# Car Headlights - Anyone Tried Super Bright Zenon Bulbs, Hid Upgrades E



## Retronaut (Jun 14, 2010)

* Car Headlights - Anyone Tried Super Bright Zenon Bulbs, HID Upgrades Etc??*

As is generally the way with sports cars (unless you stump up crazy cash on build to order HID lights etc :to_become_senile: ) the front torches on the g/f's car are a bit rubbish.

Has anyone tried super bright Zenon bulbs, blue bulbs, aftermarket HID upgrades etc?

Any good?

Purely cosmetic for people looking at the car or noticeably brighter when driving?

Any comments or experiences welcome!

:cheers:

Rich.


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## novatron1_2 (Jun 23, 2005)

Retronaut said:


> * Car Headlights - Anyone Tried Super Bright Zenon Bulbs, HID Upgrades Etc??*
> 
> As is generally the way with sports cars (unless you stump up crazy cash on build to order HID lights etc :to_become_senile: ) the front torches on the g/f's car are a bit rubbish.
> 
> ...


Some of the brighter bulbs can be better but not massively. Don't try higher wattage bulbs as these could damage the housing or the wiring. Aftermarket HID kits off ebay will offer a big improvement but unless combined with an automatic levelling system and a head lamp cleaning system (Â£Â£Â£) will be an MOT failure. Meaning you'll have to remove them each year. If you do get them pls pls get them aimed right so many barry boys get them and have them blinding you whenever you go past. Also check you get white ones and not the barry boy blue HID kit.

On another note try some simple things like cleaning the inside of the windscreen and the headlamp lenses, can make a massive difference. Also it might be worth checking if a higher spec model has better lights. e.g. my poverty model 206 features a combined dip/main head lamp, posher models feature a separate bulb for each beam giving a better light. A relatively cheap swap.


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## newwy (Jul 19, 2010)

I've tried some of those 'brighter' bulbs. you know they claim extra brilliance or a tinge of blue etc. They were certainly a bit brighter but they don't seem to last as long. Just replaced both as they went within 3 weeks of each other and I've only had them in 10 months. Just put the ordinary ones back in as they seem to last longer.


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## Kutusov (Apr 19, 2010)

I bought 2 of these maybe 3 weeks ago...










...not because I wanted the extra brightness but because my car uses H7 lamps and they aren't easy to come by. These were the only ones available, the regular ones were sold out.

First, they costed me 3x as much as the regular ones, second I don't see much difference. They might have a "colder" light but I don't think they are brighter. Even if they are, it isn't much and doesn't justify the cost.

I was glad they didn't gave a blue light though, I was afraid of that... :to_become_senile:


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## diddy (Jun 18, 2007)

i bought some of these a while ago for Â£3 the pair to use on my peugeot satelis scooter as it uses car headlamp units.



















i've not fitted yet for 2 reasons:

1) can't be a*rsed to take the fairing to pieces to fit them lol lol

2)i'm not convinced the're safe for plastic headlamps despite showing E4 on the box?


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## Dave Cross (Dec 1, 2010)

"Aftermarket HID kits off ebay will offer a big improvement but unless combined with an automatic levelling system and a head lamp cleaning system (Â£Â£Â£) will be an MOT failure. Meaning you'll have to remove them each year. "

Sorry but you are wrong there. I've had an aftermarket 4800k HID kit on my Leon for the last 2 yrs and I've not had any problem with MOT, etc. The car forum I'm on loads of people are the same. The kit I got was from a place called hids direct in Manchester and was about Â£50. There are certain roads/conditions they are brilliant, I drive on slot of country roads at night, but they can get washed out if lots of other vehicles are approaching! My 2p they're great if you're a night/rural driver but are they worth the extra.... Yes! It's an easy kit to retro fit and the improvements are great!!! The added advantage for me is that the amount of light that is thrown out/details miles away that are picked up is fantastic!!!

Oh and I've got 55w kit and my lights haven't melted yet... Another motoring myth!!

As for the brighter bulbs.. What's the point, you still use the same circuit so you're going to blow the bulbs quicker!!!


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## Chromejob (Jul 28, 2006)

I think you mean HID headlamps. My car has HID, they're f9ne, but I rather don't like the cool color of 4400k. I know people put the 5000K or 6000K bulbs thinking that "blue light" is better, but I think it's marketing tripe. Some kids want to put 7200K(?) purple bulbs in, woohoo, how cool, but I think both blue and purple look like @$$. Stick with convnetional.

I upgraded my 1987 Jeep from the usual sealed halogen bulbs I'd used for 10-15 years in it, to "Euro style" halogens (replaceable bulb) and noticed a bit of a gain in distance and brightness. Price was waaaaay more reasonable, too.


