Silverstars, HID or LED headlights??

[Don M]

I've made it no secret that my stock headlights eat Turtle Wax paste. They don't light up the road very well under optimum conditions, and if it's wet or raining at night, I might as well not even have them on.

I have a friend at work, who is a part-time automotive lighting specialist (installs and upgrades - or adds) nearly any light on your car/motorcycle. He personally has LED lights in the low beams on his Chevrolet truck and they seem (in the daylight at least) twice as bright as my stock halogens.

He has shown me that for my car (which takes H13 bulbs), he can get me LED-high/low beam bulbs, HID-high/low bulbs or HID low beam / Halogen high beam bulbs for a very tempting price (his shop orders direct from the manufacturer, so there is no middle-man markup (If I help w/the install, he'll get & install the kit I choose for his cost).

I've told him my concerns about uncontrolled light spray affecting on-coming drivers and he told me that my headlight buckets are fairly 'deep,' so the light will be concentrated, not splayed out (the lights ARE fairly tight, not much side illumination going on). And too-there is a 'shield' inside the headlight so that light coming from the top of the bulb is blocked and all light output is from the light coming from the sides of the bulb and aimed forward off the reflectors.

Now I've heard that the HID lights *can be* somewhat fragile and more prone to breakage/shorter life, but are the brightest option. And that LED lights, while not quite as bright, are much more durable and have a long lifespan.
About the Silverstars, I've heard that they are *night and day* better than the stock bulbs with some saying they have durability issues and others saying they last a long time.

The thing is, I don't have a clue what to do ... in the past, if I ever had a lighting issue, I've just added fog/driving lights to the car and adjusted them according to my needs (out of the line of sight for other drivers though). My only other option is to buy factory replacement lights and HOPE I can adjust them to where the light falls where it's needed, but that's a few hundred dollars that I don't have for unknown results.

Feed back please

 

[spazzz]

You know doubt would want to do a HID projector retrofit from the Retrofit Source(TRS).

The mini D2S4.0 is a really good option. I have the older D2S3.0 with the XB55 ballasts and XB 5500 bulbs.
I can see at night and the cutoff is beautiful.

 

[brettS4]

In my past A4 I had h7 halogens and tried Silverstars. They didn't seem any different from the Osrams I had been using other than maybe a slight color shift.

My S4 has HID and when it's set up well it's a huge improvement. Easily twice as bright. HID bulbs are not fragile but require care when installed. The downside is that they are expensive. I recently paid $160 for a pair of Philips Xtreme Vision D2S bulbs. They'll last 5-10 years, so it averages out to about the same as replacing H7 bulbs every other year.

LED setups are only now becoming feasible. The jury is still out on those. I personally would go with HID retrofit kit, using good components. Buying cheap ballasts or bulbs guarantees you'll be replacing parts in months.

Check out theretrofitsource.com for info. I've used their Morimoto ballasts and bulbs with limited results. It's always best to go with OEM if possible.

As for glare on oncoming cars, a good projector with well designed cutoffs, aimed properly, will actually make the lights less likely to annoy other drivers. Also pay attention to color temps. OEM is 4300k and is fairly yellow. Personally I find 5000k to be desirable because it's perfectly white. Even 4800k is slightly yellow, but not too far off. As you go higher in temp, the color gets blue then purple, and you lose lumens.

 

[brettS4]

spazzz, how have those XB55 ballasts been for you? I've been thinking of switching from my Valeo 35w to those, but the XB35 ballasts I tried once were terrible. Flickering within a week and one died within a month.

 

[Don M]

What does everyone think of doing a bulb replacement in the stock housings and not going to a projector housing, I can't afford $500-$600 for new housings

 

[spazzz]

spazzz, how have those XB55 ballasts been for you? I've been thinking of switching from my Valeo 35w to those, but the XB35 ballasts I tried once were terrible. Flickering within a week and one died within a month.

These are the newest Morimotos. The previous version was terrible. I went through 3 bad ones.
I said to hell with it and bought some potted Densos. While great startup and reliable, I couldn't see very well with 35 watts.

So when they brought out the new 55s I jumped on them. They have worked without one hiccup for 2 years.

 

[brettS4]

I have a spare set of Densos and agree. Slightly better than my Valeos but i was using them in another set of housings I decided I didn't like. Guess I'll order some XB55 ballasts soon. Thanks for the input!

Don, as I mentioned before, you won't see any significant improvement with different bulbs, other than if your current bulbs are more than 3 years old. Bulbs lose lumens every year. To see a major difference, it's going to require new projectors/bulbs. I'd guess about $250 minimum, plus labor. The idea is that you keep your housings but new projectors are installed into them.

It's worth it, imo. You'll be able to see 300 yards down the road at night and about 20 yards to each side of the road. Look up some videos on YouTube for d2s setups and you'll see.

 

[FUNX650]

What does everyone think of doing a bulb replacement in the stock housings and not going to a projector housing, I can't afford $500-$600 for new housings

In that case...
I'd do the bulbs.

