GTS Jeff Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 Okay, the cutoff shields, I've never heard them called Squirrel finders before, sorry for the confusion, and its the first time I've heard the theory of the glare cloud above it that you describe.. Okay, trying to understand the logic. It would seem to me that even if the 55w kit you have has no more actual light output than an OEM HID capsule, it is still significantly greater than the OSRAM Rallye (a typical 35w DS2 HID capsule is rated at 3200 lumens, vs. the OSRAM Rallye's 2100 lumens), so I'm confused why putting an HID Capsule with an additional 1,100 lumens of light output into a halogen projector housing would produce less glare than the proper H7 bulb at 1,100 fewer lumens? _________________ ~Scott '05 Outback 2.5i Wagon Willow Green Opal/ Moss Green Metallic Because you could have 10000000000 lumens, but if it's all shining below the cutoff (ergo, not into the opposing driver's eyes) it's not glare. I don't get the squirrel finder name either. It doesn't make sense unless the squirrels are flying squirrels. But the name has stuck, so I'll go with it. Rather than reinvent the wheel, I will just link ministi's thread: http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/get-rid-glare-w-stock-headlights-and-hid-82756.html?t=82756&highlight=squirrel+finders Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coarsegoldkid Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 On a side note, what to do if both headlight bulbs are dead when you are driving at night and still pretty far from home? use high beam? Funny you should ask. This happened to me today. Both low beam bulbs gone south. The car doesn't see much night time use so they likely went south since just after Dec 25th. So tonight I ran high beams used for 30 miles on back country roads. Sorry everyone, it couldn't be helped. Tomorrow I'll check it out in the daylight. The right and left low/high beam systems have a separate fuse, and separate relay for each side. The common point is the daytime driving light relay for the low beams. Why this is done escapes me. If that relay or its fuse goes so do the low beams. In this '05 LGT I have had the H7 bulbs quit before. Changed a few in the last 58K miles. During one bulb change with the circuit hot the non-working bulb lighted as soon as I touched the connector. I wiggled and wiggled it some more and it stayed on. There may be a corrosion problem. Maybe the tabs on the bulb and the female connectors are dissimilar metals. My BMW motorcycle uses the same H7 bulbs and they burn out regularly at 20-25K miles. Other BMW owners say the same thing. My belief is that H7 bulbs are inherently poor bulbs. H4 bulbs lived in my Volvo for over 250K miles and I never changed one. There is something weird about H7 bulbs. HID might be the cure. Next Day: I removed the bulbs and both the low beams were burnt. Infact the passenger side on my wife's outback was also burnt out. So I need to buy three bulbs. By the way for the person that was told the battery needed to be removed to get to the bulbs they are wrong, at least on a '05 LGT. The drivers side has a resivoir in the way that has a plastic push screw holding it to the sheet metal. Remove it the push screw and the neck of the resivoir articulates out of the way. Today I'll research HIDs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05 Outback 2.5i Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 Because you could have 10000000000 lumens, but if it's all shining below the cutoff (ergo, not into the opposing driver's eyes) it's not glare. I don't get the squirrel finder name either. It doesn't make sense unless the squirrels are flying squirrels. But the name has stuck, so I'll go with it. Rather than reinvent the wheel, I will just link ministi's thread: http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/get-rid-glare-w-stock-headlights-and-hid-82756.html?t=82756&highlight=squirrel+finders Okay, so you're saying you 'closed' the hole in the glare shield then, which is really what resolved your glare problems, not the installation of HIDs? Thanks for the link, BTW. I was given similar advice from Daniel Stern at one point, but it was not clear to me what he was saying until i saw the photos in the linked thread.. _________________ ~Scott '05 Outback 2.5i Wagon Willow Green Opal/ Moss Green Metallic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shotokan1509 Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Absolutely. Don't sacrifice safety because you think you might be bothering oncoming drivers on your way to your destination. High beams can blind the other driver which could have them cross the centerline. When both of mine popped out last month, I ran the beams where I could and downed to just the fogs for passing cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTS Jeff Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Okay, so you're saying you 'closed' the hole in the glare shield then, which is really what resolved your glare problems, not the installation of HIDs? Thanks for the link, BTW. I was given similar advice from Daniel Stern at one point, but it was not clear to me what he was saying until i saw the photos in the linked thread.. _________________ ~Scott '05 Outback 2.5i Wagon Willow Green Opal/ Moss Green Metallic Exactly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05 Outback 2.5i Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Exactly. Jeff, Thanks for the clarification. I just re-read the posts, and I missed where you said you filled them earlier, my apologies. It just seemed to me that you were saying that the OSRAM Rallye's caused glare, and the HIDs did not, and that didn't make sense alone. Obviously it was the filling of the 'squirrel finders' that was the solution to the glare. __________________ ~Scott '05 Outback 2.5i Wagon Willow Green Opal/ Moss Green Metallic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTS Jeff Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Yup, a very worthwhile mod to the lighting. I should add that probably the easiest way to fill them is to load the flap with a ton of muffler goop, then push it closed. That might sound confusing now, but will make sense when you have the assembly out of the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devilsinu Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 Someone had posted before that you can jump the relay and that will stop the headlights from burning out as well. Is this good advise? I have had a problem with my 2005 LGT's headlights since I bought it and now my girl has a 06 Legacy 25i and she has the same issues, the bulbs will burn out one at a time about every 2 months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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