Headlight Lamps Comparison

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texstead

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Hey Guys, I've done a search of the forum & don't see anything on comparing headlamp bulbs.
I want to improve my night vision but have run into 3 different bulbs available out there.
HID
Halogen
Xenon
I read where the halogen pulls more amps than a regular bulb & could burn out the head light switch. It also burns at 500 degrees.
Xenon is cooler but has a blue tinge to it.
HID seems to be more of a PITA than I care to go into.
Any suggestions on which way to go???
 
Why would HID be a PITA.

$80 plug and play. Best money I spent. Keep in mind, if housings are shot then nothing will help much.
 
For first gens put in an HID kit in... plug and play, there is no better or cheaper solution for the massive lose engineered in the Gen 1 housings...
 
i put Silverstar bulbs in my 93.. they are waay brighter than normal .. not as bright as HID's but it helped a lot.. $20 per bulb though
 
seriously? i bought silverstars once too, and after 2 nights i threw them away, i think you get more light out of a stock 6 dollar halogen 9005. i thought the silverterds sucked.
 
Yeah, the silver stars sucked in the mark. I did use the silver star sealed beams in my 88 bronco & they were brighter.

Anyways, HID & Xenon is the same thing, Halogen is factory for the Gen 1 like vr4 stated. You can get the HID's or Xenon in whatever color you want. If you want a whitish color go for the 4300k.

My personal recommendation would be the $80 ebay HID kit. You can't go wrong.
 
seriously? i bought silverstars once too, and after 2 nights i threw them away, i think you get more light out of a stock 6 dollar halogen 9005. i thought the silverterds sucked.
Click to expand...

definitely brighter than stock in my 93 mark.....or at least i thought so.. maybe i got a specific type and didnt realize it..

i even put them in my honda.. thay are a lot brighter in my honda though.. people flash their highbeams at me all the time thinking that my highs are on when theyre not..

go with the HID kit... i have 2 friends with the kits.. and they say the bulbs dont last as long as stock halogens.. so that might be the only downside.. but they are a really bright purply-white
 
THe more yellow the light, the beter they eye sees. FACT. Silver stars are way to light/blue. Normally not a problem (see HID) but they dont have enough lumen.

And why are fog light yellow? Ah yes...
 
devilchild said:
go with the HID kit... i have 2 friends with the kits.. and they say the bulbs dont last as long as stock halogens.. so that might be the only downside.. but they are a really bright purply-white
Click to expand...

That might be a possible dopwnside to the ebay kits. HID bulbs should last considerably longer then halogen bulbs.
 
Rich88LSC said:
That might be a possible dopwnside to the ebay kits. HID bulbs should last considerably longer then halogen bulbs.
Click to expand...

Exactly. I used to replace a halogen once a year since I do a lot of night driving. Even those HIR did not last. The HIDs I use everyday are holding up just fine thus far.
 
Thanks guys for all the great feedback. This sure has helped narrow the field.
This has to be the best forum on the net. I'm goin' to eBay, See ya...And thanks again.
 
I've used the Silverstars in a few car including the Marks I've had. I don't know why people say they are not as bright when the specs on all the 9005 bulbs are 1697 lumen wether it be the regular 9005, to the Cool Blues or SilverStar regular or ultras...
GE bulbs are rated at the same lumen (1695)...

9005 bulbs in general are brighter than alot of the bulbs used in other vehicles for headlights, even the high beams on dual element bulbs. Thats why they are used more as high beams in other vehicles, than lows like ours.
Look it up if you don't believe me, I did before I posted this... ;)
It's the tiny reflectors mainly, that leads to high temps and loss of reflective material in our cars that make our lights suck...
 
Alot of those fake Xenon bulbs you buy at pepboys for $20 bucks a pair with the blue coating are 100 watt bulbs, they burn very hot & are complete junk! Don't use them at all. Just to let you know.
 
Xenon is the gas inside an HID (high intensity discharge) bulb. The gas is lit and burns. A halogen bulb just uses an electrical current across an element to get hot and glow, like an incandescent bulb (same thing)
 
turborich said:
Alot of those fake Xenon bulbs you buy at pepboys for $20 bucks a pair with the blue coating are 100 watt bulbs, they burn very hot & are complete junk! Don't use them at all. Just to let you know.
Click to expand...

Yes they use less resistance to make the element recive more current in turn making it glow brighter. they get much hotter and do not last long because of it.
Also they have some blue tint in the glass.
 
Time for me to chime in on the subject.
HID>Halogen

Dont be shy from the color if the goal is to see better, even a 30,000K xenon filled bulb has more light output then a 55W halogen.

But and the BIG BUT is that the goal to see, not improve light output.

The sun burns between 5500K to 6000K so the goal is to stay within that range for maximum lumen output.

Xenon filled incandesant bulbs typically 65w-100w:
Ok there is the first problem, the factory wiring has been designed to have a 55w 12v bulb on it. now you are creating a bad situation which will result in a possible fire and a toasted harness.
So stay away.

Xenon filled HID bulbs 35w-55w:
Most conversions are typically 35W They draw less power then stock bulbs 35W instead of 55w. They burn with less power and have 5x the lumen output
The Ugly, buying an ebay kit is always a gamble. Being in the lighting industry for a little 4 yrs (Just celebrated 4yrs) I have heard and seen alot of horror storys with ebay junk.
Be alert and and do your research so you dont get burned(no pun intended)
 
unity said:
The Ebay kits are just fine.
Click to expand...

They sure are :) Many that I have seen in stores are the same exact thing for more $$$. Just because they are sold on ebay doesn't mean they are of any less quality, most of the time they are very similar if not the exact same thing.

I am very picky about just about everything. If I thought my HID's were inferior I would let this board know, believe me! I have been very pleased with them!
 
You are damn quick to express your opinions about HID products that you don't own... so I don't imagine you would have a problem bitching about ones you do own....
 
kustomizingkid said:
You are damn quick to express your opinions about HID products that you don't own... so I don't imagine you would have a problem bitching about ones you do own....
Click to expand...

I only tell it the way it is my friend. It's your money in the end!:p
 
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