MS6 LED H1 Highbeam Q?

Discussion in 'Mazdaspeed 3/6 Appearance' started by SyntheticAtmosphere, May 22, 2022.

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  1. SyntheticAtmosphere

    SyntheticAtmosphere You only get ONE ride, ONE ticket, ONE time! Silver Member

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    I am considering replacing the OEM H1 halogen hi beam bulbs with LED to possibly lower the in housing temps. I have never converted anything to LED headlights and have a few questions. I hope someone has some experience or insight. Has anyone been successful installing LED H1s in Speed6 hi beam housings?

    H1 LED are said to run cooler than Standard H1 55W halogens. In researching, there are heatsinks or fans on the back of the LED units. Also, a couple sites mention that the back of the LED units get pretty hot How hot blog & Motorbiscuit. It would appear the fan cooled LED units run cooler back side temps.
    -Is there enough room inside the housing for these types of units and is the back cover in danger of any of this heat?

    Also, most LED H1 lights I see come with a separate "driver". My LED fogs dont have a driver...therefore confused.
    -Is that only required for Canbus reasons and not needed on our cars, or do all LED H1s have it?

    Back story...
    A few years ago I replaced the lenses on my Speed6 headlights. Last fall I noticed some of the outer coating was chipping off the outside of the lens on the passenger side above the high beam bulb. I assumed it was due to the typical cheap online product I purchased. This weekend I noticed over the drivers headlight was doing the same thing, leading me to consider the heat from the standard 55W H1 bulbs (I have never replaced them).
    headlight pain.jpg
    My current bandaid was to apply wrap over the lenses like a set of eyelids to cover the area. I chose black as i wasnt looking to make this an appearance related modification and wanted it to blend in as much as possible...
    headlight lid.jpg
     
  2. L337TurboZ

    L337TurboZ World Class Truck Squatter Greenie Member

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    I switched from Halogen to LED in my Silverado and they are amazing. I also put LED bulbs in the fog lamps back when I had the Speed and those were brighter than my regular headlamps.

    In terms of heat or longevity I haven't had issues. The "driver" you're referring to is for CAN Bus communication. Some cars will throw IPC messages saying check headlamps etc. Everything is a module these days. We used to just use a switch with power flowing through it and now it's you hitting a switch asking a module if it can turn the component on.
     
    L337TurboZ, via a Motorola device, May 22, 2022
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  3. SyntheticAtmosphere

    SyntheticAtmosphere You only get ONE ride, ONE ticket, ONE time! Silver Member

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    So far I have looked at my headlight housings. There isnt a lot of room behind the Speed6 hi beam. The bulb slot is also not directly in line with the rear opening, but a bit to the side reducing the amount of real-estate for said heat sinks or fan units.

    There are companies listing bulbs for conversion that fit. However all the bulbs I have found have a 2-wire connection (important when Canbus drivers are required) and you need a conversion harness (in line diode) to connect to our 1-wire OEM setup. The OEM H1s ground through the base of the bulb therefore some provisions for a wired ground is required to run the aftermarket 2-wire bulbs...H1 struggle I guess.

    There are 1 wire H1 LED, but they appear to be for fog lights in various vehicles. These dont require the additional cooling of the higher powered units and in turn I am assuming they dont provide the required lumens for forward lighting.

    Lastly, the final issue I have come across regarding the importance of the light source relation to the parabolic housing. This can have an affect on the way the light disperses, if the light source isnt at the optimal focal point lighting performance can be reduced.
     
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  4. Awafrican

    Awafrican Moderator Gold Member

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    I think you're over thinking this a bit, get one with a small profile fan, try it and if it doesn't fit the. Returns it to Amazon check that "incompatible box". I can only speak to the gen 2 Ms3 the one side by power steering is tight but it fits just fine.

    Found these guys on Amazon, they've got good reviews, I have no experience with them or the brand myself, I've been running RCP LEDs in my gen2 for fog and low beams, still on Original highs.

    Fahren H1 LED Headlight Bulb, 60W 10000 Lumens Super Bright LED Headlights Conversion Kit 6500K Cool White IP68 Waterproof, Pack of 2
     
    Awafrican, via a mobile device, May 24, 2022
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