Is it just me, everytime I replace a burnt out Silverstar headlight bulb, with another one, I find myself just replacing them again several months down the road, so yesterday, I replaced the burnt out Silverstar with a cheap $7.46 GE replacement one from Wallmart, yeah it's a little bit less bright than the other Silverstar that is on the right, however I bet it will last way longer. I looked at the element of every burnt out Silverstar, & the mimi spring thing looses its connection between the two posts in the bulb. Is it me, or do those things just suck!

 

My POS Silverstar went out 2 days ago... and now the passenger side headlight looks a little dimmer cuz I got a regular bulb there

 

Glad I'm not the only one......yeah I'll just stick with the $7.46 GE replacements I guess!!!

 

Dude, I've replaced them like 3 times within a little over year or so (free exhange of course otherwise I woulnd't do it).. well one of those doesnt really count cuz it was my alternator's fault by overcharging at 16.75 volts and blowin nearly all my bulbs in front

 

I hate silverstars, I keep getting them thinking i'll get hids before these go out... 2 pairs ago.

 

I have Silverstars in my Z and my Maxima and never had any issues however I put some in a Honda Accord my brother is driving and they went out pretty quick, though I pulled them out of me Z (put the ultras in my Z) so there's a chance oil could have got on the or something along those lines but I don't believe so.

 

Thats what I thought was the issue on the first time they went out but the second time they blew proved that wrong cuz I was careful not to touch the actual bulb and get grease on it.

 

I've heard of quite a few people having issues with them. I've been lucky so far but I know down the road I'm definitely going the HID retrofit route. Nearly 3 times the output of even the Silverstars... definitely can't beat that.

 

I've gone through 3 silverstar bulbs in 3 yrs. Finally put some cheap GE bulbs in this last time as well.

 

I was lucky to get my money back on my first set(2 weeks), now after a 9007 wiring swap I have no issues.

 

IIRC, MrGone had Silverstars burn out in the 5th gen he had. It seems like a very common problem.

I bought some ebay ones Nubiannupe told me about. I don't know if they still have them, but they have been in my car since 2003 and are still going. I don't drive very much, though.

 

Yeah, they were XD5 5100k bulbs, IIRC. Might wanna look those up, folks! They were awesome. I never had a single problem with those things. And I used to drive my old bucket every day until I sold it. I'd probably get some more, but once I finally decide to get off my @$$ and put in my projector E36's, I'm gonna go HID.

 

I run Wagner Britelites. Have for years.
they have as of yet to ever burn out on me.
and the light output is awesome.
for $10 a bulb you can't beat them.
and they are a true Xenon bulb

 

What stores carry the Wagners, as I have yet to see them, Gooooo, Bears!!!

 

only mom and pop stores usually handle them.
I do have them available

 

I just found some new bulbs called HIR, or 9011 (HIR1) and 9012 (HIR2). They can be slightly modified to fit a 9005 and 9006 headlight (E36 BMW's for instance). Get this... the low beam (9012) is brighter than the original high beam (9005). The 9005 comes in at 1,700 lumens. The 9012's put out 1,875 lumens and 9011's put out 2,530 lumens.

I just bought a set of each on eBay to try out in the Z and see how they do. At right over $100 for all four, its not a bad deal getting that much brighter compared to spending 500-600 for an HID retrofit for around 3200 lumens (unless of course you get a good deal on some factory ballasts and projectors and whatnot). Those will still come down the road though as they are much longer life.

The HIR is some sort of newer bulb technology. HIR stands for halogen infrared. Basically the glass of the bulb is shaped differently, it is a sphere instead of being a cylinder. They coat the glass with an infrared reflective, which is actually supposed to reflect the heat back to the filament causing it to burn hotter, yet it actually still has the same life as a standard 9005 since its not an over wattage setup. There's actually no extra heat except to the filament itself. That's how they explain it.

