Mazdaspeed 6 bulb guide & discussion

[Speedie6]

I've seen some threads here discussion the high beam, or the low beam, etc. But I did not see a complete bulb guide here. I found this list elsewhere. Let me know if anyone has any corrections or additions:

Headlights:
Low Beam: HID (2) D2S
High Beam: (2) H1
Front Turn: (2) 1157 (amber)
City Light: (2) 194 (amber)

Bumper mounted lights:
Fog/Driving: (2) H11
Front sidemarker: (2) 194

Taillights:
Brake: (2) 7443 (red)
Rear Turn: (2) 7440 (amber)
Reverse/backup: (2) 921

Interior:
Map: (2) 194
Door: (2) 194
Vanity Mirror: (4) 74
Dome: (2) 194

Misc:
License plate: (2) 194

 

[Speedie6]

I do have a couple of questions about the list above, I figured I would make this post separate from the list.

(My questions might be stupid for someone that has owned the damn car for 15 years, LOL Don't hate me if I'm stupid...)

So, the headlights are a set of 4 lights. The outer is the low beam. Next is the turn signal. The inner is the high beam. But I'm confused by the light next to the high beam. Based on the list of bulbs, above I guess that is the "fog/driving". But I do not know its purpose or when it is on. We have the lower fog lights. Mine are out and I'm going to replace them with some Morimoto LEDs. So, are the lights next to the high beams another fog light? And what is a "driving light"? I know it isn't a DRL, it isn't on all the time. So, I'm confused when that light is even on. Could it possibly be converted to DRL, on all the time?

On the list of misc bulbs, there is something called "city light". What/where is that? I have no idea.

On some cars, replacing the turn signal bulbs with LEDs requires a load resistor or the blinking circuit doesn't work right. I replaced my rear turn signal bulbs with LEDs with no load resistor and it seems to work just fine. I presume that I will also have no issues replacing the front turn signal bulbs with LEDs, right?

In another thread, I said that I was considering replacing my headlight assembly with an aftermarket LED headlight assembly. And there are several options that look interesting at least from the pictures. But I found that in general, they are designed for non HID versions of the 6. To use them would require a bit of rewiring. Secondly, since my goal is primarily to improve the quality of lighting and I just don't know the quality of the aftermarket LED assemblies, I decided that I will just upgrade what I have.

There was a company, M6customs.com, that seems to basically be out of business. They still have a website but there seems to not be anything for sale. But I managed to find one of their kits new in the box unused. So I picked it up and will use it. What it comes with is upgraded low beam projectors. They include Morimoto 4TL-R projectors. Plus new 35w bulbs that are supposed to be brighter than OEM. And brackets to install the new projectors.

I didn't even know this, but apparently many OEM projectors are considered sub-par and there are vendors that sell higher quality HID projectors, Morimoto apparently being the top brand for this. The Morimoto 4TL-R is designed for an Acura TL. But supposedly a lot of other cars used projectors with the same bolt configuration. The MS6 is not the same as the Acura, so M6customs made brackets to retrofit the 4TL-R projectors.

It seems like the 4TL-R isn't even made anymore, Morimoto has a new model, the Mini D2S 4.0 which is supposed to be even better. I don't know if they are bolt-compatible with the 4TL-R. But I'm sure what I got is very good. What I got is an older kit but I'm sure it is a big upgrade over the MS6 stock. I've never actually done anything with the headlights, and I did not get any instructions with the kit, so I will have to just see if I can figure it out. I haven't tried it yet.

For the high beams, I'm thinking of upgrading the bulb to these LED bulbs:

Amazon.com: Firehawk H1 LED Bulbs, 20,000LM Japanese Chips, 500% Brightness, 6000K Cool White, All-in-One Wireless, Halogen Replacement Conversion Kit, 2 Pack : Automotive

 

[SyntheticAtmosphere]

As for the OEM headlight housing...
The silver light next to the highbeam is a fake on the MS6. Its a fog light on the regular MZ6 cars.
The city light is the 194 bulb located in the edge of the highbeam reflector. It serves the same purpose as a front parking light on other cars.

Driving lights are usually a pencil pattern pair of lights usually mounted generally centered on the vehicle (think rally lights), usually tied to highbeams
Fog lights are usually a broad pattern pair of light mounted wide on the front of the vehicle, usually tied to lowbeams.
...I say this generally, because people do what they want.

