they are deffinately not even close to being worth the money u pay for them. I was pulled over for my lights being too blue, so i decided to go out and try the silverstars. I read on hear many good things so i went out and got them, only to see there less then satisfying light output.

heh my stock bulbs were brighter then these POS

ah well time to go get a HID kit

 

I agree, i have them and i think they s**k!

 

What lights did you have that were too blue???

 

coo ill avoid them

 

I have them and dont have any issues with them at all. What are the brightest 9004 bulbs you can get? I have silverstars and 4200k cyrstal hyperwhites which are pretty bright, are there any higher ones like 4500k??
and is there any reason for the foggy headlights, why were they made like that instead of clear like the 97+ cars?
Justin

 

No, the class just needs to be cleaned. The 97s up are just plastic....

 

Do you guys have your EYES OPEN when evaluating these bulbs? How can you say that the stock bulbs are brighter? I am not saying that these turn night into day, but come on, put the pipe down and be realistic...

I guess those of us who don't like to p!$$ off other drivers (and the police) by running unsafe and illegal lights will just have to settle for "POS" bulbs like the silverstars...which are as bright as you can be, legally. You had illegal blue bulbs that were obviously unsafe due to color and/or output. Not really a legitimate basis for comparison. Hey, I can have bright lights too. I will just duct tape some spotlights to my a pillars and run those all over town.

Be realistic. Do a search and you will find that of the LEGAL lights that are not HIDs, SilverStars are the bulb of choice.

 

I currently have 1 Silverstar in my right headlight because my PIAA blew last week. I still have the other PIAA in the left one to evaluate them, and the Silverstar is a whiter blighter bulb than even the Superwhites. No they arent even close to HID but then again, NO regular bulb is. Your not going to get the look of a $350+ HID system out of a pair of bulbs that cost between $15 and $50 a pair. Just not going to happen. I like the Silverstars alot and am putting the other one in this weekend.

 

The higher the color temp the less lumens a bulb produces with the same wattage. Silverstars are a 45/65 bulb with a color temp of 4000K. That means less lumens of light then a 45/65 bulb with a color temp of 3600K. And it's very noticable, especially on wet or dark pavement.

If you want to see where your going with our $hitty 9004 system, get bulbs with the highest lumens of light, not higher color temps!

HID systems can produce 3x the lumens then Halogen bulbs with the same power consumption. They can produce the higher color temp yet output enough lumens of light to light up the road. You cannot do that with any Filement bulb.

Don't buy any 9004 bulb with any sort of blue tint to it, this includes PIAA. If you want to see better, get a bulb that produces the most lumens of light.

I've had almost every bulb you can think of in my car. The Silverstars "Look Nice" but on the road every other car outshined mine on the road. Looked like my lights were off.

The best bulb I've ever used so far is the Sylvania Xtravision, I keep on putting them back in over and over again. Those bulbs shine as bright or brighter in some cases then some Halogen based systems on other cars. You can see that on the road as you dirve, verses the Silverstars which you cannot see on the road as good as other cars Halogen systems. It's very clear to see the difference as you drive at night.

Deezo was right, at $20/bulb, they aren't worth it.

 

I cannot argue with your technical assessment, but I disagree with your statement that the bulbs are not good at illuminating the road in front of you. While I have not tried the Xtravisions, I have been happy with the increased visibility (v. stock bulbs) from the SilverStars.

Just my opinion. At least I have a cheaper recommendation (Xtravisions) for when these go out.

 

Tom, you had the brightest of bright when you had your HID kit. Why did you go back to crappy 9004's if you are looking for the most lumens to light the road?

Also, what color are the Xtravisions: yellow like stock, pure white, or white with a hint of blue?

 

I've been extremely pleased with my Silverstars as well. I must agree, they don't seem to put the light down on the road as well as some bulbs, but illuminating objects that dart in front of you is very noticable. Just my .02 worth.

David

 

Go on ebay and order the 9004 krypton bulbs. They are really nice and it costs $20 altogether for the bulbs and shipping.
Maybe I can use sean97se's camera and post pics of my headlights and let you see them.

 

my camera sucks at night, it needs a light source as good as the sun. It doesnt even work indoors at midday. But we can try.

 

I just put in a pair of silverstars and all night I kept checking to make sure my lights were even on! If it weren't for the reflection of the car directly in front of me I could have sworn I was driving with my lights off. Oh well, you never know unless you try.

 

Were they on? Were your eyes open?

I don't see how you guys cannot see w/ SilverStars...

 

Same here bro! I returned to my regular Sylvania X-travision. Oh I got mad and gave Fridde a call, hello HIDs! Now I am stuck with $40 worth of useless bulbs. I hate being a sucker but I hope the next person reads this and not buy those , low output light . I do admit , they are White , with no Light!

 

Did you try reaiming your headlights so they hit the ground?

 

I've been using the Sylvania Xtravision's in my car for about a year now. Very satisfying light output. They aren't close to HIDs but are the best bulb I've used in my Max.

The are also highly recommended by Daniel Stern (lighting expert).

 

Tom, I think I remember reading somewhere that the lumen output of the Silverstars was the same as the Phillips Blue Vision. IMO, they're the brightest and whitest halogens out there.

I have also tried the Xtravisions and didn't notce much of an improvement.

