2008 Mazda 3 LED Headlight Bulb Advice

[antmstr4]

Hey guys,

I'm thinking of upgrading my halogen headlights and fog lights to LED on my 2008 Mazda 3. Could you guys throw out some good headlight bulb brands? I'm looking for something reliable, but affordable as well.

And if you guys have any general advice about doing this upgrade, please throw it out there.

Thank you!

 

[CTt3P5]

I'm looking into and most likely buying the VLEDs Micro for our 2010 3. The output from the halogen bulbs suck and are worthless at night IMO. Since our daughter is taking the car with her to college this year I'm hoping these will provide some improvement, time will tell.

http://www.vleds.com/shop-products/led-headlights.html

*edit - Bought them and hope to have them in hand and installed by/over the weekend.

 

[CTt3P5]

VLED Micro head light bulbs in 5K arrived today and I installed them after dinner. Quite pleased with the brightness as I can now see the road ahead of me whereas it was "murky" with the halogen bulbs. I don't feel as though the actual output has increased but it is nice having the road ahead of me lit up.

 

[concept]

Sand-blasted headlight covers can really weaken any type of bulbs. I really miss my 1989 MX6 GT's glass headlight covers. Those covers, after 27 years, looked almost brand new. Obviously, glass is much harder than plastic.
When I polished the Protege's covers, its headlight brightness and sharpness improved quite a bit.

Don't neglect that part of the equation.

I do like the LEDs from the factory in my Mazda3, though.

 

[CTt3P5]

Great point. I noticed an improvement after polishing the head light covers on my P5 and NB. The P5 lights were really bad.

We love the LEDs in our CX5. My wife moreso as she drove the 3 since new and always complained about the light output.

Here's a shot of the DS cover I took earlier today.

 

[WheelMcCoy]

Sorry to revive an old thread, but after a year, how are the VLEDs holding up? From the photo, I'm impressed with the beam pattern. The 2010 Mazda3 reflector housings aren't designed for the typical LED bulb and I've found that they produce scattered patterns that could blind oncoming drivers. The Micro Evolution VLEDs actually look good! My understanding is that LEDs don't illuminate any farther than halogens, but what they do light up, they light up better.

From their website, I also learned something new: LEDs need a cooling fan. While the bulb itself is cool to the touch, the electronics behind it get hot. Any issue with the fans or cooling?

 

[CTt3P5]

Sorry to revive an old thread, but after a year, how are the VLEDs holding up? From the photo, I'm impressed with the beam pattern. The 2010 Mazda3 reflector housings aren't designed for the typical LED bulb and I've found that they produce scattered patterns that could blind oncoming drivers. The Micro Evolution VLEDs actually look good! My understanding is that LEDs don't illuminate any farther than halogens, but what they do light up, they light up better.

From their website, I also learned something new: LEDs need a cooling fan. While the bulb itself is cool to the touch, the electronics behind it get hot. Any issue with the fans or cooling?

Hi and sorry for the delayed response, I don't check this forum as much anymore.

The VLEDs have been very reliable to date with no decrease in lighting or flickering. I have seen LED bulbs on the market with no fans but not sure I'd trust those. In my searching, I found other brands that were much less in price compared to these but I went with the old "you get what you pay for" saying when I purchased them. No issues to date with the fans or cooling. When you turn the lights on, you can hear the fans running when standing outside of the car but it is inaudible behind the wheel and the dust covers are still intact with no signs of damage.

I'm quite happy with the purchase and would buy another set but the CX-5 has factory LEDs and our 2008 MX-5 and 3 hatch have factory HIDs. lol

 

[WheelMcCoy]

Thanks for the feedback! I agree, VLEDs makes quality products. For Black Friday, I did a small purchase of LED map and dome lights and I like them. I recently got new headlights (Philips H11 Vision Upgrade) so I'll wait till next year before considering an LED replacement.