I am really surprised GM does not offer LED headlights as an option. If i'm not mistaken GM offers LEDs on the Cadillac Escalade.

I wonder if there will be a way to retrofit them later.

In an interview posted here a few weeks ago someone from GM said they were too expensive.

Jerry

I also remember them saying something about them causing problems in winter weather, as they will not prevent snow accumulation over the glass.

About a year ago I got to get close to a Volt and the person with the car was Rob Peterson. He mentioned that the headlamps was one of the items that differed from the production model. At that time they had not decided about LED's or not. He did claim that the first sample headlamps could cost a quarter of a million dollars each, so they did not want to go through many revisions. If some people complain about $41K for the Volt then adding a few hundred bucks for LED headlamps would probably turn them off. Having the option might be nice. It will probably happen before too long (gen2).

With how early it gets dark now, I wonder how much energy savings one could get if upgrading to LEDs :confused:

Perhaps halogens or compact fluorescent techs might save power while generating enough heat to prevent snow accumulation.

Those of us in the South are not worried about snow on the lens. I drive to work in the dark in the morning most of the year. I would easily spens several hundred dollar for LED headlights as an option.

Take Care,
TED

Perhaps halogens or compact fluorescent techs might save power while generating enough heat to prevent snow accumulation.

The Volt can use what has been offered on European vehicles to clean the headlights with washer fluid. Since window washer fluid has an additive for cleaning, that can also work as an anti-freeze solution which will not harm the plastic headlight lens. So if you have snow or ice over the Volt headlights (halogen or LED), then just activate the windshield washer pump to squirt washer fluid on the windshield and on the headlights to melt away that snow and ice. Done!

Adding two small hoses to the washer pump should not be too costly. I might an to sell it as an add-on if I can get my own Volt!!

Raymond

Well the Volt's DRL daytime running lights (outermost lamp in HL assembly), as well as the rear corner mounted tail lamp assemblies (park,turn and brake) as well as the CHMSL are low power LEDs.The LED system used in the full-size utilities IS quite costly so a balance of electrical efficiency and costing must be struck. I'm pretty sure they looked at all LED options though, as they draw so much less current off the 12V rail. Volt 2.0?
WOT

Brilliant! LED headlights can add 6 miles to an electric car's range

http://green.autoblog.com/2011/01/20/led-headlights-add-6-miles-electric-car-range/

Interesting article.

Brilliant! LED headlights can add 6 miles to an electric car's range

http://green.autoblog.com/2011/01/20/led-headlights-add-6-miles-electric-car-range/

Interesting article.

I don't know about the math on that one...
Not to be a wet blanket, but here is what I get:
If the Volt goes 40 miles on a full charge that is about 0.315 kWhr/mile (12.6kWh/40). The Volt uses high efficiency HIR2 9012 headlamp bulbs rated at 55 watts each, so if the headlights are on for one hour that would be 0.11 kWhr. At 60 MPH steady state the Volt would go the 40 miles in 40 minutes. In that time the headlights would have used about 0.073 kWhr or the equivalent of 0.23 miles of electric range. Granted, if it takes you 3 hours in the dark to go the 40 miles it could cost you up to a mile in range.
If the LED system is 28 watts for both bulbs you could save a whopping three fourths of a mile per charge in the three hour scenario, and about one eighth of a mile in the 40 minute run.

LED's are great for the cool factor, but they can't be justified on an engineering or cost basis until the price of them approaches the $35 ea HIR2 bulbs.

Do LEDs give more light? I'm not so much interested in saving energy as getting a brighter bulb. Seems that the Malibu I just rented at the airport has brighter lights. When I drive next to some other cars at night I notice some cars have brighter bulbs.
Any other bulbs that I should look into?

Bob T
Http://MyPerfectAutobile.com

Brightness is tricky. A single clear 99 cent LED is brighter than a standard incandescent headlight, but because it's so small in comparison to the headlight it delivers less light. Some of these small size high intensity headlights are annoying to look at (i.e. on an oncoming car) because they are so bright (and small).
Your irises respond to the average amount of light entering the pupil...so if the scene (roadway) is mostly dark with two points of intense light, they open up and the bright lights may be irritating.
LEDs can be a better solution (than HID lights) because several may be spread out over the area of the headlight lens, or a larger area on the front of the vehicle. (remember those cars with the one long tail light that stretched across the whole back of the car?)

