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DRL Bulb Upgrade (Non LED Variety)

14K views 65 replies 23 participants last post by  jalms 
#1 ·
So not being content that the DRL bulbs in my TT as they looked very 'Yellow' compared to my Xenon's I went on a mission to replace these with a closer match. Now it is not a huge problem as it would appear that the DRLs and the Xenons are never on at the same time. I have the Auto Pack so just leave the lights set to Auto, thus when it is light enough the DRLs are on, and when it gets dark the Xenons and Side Lights come on, with the DRLs going off.

So firstly here is the OEM Factory DRL, which is the P21 variety:



I ordered 2 types of MTEC replacements the Super White and the Chrome Super White. The latter are slightly more expensive but do not give off the Blue Tinge that the non-chromes do.

Below is the Super Whites on the left and factory on the right and as you can see a much better look IMO:



However below shows the Super White on the Left again, with the Chrome Super White on the Right. Now there is a slight difference IMO but it is only slight:



I ended up staying with the Chrome Super Whites as a) whilst not too different I do prefer the light they emit, and b) when off they are not as noticeable and look more OEM.

Super White:



Chrome Super White:



The standard Super Whites do have a Blue Tinge to them, however this is only noticeable head on and with the car being quite low anyway so probably will never really be noticed:





Compare this to the Chrome Super Whites, which whilst still not perfect as they have a slight 'pearl' effect are an improvement to me:





Anyway I hope this may prove useful to anyone looking to upgrade the non LED DRL as these are not cheap especially not with the postage from Germany.

However if you do buy some I can say the Customer Service at Xenon White is excellent and as a result of this exercise I am selling the standard Super White's if anyone is interested.

Thanks and feel free to ask any questions, oh and nice touch Audi with the TT Logo on the DRL lense thingy!
 
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#3 ·
What sidelights are they as they do look good.

I assume yours is not an MY10 and they are LED then?
 
#6 ·
conneem said:
Not MY10 but the sidelights are normal incandesant type not LED's so should be ok :)

Pity you did'nt get them with the DRL's as the postage is a large portion of the cost from Xenonwhite.

These are the sidelights I have (suitable only for xenon equipped cars, non-xenon needs w5w type)

http://www.xenonwhite.de/eng/parking-li ... te-h6w.php
Doh! I have the Phillips Blue Vision Side Lights and they are OK, but yours look much better although it can be hard to tell in a picture!

Thanks wanta!
 
#8 ·
wanta2009 said:
great write up and great pics, loved your post. I think the changes you made look great!

Were they hard to install?
Cheers - no they were very easy to install. I just pulled the rubber cover off without even taking the light unit out so took about a couple of minutes. Saying that taking the whole light unit is easy enough.
 
#10 ·
ttcool2006 said:
Look fantastic with the white light.... can I do that if I dont have the xenons or auto light pack?
Yeah !!! I don't have xenons and / or light pack, mine are the high beam, so I guess i can't dol this, or can I ???? :?: :?:
 
#11 ·
I'm not sure can a non-Xenon take a P21 bulb? If so then yes you can do it...
 
#12 ·
ahaydock said:
I'm not sure can a non-Xenon take a P21 bulb? If so then yes you can do it...
But surely it would'nt work as a DRL because there is no way of switching it on in DIS !"!! :cry: :cry:
 
#13 ·
Pass - I haven't seen an option for it in the DIS - I just set to Auto and leave them. Sorry that is not much help.
 
#14 ·
ahaydock said:
Pass - I haven't seen an option for it in the DIS - I just set to Auto and leave them. Sorry that is not much help.
Ahhhh suddenly i emerge rom the mud and the world is a clearer place, yes we need auto light pack, oh crap, not got it !!! right lets get the tippex out !!! :lol: :lol:
 
#16 ·
Excellent write up!

My car is arriving shortly, I'm picking up 1st March, will these be compatiable? I have Xenons as well :)
 
#17 ·
Michael_Works said:
Excellent write up!

My car is arriving shortly, I'm picking up 1st March, will these be compatiable? I have Xenons as well :)
Thanks.

AFAIK yes as you have Xernons (regardless of the Auto Pack) these should fit. Let me know if you want the non Chrome ones, as if they are still here tomorrow they are going back to Germany for a Refund.
 
#18 ·
It's got to be the chrome ones :p

Thanks for the help & offer though!
 
#20 ·
I have xenon + on mine with DRL's but was wanting to change the normal DRLs to LED has anyone done this? 8)
 
#21 ·
You mean fitting LED strips? It's been asked many times. You have two options:
1) Get the upgrade from Audi for the better part of £900.
2) Buy some LED strips and DIY them into the side light channels. Of course to switch those on your existing DRLs become essentially useless. The sidelight channel also houses the indicators so it's possible that the indicator may become considerably less visible. I'm not sure how Audi manage this. I think someone mentioned that they dim the LEDs or something.
 
#23 ·
That's poor really isn't it! They're guaranteed for a year so if I were you I'd contact the retailer and see about getting some replacements. I've just got some myself so will have to see how they go once I've fitted them. I'll be keeping the old ones as spares but hope they don't blow as they're a faff to change.
 
#25 ·
axelys said:
I bought the MTEC bulbs Chrome from HID. It looks great (just a little blue) but after 1 month, one of them is out...
Same problem for my friend with is A4

So it look great but it works not long :evil:
such a coincidence that you should bring this up this week - had mine in for 3 months and passenger side just went today.

very annoying but got mine from xenonwhite so hoping they will send me a repalcement!
 
#26 ·
Does anyone know what the white nylon bolt to the right of the arrow head in this picture does?
http://www.********.co.uk/forum/download/file.php?id=503

It has a Philips rather than Torx head inside its hexagonal recess.
 
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