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I need an H7 replacement, I will fit a pair, should I go for standard, premium, +50%, or +80%? Is there a trade off between percentage of upgrade and bulb life? If there is any great difference, why dont the manufacturers fit them, or is it more snake oil?
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 12/05/2009 at 13:35
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I upgraded my 98 Mondeo to Osram Silver Stars and am very impressed.
They came with free sidelight upgrade bulbs and I am equally impressed.
Reports say that some cars do not gain much improvement so you may get some additional response if you state your target vehicle.
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I have used various philips over the past couple of years but always come back to Osram Night Breakers - excellent bulbs.
Also, AFAIK, they come with a 2 year warranty/replacement deal so it's handy to know
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I always get the 50% bulbs that Aldi sell every so often. £3 odd for two.
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I have tried 3 types of xenon upgrade bulbs, all look normal ie not blue etc.
- some Bosch H4's that work really well in the Clio although only +20%, dipped beam really good, discarded after 4 years
- some Ring +60% H4's to replace the old Bosch - Tesco were selling off at £5 so how could I resist! Brighter main beam (than the good Bosch's) but dipped not really as defined.
- Osram Silver Star H7's (+80% I think) in Vectra - again a really big improvement but 2 pairs of bulbs cost me nr £36.
I would plump for Osram Silver Star's - as I can't find the Bosch's any more. They are a real easy alternative to fitting spot lights. It is very well worth spending time adjusting the lamps (in a flat car park with a wall & some masking to mark the wall if necessary!). Adjustment counts for 100% improvement in my eyes. And rechack after any service or MOT in case they have been molested.
Even did a couple of road rallies in the Clio without extra lamps.
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Good, aren't they. No problems with the ones I've had for various cars so far.
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Definitely go for the best, never the cheapo ones. They DO make a difference, make sure your lights are alignment checked after fitting them.
www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/products/230061/lig...l
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 12/05/2009 at 13:36
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If there is any great difference why dont the manufacturers fit them .......... ?
Although they're better they're more expensive. The car manufacturer has to strike a balance between quality, performance and price. If all parts were chosen by car manufacturers for all models on the basis of getting the best quality and performance, the selling price of some cars would be too high for the intended segment of the market.
Edited by L'escargot on 12/05/2009 at 15:05
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I don't fit extra brightness bulbs, I just stick with two of these tinyurl.com/quhzky
Edited by Red Van Man on 12/05/2009 at 19:16
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I have investigated this subject a great deal.
Dont be too taken in by claims of +80% etc. It is a marketing trick. If you examine the data sheets (H7) you will see.....
Osram Original (OEM) - 1500lux 3200k (this used to be called +30%)
Osram Silverstar - 1500lux 3200k (this is called +50%)
Osram Night breaker - 1500lux 3200k (this is called +80%)
I didnt notice any difference going from Osram +30% (standard OEM) to Osram +50%
The comparisons are made to unknown other brand bulbs.
Having said that, a good quality bulb made by Osram or Philips is generally going to have better controlled optics leading to a more correct beam spread compared to a no name/unknown brand.
I personally think the +xx% refers to how much extra its going to cost you.
Edited by brum on 12/05/2009 at 21:37
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Having said that a good quality bulb made by Osram or Philips is generally going to have better controlled optics leading to a more correct beam spread compared to a no name/unknown brand. I personally think the +xx% refers to how much extra its going to cost you.
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Much in line with my thoughts brum, Thanks for your input folks.
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When I acquired my VW Bora some six years ago, I was not impressed with the standard headlights bulbs' coverage or brightness.
Eventually I took the plunge and bought a set of Halfords' 50 per cent extra bulbs on a BOGOF basis (£12.99 at the time).
There was a considerable improvement and the bulbs are still going strong several years on.
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Reports say that some cars do not gain much improvement
I agree completely. In my experience the improvement varies a lot by model of car and bulb.
I fitted Osram Silverstar H4 +50%'s to my '01Y Octavia, which resulted in much better beam definition and brighter, whiter light too - they made such a difference to night driving especially on wet roads and I can thoroughly recommend this combination.
A set of Osram Silverstar H7 +50%'s in a '97R Ka however revealed no discernible improvement in either brightness or definition, neither did Silverstar H1 +50%'s in a 99T Mondeo.
Halfords Extra Brilliance H4 +50%'s in a '95N Toyota Carina E made for a more sharply defined, far-reaching beam but with no real improvement in brightness or whiteness, although I've had more success with the same bulbs in a '97R Escort Mk7 recently.
