A4 headlight bulbs

[Louis-Alain Richard]

While we collectively pointed the usual suspects, we forgot another
important part for light output : the reflector. So even if the lens is OK
and the bulbs are fine, a dusty/foggy/tarnished reflector would impact the
quality of lighting by a good margin. 

Another thing to check : since you said the bulbs are difficult to attain,
maybe they are not seated properly and not in the proper focal position. I
see that usually on Ford Focus and Nissan Sentra (don't know why...) where
you see a "halo" of light when the lenses are covered with winter dust. 

Also, one more thing to check : the reflector are usually attached in the
housing by 4 points : 2 sets of adjusters and 2 pivot points. On a friend's
Volvo, that reflector was not seated on one of the pivot point (a ball in a
plastic socket) and then the reflector was much more "forward" with regards
to the bulb. So if the aim was correct with the adjuster to full extend, the
light output was very narrow. We had to dismantle the lamp housing to
correct the situation.

How difficult is it to remove a lamp from your A4 ? Might be a good occasion
to check all of the above, plus the electrical connection.


Louis-Alain


-----Message d'origine-----

Kent,

After you've checked the obvious things, add a pair of Hella MicroDe
projector fogs under the bumper. They put out a lot more light than the
stock fog lights and are a fairly straightforward replacement.

Upgrading to HIDs would be less trivial. :(

It seems that the Audi headlamp lenses stay clear a long time.  With 135K
miles on my '01 A4, the lenses are still clear! Unlike those on Volvos or
Passats or others, which go opaque after a while. I used a 3M lens cleaning
kit on the lenses on my dad's Passat and it made a huge difference in light
output.

Lee