LED headlights to update older cars

General Electric, Philips, and Sylvania all showed new sealed-beam replacement LED headlights at SEMA. All are targeting owners of older models and collector cars, since sealed beams disappeared from most new-model cars years ago.

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Light emitting diode, or LED, headlights are all the rage at Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show in Las Vegas this year, as several major manufacturers have stepped up with products to retrofit older cars with the latest headlight technology.

Increasingly common on new vehicles, headlight makers tout LEDs for their brighter light and long life, said to be as much as 10 years or more. The downside is, LEDs aren’t cheap, easily adding hundreds to the cost of a new car. (See our evaluation of headlamp restoration kits.)

General Electric, Philips, and Sylvania all showed new sealed-beam replacement LED headlights at SEMA. All are targeting owners of older models and collector cars, since sealed beams disappeared from most new-model cars years ago.

All three manufacturers offer standard 7-inch units; GE and Philips also make 5×7-inch rectangular styles. GE claims a life expectancy of 15,000 hours for their Nighthawk LED lamps, while Philips simply says to expect its LED headlights to last 50 times longer than conventional halogen lights.

Sylvania’s Zevo line includes interior and exterior LED accent lighting kits, daytime running lights, and fog lights, in addition to headlights. The Interior Base Kit starts at $35. But if you’re looking for a set of LED headlights from any of the three manufacturers, expect to pay in the neighborhood of $500 for a pair.

The new LED products are arriving in stores now, with wide availability expected in early 2014. Our tests of new models with LED lights have shown they do produce a brighter light than Halogen bulbs, but don’t necessarily help you see any further down the road.

—Jim Travers

LED headlights to update older cars

Sylvania Automotive Lighting Introduces OE Quality LED Products to aftermarkets

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Sylvania Automotive Lighting introduced its new Zevo Automotive LED Lighting line. According to the company, the Zevo Automotive LED Lighting line brings the customized style and signature look of LED technology on high-end vehicles to the aftermarket. Sylvania says its new product line mimics the original equipment lighting look of luxury vehicles in terms of whiteness and brightness while still being street legal. The LED product line includes a unique fog daytime running light (DRL), 7-inch round (H6024 replacement) sealed beam retrofits, DRL pipe and pixel designs that do not need a switch, retrofit light sources for dome, map and license plate applications, and a wireless ambient light for interior applications.

“As LED applications in automotive lighting continue to become more popular, we’re taking the technology to new levels and giving auto enthusiasts options that help them legally customize their vehicles,” said Brian Noble, marketing manager, Sylvania Automotive Lighting. “The Zevo line includes a number of high-impact products that provide vehicle owners with flexible styling options inside and out, and have the added benefit of being easy to install.”

Sylvania automotive aftermarket Zevo LED products include: The Sylvania Zevo Fog DRL is reportedly the first ever high performance aftermarket LED fog light. It has a unique “C” shaped light guide that helps it provide what the company describes as street-legal OEM performance both day and night. The white LED automatically adjusts to day or night conditions with no extra controls or switches by sensing when the headlights are on. The Sylvania Zevo Fog DRL is fully sealed and has been tested to meet IP67 standards to withstand extensive weather and washing.

The Sylvania Zevo Sealed Beam LED is a 7-inch round sealed beam replacement for existing H6024 halogen and 6014 incandescent headlights, found on older model Jeeps and Ford vehicles. The company says that car enthusiasts can literally plug-and-play from a halogen system to a LED with the street legal white light of the Sealed Beam LED.. The Sylvania Zevo Sealed Beam LED has a shock resistant design, adjusts automatically, and senses when headlights are on.

The Sylvania Zevo DRL PIPE daylight running and accent light kit offers a unique, light-piped LED look with street-legal OEM performance. The 6200K crisp, white LED provides a sleek style, and it automatically adjusts to day or night conditions with no extra controls or switches by sensing when the headlights are on. DRK PIPES are fully sealed and have been tested to meet IP69 standards to withstand years of weather and washing.

The Sylvania Zevo DRL PIXEL daylight running and accent light kit is powered by five high-performance Osram LEDs in a modern pixilated look with a color temperature of 5200K. Like DRL PIPE, it adjusts automatically and senses when headlights are on. The kit has been tested to meet IP67 standards, so vehicle owners don’t have to worry about water damage caused by rain or washing.

The Sylvania Zevo Interior Strip Kit boasts an easy installation and 16 color choices, a number of personalization options that can be changed quickly at the touch of a button via the kit’s remote control. The lights turn on automatically, have five lighting modes and come with a 12V car adaptor. With two extension kits available, enthusiasts can put 20’ of LED strips in one system.

The Sylvania Zevo LED Retrofit Lights for dome, map and license plate applications allows true plug-and-play replacement. The Retrofit Lights features a color temperature of 6000K

Sylvania Automotive Lighting Introduces OE Quality LED Products to aftermarkets