All the +50% bulbs I've tried do seem to have a much longer life span than common-or-garden bulbs, so I make the initial investment in them if I think I'm going to keep a car for 6 months or more ;-)
I was reluctant to try the new +80% Halfords bulbs on grounds of extra cost versus shortened bulb life.
Dave TD.
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I had a one year trial of as set of Philips Night Guide and there was a great improvement on dipped beam (1999-2000 Astra). The bulbs - only ever seen them in LHD, i.e. for driving on the continent - have a strip of yellow visible on one side of the bulb and a strip of blue on the other. As the makers claim, they give a brighter blueish tint to nearside for reading street signs and picking out pedestrians sooner, but softer yellow to the offside to reduce glare.
I say one year trial because they both popped, in a supermarket car park, within five minutes of each other and I then had to swap back the old bulbs which I'd kept safe. At 42 Euros a pair - and with a month to go on the car's lease - I wasn't inclined to try them again!
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I replaced the standard Philips (dipped beam) and Osram (main beam) bulbs for Osram Nightbreakers a while back.
There didn't seem a vast improvement with dipped beam, but main beam was far better. I then slightly adjusted my headlights and the dipped beam has now improved as well (too low a setting before).
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Don't halogen bulbs degrade with use anyway? I read somewhere that a typical halogen headlight bulb only emits about 60% of its new light output after 200 hrs use.
If this is true, replacing any old bulb with any new one will provide a noticeable improvement.
Wish I could remember the source of that information. ISTRC it was in a bike mag a couple of years ago.
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A car running the dim dip system where the halogen bulb ran lower when ignition switched on would blacken quite badly, as it relies on full heat output to keep the ions of tungsten filament off the internal envelope, thus causing poor output. These new high output bulbs run hotter with a higher pressure gas to make a brighter lamp, and the filament is more accurately placed for better focus.
A lot of bulbs with quite well known brands on them are made in Eastern Europe, and the filaments can be all over the place which cause scatter no matter how well the headlamp is aligned. Some cars lose a lot of voltage in the loom on the headlamp circuit - orange output and quicker blackening of the envelope - when it is worth putting a relay in direct to the batery (difference is incredible - MK2 and 3 Golf!!)
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I have replaced my headlamp bulbs, (2X H7, 2X H1). I bought Osram Silverstar +50% bulbs and am impressed with the improvement, (especially over the failed one!). I think the Xenon bit must make the difference, a much whiter light. Bought online at half the cost of the equivalent unbranded lamps in the orange coloured motoring shed nearby, and delivered within 24 hours with free Xenon side light bulbs included.
Thanks for the advice provided.
Edited by Old Navy on 16/05/2009 at 12:06
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>>with free Xenon side light bulbs included.
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If they are the uprates blue ones, IMO they are well worth fitting.
They too are very bright and WHITE ( only the slightest hint of blue so non chav) and are a half reasonable back up for a failed dip beam.
Once I had fitted my Silverstars the old sidelight bulbs then looked a really nasty dull orange.
( I ordered my bulbs one set at a time and got 10% discount on the second set and another set of blue sidelight bulbs.)
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I did fit the Xenon side light bulbs, fully expecting to remove them if they remained blue when illuminated, they give a brilliant white light with a faint blue tinge, so as I always use headlights if lights are required I will keep them in. Does this make me a faint chav?
Edited by Old Navy on 16/05/2009 at 18:52
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Has anyone tried the halogen versions of 501 (W5W)?
cgi.ebay.co.uk/Osram-Cool-Blue-Halogen-W5W-501-Bul...8
I have also seen them without the blue coating at Eurocarparts.
I stuck some of these in my sidelights and interior lights and am pleased with them:-
cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2603...1
Edited by Hamsafar on 16/05/2009 at 18:57
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>>Has anyone tried the halogen versions of 501 (W5W)?
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Those are the ones I was referring to but they were FREE with the main bulbs.
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sq
I think you will find that the freebies are Xenon not halogen, mine are Xenon.
Edited by Pugugly on 16/05/2009 at 22:06
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I fitted Philips BlueVision 501 sidelight bulbs when I changed the headlight bulbs over to Osram Nightbreakers. I've seen mention that M-Tec 501's are quite good as well.
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sq I think you will find that the freebies are Xenon not halogen mine are Xenon.
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You are right. Philips Blue Vision W5W
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