have seen advertised sets of xenon bulbs. are these any good or do you need a full new headlamp unit?
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Im a student ive got time!!!
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I bought some for my Saab. They were good but one only lasted 18 months so I went back to the normal ones.
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Good point and I forgot to mention it. One of my Dad's has just blown and they're nowhere near a year old. However, we'll get another one simply because they really are that much of an improvement.
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Xenon is the gas inside the lamp - the bulbs you're thinking of are HID, which, I believe, have some exotic gas mixture in them.
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Good prices source for headlight and sidelight bulbs, Xenon, halogen and others:
www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/home.php
Many of the apparently HID equipped cars you see are fitted with such lamps - the various colours are due to the different colour temperatures which help to make light "whiter" than white.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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I have found this company
www.consumabulbs.com/index.php
very cheap and efficient.
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What you've probably seen is Xenon gas bulbs for standard H4, H7 etc fitments. These are legal fitments, however if you want to fit the Xenon HID bulbs then the EC has dictated the car will need automatic headlamp self levelling and headlamp washers fitted. (But it seems not required in the USA!)
I fitted a pair of H4 bulbs to my Primera ... yes there is an improvement over the standard brand fitted before. But the ones used are adveritsed as 50% brighter so I would expect an improvement. However, they are reported not to last as long as the cheaper older bulbs, but I rate the safety of better visability over the life of the bulb. And as I drive under dipped headlamps almost all of the time I have found the life acceptable.
Recently upgraded wife's Mazda 2 lamps to these bulbs, will see effect as the days get shorter.
bought mine at www.powerbulbs.co.uk/
for an interesting test report on headlamps visit
www.autoexpress.co.uk/product_test/50038/headlight...l
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All I can comment is I bought two Xenon appearance bulbs when they first appeared. One lasted a year, and the other went a week later. Yes they were slightly brighter, but not that much.
I do have one H4 bulb that is over 20 years old, and still indistiguishable from the 10 year old replacement on the other side. No contest in my book.
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