Has anyone changed this year v70 headlights to HID or LED ?

 

I have the same vehicle (2003 V70) and would be interested in the answer. However, my understanding is that you cannot simply swap in HID or LED bulbs in place of the stock bulbs. The optics are very different and without the proper "projector" or similar headlight lens the HID will not work well at all.

Bob

 

I would think HID. Many have done it. I see a lot of them on eBay and plan to get a pair myself some day. They also have projectors.

Volvo V70 XC70 S60 Headlight PROJECTOR SET BLACK NEW | eBay

 

RSPI is correct !! To really make the HID function say like the HIDs in a BMW you will need to change to projector lens. RJSV70 is also correct in saying that it is not just a bulb swap. You will have to buy an HID kit which will include ballasts.

Because of the energy required to run a HID headlight, the HID bulbs do not run on low-voltage DC current, so they require a power pack (ballast) with either an external or internal ignitor, which controls the current given to the bulb. Considering automobiles use a 12-volt electrical system for their lamps and the HID lighting requires over 20,000 volts to ignite the bulbs and then 85 volts to keep them running, the ballast is a necessary part of the system. Apart from turning it on it also regulates the voltage, and is an integral part of the HID system.

Hope this helps
Jesse

 

I put a set of HID 6K (whitest white IMO) in my 2003 V70 T5 with no issues. Got the kit w/ballasts from eBay. I was worried I'd get the dreaded "flash-flash" from on coming drivers but so far they've been fine.

 

If you put a HID kit in a non-projector housing, you're wasting your time. The halogen housings focus the light that comes from the halogen filament, while the light from an HID bulb comes from the entire length of the bulb, so it doesn't focus correctly. You can pull up to a tall wall and you'll see light flying out in all sorts of random directions. That is the light that will annoy oncoming drivers (and make you less safe if they can't see where they're going). In addition, most times the HID conversions will put LESS light down the road, and because it's lighting up everything in the immediate vicinity of the car, you'll have an even harder time seeing down the road (which is kind of the point of headlights after all).

So you end up with a more expensive, less reliable headlight system that annoys other drivers and doesn't work as well as the originals.

OTOH, if you DO go with projectors and do it right, you'll have MUCH better headlights that send MUCH more light farther down the road, and even less into the eyes of oncoming drivers. On my BMW, turning on my high (halogen) beams doesn't make any difference that I can see, other than throwing out more light around the nose of the car (because they're not as focused as the HID projectors).

 

Don't use HID bulbs in a halogen housing - whether reflector or projector. HID bulbs need to go in an HID housing. Anything else is an a-hole move.

For the 2003, you can either retrofit in the Morimoto mini HID housings. Cheap and pretty simple to do.

For the best setup, why not get the Volvo OEM HID projectors? It's expensive, but you get 100% fit and OEM quality!