Ok, but isn't there any bulb I can put in right away that is brighter?

Bob T.
http://MyPerfectAutomobile.com

On my previous car, I upgraded the lights to european projector headlamps and added HID lamps. I believe at the time they only had 90 watt upgrade kits.

After driving my new volt for 3 days, my one issue is with the lack of HID lamps.

It looks now that they sell two varieties of HID upgrades: 55watt and 35 watt - unlike the ones I purchased years ago.
Has anyone considered doing the upgrade on their to HID lamps?
Would the 35 watt be worth the upgrade in terms of brightness and decreased energy use?

It appears that the:
55w HIR lamps in the Volt product ~1800 lumens
55W Halogens ~1200-1400 lumens
35W HID ~2700
55W HID ~3700


(I got these values from a HID upgrade website....So they may be a little off)

Based on these numbers it looks like a 35 W HID upgrade will result in both increased light output and energy savings.
(I realize that increasing output may increase light spillage onto on coming traffic...yet since the volt has projector headlamps the aim could be adjusted to minimize that potential)


Any thoughts?

Do we know if there are any LED headlights on the market now that will work in the Volt? After 5 or 6 months I would gladly consider upgrading to LED headlights if its true we could boost the electric range by at least a 3 or more miles.

My Volt is on a truck now on the way down. I'm interested in a headlamp upgrade - appearance isn't really that important - I need brightness! I've driven HID cars since '99 and am not thrilled by the prospect of going back a step.

If anyone knows of the best way to increase the light (think modern BMW bi-xenon's in terms of brightness), please post here.

Regards,

Heh, I think it might be just a tad bit higher than the .23 miles or whatever on a vehicle other than the Volt. The Volt is heavy and inefficient cause it also hauls around ICE components and they kind of rushed it. However, they went pretty far out there saying 6 miles. Maybe on a super efficient electric only carbon fiber car or something.

When GM started developing the Volt for production, the best high power LEDs were about 80 lumens/watt "on the bench" and now they are about 180 lumens/watt. Price/led is about the same. With high price, heat management concerns and final efficacy no better than HID it would have been foolish to use LED other than for glitz. Volt 2.0 will likely have them, if not standard then at least as an option.

It appears that the:
55w HIR lamps in the Volt product ~1800 lumens
55W Halogens ~1200-1400 lumens
35W HID ~2700
55W HID ~3700

If these figures are correct I would pay anything to get the 55W HID's. I always appreciate having brighter lights, especially in rainy weather.
Do these easily replace my current headlights?
What about bi-xenons? Are there bulbs that fit my Volt?

Bob Twaalfhoven
http://MyperfectAutomobile.com

Hey! I know it has been a while. I'm going to test out 55w, and if it's too bright, i'll send them back for a 35w system. I will let you know how it goes!

For your information, you do not need a bixenon kit or anything of the such. The Volt has an actuator built in that flips to let the light into the area that aims out for high beams. So it is perfectly ready for a single filament, (or in this case, single gas) bulb.

I'm going to have my friend drive my car, and we'll go to a country road and meet each other on the road to see how the lights behave as of now, with HIR. The promising fact is, the housing is already well designed for HID for many reasons, but the most being the bulb in it is already as HID as a regular halogen can get. It puts out more lumens than any other, so my guess is they already made it acceptable for brighter lights. I do have a fear that 55w might be to extreme though. We shall see!

I was really hoping for an update on this. Any luck yet? Waiting for the 55w system to come in? Died in a horrible head-on crash when your friend was blinded by the brightness of the 55w system? J/K LOL! I like the idea that the 35w might be better in that the stock halogens which are 55w I believe so you could decrease battery draw if you could use 35w lamps and have it be as bright or brighter!

Incidentally, if anyone's tried a lower-wattage LED or HID, has that triggered any sort of error with the computer? CAN-BUS cars and bikes can trigger a service code if the lighting uses too little power, and I would like to know if 35W is safe to use without having to add resistors or something. Otherwise, it'd be a better idea to go with the 55W and get more light, as its draw won't set the computer off.

Hey! I know it has been a while. I'm going to test out 55w, and if it's too bright, i'll send them back for a 35w system. I will let you know how it goes!

For your information, you do not need a bixenon kit or anything of the such. The Volt has an actuator built in that flips to let the light into the area that aims out for high beams. So it is perfectly ready for a single filament, (or in this case, single gas) bulb.

