didn't know the older maximas had HID option". I havne't had a problem with them. I think most melted harnesses are due to moisture coming into the contact areas. If you put some electrical/dielectric grease in the sockets, it should prevent the problems. Also, if the bulb is made with a quality base, there shouldn't be much heat going through to the harness side from the bulb.
No, you won't lose high beams with HID...there's 3 kits that I know of that retain hi beam functionality with the use of an additional h3 35watt bulb. I've already ordered a set from Big Sun for under $400 shipped. I'll post pics when I get them.

Jae

 

Ok,

There's a lot of talk of people oooooo-ing and ahhhhhhh-ing about the way these lights look ON the car (I like a good looking lamp as much as the next guy), but I'm one of those people who places more emphasis on how well the bulbs do their job, which, lest we forget, is lighting the road.

Can you guys give some (as objective as possible) feedback on this? Just describe what you see from the driver's seat - don't try to convince me that you bought the best light bulbs ever produced.

Ie:

How is the brightness?
How is the visibility in the rain at night?
Does either bulb cast any tint of blue on the roadway?

-Or is it just brighter white?

Compare to stock as a baseline for reference.

TIA,

-K-


EDIT: JUST READ (SEPARATE THREAD) YOU'VE BEEN THROUGH 2 SETS OF THE EUROLIGHTS IN LESS THAN A YEAR ALREADY - THEY'RE OUT, AFAIC.


Also, someone else mentioned "avoid any bulb with xenon in the name." Why? I thought xenon charged bulbs offered several benefits? -Mainly, they can burn brighter at lower temps. What's so awful about that?

 

http://thurznite.maximaclubca.com/pi...0Mtec%20Bulbs/
as you can see, the mtecs are not as bright as my $19.99 Eclipse Xtreme driving lights from Kragen. The driving lights are only 35watts, compared to the mtec's 80/100.

The white's not as good as the stock halogen white/yellow. But it's much better than blue. I've had some crappy ones that were 5000k and they were blue (i won't even mention the name cuz they plain out suck). Dont' get blue for rain/fog...you won't be able to see squat.

Later this week, when it stops raining, I'll throw one of the old bulbs in and do a comparison.

Jae

 

I'm confused by this statement - so, you're saying the stock/OEM 9004's are "whiter" or brighter than the Mtecs?

Taking into account auto-lighting is difficult to capture accurately on film, the Mtecs in your pictures at least "appear" to be brighter and considerably whiter than my OEM 9004's.


This whole lighting thing is just really confusing. Seems like trial and error (or trial and "wallet" as I like to call it) is the way most people end up going. . .

Thanks for your help.