C5 Headlights - How good are they?
02-10-2011, 08:22 AM
#21
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St. Jude Donor '09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16-'17,'19,'22
Thanks for all that suggested us. We do offer a few options for your safety at night.
Stock headlights are dangerous IMO. The first time I drove at night (it happened to be raining too) I knew I had to upgrade.
Stock headlights are dangerous IMO. The first time I drove at night (it happened to be raining too) I knew I had to upgrade.
02-10-2011, 09:03 AM
#22
02-10-2011, 09:20 AM
#23
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2022 C5 of the Year Finalist - Modified
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These questions crack me up.....basically is new better than old? New is almost always better than old, however, my old C5 headlights light up the road just fine for me and I do plenty of night driving, just as they did for people when they first came out. If you want better headlights, get a C6.
02-10-2011, 12:44 PM
#27
Tech Contributor
Combined with the HID C5 fog lights I added its wonderful driving at night now.
Toque
02-10-2011, 02:12 PM
#28
Le Mans Master
you can get halogen ACA projectors on fleabay for around $350. The light output and pattern is 99% as good as HID lamps. You just dont get the fancy purple/blue colors. In fact, my halogen ACA's, even with the extremely crappy bulbs they came with, put out more light than a lot of cars ive ridden in with HID projectors. Now if you put in farenheights or silverstars, the halogen versions might even be brighter than the HID's.
i would also admit that the output of the stock headlights is pretty freaking terrible, and they look like they belong on a 1985 volvo.
i would also admit that the output of the stock headlights is pretty freaking terrible, and they look like they belong on a 1985 volvo.
Light output is measured in lumens. There is no halogen headlight that can even come close to a HID in output.
02-10-2011, 02:35 PM
#29
Le Mans Master
I have the ACA HID's too. I love them. 
To answer the OP's question of "How good are stock C5 headlights?".
I have heard the phrase...."It looks like somone shinning a flashlight through a big jar of ****.
To answer the OP's question of "How good are stock C5 headlights?".
I have heard the phrase...."It looks like somone shinning a flashlight through a big jar of ****.
02-10-2011, 03:53 PM
#30
Tech Contributor
Halogens are not even close...
I lined up with a friend's stock c5 2 weeks ago (side to side).
We could not even tell his lights were on, and what you could see was **** yellow.
I have Silverstar's in my high beams and they look yellow as heck and don't output any light at all. I can't believe people buy that crap. I'll admit I was curious about them, but I will never buy that junk again. I'm planning to put HID's in my high beam ACA's soon.
Toque
Last edited by Toque; 02-10-2011 at 03:55 PM.
02-10-2011, 04:01 PM
#31
These questions crack me up.....basically is new better than old? New is almost always better than old, however, my old C5 headlights light up the road just fine for me and I do plenty of night driving, just as they did for people when they first came out. If you want better headlights, get a C6.
02-10-2011, 04:22 PM
#32
All this HID, HIR, Silverstar-all NONSENSE!, and a total waste of money.
The OEM/Stock GM certified headlights more than light up the night, they light up your LIFE! Seriously, get a life already if you can't see with the worlds most powerful vacuum cleaner technology integrated seamlessly into the distinctive pop-up headlight of the 5th Generation Corvette.
Extensive windtunnel testing and hours were spent in a dark garage perfecting the lumen-enhancing light that emanates from the front of the 1997-2004 CORVETTE. The engineers had to tune things back to harness the wickedness of the light, so bright that special tuning rods had to be invented to adjust their ferocity.
See like you have never seen before. Fine tune the impressive spread of light using Chevrolet's, which stands for CanHearEveryValveRattleOnLongExtendedTri ps, patented "Golden Rods" which adjust on both the vertical AND horizontal planes for pinpoint light-precision.
No need to upgrade headlight bulbs. The 9006 and 9005 bulbs carve through the darkness, right through the plastic molded lenses to provide vision that generations of Corvette fans and enthusiasts alike (read, mostly older white guys that can afford the car) have grown to love as vision fails, less light is actually needed by the eye, hence the legions of Blue-Blocker eyeglass wearers seen all over the state of Florida.
