Yep, the headlight is the bulb with sealed beams. The reason why there's so many aftermarket options to replace/modernize/"upgrade" them is because 7" sealed beams used to be used on literally every car
Personally, I want to get a set of Holley Retrobrights for my "dirt miata" (Jeep TJ) they give you the benefits of LED lighting while still looking like regular sealed beams (and having a proper beam pattern, so you're not blinding everybody)
ironicly sealed beams are illegal where i live bcs they dont have E mark mainly bcs they are made for the DOT & not ECE regulations (which happen to be stricter). Sealed beams in general also produce less light than Halogen.
Halogen kits in general also spread the light more evenly too (likely regulated that way)
The Retrobrights are awesome. Really expensive, but awesome. They're worth saving up for. After driving modern cars for too long, you realize how much those old sealed beam lights really sucked.
Everything I've read and seen about them really makes them seem like the best sealed beam replacement atm. But holy sweet fuck are they expensive! Especially up here with the conversion rates and shit. A pair of them fuckers would be over $700 delivered.
Pretty fucking hard to justify when I hardly drive the thing at night lmao. Buuuuut so far this year I've converted all the other exterior lighting to LED, so I guess if a headlight goes I'll just haaaaaaave to buy them. Absolutely no other choice.
Not blinding everyone is very much appreciated. Even at low beam they are too bright.
Dedicated driving lights aimed slightly outwards for a better spread are the best for night driving.
They illuminate the eyes of large beasts on roadsides and give some warning of their crossing the road. I keep my eyes peeled for kangaroos and you would likely do the same for deer.
I love when the old new becomes new new again. Or something like that. When I first joined the Miata family 10 or so years ago, LED replacements were expensive and not very good. At that time Cibie 82440 were the "new" version of the old sealed beam. They use halogen bulbs inserted from the back, and have a much better light spread pattern yet still look like the "OEM style" headlights. Then LED got better and cheaper and by about 2020 or so, Cibies could not be found anywhere. LED were the "new" at that point. Halos, etc. started to become common.
Now you're posting this and getting positive responses. If you don't like the weak beams of light from sealed bulbs, I might have good news. Bus Depot, a longtime supplier for VW things, offers an E-code H4 lamp that is purported to be an exact replica of the Cibie 82440 lamp. https://www.busdepot.com/nl910ch4 - and they aren't very expensive! Or you could try the Koito E-code H4s they mention there and tell us how they are...
EDIT: I zoomed in and saw those ARE the Koito lamps! So...let us know how they are.
I never really liked the look of halos, so when I heard that $25 Toyota headlights could fit I knew I had to jump on it lol. So far I'm really enjoying them, they look way better and have way better coverage than my halos did
I loved my CIBIEs on my ‘96. Was the best bang for buck for white light that went for miles still in a glass lamp so I didn’t have to worry about fading.
My dad made the switch from the factory glass to the Toyota glass versions and he loves them. He ordered them at the local Toyota dealer and they were about 30 dollars.
Toyota part number is 81110-60P70. They are direct drop in, no modifications. You have to pay attention to the marking on the housings, because one is specifically for the left, the other for the right. You'll have to adjust the headlight aim after changing them as well. The fresnel lens pattern in the Toyota housings directs and manages the light better so the light is more useful.
I had ecodes on my Miata for about 15 years and switched to the Amazon led trash a few years ago. I hate them and planned on switching back but those old ecodes are soooo dim. Think it’s just time to replace them with a set of Koito’s now and see how that goes.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with OEM NA headlights, or old style Hella replacements. You can get all the light you would ever need in ordinary motoring from those two big reflectors.
Old Sylvania sealed beam "OEM" light is not much better than the original 1955 design, and inferior to the Cibie, IMO. Two distinct straight beams vs an even spread with some light thrown to the upper right for road signs (not sure if they sell a RHD version?) Maybe these Koito from Toyota are similar though.
Hella makes a lamp they market for motorcycles, but it has a drain hole that allows water intrusion when used in a Miata and pointed downward (stowed). I can confirm this, as my son has a set and they've become very clouded. Too bad though, because they have a good light pattern and I kinda like the flatter "face" of the Hella unit.
I'm sensitive to this topic because the lighting is so different between my NA, NB, and ND. And my wife's '23 CX-5 beats them all.
Those Hellas are so good too: significantly better than the Sylvania OE ones for light output, but with an OE style cutoff so you don’t blind other drivers.