I would think that your friend at work
should be able to set you up with a
couple of new ones for <$50.


Bob

 

[The Guz]

What does everyone think of doing a bulb replacement in the stock housings and not going to a projector housing, I can't afford $500-$600 for new housings

If you go with a bulb swap do not get the silverstars. They are junk. They blue coating on the bulb actually decreases the light output. I believe Philips makes the xtreme vision in the H13. Those would be a better upgrade over the silverstarts.

If you have the time and skill then the projector route is the way to go.

 

[AZpolisher15]

If you choose halogens-- I much prefer Philips to the Silverstars. I've used the +60's and +100's. Both much better than the OEM Osrams in my Toyota. The +60's will last a little longer than the +100's and are a nice balance. Neither bulb (nor the Silverstars) will last much longer than 1-2 years (probably closer to 1, depending on use).

Philips VisionPlus +60
Philips ExtremeVision +100.

 

[LSNAutoDetailingLSNAutoDetailing is verified member.]

In my new Ecoboost Mustang, I have the HID lights. And sometimes I get oncoming cars that flash their lights at me.
HID Lights have to adjusted lower than normal lights... So keep that in mind. While they are brighter, Ford has them set about 2" lower than standard lights.

Otherwise, the HID's are pretty awesome.

My 2005 Mustang GT either needs to have the headlights adjusted up. They're too much towards the ground and I can't really see.
Although, I don't normally drive this car and especially at night.

 

[oneheadlite]

What does everyone think of doing a bulb replacement in the stock housings and not going to a projector housing, I can't afford $500-$600 for new housings

In your first post you mention your lenses sucking in wax- are they hazy at all? If so, then I would think they'd act to diffuse the light and cause a glare if you went with crazy bright lights. In my opinion, projector style housings are preferred as a courtesy to other drivers if you're going with higher light output. I will say I'm not familiar with the light pattern etc of your car, so maybe it'd be fine.

I would also vote against the silverstars. I had the top tier version as fog lights in my avant (H7 bulbs), and I think they lasted 8-10 months (probably ~18-20,000 miles) with full time use (I use them as DRLs. They did put out more light, I just don't want to change bulbs that often.

I think the aftermarket xenon retrofit stuff has gotten leaps and bounds better than it used to be. As others have said, the LED stuff is still pretty new. Like others mentioned, I personally would stay more towards the yellow end of the spectrum as too blue looks a bit cheesy-aftermarket to me. If morimoto has a kit for you, I've had good luck with them in the past.

Hope this helps.

 

[Don M]

In your first post you mention your lenses sucking in wax- are they hazy at all? If so, then I would think they'd act to diffuse the light and cause a glare if you went with crazy bright lights. In my opinion, projector style housings are preferred as a courtesy to other drivers if you're going with higher light output. I will say I'm not familiar with the light pattern etc of your car, so maybe it'd be fine.



Hope this helps.

The lenses are perfectly clear, it's the light output that sucks. They are very tight beams, but not very bright. I am assuming the lights are original, so that would make them about 4 years old

 

[Klasse Act]

Had Silverstars in the pAst and they just didn't seem to last me very long. I know halogen bulbs dim over time so replacing with brand new bulbs is always an upgrade, any brand!

LED bulbs use less power and do last longer and the output is incredible, HID bulbs have been around since 2001 and have been tried and true, so either option is much, much better than old school halogens. Look at it like this, you can't put a price on safety, except in this case!

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[Mike@ShineStruck]

.
Never really liked HIDs even when stock or retro fitted correctly with a true projector...they just seem to glare more then every other light and when poeple are behind me It always seemed like someone had their highbeams on

Halogens never seen bright enough

LED projectors I infact live very much
no glaring effect, no side beam scatter..very crisp beam cut off

Id love to retro fit some laser beam headlights when they actually come out and become affordable!

 

[spazzz]

I dunno,,you can call out a newer Toyota coming at you because the LEDs are eye poppers

 

[Cruzscarwash]

I've had the same set of HID in my car for about 6 years now. They finally went out and instead of replacing them right away I looked into LED the LED look fantastic and are supposed to last even longer. The thing is while it last longer the throw of the light down the road is much less then that of HID. So I'd say it's I'm the middle of stock and hid where the led ends. With the new hid kits from retro fit they are night and day compared to my first kit. You can definitely see the difference and advancement the kits have made as far as wiring and the ballast. I now have a new retrofit hid kit in all my vehicles and I run 4300k as it provides the most light and projects the furthest down the road.

Now if you have reflector housings then be cautious as that's bad for other drivers. If you have stock projectors then you should be safe as your stick cut off will prevent any glare

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[evo77]

First off,

Installing a "HID kit" into a reflector housing headlamp is highly not recommended. This is because the light source is not an equal match to a reflector that was designed for a halogen filament source. In the majority of reflector headlamps the end result is a beam pattern that may appear to be brighter than halogen but at the cost of excessive glare that is dangerous to other drivers. Now, some people may say "well, I just compensate by lowering the beam". This still does not improve your vision at night because what you've essentially done is increased the foreground light (and decreased your distance light) which causes the pupils to constrict which then restricts your distance vision. Excessive foreground light will always fool the human eye in believing there is "better" light when there really is not. Another important note is that HID bulbs are just way too bright for a reflector housing. A halogen reflector simply cannot harness this light and the end result is a flood of illumination that overpowers the reflector.

