"NaturallyAspirated" (NaturallyAspirated)
08/16/2013 at 12:25 • Filed to: JDM Yo!
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"NaturallyAspirated" (NaturallyAspirated)
08/16/2013 at 12:25 • Filed to: JDM Yo! | 1
| 17 |
I'm not normally much of a fan of putting JDM parts on a USDM car for "cool factor," but I'm extremely pleased with this particular swap.
I've found that on older cars, USDM headlights suck. I've replaced many a sealed beam with a Bosch E-code. For '80s and '90s cars with molded plastic headlights, I thought I was stuck. Which was a bad thing in my case, as the USDM '98-'99 Legacy and Outback headlights are some of the worst I've ever tried to see by.
I was interested to read that some years of the JDM Legacy came from the factory with Kouki project headlights. The consensus online was extremely favorable. I decided to bite the bullet and try them out, since my corner markers needed to be replaced anyway, and the JDM lights follow the USDM '93-'97 style of having the corner markers and headlights as a single unit.
It cost me quite a bit to buy the headlights from a junkyard in Japan and get them shipped over here, but as I kept telling myself, it was cheaper than buying good quality corner markers. It took me a day or so of work to switch the beam pattern from RHD to LHD and wire up a new harness, and an evening in a flat parking lot to aim them.
The illumination is much better than the USDM factory lights, and the sharp cutoff puts the light where I need it. With the LHD beam pattern swap and my careful aiming, I'm certain that they won't blind oncoming traffic.
So I'm quite pleased. JDM, yo!
ddavidn
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 12:28 |
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USDM headlights DO suck. That's why I've kept my HIDs, even though they look like silly teenager headlights. I would love to put some of those JDM lights on my wife's Subaru (1998 Impreza Outback Sport) for some better visibility.
PowderHound
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 12:28 |
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I always heard the light output was great on those compared to the shitty USDM ones. Almost got a set for my old car but never followed through
dinobot666
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 12:29 |
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I found that using GE Nighthawk bulbs made a great improvement and wasn't nearly as complicated.
Good on you for doing this proper and rewiring everything so the lights point to the correct side of the road.
NinetyQ
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 12:31 |
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The sharp cutoff pattern of modern lights really annoys me. I'd rather it fade off a bit and not be so distracting.
That said, you're right that USDM DOT-approved lights to tend to suck. The lights on my '91 Audi for instance are known to suck. It's a pretty common upgrade to change them to German market ones or other upgraded lenses that are available.
Takuro Spirit
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 12:38 |
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I ran those exact lights, albeit blacked out, on my sedan and wagon. You might want to properly fix the cutoffs by taking them apart and modifying the shields, that way the cutoff on the lights is on the left, where traffic is in our part of the world.... I never did so on mine, and rarely blinded people, but it's a proper mod to do IF need to take them apart for another reason... like blacking them out.
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NaturallyAspirated
> Takuro Spirit
08/16/2013 at 12:43 |
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Right, that's what I meant when I said I swapped the beam pattern from RHD to LHD. I modified the shields.
moarpowerr
> ddavidn
08/16/2013 at 12:58 |
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I know this is a little off topic, but how do you and your wife find the Impreza outback sport? I am thinking of purchasing one in the near future with the 2.2L in it.
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ddavidn
> moarpowerr
08/16/2013 at 13:10 |
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I believe ours has the 2.2. Let me see... first off, she loves it. Her dad bought it in '99 and she didn't really give him the option of keeping it after she moved in with me. Luckily, he gives in easily. He's never done any major work. Maybe a water pump, and all the normal belts, but nothing major. My wife ran it into a post last year and banged up the quarter panel, but other than that it looks great and runs great.
Now, the only complaints I have are about the gas mileage and transmission. They might be pretty well connected too. It's an automatic, which is required in my wife's car, and I'm not really a big fan of it. It does pick up and go, fast enough for any reasonable person. It feels a little heavy, but nothing like a Legacy wagon. I think if it had a 5spd, it would be an awesome car. I estimate it getting about 21/24mpg when I drive it. Seems like it should be a little better to me, but maybe I need to give it some more TLC.
It's pretty comfortable to ride in, the cargo space is pretty nice when the seats are folded down, I've put a bike in the back many times.
I do want to replace the fake hood scoop. That thing is ugly.
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Takuro Spirit
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 13:15 |
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Oh, I no read good.
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moarpowerr
> ddavidn
08/16/2013 at 13:18 |
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Thats good to hear. The one I am looking at has the 5 sp m/t. It gets the same mileage from my cirrus, and this thing can haul more and has AWD, which I will need when commuting more than 100 km one way to get to school in the winter. The one I am looking at has 130,000 km and is only $3900, so I think that I am going to grab it.
Thanks for the input, I appreciate it.
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ddavidn
> moarpowerr
08/16/2013 at 13:25 |
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That sounds pretty good! This one has 180,000. The AWD is very nice, and it is a well-balanced car. I have never had the need for snow tires on it.
DocWalt
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 13:33 |
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E codes and relay harness ftw on any older car. Or in your case, JDM lights ftw!
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NaturallyAspirated
> dinobot666
08/16/2013 at 14:01 |
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I didn't mention it before, but I did try the Philips +80 bulbs before I did the swap. They are definitely brighter, but not good enough to make me happy. If the stock lights had been even a little better, they probably would have worked fine.
Pearson Hurst
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 14:18 |
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Very nice indeed. The stock lights on my '97 Outback are really, really terrible. If I weren't getting ready to trade it in, I'd be looking for a pair of these ASAP.
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dinobot666
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 14:46 |
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Time to add an auxiliary light bar and slap some Rigid LEDs on it. :D
SteyrTMP
> NaturallyAspirated
08/16/2013 at 19:30 |
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Where from, and how much? My wife's Outback needs this.
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NaturallyAspirated
> SteyrTMP
08/16/2013 at 19:57 |
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eBay. A search for "Legacy JDM" should bring up a couple of sets, I bought mine from the seller jdm-export and he was quick and courteous and included the wiring pigtails - if you buy one from a different seller, make sure the wiring pigtails are included for ease of installation.
EDIT: Make sure the headlights are projectors. Most JDM Legacies were sold with "regular" headlights, and I don't recommend ordering a set of RHD stock headlights from Japan.
EDIT 2: Double-check your model year too, since the Japanese model year breaks were in different places than the US breaks.
Shipping will most likely be astronomically expensive, which seems like the norm when shipping from Japan. The martial arts books I've bought from Japan have also been really expensive to ship.
This guy has good instructions on how to modify the beam pattern for LHD:
http://legacygt.com/forums/showthr…
This guy tells you how to wire them up:
http://www.sl-i.net/FORUM/viewtopi…
Then align them according to this guy's instructions:
http://legacygt.com/forums/showthr…