 

[Speedie6]

As for the OEM headlight housing...
The silver light next to the highbeam is a fake on the MS6. Its a fog light on the regular MZ6 cars.

Hey thanks!!! That explains why I couldn't get them to turn on! LOL. I wonder how much work it would be to convert it into a DRL. Still has a socket for a bulb, yes? Would that be an H11 socket?

Driving lights are usually a pencil pattern pair of lights usually mounted generally centered on the vehicle (think rally lights), usually tied to highbeams

So, something we do not have. But then, what is the "Fog/Driving: (2) H11" in my list? Like I said, I got the list from somewhere else, though I tried to clean it up some.

The city light is the 194 bulb located in the edge of the highbeam reflector. It serves the same purpose as a front parking light on other cars.

Okay, so it is part of the OEM headlights. So I updated the bulb list at the top of this thread to reflect this.

Thanks for the input!!!

 

[Sho]

I do have a couple of questions about the list above, I figured I would make this post separate from the list.

(My questions might be stupid for someone that has owned the damn car for 15 years, LOL Don't hate me if I'm stupid...)

So, the headlights are a set of 4 lights. The outer is the low beam. Next is the turn signal. The inner is the high beam. But I'm confused by the light next to the high beam. Based on the list of bulbs, above I guess that is the "fog/driving". But I do not know its purpose or when it is on. We have the lower fog lights. Mine are out and I'm going to replace them with some Morimoto LEDs. So, are the lights next to the high beams another fog light? And what is a "driving light"? I know it isn't a DRL, it isn't on all the time. So, I'm confused when that light is even on. Could it possibly be converted to DRL, on all the time?

On the list of misc bulbs, there is something called "city light". What/where is that? I have no idea.

On some cars, replacing the turn signal bulbs with LEDs requires a load resistor or the blinking circuit doesn't work right. I replaced my rear turn signal bulbs with LEDs with no load resistor and it seems to work just fine. I presume that I will also have no issues replacing the front turn signal bulbs with LEDs, right?

The fog/driving lights on your list are the ones in the bumper.

The first model year of the regular mazda 6 had the fog/driving lights in the headlamp housing where our silver fake thing is...however mazda had to stop putting the fog lights there and relocated to the front bumper due to D.O.T regulation and not being allowed to have 4 simultaneous lights on at the same time in the same housing aside from when your high beams are on. (The city lights don't count. As they are not bright enough and don't illuminate the road)

And no, there is no socket where that silver spot is. It's just there for show. It allowed mazda to use the same headlight design, but get rid of the illegal fog light/driving inside the headlamp housing and just run them in the bumper


This is also why the fog lights shut off when you flick your high beams on. You're also not allowed to have 6 forward beams on at the same time...

2 low + 2 high OR 2 low + 2 fog

 

[Sho]

For reference

2003 mazda 6.

Here's the housing with the fog/driving lights where our blank silver spot is


On the car.. as you can see, no fog/driving lights in the lower bumper

 

[Speedie6]

The fog/driving lights on your list are the ones in the bumper.

Okay, I didn't think that was the case because I thought the fog lights were a one-piece assembly, not with a replaceable bulb. But I could be mistaken.

And no, there is no socket where that silver spot is.

Okay, so, not convertible to DRL, cosmetic only. Thanks.

By the way, the headlights you got, were they designed for HID cars? Or did you have to rewire? Most aftermarket 6 headlights I have found are not designed for HID.

 

[Sho]

I didn't have to rewire anything for the headlights, leveling, or anything. That was all plug and play. They did have a connector to wire in a DRL, but I left that untouched as my headlights are always on.

Only odd thing is, you can't use your fogs. If the fog light switch is in the on position, the high beams turn on and the fogs don't turn on. I'd assume cause the pinout for my headlights was designed around the 2003 pinout for the one plug harness that plugs into the assembly

 

[Easter Bunny]

If you want to use the dead spot as a drl you could just drill a hole and mount an LED in the housing. Just need to figure out how to get it to turn on with the ignition and turn off when the lights are on

 

[Speedie6]

If you want to use the dead spot as a drl you could just drill a hole and mount an LED in the housing. Just need to figure out how to get it to turn on with the ignition and turn off when the lights are on

I suppose that is possible.

 

[Speedie6]

I didn't get any feedback about what I suggested for the high beam. I've done some reading and while some people say that LED bulbs are okay for reflector configurations, most people say that LEDs do not work well for reflectors and will blind other drivers. And I don't even use high beams that often. So, I guess I will just get some Osram Nightbreakers. Even the manu says they do not last long, its a trade-off for the brightness.

