It is now half way through 2021 and there still doesn't seem to be a lot of good info on headlight upgrade options for those of us with early 4th gen Camaro's. I have repeatedly searched through the forums with no luck on any definitive options to upgrade our pathetic H4351/H4352 sealed bulbs (looking more for a plug & play option without doing major mods). I have done the mod of removing the factory bulb from the sealed unit & rv siliconing a 9005/9006 bulb in its place & this is a mild upgrade. There must be a a much better option available that has proven to be better than this. I know that there are "non-sealed" housings available but I cant seem to find much feedback on which manufacturer has a housing that has the right beam pattern diffuser (sorry if thats incorrect terminology), & also which led bulbs to use in these housings. Anyone who can shed some light on this (pun intended) with real life experience on products available that actually do make our Camaro's more safe & enjoyable to drive at night please respond with your knowledge or ideas. Looking forward to all off your responses and thank you in advance..

 

Blackbird Lighting solutions has a projector setup that fits. Its a bit pricey though.

Some threads with options linked in the Lighting FAQ:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/appearanc...ml#post7014483

What were those sealed replacement housings you found? If its the Headlight Experts one, skip them. The only pics they have are of stuff that won't have a good pattern. The pics aren't even specific to the car. If you are talking about the GENSSI kit, that one is a maybe. No beam pics, but the parts look decent. However it doesn't list separate low and high beam and the bulb retention is the wrong kind for 9005/9006 bulbs even through the use them in their video, so that's not a good sign.

One video I found showed a newer-style housing with replaceable bulb (look more like the LMC Truck housings than the original sealed beams), but it didn't have link to where to buy and I'm not finding it by searching.

 

As for better bulbs to fit into your existing housings you can try 9011/9012 bulbs to replace the 9005/9006 bulbs or get an LED kit.

 

First off thx for the reply, appreciate it! The most recent housings I’ve seen are from Carhidkits.com. They say they’re made of glass & can remove the bulbs (not included), and Headlight Experts which have an H4351 LED conversion kit w/bulbs included (supposedly lifetime warranty). I remember looking at the GENNSI video also. Just can’t seem to find any feedback from anyone actually using this type of upgrade therefore knowing pros/cons of them. Being in Canada shipping/returns can be a pain at the best of times let alone during a pandemic so first hand knowledge is so helpful.

 

Just me but I'd stay away from aftermarket HID bulb kits, the factory ones have some pretty sophisticated electrical filtering in them to keep your stereo, engine ECU and other electronics happy..

Not to say all of them have issues but I've taken them out of three friends cars and weird electrical gremlins went away. So sticking with the upper tier sources is a good thing..

If you switch to LED's and live in a cold climate make sure they get warm enough to keep ice off the headlights.. I had to buy two sealed beams a few years ago when I got caught in a blizard in WY and my LED's would not keep the lenses free of ice..

Bikes have a lot of problems with them because they turn on with the ignition and can pull enough power to choke the starting sequence off..

 

Appreciate that hanks, I do live in a cold climate but my ‘96 SS convertible is strictly a summer car & is stored for the winter so weather isn’t an issue. Also, the Carhidkits site was only for an open beam housing (glass lens) that I can put my own choice of bulb in & change out only the bulb as I please, I’m not interested in actual HID lighting but will definitely entertain LED bulbs that are basically plug & play. Just can’t seem to find any feedback for a combination of housings & LED bulbs that work together for beam patter & so on. These early 4th gen Camaro’s are over 20 years old already, you’d think there would be lots of great info/experience with better technology for these headlights that are not an intrusive mod 😳.

 

Great thanks, wasn’t aware of the 9011/9012 bulbs. Are they a big improvement over the 9005/9006 bulbs. I’ve currently got Sylvania Silverstar bulbs modded into the factory housings. While these are better than factory they still leave tons of room for improvement. Would be curious to know if they’re that much better?

 

Well, just looking at lumens....

High Beam
9005: 1700 Lumen
9011: 2300 Lumen

Low Beam
9006: 1000 Lumen
9012: 1870 Lumen

So big difference in output; nearly double. Same wattage.

However, good housing and proper alignment make a huge difference too (I'm referring to alignment of bulb in the housing).

If you find a good set of aftermarket housings with a built-in bulb cap, you can probably get the 9011 bulb into the low beam housing with some trimming and still get good pattern. Typically the low beam bulbs have a painted cap but these 9011/9012 don't appear to have that. Either way you can try and see what happens. They are available in auto parts stores and on Amazon. The Wagner ones on Amazon are actually Phillips but cheaper (I've bought some and seen it).

On some cars, the 9011/9012 bulbs fit 9005/9006 housings without trimming. Some require a minor trim to a tab on the bulb. On my mother's CRV, they fit without trimming.

