2001 PT Cruiser lighting

Mr. Merk

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My mother-in-law has had a 2001 PT Cruiser ever since my wife & I started dating over 15 years ago.

It used to be really nice but has been degrading....especially the headlamps.

It's gotten so bad that she doesn't drive at night now. For her birthday we were talking about getting the headlamps polished and adding PPF so it doesn't reoccur in the near future.

Unfortunately the bulbs are the straight based 9006xs & 9005xs. The fogs are regular 9006.

They live out in the boonies but commute into town mostly via rural roads plagued with deer. So some auxiliary lighting is not out of the question either.

Any recommendations?
 
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scout24

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Re: Any PT Cruiser owners out there?

Since the focus of the thread seems to be vehicle lighting, that's where I'm going to move it... :)
 

Alaric Darconville

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It's gotten so bad that she doesn't drive at night now. For her birthday we were talking about getting the headlamps polished and adding PPF so it doesn't reoccur in the near future.
That '01 may have been built in 2000; at that age, the degradation in the lenses may be so deep that polishing them out will result in a too-thin lens to resist the next piece of flying gravel.
The reflectors themselves may have degraded from UV exposure through the lens and from filament heat. Those lamps may simply need to be replaced with genuine Chrysler parts.


Unfortunately the bulbs are the straight based 9006xs & 9005xs. The fogs are regular 9006.
Sometimes you can just do a direct swap from 9006XS to 9006-- you since you have 9006 bulbs in the fog lamps, see what happens. If it snaps in just fine and the connector reaches then you'll know you can use the real 9006-- get these. For the high beams, if you know someone with a car with 9005 high beams, then see if one will fit your high beams without issue. If so, the HIR1 (or 9011) with a base trim would be the upgrade path to take.

The factory fog lamps are otherwise not extremely useful and are typically best left off anyway.

They live out in the boonies but commute into town mostly via rural roads plagued with deer. So some auxiliary lighting is not out of the question either.
With new headlamps and upgraded bulbs, it might not be necessary.
 

-Virgil-

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Those headlamps are going to be dead-dead-dead at this point; polishing isn't going to get the job done (it won't bring back the reflectors, even if it brings back the lenses, which it probably won't -- and "PPF" won't do what you think it will). If the car's still going to be used in regular service, put in new headlamps. You've got kind of a conundrum in front of you: the genuine Chrysler headlamps, made by Hella, are far better than the aftermarket knockoffs...but far more expensive, too. They work pretty well with the standard straight-base bulbs, assuming they're properly aimed with an optical aiming machine and they're properly fed.
 

Mr. Merk

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Bulb choices?

I actually use 9011 in my gmt800 Sierra highbeams which are easily accessible.

Do you think those GE9006 would be a better choice over the 9012 in her lows?
 
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-Virgil-

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Do you think these Depo replacements would be suitable?

Depends on how you define "suitable". They'll fill the hole in the front of the car and they'll light up, but they're very significantly inferior to genuine/original-equipment lights made by Hella, in that their focus and beam distributions are much poorer. The hot setup for excellent seeing in a gen-1 PT Cruiser is actually a set of the European-market headlamp units, which take an H7 low beam bulb producing about 50% more light flux than the 9006XS in the US lamp. They cost more than the aftermarket imitation headlights you linked, but you actually get to see safely at night, so the value is there. And looking on eBag, I see a seller in Germany has the right (yeah, it is, see the pic) and left, genuine Mopar items made by Hella, listed right now, for less than the US-market lamps can be bought for. You can ignore the electric leveling motor they come with; the US cars don't have the circuitry for it. The car's original wiring will plug onto all three bulbs on the Euro lamp. Then aim them in accordance with the "VOL" instructions (not VOR like the US lamps) and your mother in law's night-drive seeing will be utterly transformed.
 

-Virgil-

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Re: Bulb choices?

I actually use 9011 in my gmt800 Sierra highbeams which are easily accessible. Do you think those GE9006 would be a better choice over the 9012 in her lows?