You can get some in this auction

Like I said, I bought a set so if you guys want to wait and see what they look like I'll get some pictures posted. If you get them, you simply have to modify the upper tab by cutting or filing off some plastic and it will pop right into the housing. There are instructions in the auction on how and where to cut them.

 

They've been good for me, but I hear they burn out fast. Just keep your bills. There is a one-year warranty on them, and I've had 2 replaced free of charge already due to premature burnout.

 

i dont get what your supposed to re-wire... please explain, i ask so many people and no one has or has done HID's before and i want HID's for my E36's, but i have no idea what you have to do please explain

 

Well first, stock 3rd gens have 9004 headlight harnesess which cannot handle anything over stock wattage bulbs without the wires burning up or bulbs burning out.
The 9007 harness that you can get at most autopart stores allows you to run higher wattage bulbs without worry plus the wires are thicker(14-12ga)and is an easy cheap upgrade.
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=312531

 

either do a retrofit with e36 projectors. then do hids. or do a 9007 swap. there is a huge write up on it in the 4th gen max section. or buy our euro lights and retro a e46 bixenon projector into it:-p.

 

I'll never buy Silverstars again. Used them in the 5th gen... after the 5th bulb in less than a year... screw that..

 

how far back on the wires do i have to go?...

 

Clean out all your connections with some electro cleaner. Get a tube of white Lithium grease and put in the connectors, this will keep dirt and water out , and don't touch the bulbs. (latex gloves) I Had mine for 2 years no problems. Still as bright as the day i bought them.

Also a Bad alternator can cause problems. Too low voltage and too high.

 

I went back the Lenght of the 9007 harness, around 7 -8 inches.

 

As soon as I bought my car, I did a 9007 conversion and it's one of my favorite upgrades. I've had Silverstars once and they burned out in a few months. I've heard many complaints about them locally and on the web. I won't be buying them again. I recommend the Sylvania Ultra Vision bulbs. They're cheaper, brighter, and last alot longer than Silverstars. The only downside of the Ultra Visions is that they aren't that ricey blueish white color. They are more white than stock bulbs, but they still have a slight yellow tint to them. With my 9007 Ultra Visions it seems like my head lights are as bright as HID's. I like my beem pattern alot better because it extends so far out in front of me.

 

ok.. sooo what are the levels of brightness of HID's

im deff looking forward to doing this to my E36's

 

just as long as it isn't extending out and up (into oncoming drivers eyes)



Chris's XD5's are cool but really really really blue. I've never driven/been in the car at night though. Using larger wires/better relays made a pretty big difference with the brightness as well.

 

A proper HID setup with I believe around 3,000k bulbs can get you upwards of 4,000 lumens. The brightest halogen you can put right into the E36's, being the 9005, put out 1,700 lumens. Now the HIR 9011 (9005 equivalent) will put out 2,530... but the HIDs are definitely the way to go as far as maximum possible light output. If you go with a whiter/bluer/purpler/whateverer HID, light output diminishes and its harder on your eyes so for absolute maximum output, stay in the lower range.


I got my HIR bulbs today... they came damn fast. Here's what I posted on another forum:

So I was looking around one day for something about headlights and happened to stumble on this new bulb technology called HIR or halogen infrared. Basically its a new bulb technology that uses a spherical shaped glass with an infrared reflective coating. The new shape and the coating actually reflects the heat back to the filament causing a brighter burn yet retaining the same voltage as stock bulbs.

Its supposed to be a much safer and effective way of getting more light compared to high wattage bulbs. The new HIRs are supposed to outlast over wattage bulbs as well.

Here's the really cool part... 9006 bulbs (low beams) put out about 1,000 lumens. The new HIR 9012 (low beam) puts out 1,875 lumens. Now, the 9005 put out 1,700 lumens (yes, less than the HIR low beams). The HIR highs, or 9011, put out 2,530 lumens. The reason there is a difference in the numbers is due to a slight change in the tabs so that you can't directly put these bulbs into a 9005/9006 housing since technically its not legal, its for "off road use only" if you do this mod... no thanks, they work perfectly fine. All you have to do is remove some of the plastic on the top tab. I used toenail clippers and it worked perfectly and they fit in snug.