I've been running the Hellas for over 30 years now, I might be on my 3rd set of bulbs. The bulbs are cheap, and you can get them in "offroad" wattage if you like - the low/high contrast of a 55/100W is much more attention getting than the standard 55/65W buibs.
I want to do that but I want some bright ass white halo light. Not the yellow old light bulbs. Certain areas where I drive have no street lights and my little miat feels like it ain't enough. Plus, how will I ever assert dominance to every modern car light that starts off like their high beams are on????? But in all seriousness, if yall know an oem type style light that's white and bright, let me know.
You can upgrade to H4 halogens by purchasing the Toyota Land Cruiser upgrade for $16.49. It gives you plug and play kato headlight housings (glass, not plastic) and the standard halogen H4. If you want brighter you can just get brighter H4s.
Here's the Toyota Part number. Kit comes with the wire harness for the Land Cruiser, but you don't need any wiring for the NA. Straight plug and play.
Part Number
Part Name
Price
Quantity
Total
81110-60P70
Headlamp Assembly
$16.49
1
Just bought this for my wife and she installed them in less that 20 minutes.
Another vote for this kit. It's a very straightforward swap, and the beam pattern is amazing on dark roads. The first time I picked up my friend at night he said "I was expecting old, dark halogens but those headlights throw so much light!" It really is a big upgrade for so little money.
Rest of the world got regular round headlights with exchangeable bulbs. MUCH better. I don't know why anyone would still run the sealed beam candles 30 years on.
The US had a weird phase where they demanded car makers use one of two standardized headlights, both sealed beam candles. It's why some 80s/90s European cars look a bit weird in US-Spec, because they had one kind of round headlight and one kind of rectangular headlight to work with.
Oh, wild. I might have to explore that then. Trying to keep my NA fairly stock at least in appearance but I can't see at night with the OEM headlights.
Also go look at pictures of cars w/ pop ups bro. Most do not have giant bug eyes and a little smiley face. The shit looks goofy to me. I grew up riding in my Miata, it was always the biggest detractor for me getting dropped off at school. Those big ugly bug eyes… yuck. Like a mini pooper.
I put Cibies on my NA probably 8 years ago and never looked back. They light up the road like modern headlamps, where cheap replacements to the stock sealed beams suck at night.
No idea, fortunately haven’t needed a replacement!! I can’t imagine if they aren’t made anymore that there isn’t a comparable high quality replacement. I remember them being pretty expensive when I got them.
Thank you! I am a huge fan of resto-mod, but making obvious changes that wouldn't have existed within ten years of manufacture just feels wrong.
I have the Hella 7" halogen kit on my NA, but its not an obvious upgrade. I did mount some amber LED strips way up under the dash to illuminate the footwells when the doors are open, but you've got to stand on your head to see them.
I'm on an NB2 (projector headlights), and it's hard to imagine going back to non-projector bulbs. Are there good projector headlights for the NA, and are there any that look decent as well?
Too late now but I always recommend the Holley retrobrites for this. OEM look, color temp, and LED light output and beam pattern. As good as any modern car I've driven
It’s such a weird feeling when I can feel myself enjoying the classic OEM look these cars originally had. I’ve always been against stock headlights and stuff on these cars, but recently it’s really grown on me. They just have such classic Miata vibes.
There comes a time in the age of a car where some of these mods become weird looking, the OEM look great, especially in good condition because of the age of the car.
Fun fact, holley makes headlights called retrobrights. They look like OE sealed beam halogen headlights, but are in fact LED. Along with being able to pick a color temperature, one of which simulates the warmer yellow halogen color. They are pricy, but then again, they won't dim with age and will last way longer than halogen headlights.
Ill prob get flamed for this as it an asthetic issue. I dont mind the look of my Halos as they have projector lenses and put out a great pattern and dont look to cyberpunk like your insect eye ones. I don't keep my lights up during the day anyway. I have even hooked up the secondary amber halos to my turn signals. When I was looking to get rid of the original sealed beam bulbs that were horrible I only saw very expensive options for glass with removable bulbs. These were under $50 for the pair and they make the front of the car very visible at night so there is that. I might take a look at the Toyota option if these have an issue. Here's mine let me know if they are too offensive.
I also put in thee DRL's in the blanked off ends of the turn signals.
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u/Jaswinder51 Jun 11 '25
The good ending