I know LEDs and HIDs are much better, but no time for a retrofit.

So like the title says what Halogens do you prefer?

 

Sylvania silverstars ZXE. it's their "performance" series that is suppose to compete with HIDs. Obviously, it is no where near as bright. When you look into the bulb and the housing it is still somewhat yellowish, but the light output onto the road is definitely white 6000k range.

 

I've been running Nokya Arctic White stage 2 w/ hd harness. They are bright and 7000k temp. Love 'em.

 

Be aware that halogen bulbs with increased light output have significantly reduced life. That's just a matter of light bulb physics (and the legal requirements limiting power consumption); you get more light by burning the filament at a higher temperature. Whether or not the trade-off is worthwhile for you is something you'll have to decide. (In the case of these ZXE's, they're rated for 125 hours, about a tenth the life of regular plain halogen headlight bulbs.)

In terms of actually seeing stuff well on the road, if I remember properly studies have shown that blueish light is not an advantage and probably yellowish light is the most effective. This is particularly the case in nasty weather.

 

OSRAM. Standard halogen, up size one wattage level. Last 3 to 5 years. Made in Germany. Also dirt cheap at the right auto-parts store, they are usually behind the counter NOT out front they come in a cheap little paper box that wont hang on those wire doo-hickies. I use 65W low beam and 100W high beam H4's in my jeep. AND I ALIGN THE BEAMS CORRECTLY!!!!!

Blue light triggers your eyes to dilate and reduces night vision, Its one of the reasons so many cars come with amber dash illumination. (Aircraft use a lot of amber light too. )

 

PIAA H4 Extreme White Plus (Halogen),
I used it before I upgraded to IPF LED H4 conversion.
This PIAA Extreme White Plus is whiter in color than halogen, had a better beam pattern with higher output.
and I was using it for 8 months and it was still performs well, so right now I keep it in my trunk as backup just in case the IPF LED fails.
I also do the same for the foglight, was using PIAA H11 Extreme white plus and upgraded to IPF LED.

 

Standard H4 bulbs uses about 60 watts on high beam, 55 on low. Consumes 60 watts of electricity. Depending on the contruction of the filament, one 60 watt incandescent bulb can produce slightly mor light than another. It can not produce twice as much light. The label on the PIAA box says 60/55W and is probably accurate. Then there is an arrow pointing right, and then the numbers 110/100W. Of course, an arrow pointing right has no meaning. It may be trying to imply that the lamp is as bright at a 110 watt lamp even though it only uses 60 watts, but it doesn't actually say that, so if it isn't any brighter, they can't be truthfully accused of false advertising. An arrow just means "look here." In actuality it probably is no brighter than the standard bulb, but because the light is whiter, people tend to think it looks brighter. Can you actually see better, further down the road, or more to the side? I don't believe it.

 

In my research on Halogen Bulbs...
Well like a lot of "optional" automotive rituals, everyone has their favorite.

I'm pretty much convinced some of the products offered probably DO create more luminosity than factory OEM bulbs. For how much more they charge? You better hope they do.

But for me? Halogen, OEM or even LED or HID...it kind of comes down to what I really want or need.
I need to safely illuminate the darkened road before me. To the average revelation of the majority of vehicles on the road at night.

I don't feel the need to "Own The Darkness" with a with a transforming shaft of "Biblical Revelation" light.
My standards may be much, much lower than some, but for me? Good enough...is good enough.
My standard is pretty much....am I safely seeing the road before me?
If I answer Yes...than I'm happy.

In the past? I've tried more expensive specialty bulbs, and I can't really say I noticed that much of a difference, outside of immediate cost out of wallet. What I did notice? Was a shorter life span.

I'm pretty much boring now. If it's time to replace? I do so with just a standard bulb.

 

I think this really depends on where you live/drive.

I used to live in S FL with street lights on every corner and enough light pollution that I barely knew what stars looked like.

Living in the wooded mountains has changed my opinion of what headlights can/need to do. The factory ones in the Fit are simply not safe here at night. I can't see more than 5 feet off the edges of the road and can't see up or down a hill for more than a few feet. At night, it's downright scary. We installed HID's first and were very pleased with the light output. Yes, they were a problem for other drivers due to being used in a halogen housing.

We then went back to stock bulbs and couldn't see again. Then went to Sylvania SilverStars and they are a slight improvement. I do mean slight. Still not really safe for night time driving if you want to actually know what kind of animal might be about to step into the road.

I'm also curious about other possibilities. I have a PIAA bulb in my motorcycle and it's darn good, but they no longer make that model. From what I understand, PIAA's current offerings are far different from what they offered 15 years ago. Yes, it's that old and still works.

I know that a good Halogen can do the trick. The factory base headlights in our VW lights the road just fine. The bi-xenon projectors in my Lincoln are flat out amazing, but that's another class of vehicle.

 

Biggest weakness in the fit is the same as most other newer cars, the "free form reflector" instead of lens technology. Since the front plastic is nothing but protection from the weather the light is aimed by the reflector, which is a cheap plastic chrome piece with little light control in the honda's in general. The fits especially.

Fords have the same issue I rented a 2017 F-150 with standard halogen headlights a while back is was scary as hell in rural Montana..

Don't know if it would work on the FIT but on Jeeps we used to add a relay behind each headlight and then pulled the power for the lights straight off the alternator lug. Use a #10 wire and it raises the voltage/current available to the bulb, on the jeeps its was visibly significant and seemed to make the bulbs last longer (The old school halogen sealed beam replacements... ) I have H4 inserts in the old jeep now with the osram 65/100 bulbs and its a great combo, low beam is clean and covers the road in town, high beam lights up the shoulders to avoid critters...

 

Philips 130%. Now I use their "150%" LED and will never go back, unless i'm in the mood to retrofit to HID.

 

Osram NightBreakers.

Hands down the best I have personally used.

 

philips racing vision (+150% over oem bulbs)