Now the light is a little more "yellow" than the SilverStars, however I believe the actual visibility would be much better with a more yellowish light, especially in the rain. I find that I pretty much can't see anything at all in the rain with the SilverStars and I think these will do much better. Also after doing some reading, the yellower light will actually be easier on your eyes, especially when driving for extended periods.

After doing a road test I noticed that I was able to lower the lights a little more compared to with the SilverStar bulbs. The driver's side light is a little too far to the right and doesn't seem to want to adjust so once I get that done the lows should be much better. I think I'll raise them up a little more than what I have them but for the most part I believe they are a slight improvement over stock.

The big improvement was with the high beams.... wow. They were absolutely incredible out on the road. Very wide pattern yet bright all throughout. It was definitely an improvement over the SilverStars. Hopefully they last quite a while. I've had pretty good luck with the SilverStars myself but have heard many people having issues. Some regular SS's I put in my Z went out a little while after I put them in the brothers car to try out the Ultras so that's actually the only problem I've had.

I know down the road I'm going to do an HID retrofit but until then, these aren't bad at all. For $112.80 shipped its expensive, but not really much more than the SilverStar Ultras. The seller I got them off of shipped them right away and I got them in only two days. On top of that he marked where they needed to be modified so that I could cut them and put them right in.

Now for the pictures. As with most pictures trying to capture headlights they simply don't do them justice. They look much better in person than the pictures show but you can see the differences pretty well. The pictures are pretty big.

SS Ultra low
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Headlights/SSlow.jpg

SS Ultra/HIR low
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Hea...s/SSHIRlow.jpg

HIR low
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Headlights/HIRlow.jpg

HIR low with engine running
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Hea...s/HIRlowon.jpg

SS Ultra high
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Headlights/SShigh.jpg

SS Ultra/HIR high
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Hea.../SSHIRhigh.jpg

HIR high
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Headlights/HIRhigh.jpg

HIR high with engine running (glass a little fogged up so there's some glare)
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Hea.../HIRhighon.jpg

HIR low in the back yard (engine on). It looks like there's not much light at all but there is a very decent amount of light with a very nice cut off, the camera just doesn't do it justice no matter how much I adjust the settings.
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Hea...HIRlowyard.jpg

HIR high in back yard (engine on)... here you can tell the huge difference. Once I get the headlights adjusted properly I think it would be even better.
http://www.machzracing.com/450ZX/Hea...IRhighyard.jpg

 

i just replaced the D/S bulb

if you still want a whiteish bulb, try PIAA, i had them awhile ago and they way out lasted the silverstars, and were a little whiter too

 

awesome right up mtcookson, great alternative path for those who cant afford hids. I noticed you have projectors on Ebay I found the bulbs for 25$ shipped a pair also. what headlights are those in? if you don't use fog lights and have fog/snow there a lot. Get 4300-5000k hids. I love my 6000k hids but in the heavy snow they suck. I have 3000k fogs so those compensate and kick but in the snow. but without them. I would of been done like 2 weeks ago when we had a killer storm up here in CT. Again Great write up mtcookson

 

Thanks. I put them in my Z32. Once I get my Maxima back on the road I'll probably put the HIRs in the E36 lights and take some pictures with those or maybe even buy some for it. After having such a hard time seeing in the rain with the SilverStar bulbs I don't think I'll ever go with a whiter bulb setup, even with the HIDs. They definitely look good... but as I always say I'm all go, no show (for the most part)

 

do you have e36s with projectors:-p if you do. and want to go the HID path. ull orbally go 4300k or 5000k, but I can give you info on how to keep the low beams on at the same time as the high beams without any relays or anything like that. that will help the life span of ur hids since they arnt ment to be turned on and off quickly.