With genuine US-spec headlamps in perfect condition (not aftermarket junk) The HIR2 in low beam and HIR1 in high beam would be the top choices, if you can make them fit. It's been awhile since I had a gen1 PT Cruiser US headlamp on my bench, but I seem to recall there might have been physical interference. Might not have been on the headlamp itself, but rather with the cover panel behind the headlamp, sealing it off from the wheel well, or I might be completely wrong and they'll fit fine. If you want to try and see, get a cheap regular 9006 and 9005 bulb and see if they can be installed and everything reassembled (including the cover panel) before you spend the bucks on the HIR bulbs. But you still need new headlamps!
 

Mr. Merk

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Depends on how you define "suitable". They'll fill the hole in the front of the car and they'll light up, but they're very significantly inferior to genuine/original-equipment lights made by Hella, in that their focus and beam distributions are much poorer. The hot setup for excellent seeing in a gen-1 PT Cruiser is actually a set of the European-market headlamp units, which take an H7 low beam bulb producing about 50% more light flux than the 9006XS in the US lamp. They cost more than the aftermarket imitation headlights you linked, but you actually get to see safely at night, so the value is there. And looking on eBag, I see a seller in Germany has the right (yeah, it is, see the pic) and left, genuine Mopar items made by Hella, listed right now, for less than the US-market lamps can be bought for. You can ignore the electric leveling motor they come with; the US cars don't have the circuitry for it. The car's original wiring will plug onto all three bulbs on the Euro lamp. Then aim them in accordance with the "VOL" instructions (not VOR like the US lamps) and your mother in law's night-drive seeing will be utterly transformed.

I am very tempted to pull the trigger on these. It's probably a small price to pay but $500 (after upgraded bulbs) is also approaching the value of the vehicle.
 

Alaric Darconville

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I am very tempted to pull the trigger on these. It's probably a small price to pay but $500 (after upgraded bulbs) is also approaching the value of the vehicle.

What is the value of your mother-in-law's safety? The value of your wife's safety if she's riding with her at night? The value of some random person's safety? $500 is a lot of money, sure, but it seems like it's false economy to not proceed with this.

We talk about the "value" of a vehicle, but there's a lot of value in a reliable, familiar vehicle that gets you consistently from Point A to Point B (with sub-points in between). Properly cared for, the car can still provide years of service-- and you can spend a lot of time (which is valuable in itself) to try to recondition the lamps (and fail) or you can spend that $500 and know you've made a good upgrade to the car. I say it's worth it. It's cheaper than a car payment. It's cheaper than the increase in premiums after either a collision, or that goes with buying a new car (or buying a new car because of the collision).
 

Mr. Merk

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What is the value of your mother-in-law's safety? The value of your wife's safety if she's riding with her at night? The value of some random person's safety? $500 is a lot of money, sure, but it seems like it's false economy to not proceed with this.

We talk about the "value" of a vehicle, but there's a lot of value in a reliable, familiar vehicle that gets you consistently from Point A to Point B (with sub-points in between). Properly cared for, the car can still provide years of service-- and you can spend a lot of time (which is valuable in itself) to try to recondition the lamps (and fail) or you can spend that $500 and know you've made a good upgrade to the car. I say it's worth it. It's cheaper than a car payment. It's cheaper than the increase in premiums after either a collision, or that goes with buying a new car (or buying a new car because of the collision).

Very good point. She is still attached to the vehicle and really couldn't afford to replace it if she wanted to.
 

Mr. Merk

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And until you find a dealer that offers full sentimental value on a trade-in... :D

Strike now while the iron is hot!

ORDERED! Virgil, does this headlamp take H7 in both beams?

edit: I see it still takes 9005XS in the high beams. I believe I have an extra pair of 9011 in the attic I will try to fit.
 
