Sealed beam headlight upgrade recommendations?

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dgmeadows

Greasemonkey
Mar 29, 2017
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Georgia
My car is a 79 Cutlass, so it has the old style 2 sealed beam headlight set up, with each headlight having both low and high beams. They are very dim, so I'd like to upgrade to H4 or LED, but I'd like to keep the old school look. I do not want any halos or multi-bulb look, and I'd prefer a glass lens over plastic. Does anyone have a recommendation?
 
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The only one I can find is the Holley LED drop in replacements. Supposed to be very nice BUT, damn are they expensive! And the price you see is for a single light, not a pair.

 
When making an upgrade like that you really should do the harness relay upgrade first.it uses straight battery power compared to power coming from the headlights switch which like your car is now. You won't see much improvements if you just stick those newer bulbs in the way it is now. In my opinion those reflector housings don't project like the orginal headlights do,again this is just my opinion.id do the relay/wiring upgrade first and see how you like it before pressing on.
 
I would first check all your wiring. Use a multimeter and check that the proper voltage is getting to the lights. If the sockets are corroded, wires degraded etc. and there is a voltage drop that could explain why they are dim.

I am working on a 41 Chevy and the headlights where dim with the wiring that was in the car. This is a 6 volt system but same principle applies. I replaced the wiring harness to one of the bulbs and there was a noticeable improvement. No change to the bulb just a new socket and wire. I do have an extreem case as the wires were 80 years old.
 
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The only one I can find is the Holley LED drop in replacements. Supposed to be very nice BUT, damn are they expensive! And the price you see is for a single light, not a pair.

Those are nice! They look like a good option to me. I like the fact that they look factory stock. Many of those after market LED Lights just don’t look right and ruin the front end appearance.
 
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I will be buying the Holley headlights for my newest project ( 78 Cutlass ). Just not quite ready for them at the moment. Since they are brand new, I'm hoping the price will come down, but I'm probably just wishing...
 
I would first check all your wiring. Use a multimeter and check that the proper voltage is getting to the lights. If the sockets are corroded, wires degraded etc. and there is a voltage drop that could explain why they are dim.

I am working on a 41 Chevy and the headlights where dim with the wiring that was in the car. This is a 6 volt system but same principle applies. I replaced the wiring harness to one of the bulbs and there was a noticeable improvement. No change to the bulb just a new socket and wire. I do have an extreem case as the wires were 80 years old.
yeah, I just dropped a replacement battery in a '37 Chevy sedan that was being used as a wedding rental. I remember the owner complaining about the headlights months ago, one being dim even after replacement. I told him at the time he needed to check ALL grounds (we never saw it the first time around). you should have seen the battery tray! swiss cheese and no tie-down. I asked him about the light and he said "uh, yeah, we, uh, found a ....bad ground" DAMN! what did I say!?
after seeing it in person now I knew why he was having issues...... This time he drove it in and now I see why.....he's an owner not a car guy. rusted out water pump on an sbc, didn't know where his extra electrical lines from the battery went (to the electric radiator fan, you nitwit!) for cooling while idling, a sealed off fresh air cowl induction, etc, :wtf:
 
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My car is a 79 Cutlass, so it has the old style 2 sealed beam headlight set up, with each headlight having both low and high beams. They are very dim, so I'd like to upgrade to H4 or LED, but I'd like to keep the old school look. I do not want any halos or multi-bulb look, and I'd prefer a glass lens over plastic. Does anyone have a recommendation?
I have Hella's but with Sylvania Ultras in them,the Hella has the glass lens
 
Before you up grade see what the voltage drop is. Measure the voltage at the battery then measure the voltage at the headlight when it is on. If there is any voltage drop your newer brighter higher current bulbs are going to make it worse,
 
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