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 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?

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Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl


Posts : 52
Join date : 2017-02-07
Age : 47
Location : Soriano nel Cimino (Viterbo) -ITALY-

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeWed Feb 15, 2017 6:09 am

Hi everybody!
(i apologize in advance for how i write... english is not my first language)
My '96 RME has very poor headlight power... at night low beams make only two narrow strips of light, and high beams make a very wide light, but with very scarce power. So if another car come in the other direction, i cannot see the roadside... i usually have XENON in my previous car, but now it seems that LED lights can provide the same power, with more efficiency and without the warm-up lag Xenon have.
Then i've seen this photo:
https://2img.net/h/i950.photobucket.com/albums/ad350/mlawrenz/IMG_0958_zps30fa7951.jpg
So i'm wondering if there's some headlight i can adapt, or some custom ones... the last chanche is to install LED bulbs in my stock headlight, but as i hate these old style glasses and prefer "clean" headlights, my first choice is to find a replacement for the entire headlight.

Anyone has done it before? Any advice?
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Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl


Posts : 52
Join date : 2017-02-07
Age : 47
Location : Soriano nel Cimino (Viterbo) -ITALY-

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeWed Feb 15, 2017 6:15 am

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Fred Kiehl

Fred Kiehl


Posts : 7283
Join date : 2009-11-13
Age : 76
Location : Largo, FL 33774

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeWed Feb 15, 2017 7:40 am

First, I know this is a wagon forum, but there are some people who visit, who have sedans. Is your Roadmaster a sedan or wagon? If it is a sedan, there are no replacements. If it is a wagon, any lights that will fit on a Caprice, or OCC, will fit the wagon. The ones you show are good replacements for the OEM units. Here is a link to the same set for a couple of bucks less: http://www.ebay.com/itm/381188140490?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

If you choose to go to LED lights, you may have to modify the clips that hold the lights in the buckets, although the manufacturers are getting better at making them right. They are much larger units, and you will also have to install them with the buckets out of the car, or remove the battery and the cleaner. LEDs make really bright lights. The wattage ratio is 6:1. A 100 watt incandescent bulb makes about the same amount of light as a 17 watt LED (stock bulbs are 98 watt per side).

BTW, your English is as good, or better than about 50% of the people on the forum, for whom English is their first language.
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Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl


Posts : 52
Join date : 2017-02-07
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Location : Soriano nel Cimino (Viterbo) -ITALY-

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeWed Feb 15, 2017 9:28 am

Fred, i said RME that i assumed was for RoadMaster Estate. Am i wrong?

The link you've posted says out of stock, but i 've got the idea... i noticed the headlights you've linked are the same in my link, except "mine" are smoked... i really like it, but i don't know how much light they will reduce, compared to the clear version you've linked.

As for the bulbs, i've seen this kit:
https://www.amazon.it/Confezione-lampadine-sostituzione-conversione-9007-HB5-9004-HB1-880-9005-HB3-H10-9006-HB4-H1-H4-H7-H11-H8-H9-h16j/dp/B01G6HRK1C/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1487168540&sr=8-1&keywords=hb1+led

where the copper/aluminium braid replace the big heatsink usually found in these bulbs. I think the braid will pass through the bulb locking ring without need of modifications, so i think it's the better solution.
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Fred Kiehl

Fred Kiehl


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Location : Largo, FL 33774

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeWed Feb 15, 2017 8:28 pm

Nobody I have seen uses RME. RMW is recognized as a wagon, and RMS is a sedan.

I like the LED lights, but at 127 EUR, they are about 3X as much as the ones with the fans. I paid about $50 USD for mine. They are a good high wattage at 90W.
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Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl


Posts : 52
Join date : 2017-02-07
Age : 47
Location : Soriano nel Cimino (Viterbo) -ITALY-

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeThu Feb 16, 2017 3:23 am

RMW, ok Wink
Yes the lights i've linked are very expensive but keep in mind they are over 10k lumen, when other kits are around 8-9000 lumen... and they don't need modifications or extra work to fit the headlights.
I'll see. Probably i'll buy LEDs for now, and headlights when my wallet will be refilled again Laughing
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Fred Kiehl

Fred Kiehl


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1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeThu Feb 16, 2017 12:11 pm

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Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl


Posts : 52
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1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeThu Feb 16, 2017 12:30 pm

Quote :
Socket: H1 H7 H4 H11 9004 9005 9006 9007
No HB1... so for our headlights it's useless.
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Fred Kiehl

Fred Kiehl


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1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeThu Feb 16, 2017 2:24 pm

Mine both take a 9004.
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TheRoadmasterKing




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Location : Ohio

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeThu Feb 16, 2017 5:53 pm

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Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl


Posts : 52
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Age : 47
Location : Soriano nel Cimino (Viterbo) -ITALY-

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeFri Feb 17, 2017 5:01 am

I've read few sites and it seems that 9004, 9007 and HB1 are the same socket, but they have different power (watts) on low beam, and also different low beam POSITION, so even if you can put a 9004 lamp in a HB1 headlight, the low beam light source may be not in the correct focus point in the headlight lens. So the light beam it produce is bad, not uniform, and not so bright.
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Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl


Posts : 52
Join date : 2017-02-07
Age : 47
Location : Soriano nel Cimino (Viterbo) -ITALY-

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeFri Feb 17, 2017 5:21 am

I'm trying to define the correct one, but i'm even more confused than before... www.carid.com says the correct socket is 9004 and not HB1...
Little OT: this is something i've never seen before... not for headlights, but available for all the other applications, like turn, reverse, parking, stop, parking... : https://www.carid.com/1996-buick-roadmaster-led-lights/oracle-lighting-spider-led-replacement-bulbs-75502367.html
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Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl


Posts : 52
Join date : 2017-02-07
Age : 47
Location : Soriano nel Cimino (Viterbo) -ITALY-

1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitimeFri Feb 17, 2017 5:38 am

Finally i have the answer. study HB1 means 9004, HB5 means 9007. the two lamps have the same socket but with the wire pattern changed: 9004 have the ground wire on one side, while 9007 have the ground on the center.
Regarding the stock halogen lamp, 9004 are the older ones and have transverse filaments, while 9007 have bigger filaments and then more W and more power, but they're axial and not transverse. So if you adapt a 9007 lamp in a 9004 socket (EG because you are attracted by the extra power), you may have the filaments NOT in the headlight focus point, causing poor light performance and bad light diffusion.
http://candlepowerinc.com/pdfs/9004_9007.pdf

BUT... talking about HID or LED, they often made "one size fits all" kits with interchangeable wires, to accomodate the lamp either in 9004 or 9007 sockets. I think it's better to use a specifically designed lamp, or you may end with a powerful LED bulb that makes an awful light pattern when installed.

Soooo... our car use 9004, or HB1. Cool

EDIT: Just buyed... http://www.ebay.it/itm/301781229291?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
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1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Empty
PostSubject: Re: 1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization?   1996 Roadmaster headlight replacement/customization? Icon_minitime

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