So please, enough talk of Light Cannons, ACA's and anything else someone thinks they need but don't. The stock headlights are good, no, they are great.
Let us not forget or suffer the indignities of the dark. GM made sure to include special fog-eliminating 37.5 watts of halogen lightbulb in their acknowlegement of the need for high-performance drivers to have the best vision during what are arguably the most challenging of conditions.
"How good are they?", How dare you even f----n ask on our beloved Corvette-worship-forum. They are the best. You really have some nerve coming on here and even asking a question like that. Really, ask a better question and title your thread "Motor Oil", see you there.
Watch your step around here or I'll get in my car and drive to LaJolla and sit you down and turn on my high-beams, flash them right in your eyes, wreck your vision like it has never been wrecked before, then you'll learn. Let this be a warning.
The OEM/Stock GM certified headlights more than light up the night, they light up your LIFE! Seriously, get a life already if you can't see with the worlds most powerful vacuum cleaner technology integrated seamlessly into the distinctive pop-up headlight of the 5th Generation Corvette.
Extensive windtunnel testing and hours were spent in a dark garage perfecting the lumen-enhancing light that emanates from the front of the 1997-2004 CORVETTE. The engineers had to tune things back to harness the wickedness of the light, so bright that special tuning rods had to be invented to adjust their ferocity.
See like you have never seen before. Fine tune the impressive spread of light using Chevrolet's, which stands for CanHearEveryValveRattleOnLongExtendedTri ps, patented "Golden Rods" which adjust on both the vertical AND horizontal planes for pinpoint light-precision.
No need to upgrade headlight bulbs. The 9006 and 9005 bulbs carve through the darkness, right through the plastic molded lenses to provide vision that generations of Corvette fans and enthusiasts alike (read, mostly older white guys that can afford the car) have grown to love as vision fails, less light is actually needed by the eye, hence the legions of Blue-Blocker eyeglass wearers seen all over the state of Florida.
So please, enough talk of Light Cannons, ACA's and anything else someone thinks they need but don't. The stock headlights are good, no, they are great.
Let us not forget or suffer the indignities of the dark. GM made sure to include special fog-eliminating 37.5 watts of halogen lightbulb in their acknowlegement of the need for high-performance drivers to have the best vision during what are arguably the most challenging of conditions.
"How good are they?", How dare you even f----n ask on our beloved Corvette-worship-forum. They are the best. You really have some nerve coming on here and even asking a question like that. Really, ask a better question and title your thread "Motor Oil", see you there.
Watch your step around here or I'll get in my car and drive to LaJolla and sit you down and turn on my high-beams, flash them right in your eyes, wreck your vision like it has never been wrecked before, then you'll learn. Let this be a warning.
Last edited by BenC5; 02-10-2011 at 04:50 PM.
02-10-2011, 05:27 PM
#36
Tech Contributor
Don't laugh too hard. Some still think stock head lights are ok to drive with... I'm surprised some did not reply and agree with what you said...
They need to come drive with me for a bit at night to see the difference...
Toque
I'm surprised some did not reply and agree with what you said... They need to come drive with me for a bit at night to see the difference...
Toque
02-10-2011, 07:00 PM
#38
Melting Slicks
im just stating an experiment i have done and it has proved to be true. prehaps the wavelength of light produced by HID's is not as visible to the human eye. or perhaps the wattage of the s2000 and the c6 HID's are so low that it has similar brightness to the wattage of halogen bulb i am using.
Last edited by SaberD; 02-10-2011 at 07:05 PM.
02-10-2011, 07:08 PM
#39
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Thanks for all the replies, vendors, and pictures. And thanks Ben, I'll watch myself 
Sounds like ACA HID is definitely the way to go, with those Toshiba HIR's as maybe a temporary fix.
Sounds like ACA HID is definitely the way to go, with those Toshiba HIR's as maybe a temporary fix.
