What do you think of super halogen bulbs? (Silverstar, etc.)

[jhe888]

The Silverstar Ultras, in particular, or the Philips X-treme? I am sure they are brighter. Do you think they are worth the cost (at least double), especially in light of their shorter lifespan?



I don`t want HID. Any other options or brands?



Thanks.

[BostonBull]

Toshiba HIRare the best and vrightest bulbs out there short of HID. about same cost as Silverstar, lil bit more. only guy I know that sells the is on ebay.. search toshiba HIR. I won`t run any other bulbs in my car. those in the lows and fogs, and haven`t used my highs in over a year. put them in my wifes car and she was amazed. have actually used them in all vehicles for 3 years now.



great stuff!

[jhe888]

How is the life on the HIR bulbs?

[PedroDaGr8]

If you are REALLY serious about getting more light out of your headlights, look into making a wiring harness. Many times the wiring to the headlights is under spec`d which causes a voltage drop.



Taken from Daniel Stern Lighting:

In many cases, the thin factory wires are inadequate even for the stock headlamp equipment. Headlamp bulb light output is severely compromised with decreased voltage. The drop in light output is not linear, it is exponential with the power 3.4. For example, let`s consider a 9006 low beam bulb rated 1000 lumens at 12.8 Volts and plug in different voltages:



10.5V : 510 lumens

11.0V : 597 lumens

11.5V : 695 lumens

12.0V : 803 lumens

12.5V : 923 lumens

12.8V : 1000 lumens �Rated output voltage

13.0V : 1054 lumens

13.5V : 1198 lumens

14.0V : 1356 lumens �Rated life voltage

14.5V : 1528 lumens



As you can see, if you battery is at 14V (a common voltage) and your wires are dropping the voltage to 12V you just lost 40% of your light just in those 2V. Similarly, by increasing the voltage you exponentially increase the light output.



A harness is EASY to make if you are interested and I can provide you with the needed schematics to make it.



Just tell me your bulb size(s) and I`ll whip one up. I did this on my car before I did a retrofit and I must say it made a noticeable difference.

[jhe888]

That is very generous, Pedro. The bulbs are 9006/9005. Thanks.

[jDizzle]

the silverstar ultras are deffinatley nicer than stock. but not worth double the price.. mine lasted a little over 6 months, which is crap in my book... im deffinatley going to have to watch this thread, and hopefully learn of some better bulbs.

[BostonBull]

I have had HIR`s installed in my, and my wifes car for well over a year now with no problems. The biggest thing is do NOT touch the bulb with your skin during install!

[BostonBull]

Here ya geaux!



eBay Seller: hir headlights: Parts Accessories items on eBay Motors

[critical_level2]

I have had silverstars in my last 3 vehicles and liked them. I got plenty of life from them. The ones in my Explorer were 4 years old when I traded it in and they still worked. I also had them in my Honda Element and they were still going strong when I sold it 3 years later. I have had great success with them. I also wear latex gloves when I install them to make sure I did not touch the bulbs, which equals certain death for any halogen bulbs. I had a wiring harness in my explorer and that really helped increase the output of them.

[PedroDaGr8]

Alright, here is the schematic for your wiring. You should use atleast 14Gauge or higher wires (12G is ideal or 10G if you plan on running high wattage bulbs).

You will need:

2 30A bosch style relays

1 9005 Male plug

1 9006 Male plug

Then either 2 9005 or 9011 and 2 9006 or 9012 female plugs. They may be the same I am not sure. These will plug into your bulbs (the latter are if you go the HIR route).

Some soldering skills and waterproof heatshrink(better or waterproof connectors (acceptable if you can`t solder)

Some loom or electrical tape to wrap the wires.



In the schematic I show all of the bulbs connecting together and grounding to the battery. In reality, each bulb will have its own ground and if you have suitable ground points near by you can use those. On the other hand if you don`t run each bulb to the battery.



Also, both the red, orange and blue wires are power. The blue is power from the socket to the signal on of the relay. The red and orange are power either from the battery or out of the relay to the bulbs



THe black and the yellow are grounds. The yellow is the socket ground (this MUST be hooked up to the socket).





When wiring everything, you only need to use the sockets on ONE side of the car. The other side can be left empty.



Lastly if you decide to use HIR bulbs:

How to convert 9011 and 9012 HIR bulbs in to 9005 and 9006 bulbs.

HIR 9011 and 9012 bulbs are exactly identical in all dimensions to 9005 and 9006 bulbs, except for two areas, the second of wh

[jhe888]

Thanks, Pedro.

[PedroDaGr8]

No problem. It`s pretty quick and easy to make. Took me about an hour the first time, the second time it too me under 30 minutes.

[Chops]

Hmmm you got me thinking now too. Is it pretty much the same for a 9007 except omit the second circuit? What bulb would I run? And would I be able to follow the stock wiring diagram and just up the wire gauge?

[PedroDaGr8]

Chops, 9007 bulbs are dual filament bulbs. So unless you have a new housing to use, you will HAVE to use 9007 bulbs. Also, since it is dual filament the previous schematic will need some adjustting to work for you.



To make matters worse, unfortunately, dual filament circuits are a bit harder to design as there are two types (positive switched and ground switched) for each bulb type. It appears with your particular bulb type most are positive switched but a few are ground switched.



If you can give me your vehicle model and year I will see what I can find and draw up a modified schematic for you. It isn`t too hard.





As to what is the difference between positve switched and ground switched:



Positve switch : The three pins are Low beam 12V, High beam 12V, Shared ground

Ground switch: The three pins are Low Beam ground, High beam ground, shared 12V.



It is pretty easy to test if you have a multimeter. Just pull one of your plugs out and test the voltage difference between the pins and a ground. If the live pin moves between low and high beam, usually that means your setup is positive switched, if it stays the same, likely you are ground switched. I have seen the occasional ground switched system that makes the ground NOT in use 12V. If THAT is the case, then you will see TWO pins that have 12V.



Just let me know if you want me to make a schematic for you.

[PedroDaGr8]

The same goes for anyone else. Just tell me the bulb type and I will whip up a schematic for you.