Thread: Common headlight or bulb upgrades for D2?

Originally Posted by V8Ian

100W is too hot for 2a lens.

That’s correct, and the OP has a D2 so he should stay with the glass headlights for a filament lamp upgrade.

I have tried two types of led H4 bulbs in my D2 and been unhappy with both the color temperature and dark spots.
On a wet road it is like no headlights.
I also tried a set of HIDs with the same result as well as not being able to flash.
I now run 130/100s which seem to suit my 72 year old eyes better. I have a loom which is 20 odd years old now but still OK with relay replacement.
I am considering buying the almost $500 round headlight kit from the bloke on eBay but in truth I don’t drive all that much at night so I delay at the expense.
Regards PhilipA

Disclaimer ilive in USA so I'M not aware of the laws in Aus I have a 2001 D2 I have a set of Beamtech led bulbs installed. That I bought from Amazon. The light output compaired to halogen bulbs is 3x brighter. Much cheaper than high end halogen bulbs. Less heat and Watts.$40 Us.I'd say with the brightnessof the new vehicles no one would notice. Stay stong mates from across the ocean I feel your pain Robert

Welcome to the forum riverrat.

Glad to add my 2 Cents worth. Not to get off topic but i love when aulro comes to my inbox. She be right.

Originally Posted by AK83

I don't know about the Narva or JW Speaker branded LEDs, but I got Philips Ultinon H4 LEDs for my D1, and my brothers(now my) D2.

Summary: I'd never go back to non LED headlights again!

Long version: brilliant white light, sharp cutoff area, while not ADR approved, they still project what could be regarded as a legal light beam. If you follow the Narva link, these types of leds that place the led chips at the correct point in the headlamp's focal point so maintain the expected pattern that the lens should provide.

As LEDs use less power than Halogen globes(I estimated the Ultinons use about 12-13w on each chipset, no need to rewire the headlight system, which is almost certainly why the OPs headlights appear dim now.
Old thin power and earth wires to the globes + less power out of the halogen globes.

I was thinking of trying out the JW Speaker LEDs ... just to see how well they work in comparison(and to have a pair of spares .. just in case.

A note with the Philips Ultinons too. There are two different types, One is more expensive than the other. I've had my D1's Philips for about 5 years now. They were horrendously expensive( over $200!) and still work well.
For the brothers(now my) D2 tho, I found a cheaper set, and didn't realise that they are a cheaper version .. I think called the 'Essential' version.

on low beam, equally as good as each other. It's on high beam that the more expensive version looks better. The ones on the D2(essential types) on high beam have a strange dark spot down low in the beam pattern about 5m in front of the car.
They still work well farther out .. it's just kind'a annoying to see this dark spot.

On the D1 tho, the more expensive version, have almost made my cheapo lightbar redundant for directly ahead of the vehicle. The light bar only really gives me a bit more lateral brightness now .. doesn't get used as much.

A word of warning here too: not about ADR and blinding on coming traffic tho .. this is up to the individual to take into account .. and I did adjust both D1 and D2's headlights downwards after install.
The warning is not to go cheaper to save yourself $s. Many of the cheaper LEDs use either a passive or active heatsink at the back end of the LED. If so avoid. You will most certainly need to hack into the front panel behind the light to get them to fit. It's very tight in there. The best LED globe option, if you do go his way, is either a braided heatsink type(JW Speaker and essential Philips style) .. PITA to force it through the rubber boot on the rear of the headlight. Can be done, but the more you stuff through, the harder it gets(at least with the Philips).
The better heatsink type is the more expensive Philips screw on passive type. You fit the globe, fit the rubber boot, then screw on the heatsink. It's a bit tedious, but only if the led needs to be replaced. after 5 years and about 100K klms, so far so good on that front.
Fitting is straightforward even tho it may look complicated. Plug and play, and I just cable tied the 'essentials' electrowhizbox to the front panel(no worries), and tek screwed to the front panel behind the headlight it in my D1.

ps. if you do end up replacing, easiest way to do it is to remove the headlight. It just pulls out - unclips from it's retaining clips. The gotcha here will be that if they aren't already broken, the fragile and old clips will almost certainly break. Get a new set to be sure you have secured headlights. They're cheap.

Got these on the D2 and wow, it is interesting that when compared against each other, the filament and led chip are positioned in the same spot, know some cheaper rubbish ones the led chip is just there. Sure they are bright and the cutoff sharp as a cooking knife. Expensive, well the good globes I got on the old D1 were nearly $80 and they made a positive improvement,

From the Narva gumph,

However, when we say “relevant legislation”, what we mean is that this area actually remains unregulated. That’s right: there are currently (at the time of writing) no specific laws that govern their use. The reason we state on our Surefit and Performance LED globe packaging that they are not ADR approved is because there is no Australian Design Rule to approve them against.


Fortunately the D2 has headlight washers and if you are lucky enough to have SLS, then this is headlight aiming tool as well. These are both a requirement of HID lights which are ADR'd but as there is no specific ADR that says you have to have a small wire with a voltage across it...

I have two sets of the Philips globes for the D2a which are not yet fitted but not overwhelmed by the quality of standard lights and having not driven much at nights and only in the city to date, when I need to head out of town, I'll be putting them in before I fill the tank!

Originally Posted by PhilipA

I have tried two types of led H4 bulbs in my D2 and been unhappy with both the color temperature and dark spots.
On a wet road it is like no headlights.
I also tried a set of HIDs with the same result as well as not being able to flash.
I now run 130/100s which seem to suit my 72 year old eyes better. I have a loom which is 20 odd years old now but still OK with relay replacement.
I am considering buying the almost $500 round headlight kit from the bloke on eBay but in truth I don’t drive all that much at night so I delay at the expense.
Regards PhilipA

Philip also looked at the round headlight option, the Mud ones as a plug and play package seemed infinitely superior but were out of stock for months and the retro Defender look was pretty neat I thought but after trying the Philips thought naaagh and put the money to something worthwhile.

The Aussie ones picked my interest but having to bend sheet metal to fit the plate was the killer to the deal, they just felt tacked on to me.


Atlantic British Presents: Tuff-Rok TRK106 LED Headlight Pods for Land Rover Discovery Series 2 - YouTube

Originally Posted by onebob

Yes - for starters install a TRAXIDE HEADLIGHT WIRING upgrade kit. As for lamps I run Phillips Rally H4 130/100w and they’ve made my IPF8000 driving lights redundant !! and the colour temperature makes it easier on the eyes compared to the brilliant white LEDs or HIDs. Also because the light is diffused / softer at the edges you’ll get to see the shadow detail that is lost with the sharp cut off you get with LEDs etc.

Same here. Best upgrade I've had on my D2 is a Traxide headlight loom and in my case 90/100w globes. If you run big watt globes they will melt the standard headlight plugs into the back of the globes, so you will need something like the Traxide loom to stop this from happening. If you are driving with your headlights on, let them cool off before fording water otherwise you can crack your glass lenses... I found this out!