Replacement of filament bulbs to LED

[Yelper85]

Originally Posted by Easington

You're not a true Derbyshire guy unless you wear lipstick!

Cheers, will take a look at those

Here's the pics of the reversing lights and the Xenon upgrades.

They don't do it justice at all as they are both much whiter and brighter than it appears in the picture, but hopefully you get the idea.

So nice and much safer on country roads with the Xenons and if you have to reverse in the pitch black.

I'm sure the neighbours love them . . .

[Easington]

Originally Posted by Yelper85

Here's the pics of the reversing lights and the Xenon upgrades.

They don't do it justice at all as they are both much whiter and brighter than it appears in the picture, but hopefully you get the idea.

So nice and much safer on country roads with the Xenons and if you have to reverse in the pitch black.

I'm sure the neighbours love them . . .

Thanks - I ordered some reversing lights yesterday. Are the xenon bulbs easy to swap? Mine is 2013 so guess they have started to dim

[Yelper85]

Originally Posted by Easington

Thanks - I ordered some reversing lights yesterday. Are the xenon bulbs easy to swap? Mine is 2013 so guess they have started to dim

Very easy to change indeed. 20 minutes and both sides will be done. Volvo really did well with the bulb swap design.

Pull the two sticks out the top (they are different sizes so remember which is left and right), angle the headlight unit a little then rest it, uncouple the connector on the chassis (not the headlight unit!) then pull it out. 4 Torx bolts (either T20 or T25, can't remember) which you unscrew say 80% then the cover slides off. No losing screws. Once the cover is off, unclip the power connector, turn the black locking ring and pull it out.

Once the new bulb is in, the locking ring can be tricky and feel like you're either going to snap it or damage the headlamp unit as it 'floats'. It seems like there's only the one tab to lock it back in, but it's not, there's an additional tab on the top that's only present when locking back in. I didn't realise this until the second headlamp unit as the tab was more evident. I've marked the rough location in pic named 'Interior 7' but it's not the best. Should give you an idea though.

See attached pictures for clarity

Here's a link to the Osram Blue Boost bulbs I purchased:

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/d3...-hid-bulb.html

Here's a link to the puddle lights and note that the original size bulb must be used (give or take 1-2mm) otherwise it hits the back of the reflector and the seal won't go in properly (Images attached also):

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/50...-led-bulb.html

Glovebox light:

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/26...toon-bulb.html

Philips WhiteVision Ultra halogen:

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/50...ps=yes#rfplist

[Easington]

Originally Posted by Yelper85

Very easy to change indeed. 20 minutes and both sides will be done. Volvo really did well with the bulb swap design.

Pull the two sticks out the top (they are different sizes so remember which is left and right), angle the headlight unit a little then rest it, uncouple the connector on the chassis (not the headlight unit!) then pull it out. 4 Torx bolts (either T20 or T25, can't remember) which you unscrew say 80% then the cover slides off. No losing screws. Once the cover is off, unclip the power connector, turn the black locking ring and pull it out.

Once the new bulb is in, the locking ring can be tricky and feel like you're either going to snap it or damage the headlamp unit as it 'floats'. It seems like there's only the one tab to lock it back in, but it's not, there's an additional tab on the top that's only present when locking back in. I didn't realise this until the second headlamp unit as the tab was more evident. I've marked the rough location in pic named 'Interior 7' but it's not the best. Should give you an idea though.

See attached pictures for clarity

Here's a link to the Osram Blue Boost bulbs I purchased:

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/d3...-hid-bulb.html

Here's a link to the puddle lights and note that the original size bulb must be used (give or take 1-2mm) otherwise it hits the back of the reflector and the seal won't go in properly (Images attached also):

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/50...-led-bulb.html

Glovebox light:

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/26...toon-bulb.html

Philips WhiteVision Ultra halogen:

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/50...ps=yes#rfplist

That's really useful, many thanks for taking the time to post the pics and links too.

Cheers

[Easington]

Originally Posted by Yelper85

Forgot to put my lipstick on as well

I'll post a pic of the lights in action ASAP, however the link to them is here:

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/38...onet-bulb.html

Fitted in seconds and no warning errors. Honestly one of the cheapest and best upgrades you can do for the car alongside the puddle lights.

I also upgraded the Xenon bulbs to Osram Blue Boost. What a difference! No blue at all, pure white just like the LED counterparts. Cost a bit but soooo worth it in my opinion. I'll post one of the Xenons as well!

For clarity and despite their website confirming it these bulbs don't fit the reversing light of the 2014MY S60. Apparently I need an "H21W LL"

[Yelper85]

Originally Posted by Easington

For clarity and despite their website confirming it these bulbs don't fit the reversing light of the 2014MY S60. Apparently I need an "H21W LL"

Ah man! No way!

Does it state H21 in the manual? If not, how do you know you need H21?

LL for reference means Long Life

Also, the best thing about ABD is you can return for a full refund, and because they specified the bulbs would fit, they will even pay the return postage which is Royal Mail 24 Tracked

[Easington]

Originally Posted by Yelper85

Ah man! No way!

Does it state H21 in the manual? If not, how do you know you need H21?

LL for reference means Long Life

Also, the best thing about ABD is you can return for a full refund, and because they specified the bulbs would fit, they will even pay the return postage which is Royal Mail 24 Tracked

Yes it states in in the manual - should have checked if before I ordered but ABD emailed me back within an hour with a returns label.

Annoyingly their website does specify the H21 for the reversing light if you specify my car, year etc but say "non-xenon".

Never mind.....

[Easington]

See manual

[Yelper85]

Originally Posted by Easington

See manual

So you have H21 for reverse lights but Xenons for the dipped beam?

I just checked my manual and I have H21 for the rear fog lamps. See attached.

The only difference after that is the cargo area light. Mine is bigger, however it's not installed which is one of the most infuriating things about the car. It has the LED light in the tailgate that shines down on the road when the boot is open, but nothing inside. Same for the 12V socket. The wiring and connector is there taped up, just no socket. Very poor Volvo, very poor indeed!

Anyway, rant over. They do have these, just out of stock at the moment, but you can sign up for email notification when back in:

https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/h2...anbus-led.html

[Easington]

Originally Posted by Yelper85

So you have H21 for reverse lights but Xenons for the dipped beam?

Correct but mine is the S60. Mine also had the wiring for the 12v socket but no actual socket. Bought one off ebay and 20 min job to fit it