Can anyone advise what are the advantages of Xenon headlights are? Are they worth the 700 pounds or so when buying a new car?
Thanks
Mike Holland
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For nearfield vision, they are great, a real improvement on tungsten lamps. On your first night drive, you'll swear someone cleaned all the lines on the road and the cats eyes must have bulbs inside them!
There is a big difference but the installation of xenons require a self levelling system as well, hence the expense.
If you do a lot of driving on full beam, then probably a waste of money as the xenons only work on dipped beam (mains still tungsten due to warm up time of xenons).
Again, if your dipped beam driving is in lit areas, again a waste, but if your route takes you around unlit roads with opposite traffic preventing the use of full beam, then they are useful.
I have just switched to a 93 Golf and changed the bulbs to the Philips Vision Plus' from www.powerbulbs.com for £19 a pair. There is a noticeable difference in the illumination and the cutoff pattern is much more apparent.
Next stop is Specsavers and then I'll be able to make out all those shapes in the dark ;-)
Colin
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Are these the blueish lights with which following drivers often blind me?
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Xenons do give a blue light at the edge of their beam but this should not dazzle other drivers, hence the requirement for a self levelling system. The reaction of the levelling is neccesarily damped, so you may get flickers of bright light as the car pitches on varying roads.
The Philips bulbs I mentioned are not those tacky xenon "wannabes" but just brighter white lights.
Colin
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Will these 'blue' bulbs pass an MOT test with a 'to the letter of the law' tester? I recall the manual gives a reason for failure as the light emitted not being white or yellow.
Regards,
Mike
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sOUNDS A GREAT IDEA TO ME!
NOTHING TO DO WITH THE LIGHTS,i CAN SEE VERY WELL WITH THE bOSCH JOBS FROM HALFORDS,BUT all CARS SHOULD HAVE SELF LEVELLING,BY LAW,NOW!
iF YOU LIVE IN THE wEST COUNTRY YOU GET VERY BORED WITH THE SAD-SACK LOW -RENTERS JUDDERING ALONG ON THE LAST HOURS OF SOME EXECRABLE,ILL-MAINTAINED HEAP WITH ITS HEADLIHTS ATTEMPTING TO ILLUMINATE URANUS.
dO OUR WONDERFUL pOLICE FORCE PULL THEM OVER AND BOOK THEM GOOD?
dOES THEpOPE NEED CONDOMS?
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I've got xenon headlights on my car and they're bloody amazing.
They came as standard fit so I didn't realise for the summer months as I don't drive at night much.
I would not pay £700 for them. I presume its an Audi or a BM you're talking about. I suppose they want £700 for metallic paint too ......... etc. etc.
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Mike
The xenons are not blue and nor are the Philips bulbs I fitted to my Golf. I know they do some "Blue Vision" bulbs too. The Powerbulbs website does say "A unique blue filter creates the distinctive blue colour" and "EC37 approved for use in Europe" although personally I think they look a bit tacky and Max Power'ish.
True xenons only emit blue light at the fringe which is what you see.
In Germany Audi have them as a £350 option on models where it isn't standard, not the £700 UK dealers seem happy to charge.
Colin
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