headlamp bulbs

[myglaren]

Won't forget just how good the standard BX headlights were. Huge reflectors again. We had some H4s in them, but 100/80W. Fabulous!

The ones that impressed me most were on my GS. As did everything about it in comparison to the previous cars I had owned/used.
My eyesight was much better back then of course and I wonder how well they look compared to more modern lights.
Can't say I took particular notice of my BX lights so they must have been at least adequate.

I was planning on doing the relay mod on the C5 but went out into the badlands near Alnwick in the early hours, searching for the Aurora. Never found it but realised that the C5 lights are actually fine - have Philips Extreme Vision bulbs in.

[Paul-R]

I bought a pair of Cibié Oscar+ driving lamps...

Interestingly, and germane to this general conversation, I did a search on Cibié and found that they have recently introduced a range of auxiliary LED headlamps.

https://www.valeoservice.co.uk/en/news/ ... s-uk-roads

[Sloppysod]

I am running these on my X7, definitely brighter than standard bulbs (yes standard were probably old). not sure how long they will last as they have only been fitted for 3 months so far. Compared to a Insickna I drove that had HIDs, I think these give a much better spread of light.
PHILIPS XTREME VISION +130% CAR HEADLIGHT BULBS

Update, 1st one blew last night, so that is a year and 4 months it lasted!!
And yes the light has deteriorated, I replaced the blown one with the old one I took out a year ago and the remaining 'Philips Extreme' is now only just brighter than the tired original, very little in it....
Thinking of trying the "H7 Philips Racing Vision +150% 12V 55W 477 Halogen Bulbs Racing" next.

[GiveMeABreak]

Higher brightness usually means less lifespan Stu, but if it means being able to see better at night, it's a no brainer I think.

Have you cosidered the OSRAMS:
https://www.osram.com/am/am_com_ledrivi ... aign_4.jsp

I've never gone back to Philips bulbs on any of our cars - they just don't last well at all.

[RichardW]

Update, 1st one blew last night, so that is a year and 4 months it lasted!!
And yes the light has deteriorated, I replaced the blown one with the old one I took out a year ago and the remaining 'Philips Extreme' is now only just brighter than the tired original, very little in it....

Which is why I gave up with high output incandescents and stuck a pair of 35W HID H1s in. The 307 was eating the nightbreakers every few months - the HIDs have lasted 2 years+ so far. I know there is lots of chatter against, but the arc path is exactly the same as that on a halogen bulb, the 307 has projector style lamps, the cut off is very sharp at the top. And I can see where I am going in the dark. Odd on main beam though, where they are much whiter than the halogens fitted in the mains.

[white exec]

I've used both Philips X-treme +130% and Osram Nightbreaker for some years, both on XM and RAV4.
Lifespan on both has been excellent, heading towards five years now.

If Nightbreakers are being eaten every few months, there is a problem there - either poor connection or poorly regulated system voltage. In normal use, they just don't do this.

[Gibbo2286]

Did you guys see the 'Fake Britain' report on BBC about the fake headlamp bulbs on sale?

[white exec]

Yes, or that.

[GiveMeABreak]

Yes, there are plenty of fake D1S et al bulbs out there - so I only ever buy mine from the authorised resellers listed on their website - plus they have a unique identifier now on the packages you can use to check if you've been sold dodgy ones (OSRAM at least have this).

[EDC5]

I am running these on my X7, definitely brighter than standard bulbs (yes standard were probably old). not sure how long they will last as they have only been fitted for 3 months so far. Compared to a Insickna I drove that had HIDs, I think these give a much better spread of light.
PHILIPS XTREME VISION +130% CAR HEADLIGHT BULBS

Update, 1st one blew last night, so that is a year and 4 months it lasted!!
And yes the light has deteriorated, I replaced the blown one with the old one I took out a year ago and the remaining 'Philips Extreme' is now only just brighter than the tired original, very little in it....
Thinking of trying the "H7 Philips Racing Vision +150% 12V 55W 477 Halogen Bulbs Racing" next.

I have these bulbs in mine, pretty good for the most part, just wish I had projectors to focus the light a bit better.

[Sloppysod]

Well changed my mind and just bought a pair of these
http://www.ringautomotive.com/uk/produc ... 150/RW1577
So I will see how long they last.
Paying extra to see better is not a problem, however, if they do not last long that is a problem, hoping for 2 years at least

Did you guys see the 'Fake Britain' report on BBC about the fake headlamp bulbs on sale?

Nope

[crapday69]

What about Bosch or Halfords own bulbs. My son gets a 50% discount on bulbs there but they seem to only stock GE, Bosch or their own make.

[GiveMeABreak]

Bosch have really gone downhill in the last 10 years in my opinion.

I find their wipers for all our cars (Aero, standard or Aero blade conversions) are utterly useless - they are either ill-fitting and streak or are so tight that they are worse than Chinese water torture. I have permanently gone back to OEM wipers now and they are perfect - and about the same price or less.

I stopped using their bulbs many years ago due to high failure rate and now stick to OSRAM OEM or upgraded OEM bulbs -never looked back.

[white exec]

Genuine Philips and Osram automotive lamps seem consistently good.
Interestingly, many vehicles' first lamps seem to soldier on for years, while replacements bought from a main dealer parts counter do not. I suspect the vehicle manufacturers opt for high quality factory lamps, in order to avoid lamp failure during warranty, and also as a cheap way of impressing customers who fairly regularly buy new cars - "And it's never even needed a new light bulb!"

[Sloppysod]

Well changed my mind and just bought a pair of these
http://www.ringautomotive.com/uk/produc ... 150/RW1577
So I will see how long they last.

Paying extra to see better is not a problem, however, if they do not last long that is a problem, hoping for 2 years at least

No good, one blew today , so that mean it lasted a almost 6 Months!!, nowhere near the two years I hoped for!!