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## Stan (Aug 7, 2003)

As a torch collector I have to say I prefer the colour of Tungsten/ Halogen/ Xenon or â€œwarmâ€ LED bulbs.

The 6500k â€œcoldâ€ LED bulbs donâ€™t seem to penetrate the dark in a way that my eyes respond to in a favourable way, it could be an age thing but many opinions suggest it isnâ€™t.

The bulb is only part of the equation, the reflector is just as important. A high output bulb in a less than well designed reflective housing wonâ€™t give of its best, IME.


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## lewjamben (Dec 4, 2007)

I had HIDs professionally fitted to my old car and they were great. Passed Mot first time every time and never had anyone flash or beep me, but as I said, they were professionally fitted. They were awesome, by the way!

http://www.postimage....php?v=aV4XYh8r


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## Boxbrownie (Aug 11, 2005)

HID conversion kits are the only way to go for a "noticable" difference in output (and BIG noticable differences at that!), the higher output 30%,50% etc halogen bulbs (do not read the halogen "xenon" hype) of these bulbs can make a small difference, but it is small.......if you had [email protected] bulbs in the first place you will notice a difference, if you had the original OEM bulbs then most likely you will not.

DoT examinations for HIDs is a bit of an urban legend, I have two vehicles both fitted with HID kits they have sailed through DoTs for the past three years (at different DoT stations too), but you gotta make sure they are aimed VERY correctly and not just for your DoT exam but for the comfort of other road users!

There is a version of the HID conversion bulbs which have an "anti glare" shield built into the bulb specifically designed for open reflector headlamps (and example are some Volvo headlamps use OeM HIDs in open reflector designs) and these are worth hunting down for complete peace of mind and better beam consistency.

New vehicles with HIDs are required by legislation to have a levelling and cleaning system, nothing is stated about conversions.......the DoT has not caught up with that yet, suprise suprise!

But like normal halogen headlamps if they blind oncoming traffic they are a "tuggable" offence.

Oh yes a word on colour temperature......forget anything above 6000K, the cooler (higher number) bulbs have actually less output, also when you chnage between high and low beam the colour difference will be very noticable and can be a distraction to driver and cause fatigue.


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## Benzowner (Nov 11, 2009)

Maybe wrong here, but I am sure I read that aftermarket Xenons will be illegal soon and form part of the MoT. The reason is that Xenon fitted cars should have auto headlight height adjustment and the car should also be fitted with headlight washers.


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## Kutusov (Apr 19, 2010)

Benzowner said:


> the car should also be fitted with headlight washers.


That was the main reason why I didn't put xenon in mine...


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## Dave Cross (Dec 1, 2010)

Benzowner said:


> Maybe wrong here, but I am sure I read that aftermarket Xenons will be illegal soon and form part of the MoT. The reason is that Xenon fitted cars should have auto headlight height adjustment and the car should also be fitted with headlight washers.


This is a Euor-ism that they are trying to impart on us brits. It's currently going through consultation at the minute but whether it comes in or not (late in 2011) is another issue!

The current MOT only checks that the beam pattern is correct, my car has a H7 bulb in it and I've had to get a H7R bulb for the reflector headlamps. I had a H7 kit before and there is a noticeable cut off in the pattern.


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## Retronaut (Jun 14, 2010)

Thanks for all the replies so far - a couple of thoughts:



Dave Cross said:


> As for the brighter bulbs.. What's the point, you still use the same circuit so you're going to blow the bulbs quicker!!!


Are 'brighter' bulbs of the same wattage effectively a finer filament that burns hotter so is weaker?



David Spalding said:


> I think you mean HID headlamps.


Yes - HID upgrade kits that go in place of the normal bulb in the existing light housing.

Also aftermarket Xenon / 'bright' bulbs.



Stan said:


> The bulb is only part of the equation, the reflector is just as important. A high output bulb in a less than well designed reflective housing wonâ€™t give of its best, IME.


The reflectors look like this - one bulb per function I think - hopefully adding a brighter bulb at the back of the housing should increase output?










:cheers:


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## serinfo (Sep 14, 2010)

As a MOT tester I have no problems passing cars with HID's as long as the beam pattern / kick up and height are all correct

But in the past I have found that certain blue tinge so called xenon type bulb replacements tend to give a duller light than a conventional H4 or what ever type of halogen bulb it replaces

My main gripe with lights is non conforming side lights such as blue or led type, not that the led ones would fail but they just give out a very poor light compared to a filament type bulb

As has been mentioned in other posts fitting retro HID kit's to standard headlights is not really an ideal setup they tend to only work properly with projector type headlights and not standard reflector ones


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## inskip75 (Jan 10, 2009)

I've recently fitted Osram H7 Nightbreaker in main beam of my Audi and noticeable improvement over standard - Â£16 off t'bay and very pleased - same wattage 55W.

