I am just wondering what everyone thinks is the best halogen bulb upgrade. I'm not interested in HID people or LED people, thanks guys.

There are plenty of known problems with Sylvania Silverstars. I've heard mixed reviews on Phillips, PIAA, Osram, and some others. That being said, I'm leaning towards Nokya 90/100 Cosmic White (5000K) bulbs. There are no reported issues of excessive heat with these bulbs.

 

I've had the Philips X-treme Power, Osram Nightbreakers, and GE Nighthawk Platinum on my Fit.

All of them are much brighter than stock, at least initially. The Philips died a premature death after a run-in with a deer, but they were pretty good for the 6 months or so I had them.

The Osram Nightbreakers had pretty good brightness and no noticeable tint, but I replaced them after about a year and a half because they were getting dim.

The GE Nighthawk Platinum bulbs can often be found on sale (Amazon has them for buy 1 pack get one free occasionally), which makes them about half the cost of the other two. In my opinion so far, they seem just as bright as the other two bulbs. I can't speak to the longevity, since I've only had them on for 4 months or so now. So far, my vote is for the GE bulbs, primarily because of cost.

I personally don't think the stock wiring can handle 90/100 watts, and I'm not a fan of tinted bulbs either, so I would not recommend the Nokya bulbs, but it's really up to you.

 

I've read that people have had success with Hondas wiring. Tends to be pretty tough wiring. The bulb will pop before the wiring flames. The 5000k nokya bulb is tinted but not too bad. The 7000k bulb is quite blue.

I just want the whitest possible set-up that will last a decent amount of time.

Prob just going to go with 5000k HIDs but then I gotta get projectors and retrofit them.

 

I use Sylvania Silverstar Ultra's in all of my cars; I get flashed at alot so I guess they are pretty bright !

 

+1 for the Sylvania Silverstar Ultra. 1 year warranty.

PIAA if you want.
Phillips if available

Those Nokya`s???? Big mistake IMHO. They are not as bright as OEM. Please dont waste your money on these.

Dwayne

 

I got some from a guy in China for $15. Fantastic. Nice bright white and twice the distance. I went back and ordered a second second as backup and a set for my van.

 

All halogen bulbs fade over time, just most folks dont notice or bother to change them until actual failure. It was the same with the old glass sealed beams, but for different reasons. The problem with higher wattage bulbs is that they are going to boil more metal off the filament and deposit that metal inside the glass. That is why they turn dark with age. DRL's that use the headlights, even at reduced voltage, still add to the problem.

 

so for the headlight experts, assuming your typical mix of day/night driving; and using miles as that's the only comparable metric that can reflect different car usage,

about how many miles do you think the OEM headlights (or other brands) last or get dimmer?
Just throw something ballpark out, best guess.
e.g. say 30k miles you're at 50% dimmer?

 

Never had a problem with Silverstar Ultras. Have them in all my cars, for years.

 

The problems I hear about Silverstars is that they produce less light than OEM albeit a much prettier white light. They also have been known to crap out much earlier than other brands. I was thinking of maybe trying the new Sylvania Silverstar ZXE. They are about $53 so they are definitely a price jump up from the Ultras. The only reason I was considering the Nokyas was because I read a great comparison on them and the higher wattage will equal a brighter light.

 

The only way to get more light out of a bulb while using the same amount of output wattage is to play games with the filaments. I have tried many different bulbs from many different manufactures making the "Brighter" claim since I started driving in 1972. YES IMHO they can be brighter than OEM...but the longest life out of any of them that I have used has never been over 6 months. Having said that I am willing to try a set of Sylvania Silverstar's?

 

Ding ding ding! That is correct, you cant get more light output from just tinting the glass with hoky 5000, 7000, 8000k paint etc, it would only reduce output and just change light color that's it. You can HOWEVER get more light output by making a bulb with a different gas mixture inside the glass envelope. Some makers add xenon gas to the bulb to make them burn brighter while still consuming the same 55 watts etc.

 

Yes, tinting will always reduce light output. Playing with the gas mixture (krypton, xenon, iodine) only works by making a hotter filament bulb last longer. Like ...KIA said, you play with filament design. Here is where you balance output vs. hours of lifespan. Hotter = brighter and whiter, but also shorter life. The other variable that has not been mentioned is voltage. Auto bulbs are rated at 12.8v. If your alternator is putting out 13.8v, the lamps will be brighter and not last as long as rated on the package. "Long Life" household light bulbs used to simply be designed for 130v instead of 120v, resulting in less light and more lifespan.

 

I had Nokyas once (not on Fit). Never again. Light output was worse than OEM. Maybe I just got the wrong bulbs, idk. IIRC I got pulled over because of them.

I have Osram Nightbreakers, good grown-up light output with white light, no blue/purple/yellow. Have good reach if you adjust the beams a little bit. Drove up the coast shortly after I installed them and ended up in some areas with NO lights but my own and no moon (no fogs or driving lights) and I was super glad I put them in beforehand, cut through the dark. How long they last will remain to be seen, it's only been two months.

Silverstars were also good to me in the past, lasted a year or so, I liked the very slight blue tint they had at some angles.

My OEM bulbs started getting dim around 50k miles/2 years.

 

I've had my set of ZXE's since Feb 2012, still running bright and strong.

 

High output bulbs will not last as long as standard bulbs. But most early life failures I believe are due to improper installation. Any miniscule amount of dirt, skin oil, dust, etc. will kill the bulbs quickly. Before installing clean the bulbs thoroughly with Isopropyl Alcohol and a lint free wipe. Use gloves when inserting the bulb or hold it with the IPA wipe.

I've used Silverstar Ultra's on cars and motorcycles and have yet to have one burn out. Longest life thus far was 3-1/2 years on my daily driver car which had daytime running lights. And yes I had SS Ultra's in the high beam sockets also.

_

 

^^This. I am anal with installing stuff that I want it to be clean and dirt free, maybe that's why my ZXEs lasted this long. Some people think that it doesn't matter, but if you look at the installation instructions for bulbs it clearly says to avoid getting the bulb dirty.

 

I'm using philips x-treme power. Installed a set last 2010 and it's still working today. I will soon be replacing them with the new x-treme... philips x-treme vision.

I use powder free vinyl gloves when handling/installing halogen bulbs and even with that... I try my best not to touch the glass.

 

Let us know how the X-treme Visions are! I want to try those out when my ZXEs burn out.

And OP, just to give you an idea of how bright the ZXEs are:



The fog light bulbs are still oem.

 

am using this since dec 2010 and still strong soft on the eyes
piaa 15224 h4 stlye xtreme white