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-Virgil-

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Yeah, H7 (this or this) in the low beams, sounds like you've already got the high beams taken care of as far as bulbs go. Remember these lamps (unlike the US ones) have both vertical and horizontal aim adjustment. And as originally configured the turn signal bulb does not light up in a dim mode for the parking light function (which is a separate bulb), which means no sidemarker light -- you shouldn't have a difficult time adapting so the outer bulb does both functions as on the US lamp, because you don't want to lose the sidemarker light. Also, no sidemarker reflector on the Euro lamps, so buy a couple of these self-adhesive flexible reflectors and neatly apply them to the side of the bumper fascia.
 

Mr. Merk

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The headlamps are scheduled to be delivered today! I've got new Philips XV H7 low beams ready to go in and I'll attempt to install my 9011 bulbs in the high beams before using our aiming machine at work.

I just wanted to touch on the fog lights and the sidemarkers. I know the fogs are mostly useless, but the first 10 minutes of her commute is under 30mph on (often foggy) rural roads coming down the mountain. Would the 9012 or 9006XT be a better choice? Do you have any link or advice on how to adapt the outer bulb for sidemarker use?

We are going to have a conversation about the appropriate times to use the fogs and also properly adjusting her instrument lighting.
 

Alaric Darconville

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I know the fogs are mostly useless, but the first 10 minutes of her commute is under 30mph on (often foggy) rural roads coming down the mountain.
Unless the fog is really thick, I'm not sure fog lamps will help her see the lane markings any better in the face of modern low beams. A rear fog lamp may be a better upgrade if sometimes there are people behind her in that same fog, particularly if it always seems they close in too rapidly all the time (thinking their own fog lamps help them to see better than they can).

Would the 9012 or 9006XT be a better choice? Do you have any link or advice on how to adapt the outer bulb for sidemarker use?
Don't use an HIR2 in a fog lamp. As far as "adapting the outer bulb for sidemarker use" I'm a bit confused because:
The car's original wiring will plug onto all three bulbs on the Euro lamp.
It seems the 4157NA is for both the sidemarker and turn signal on US-spec '01 PT Cruisers, so I'm not sure why that doesn't work with the changed lamps. The electrical system itself isn't modified.
 

-Virgil-

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I just wanted to touch on the fog lights and the sidemarkers. I know the fogs are mostly useless, but the first 10 minutes of her commute is under 30mph on (often foggy) rural roads coming down the mountain. Would the 9012 or 9006XT be a better choice?


Do not use HIR2 (9012) in fog lamps. Use these. Note the fog lamps have to be aimed correctly, too. And as Alaric correctly points out, they're already useless/superfluous, and they'll be even more so with the new headlamps.

Do you have any link or advice on how to adapt the outer bulb for sidemarker use?

No, but it should be fairly obvious by comparing the wiring/socket hookup on the US and Euro lamps. As for what bulbs to use for the front turn signals, that depends. If you're going to use them as daytime running lights (Canadian-spec PT Cruisers did this; you can implement it with one of these), then you want to use a super-ultra long life bulb, that being this (which you can also use even if you're not using the front turns as DRLs).
 

Mr. Merk

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The car's original wiring will plug onto all three bulbs

Well, I'm elbow deep in the PT Cruiser and am finding that the turn signal connectors are not matching up.

First I tried plugging in the euro signals but the plug didn't fit. I also noticed that the bulb holder side is missing the middle terminal. Then I tried swapping the bulb holder but the original holder will not match up to the euro lamp.

Any tips?
 

Mr. Merk

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I can get the US bulb holders in place but I don't think they'll be tight enough to keep dust and water out. I'm considering using silicone to seal them tight but I feel a little Mickey Mouse about.

Edit: I used a bead of flex seal around the turn signal gaskets. I also installed new 3457 LL (only option at the later hour I was shopping) bulbs that will retain all US functions.

First impressions driving are WOW. Can't wait to aim them tomorrow at work.

You were right, I really can't even tell if the fog lights are on or off. They are trashed though. When my father-in-law replaces the front bumper this summer I'll have him get new fog lights and just maybe we'll try the selective yellow spray.

I'm pretty jealous how well this turned out so my next project will probably be my daily driver 05 GMC Sierra with Denali projectors.
 
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