 

The housing pics at Carhidkits and Headlight Experts both look like 4x6 housings instead of the Camaro's smaller housings. Either way, don't put HID in them. It will give a glaring beam pattern. They also appear to sell only one housing and say it fits both High and Low beams which is wrong. Looking at their part numbers looks like they are the high beam housings which should not be used for low beam.

 

I tried the ebay plastic housings and the more expensive glass housings (I can't remember the website). They both seem worse than regular Sylvania sealed beams. It's gotten to the point where I just don't drive at night. I hate that aftermarket headlights are basically all scams.

Is blackbird lighting solutions still in business? I tried to get their kit a few years ago and never got a response.

 

Good info VIP1, thanks. I will be looking into these bulbs for sure. Again though as you say good housing and proper bulb alignment can make all the difference which goes right back to my original question of what is a good combination that someone is actually using and is proven to be a true modern upgrade. These are great suggestions that I will try but can anyone add to this with real life working part numbers? Anyone?

 

Exactly notsonic, the try/fail/try again method is getting old & not wanting to drive at night seems like a very outdated option in this day of ultra modern technology. There HAS to be something that is simple and allows us to enjoy our cars at night while also making them much safer by being able to see down the road. I will continue to search for answers but if anyone knows someone who knows anything about a better lighting option than previously mentioned PLEASE let us know!
Again, any and all ideas are welcomed.

 

For reference these are the crappy plastic ebay housings. I think they're the same ones hawks sells. Total trash for the beam pattern.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/312228072686

And these are the glass housings:
http://eurolamps.com/eurolamps/camaro_headlights.htm

I tried with the "super bright xenon blah blah" bulbs each came with as well as what are allegedly the best halogen bulbs, Osram Night Breaker Unlimiteds. The beam patterns are just no good. I still have the eurolamps with the nightbreakers in because I just gave up at that point.

I also messed around with H4 sealed beam conversions for my 240 and Fiero. I went with the AutoPal housings and beamtech led bulbs. Don't buy into the aftermarket LED bulb meme. they're not good. I need to get some regular Silverstars for them and see how they do. Also what is it with the bullshit LED H4 housings with these fake *** brands like JW Speaker and Morimoto. Even the Truck Lite ones which are fairly well reviewed that I got for my sister's Cherokee are garbage. You figure if it was possible to make a good product in this area there'd be some real companies on board like Sylvania or at least Hella. I cant help but feel like it's all snake oil salesmen, like Headlight Revolution and every other shyster on YouTube. Every aftermarket headlight solution just feels like someone trying to pull a fast one. Anyway rant over.

 

Feel free to rant all you want notsonic, thanks for the feedback. So the eurolamp housings are garbage for beam pattern also. This is good to know as I looked at them last year & almost ordered a set. Looks like I’ll have to settle with rtv siliconing some 9011/9012 bulbs (thx VIP1) in factory housings for now until there is a better alternative that someone can vouch for. Still can’t believe we appear to have nothing but crap for upgrades on our 93-97 Camaro’s!!!!!

 

When you go to install the 9011/9012, test mounting depth as well in case the optimal depth isn't just pushed all the way in (or maybe need to go in further). Remember, these (and the 9005/9006) aren't the same as the original bulb that was glued into that housing. Their dimensions appear close but some testing will show if can be improved.

Also which housings do you have? The metal backed ones or the full glass ones? The metal backed ones may be better for this. I've seen light leak through the glass backed ones, but not the metal backed ones.

If you don't mind some cutting on the car, here is an installation of aftermarket truck headlights that can fit those bulbs:
https://www.v6f-body.com/showthread....Headlight-Swap

 

Thanks again VIP1, I'll have to do some measuring and pay closer attention to the depth when I do this mod once I buy some 9011/9012 bulbs (just researching which brand bulbs are better right now).
Not really wanting to do any cutting on the car as this is a numbered SLP Camaro so id like to keep it intact. As for the housings I currently have, I can't remember whether they're the glass or metal backed ones. Haven't taken the car out of storage yet (due to covid) so I'll check once I do. I know I bought some new replacement H4351/H4352 headlights as well as having several factory ones, does anyone happen to know which housing might be better for beam pattern between them (or are they most likely the same being direct replacement units?)

 

I don't know which will have a better pattern.

 

Look up the 88-98 Silverado headlamp housing swap. It requires mods and you can't go back to stock housings but you can get nice projector housings for cheap.

 

There are threads in the Lighting FAQ with those Silverado housings. Some look good. Some don't. The projector used in most of them is bad. Look around for something decent or swap it out (more modification).

 

Thanks for the info regarding the Silverado housings but unfortunately I'm not going to do any irreversible mods as this is a numbered SLP SS Camaro lol! Any other ideas that retain the stock housings would be greatly appreciated.