5000s 9004 ->9007 lights

[esw5@cornell.edu (Ernest Wong)]

Hi all,

I've just gotten 2 nights of driving around with a 9007 bulb replacing the
old 9004 bulb in the right lens of my 87 5000s. This is the plain jane
version with the wider headlights with angled inside edge, as compared to
the narrower TQ headlights with the aux. 'low' beams on the inside edge.
So the reflector design on the TQ might be different than the 5Ks and might
not get a positive response.

The MAIN difference between the 9004 and 9007 bulbs are

 9004: E-W filaments (filaments aligned perpendicular to vehicle travel)
 9007: N-S filaments (like the H3 setup. Points in direction of travel)

The 3 leads for the bulbs differ in that the High beam hot feed and ground
need to be swapped. AND 2 new grooves have to be machined into the plastic
of the 9007 bulb base. Great for a Dremel. I used a drill.(only power-tool
I had)

Parking in front of a sloped lawn, I could see the 9007 setup gave a much
bigger 'hot spot' than the old 9004 setup. The 9007 bulb I had also had
lower filaments which meant I had to angle down the beam setting on the
headlight. I also jury-rigged a 9004 t0 9007 adapter using a busted 9004
bulb and a 9004 socket.
It's now just plug and play except for adjusting the beam.

I'm happier with the light output of the 9007 headlight combo. Especially
considering the low cost. About $15 and all the soldering done indoors(read
warm and dry)

E-mail me if anyone wants the pinouts for the 9007 and the grooves. It's
pretty easy to figgur out just by looking at the 004 and 007 bulbs closely.
The upper filament is the low beam on both bulbs.

Added benefit. The 9007 GE's were 55/65W as opposed to the general 45/64W
output of the 9004's. 10W is a visible difference.

Happy night driving, guys and dolls.

Anyone want to try this non-invasive procedure on their 5KTq and report?

Ernest Wong
esw5@cornell.edu