 

I'm personally going to get probably a ~3,000k bulb as that would offer the highest possible output at around 4,000 lumens. The HID bulbs last roughly 2,750 hours compared to most halogens at around 300 so I wouldn't worry about the life too much.

As for the projector E36, it doesn't really matter. The halogen projector isn't correct for an HID setup and will cause too much glare if a [fake] HID bulb is put into a halogen projector (basically it would be like having your high beams on all of the time, you'll constantly be putting immense amounts of light into other drivers' eyes). I'm just planning on retrofitting an HID projector into the E36 housing... I'm possibly even thinking of going with a Bi-Xenon setup so that I essentially have high beams. The Bi-Xenon setup simply uses a "slider" that basically slides the shield for the beam cutoff out of the light projection. One of the lights won't be used with the E36 setup but no one would ever know except for yourself really.

 

I know what your talking about. I put e46 bixenons in my e36s. thats why i had to get my highbeam/low beam to go on at the same time to make the celinoid (spelling) to function properly and keep the hid bulb powered. i installed a seperate switch to the stock highbeams so i can flash on coming traffic:-p 3000k i would NOT recomend for daily headlights. the yellow isnt real good for a normal driving. get the 4300k stock. its deff the best all around. 3000k should only be a fog. PM me or use AIM and we can chat more!

 

Actually, color wise it should be just the opposite. 3,000k would be a much better daily driving bulb than 4,300k, even better for bad weather conditions. With those SilverStars I couldn't see anything when it rained and 4,300k is even higher than the SilverStars.

Also, they say that for extended driving white/blue and higher color lights are bad on your eyes compared to the yellower lights.

Either way though, I'm going to do some real world testing just to find out for sure though. Its supposed to rain/snow here this weekend so that'll be a great time to compare the SilverStar bulbs to the yellower HIR bulbs. Hopefully down the road I can do the same for the HIDs, testing the different colors in good and bad weather.

I can't find any similar tests like that online anywhere, only claims, so that'll be good to do.

 

I'm gonna have to agree with his mind on this. 4300k is prefered by OEM HIDs because it doesnt cause fatigue, they wouldn't choose that for no reason otherwise it'd be 3000k ricer yellow. C'mon you think BMW, Benz, Acura and other HID equipped vehicles wouldn't come with the best visibility lights for severe weather conditions as headlights? I mean Lexus does use yellow but for foglights not headlights. On rain supposedly 3000k IS better so I'd stick with it for foglights like Lexus has.

 

I have 3k for my fogs. and if i run just them my eyes dont adjust right. since there is no reflection with them. its harder to see farther down the road. I have them in my fogs remember? which are projectors. also the cutoff flicker in them is RED. if you want me to. I can take pics with a yellow hid and a white hid in the same headlight projector for you:-p

 

Also forgot to add: 3000k hids dont have 4000lm. a 3000k hid is a 4300k hid bulb with a yellow filter. to project the color of the light yellow. the LM is actually 100 - 200 less than a regular 4300 bulb:-p

 

Here's a good article about HID's:
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/t...dvantages.html

Note this part of the article:

But regardless... I'm not talking actual yellow light output. Its technically "white" but it appears yellow compared to the bluish look of 4,300k HID's. Actual yellow is in the 2,000k range and becomes more white well below 3,000k.


Also, fog lights aren't meant to project down the road, driving lights are. I would never try driving with just fogs on, you wouldn't be able to see a thing regardless of color.

Phillips makes a 3,000k bulb... no filter or anything on it.


Lastly, like I said above I want to do an actual, real world test with the different colors. That will prove who's right above all else. I don't care if I'm right or wrong... I'm just looking for the best possible light I can get for all road conditions. If I'm wrong then that'll be good because the whiter light output does look better.

 

hehe. Yeah if you want I can take pics for you of both 3k and 6k with my e46 projectors. i got both. I bought the 3k bulbs for when i have to drive long distances in horrible weather. So if you want ill take pics of 3k and 6k in headlights in regular weather and fog and snow:-p