 

[SyntheticAtmosphere]

You can easily run LED for high beams, they are not suppose to be on with oncoming traffic anyways. But yes, some cars can have low beam light going stray and affecting other drivers with some LED bulbs in non LED refelctors.

 

[Speedie6]

Okay, maybe I will get LED for the hi beam. The original link I posted above for Firehawk brand bulbs at Amazon, they are probably in the "too good to be true" category. $50, 20,000 lumens, 60 watts, allegedly. They actually have mostly good reviews on Amazon, but still probably "too good to be true".

I found a site, Headlight Revolution, that claims to test the products they sell, and only sell higher end, higher quality items. The best bulb according to them is 4x the price of the Firehawk and only 3,600 lumens. But it is probably a legitimate lumens rating. The halogen Nightbreaker is only 1500 lumens and a stock bulb is only like 1000 lumens. So 3,600 lumens, if legitimate rating, should be quite bright compared to stock. It is listed on their site as a fog light bulb, apparently the H1 bulb is more often used for fogs. But people use them for high beams as well:

H1: S-V.4 Our Favorite LED Fog Light Bulb Ever | HR SN.LED110 (headlightrevolution.com)

After typing this, I found another option. Although it might also be "too good to be true", it claims 9,000 lumens at 40 watts, but it is supposed to be a decent brand:

DDM Tuning

They also have a 55 watt 12,000 lumens (claimed) model but I think I would stick with the 40 watt if I went with that brand.

 

[Cfoldone]

This site looks interesting. Was surprised that speed 6 is only listed after you search for plain 6 fitment.
https://thehidfactory.com/

 

[Speedie6]

Thanks for that. Interesting. That company is in town for me, in Houston. Seems like a similar kit to what I got, the dated M6customs kit. The one you list also includes a Morimoto projector, but a newer model. But I'm a little baffled. The direct page for the kit you list is here:

Retro-Quik: Mazda 6/MazdaSpeed 6 (02-08) - The HID Factory

The kit you list comes with this projector:

Bi-xenon: Morimoto Mini H1 8.0 HID Projectors PR011 (morimotohid.com)

The first thing that has me baffled is, it being H1 HID. I thought an H1 is a halogen bulb. They also make HID versions of the H1? Secondly, if it is an H1, presumably that means a different connector. They offer a wiring harness, but would that work with the stock ballast, or would you need to get a new ballast as well?

And the whole "bi xenon" thing also has me confused. To my understanding, bi xenon means that you have one bulb and projector for both high and low beams. That is accomplished with either moving the bulb, or adjusting the projector, at least to my understanding. But then you would need a signal to the projector to tell it to be in high beam or low beam mode, yes? Maybe this feature is provided with their harness and ballast?

Sorry for my ignorance.

At any rate, that company, The HID Factory, does installs. Presumably they would be willing to do the install of the kit I already have even if I didn't buy it from them. They also sell halos. I might ask if they could install halos as DRL.

 

[Easter Bunny]

All of the low/high hids I know of have a movable flap in the projector that blocks the upper half of the light. The highbeam signal just moves the flap

 

[Speedie6]

All of the low/high hids I know of have a movable flap in the projector that blocks the upper half of the light. The highbeam signal just moves the flap

Okay, now that you tell me this, I looked at the projectors I have and yes that is what it is. It has two wires that drive a solenoid to move the flap. The HID Factory has a "high beam splitter" cable that I guess would allow you to drive the regular high beam and also drive the flap on the bi xenon. Cool.

 

[Speedie6]

By the way, does anyone know if I would need a PWM model for the H1 high beam if I used LED? I understand that the PWM modules are to prevent bulb out CANBUS errors but I don't know is specifically one would be needed for the high beam?

 

[SyntheticAtmosphere]

Check by removing the original bulb in question, start the vehicle, wait at least 30 seconds, and check to see if there is an error on the dashboard.

Vehicles that require HID CANbus or LED decoders

 

[Sho]

The ms6 is not new/advanced enough to throw a bulb out error haha.

Only lighting issue I've ever seen with the ms6 is if you do a retrofit for the TL-R bi-xenon projectors with the flap for the highbeam and also have LED fog lights, the fog lights do not turn back on after they shut off when the high beam is turned on and then back off. You have to turn the lights completely off and then back on for the fogs to come back. But this only happens if your fog light bulbs are LED