What aftermarket bulbs to get
- Thread starter Ramdough
- Start date
RAM5500 CAMPERTHING
OG Portal Member #183
Ramdough said:
Ummm, what kind of rig do you have?
I have experimented with a bunch and ended up with the HIR's from www.danielsternlighting.com and LOVE them! i also have an upgraded harness as well, but it is not needed
Daniel Stern IS THE MAN to contact about upgrading headlights!
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bigreen505
Expedition Leader
Let me put in a quick plug for Daniel Stern. He is an actual lighting engineer, not just someone selling lightbulbs -- he knows what he is talking about and can help you find what you are looking for, regardless of the application. Additionally, he is someone I have been close friends with for close to 20 years. Whenever I get a new ride, he gets the first call.
asteffes
Explorer
If all you want is higher wattage bulbs, beware that pretty much anything beyond stock wattage is not street legal. They may be totally benign and not bother anyone, but they won't be legal. That said, I've had excellent results with the Hella 80/100 watt H4 bulbs in my '06. Higher wattage bulbs really require good reflectors and/or lenses to work well without blinding people. If your housings are worn, scratched or heavily pitted you'll want to replace them before dropping in higher power bulbs.
HongerVenture
Adventurer
This is a third for checking out Daniel Sterns website... the gospel when it comes to vehicle lighting. In the past he recommended Sylvania Silverstars as a good "off the shelf" solution and that is what I have installed. His wiring harnesses and bulbs are on my to-do list.
Joel
Joel
+ d
Adventurer
In addition to Daniel Stern's Website I found Dave Sekella's Website (www.rallylights.com) extremely useful as well, especially if you are trying to piece together your own harnesses. They have a wider variety of parts, lamps and bulbs. I've purchased most of my electrical components for my lighting/electrical project from them.
goodtimes
Expedition Poseur
Research has shown that simply cleaning the headlight lens will increase the lumens/ft on the average vehicle by 10%. It also drastically reduces the light scattering which is a nice thing for oncoming vehicles.
IMO, keep the headlights clean, then if you want more, consider bulbs up to the legal limit (55w IIRC, for low beams), consider a temperature (color) change if you want...but really you should avoid anything over 55w. One, it is not legal, two it is dangerous for oncoming traffic (particularly if your lenses are dirty or lights not adjusted properly), and three your wiring harness is not designed to hold that much current (which is why companies offer the harness upgrades).
If you still want more light, add some driving lights. This way you can turn them off when there is oncoming traffic. Some people find it amusing to blind people in other vehicles with uber-bright headlights, but it is a dangerous situation that can easily lead to someone being killed in an accident. Seriously, not worth it.
Driving lights will give you much more usable light than simply putting in higher wattage bulbs anyway, so if you are after light, don't goof around with high wattage replacement bulbs for your headlights. Install the appropriate auxillary lighting, and light up your path properly. The results will be better (more light), and the rest of the people on the road will still be able to see.
:ylsmoke:
IMO, keep the headlights clean, then if you want more, consider bulbs up to the legal limit (55w IIRC, for low beams), consider a temperature (color) change if you want...but really you should avoid anything over 55w. One, it is not legal, two it is dangerous for oncoming traffic (particularly if your lenses are dirty or lights not adjusted properly), and three your wiring harness is not designed to hold that much current (which is why companies offer the harness upgrades).
If you still want more light, add some driving lights. This way you can turn them off when there is oncoming traffic. Some people find it amusing to blind people in other vehicles with uber-bright headlights, but it is a dangerous situation that can easily lead to someone being killed in an accident. Seriously, not worth it.
Driving lights will give you much more usable light than simply putting in higher wattage bulbs anyway, so if you are after light, don't goof around with high wattage replacement bulbs for your headlights. Install the appropriate auxillary lighting, and light up your path properly. The results will be better (more light), and the rest of the people on the road will still be able to see.
:ylsmoke:
bigreen505
Expedition Leader
Something we need to keep in mind here is that watts are not light. Watts are a measure of energy and how much light (lumens) a bulb puts out has as much to do with efficiency and energy consumed. If you could design a perfectly efficient bulb (i.e. all energy is transformed to light) you would probably never need more than 55W for anything. Another factor to consider is build and design quality of the bulb. On a H4 lens, and I imagine most of the new headlight designs, having the filament of the bulb in the precise optical center makes a huge difference in actual light emitted from the headlight. The bulbs that I am running at the moment are an ultra high efficiency (no idea what that actually means) 55/65 and they are brighter than some higher wattage bulbs I have run in the past on the same lens reflectors. Call Dan, he will take care of your lighting needs ... promise.
atavuss
Adventurer
I put a pair of Silverstars in my Taco and they are whiter and brighter, I don't care for them that much in the rain though. these bulbs are less than one year old and one bulb just went out the other day. I would suggest keeping an extra pair on hand for spares. Pep boys, Kragens, etc. often has them on sale.
RAM5500 CAMPERTHING
OG Portal Member #183
atavuss said:
I put a pair in my girlfriends honda for her, one burnt out after only 5 months! Wont be using those again!
HenryJ
Expedition Leader
This thread from the S-10CREWCAB.COM forum may have some relevance- Headlamp Replacement Bulbs. There is a bunch of information in there to absorb.
I replaced my highbeams with Toshiba 9011 HIR bulbs. They really are doing an outstanding job.
I replaced my highbeams with Toshiba 9011 HIR bulbs. They really are doing an outstanding job.