Used higher wattage years ago when I used to rally - 100W and then most wiring could stand the extra current as long as fuses didn't blow - 100W is just over 8A so usually they were ok.

I have used these or similar in other cars and only tend to upgrade main as only drive fast enough to need extra brightness when using main, I never see any point in improving dip beam - although know many who do.


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## Andy Tims (Apr 13, 2008)

I've got a HID kit on the car. Lots of 996 owners bought the factory Xenon upgrade, but the first owner of my car didn't. The standard lights were pretty poor given the car's performnce & the HID kit makes a big difference. I fitted it a couple of years ago - good value for about Â£130.00

Bike lights are generally pants as standard. I used to upgrade to Osram Silver Star (IIRC) but I've got a Night Breaker fitted now. Again a decent improvement over standard, but at much lower outlay.


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## squareleg (Mar 6, 2008)

I would hate to appear a :Troll: in what is evidently a somewhat petrolhead kind of thread... Is it just me or aren't Xenon headlamps (and their ilk) just about the worst evil on the road? They are glaringly bright, rendering use of the rear-view mirror extremely uncomfortable at best and impossible at worst. Even worse, they are usually fitted to either 4X4s or, in any case, bigger cars with greater ride-height, so that the lamps invariably flood one's vision at exactly the most inconvenient height. If we are to take good manners as meaning "treat others with kindness" then, to me, they represent the very worst kind of bad manners. And if everybody used them, then we'd all be driving around blind as bats.

Sorry to sound like a bore... but there it is. I shall now prepare myself for the inevitable flaming! :focus:

.


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## Kutusov (Apr 19, 2010)

squareleg said:


> I shall now prepare myself for the inevitable flaming! :focus:


BAN HIM!!!! ASAP!!!

I actually agree with you... I hate it when a 4x4 gets behind me and I usually do everything I can to let it overtake me. My car has one of those automatic rear-view mirrors that dims according to the light it gets. It's something that I always thought as one of those unnecessary gadgets but now that I have it I wouldn't want my next car to not have something like that... and that's because of all the Cayennes and MLs with xenon...


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## inskip75 (Jan 10, 2009)

I totally agree with squareleg - but its not the lamps its the owners/garages who do not adjust them properly - I find most are set too high and have been for years. but now they shed a lot more light onto the road and its a real problem - blinding oncoming motorists.

Any headlights, on dip, which shine into any glazing of the car in front are set too high.


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## harryblakes7 (Oct 1, 2010)

Well one way to increase output is to increase the distance between the bulb holder and the lens. Large commercial vehicles suffer the same problem of poor light output and a kit was availible with a plastic ring about 5mm thick which went between the headlamp and lens, this gave about a 20% improvement in output

I agree with other sentiments said here, as a MOT tester nearly every headlight is out, either shining towards overhead helicopters or pointing too far to the right.......And don't get me talking about boy racers with there blue headlights & sidelights........


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## Retronaut (Jun 14, 2010)

Andy Tims said:


> I've got a HID kit on the car. Lots of 996 owners bought the factory Xenon upgrade, but the first owner of my car didn't. The standard lights were pretty poor given the car's performnce & the HID kit makes a big difference. I fitted it a couple of years ago - good value for about Â£130.00
> 
> Bike lights are generally pants as standard. I used to upgrade to Osram Silver Star (IIRC) but I've got a Night Breaker fitted now. Again a decent improvement over standard, but at much lower outlay.


Remember where you bought the HID kit?


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## Andy Tims (Apr 13, 2008)

Just had a look without any joy, for the paperwork - might have been these guys

http://www.hids4u.co.uk/


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## lewjamben (Dec 4, 2007)

If you buy through HIDS4U as suggested by Andy, use voucher code *hidaf5* for 5% off.

Or go through Quidco for 10% cashback.

Every little helps


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## Retronaut (Jun 14, 2010)

Thank you everyone for your replies - several good bits of info in there and some useful links too.

I'm still reading up but I'll probably shy away from the HID kit for now (not keen on introducing third party electrics into such an essential item!) and go for a full swap to brighter bulbs.

Phillips Extreme or OSRAM Night Breakers are the current favourites for the dipped beams with similar(ish) ice white bulbs for the main / side / fogs too.



















:cheers:

Rich.


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