I'm going to have my friend drive my car, and we'll go to a country road and meet each other on the road to see how the lights behave as of now, with HIR. The promising fact is, the housing is already well designed for HID for many reasons, but the most being the bulb in it is already as HID as a regular halogen can get. It puts out more lumens than any other, so my guess is they already made it acceptable for brighter lights. I do have a fear that 55w might be to extreme though. We shall see!

bjhorton2005,

Any updates on this? I'm interested in upgrading, but wanted to see what you found.

My DDM Tuning DDM HID Kit, 35W, 9006, 6000K is awesome!

Much better than the eBay Xentec crap that broke on me in a few months and flickered.

You will regret the time you lived with the horrible stock bulbs.

35w HID's are more than adequate. Save your battery and cancel the 55w.
On LED's for headlamps. #1 cost will be too high to get the brightness needed for the application.

I have a couple of 110v 21w (1100 lumen) LED Par30 reflector bulbs I use for my recessed front entrance. About $65/ea at Lowes. More than 10x the cost of a halogen Par30. Yes, you get longevity and lower power consumption (21w vs. approx 120-150w) but the cost right now for "high" powered LED's is astronomical.

Back to 12v.
2w diodes have come down in price (somewhat), 1w diodes are more affordable but as a headlight we will need much more than these and that price is not in my budget (not willing to pay as much for headlights as I did for the entire car!;)

I have 6K HID's Installed on my Volt. They look and work great. My Cadillac CTS has the same, personally I wouldn't go back to those pizz azz yellow bulbs. I wish there was a way to disable the headlights when you unlock the vehicle however??

My DDM Tuning DDM HID Kit, 35W, 9006, 6000K is awesome!

Much better than the eBay Xentec crap that broke on me in a few months and flickered.

You will regret the time you lived with the horrible stock bulbs.

Would you mind going to the trouble to list the kit #, or various part #'s from DDM to accomplish this mod?

My DDM Tuning DDM HID Kit, 35W, 9006, 6000K is awesome!

Much better than the eBay Xentec crap that broke on me in a few months and flickered.

You will regret the time you lived with the horrible stock bulbs.

Did that kit come with a 2 bulb set up or is it $45 per side? Also you have any pics?

Did that kit come with a 2 bulb set up or is it $45 per side? Also you have any pics?

I've purchased the same kit and it does come with 2 bulbs and 2 ballasts.

I've purchased the same kit and it does come with 2 bulbs and 2 ballasts.

Check, thanks mike1!!

Please tell us the part number of the kit and where to order it. thanks
Stuart #B2209

Check, thanks mike1!!

You're welcome! Now if only I had a Volt to install them in...

Please tell us the part number of the kit and where to order it. thanks
Stuart #B2209


http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/DDM-HID-Kit-Slim-Ballast-35W-or-55W


just put what you need in your cart from the pull downs on the right....

I just ordered a set in the 35w/9006/5000k (I don't like blue tint in my lights). I'm looking forward to installing them.

Your car will be here before you know it mike1!

http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/DDM-HID-Kit-Slim-Ballast-35W-or-55W


just put what you need in your cart from the pull downs on the right....

For the Volt, you need the 9006 bulb type. Wattage: 35W is probably safest. Bulb color is up to you, 5000K and 6000K seem the most popular here on the forums.

For the Volt, you need the 9006 bulb type. Wattage: 35W is probably safest. Bulb color is up to you, 5000K and 6000K seem the most popular here on the forums.

Thanks. Is it $45 per side or for both headlights? also do I need the HID Harness, Error Eliminator or Adaptor cables ?
Sorry, but us non-techies need this level of hand holding :o

Stuart #B2209

2998
This was my 8K's. A little too bluish for me so went down to 6K's (more crystal white). I will take a pic tonight of the 6K's

Here are the details from my invoice. You do not need buy anything else. You do need a thin screwdriver to release and reverse the wires in the plug that will connect to the original light bulb plug because the polarity is reversed on the Volt.

DDM HID Kit, 35W, 9006, 6000K

Bulb Color: 6000K
Bulb Type: 9006/HB4
Wattage: 35 Watt

DDM35W.9006.6000K

$45.00

Subtotal:

$45.00

Shipping:

$13.78

Sales Tax:

$0.00

Total:

$58.78

Perhaps halogens or compact fluorescent techs might save power while generating enough heat to prevent snow accumulation.

Volt already has Halogens.