The best way to improve your lighting is indeed to retrofit a quality pair of HID projectors. You've made it clear that you have a tight budget. There are some options that can reduce your overall cost. You can opt for a new set of aftermarket headlamps (like a set from TYC) for about $140. OR you can search ebay for a lightly used pair for $80. Then head over to theretrofitsource.com (TRS) and check out their budget friendly Acme H1 projector retrofit kit that includes everything you need for the project for $135. There are more better options that cost more in case you're interested. Obviously you will need to perform the retrofit yourself but its really not that difficult with simple tools. There are plenty of helpful youtube videos which demonstrate the entire process.

Here is a photo of a TRS Morimoto Mini H1 kit installed to give you an idea of what it could look:

If the HID projector retrofit falls outside of your price range still, you can then check out LED bulb replacements. Now technically LED bulbs should fall into the same realm as HID bulbs in that they are not designed to properly work in a halogen reflector but surprisingly there are some LED bulbs that do in fact work. Each headlamp is different and will respond differently to LEDs despite having the same halogen bulb application. Testing and comparing is necessary to find that magical bulb. Do not rely on your eyes solely to tell you if something is better. A cheap lux meter can be your best friend when testing.

One thing to remember when choosing a LED bulb for your application is to find one that mimics the original filament source. Also most, if not all, LED bulbs that contain emitters which are domed are most always going to produce the worst beam pattern. This is because a domed LED emits a tight concentrated beam which ends up focusing its light in one specific region of a reflector where as a undomed LED has a much wider spread. Also a domed emitter is usually larger in size than the undomed LED (known as chip scale package chips or CSP). This has a disadvantage because there is too much light surface area. A LED bulb using CSP chips are much smaller and mimic the size of a halogen filament which usually translates into a better beam when compared to the larger emitter (but doesn't guarantee an overall better beam when compared to halogen).

Lucky for you my vehicle also utilizes the H13 bulb. I have tried a handful of different LED bulbs on the market and have concluded there is no perfect LED bulb. There are give and takes. And while the current LED bulb on my vehicle produces the best beam pattern I've tested (the give), it still isn't perfect. I would not even say its considerably brighter than halogen. The lux meter does not lie though. After the LED bulb is fully warmed, there is a 20% increase in light output. What's alarming is that 32% of light output is lost in the first 30 minutes (the take)! The aluminum radiator just isn't sufficient to draw enough heat away from the chips to keep them cool & happy. Their obviously being overdriven. The result is a loss of luminance.

Also note that there is an increase of glare above the cutoff (the take). Nearly double over halogen. Its not noticeable in the images below because of the lower exposure. And frankly in person its not as noticeable. More testing at greater distances on the road to measure acceptable glare on the oncoming traffic side is needed to truly determine if this glare is excessive. Some headlamps just produce more glare than others (with original halogen bulbs) but that doesn't mean they don't fall within an acceptable range.

You'll notice the CSP chips I spoke of earlier. Tightly packaged and virtually the same size as both the low and high beam filaments in virtually the same location. These bulbs use the Seoul Semiconductor WICOP Y19 chips.

And here is an example of a badly designed bulb...

I have plenty more examples of H13 LED bulbs. Let me know if I can assist further.

And for the record, I'm currently in the process of retrofitting a pair of LED projectors because I'm tired of the inferior performance of LED bulbs . I've got a pair of Koito bi-led projectors out of a Prius. Twice as bright as halogen (lux measured) and twice as wide.

 

[Jaretr1]

I once years and years ago tried Silverstar, and they lasted 30 days. I tried them again in my Accord which has projector beam lights, and they lasted quite a while. I went with the Silverstar ZXE which is the top of that line. They are definitely brighter and whiter than the original OEM bulbs. I even replaced my fog lights with ZXE bulbs to match the brighter color. However, they arent as bright as HID's for instance. But they also wont cause any problems and require no modifications.

I say try the Silverstar, if you dont like them return them to whereever you buy them.

 

[evo77]

IMO, aftermarket halogens are just not worth it. For the same price you can find a LED equivalent with slightly more output and a true 5000-6500K color temperature. Oh yeah and you'll never have to worry about burning out a bulb like all aftermarkets. Its not a question of if, just a matter of when.

All these bulbs are just tinted and designed to draw more power (60+W over standard 50W) to compensate for the color filter which obstructs it light output. For most you will not be able to identify a difference in color temperature within the 3000 kelvin range. Once you reach 4000 kelvin and over you definitely will notice the "blue" filter which is highly unappealing to the eyes. Even in the daylight when the blue coating reflects all inside the headlight housing.