I'm thinking that we're getting different results because of our electrical system. People really need to get their grounding wires cleaned up and get everything back up to factory spec. The Coolblues that were once on the 5-speed Max are now on the auto Max that we own, and I don't remember them being as dim when they were originally on the 5-speed.

A tip that I received from a fellow member, but forgot his username:

Run a 12-16 AWG wire directly from the negative battery post to the ground wire of each headlamp harness. I'm pretty sure that they're black wires on both sides becuase the other two wires on either side are all uniquely colored. Well, since now you provide a direct (or even supplemental) source of power from the battery, your lamps will light up optimally.

 

Makes sense to me.

 

i dont know how any of u can say its brighter then stock,its the same wattage as stock.

i went out and bought some 80/85 with a upgraded harness

when u put paint on a bulb it will NEVER increase your light output, it doesnt FILTER out anything, it makes it harder for u to see

HID's are the only way were gonna come close to a decent light output for our cars

 

Higher quality filament. It is like amplifiers for a car stereo- How can one put out more power than another? Better components inside. Same with bulbs.

Your upgraded harness is a good idea, though.

 

heh

 

My headlights are perfectly aimed. The problem I came across was that all the other cars around me and all the street lights just overpowered mine. The next day I took out the lights, cleaned them and put them back in but it was the same deal. I had my wife drive behind me so I could really get a chance to see what they looked like and they were a hell of a lot different looking than the oem bulbs, they were a lot whiter. I like they way they look appearance wise, and I even like how they look from behind the wheel, it's just that they do not illuminate the road the same.

 

Did that not make sense to you?

 

Thats exactly what I saw.
I agree 100%. I actually can't believe that they are DOT approved. They look great, but perform terrable, probably the worst light output on the road I've seen yet.

 

Totally agree with you. I am very disappointed with these bulbs, but call me a perfectionist; I was also equally disappointed with my PIAA Extreme Whites. I am now re-convinced that looks does not equal performance!

 

Although I have Philips Bluevisions in both my fog and head lights, I must admit that around other traffic/street lights my headlihgts seem to all but disappear.

Question is, apart from a HID kit, what to do about it?

On another note my 9004 bluevision bulbs do not match my H3 bluevision. The only difference is I picked up the 9004s from WalMart but ordered the H3 Bluevisions on-line from England

Moral -> I give up..!

 

Go buy a set of Sylvania Xtravisions at K-Mart, Autozone or just about any other automotive supply location. For 15 bucks, there the brightest H-A-L-O-G-E-N bulb out there.

 

This is going to be long, so skip if you wish not to read.

Call Freddie, that is what I did . I have orderded a 7000k , HID kit. I should be picking it up on Friday. I have scraped up whatever money I had and made my decision. I hope that this is not a typical "ME", wasting my money to get what I was promised. I am so sick of companies promising of performance products, but fail to deliver, at the expense of my money (and time). PIAA is at the top of my list of being one such company, but ironically Sylviana (who I have allways trusted)have also just dispointed me with their "Silvestars".

I am currently running Sylviana X-travision. This bulb is no diffrent that Phillips version(?) . I can not remember what Phillips called theirs. I fell for the Silvestars due to that stupid show on TV, HIGH REV-Tuners! The tech. guy on the show gived a demonstration on a WRX, using the silverstars. It looked great (not to mention some on the Org. did recomend them).

I was skeptical even when I was at the register paying for them , but my ignorance got the best of me . Now I have a set of Silverstars in my car trunk , doing nothing for me.I am willing to give to anyone who wish to do a trial , and post pictures and give a witten comparison of other bulbs; so others will not be a fool and waste their time and money .
Thanks for reading .

 

it made sense to me alright

im just laughing at the fact your trying to defend a light that is not even worth selling in a flea market for 8 bucks let alone 50-80 bucks

i will put it side to side with my factory bulb from nissan ,and i will show u that its DIMMER then a factory bulb

 

Real funny, eh?

I'll bite. Post your pics. I already did the same, but I will look @ your version. Silverstars were brighter. Back up your claims w/ pics...

 

Both you guys are missing the point here.
The bulbs do look brighter looking into them. Look at the light shinning on the pavement side by side. Look at your car with Silverstars verses any car next to you with Halogen lights. The difference is night and day. You cannot even see the Silverstars beam, it all but dissapears on the road. Who cares what they look like looking at them.

Check out what they look like on the road, if you can find the light.

 

I have never seen them for more than $45 for the pair, but if you say $80, more power to you.

 

My PIAA's are fine on a dry night, but snow/rain... look out. I might as well drive in the dark.

 

I had done that when I first installed the silverstars (okay, so I checked thepavement AND looked right into them) but it was only dusk. I honestly think that they are as bright or brighter, but I could be suffering a placebo effect. I still have the OEM bulbs- maybe when it gets a little warmer I will do it again in full darkness. I was nto trying to aregu on this thread, but do ao search- not until this fellow started this thread had I seen a single bad comment about silverstars, except for price. Now it all comes out of the woodwork.

 

maybe people didnt want to state they sucked in fear of a flame

you are entitled to your opinion and im entitled to mine. I say they stink due to poor light output and lack of visibility in rain and snow.

it is -15 here so when it gets a TAD warmer i will do the pics.

ROOFTOP pics , Down the street pics, and head on pics

 

You know, at this point, I am inclined to just drop this. BUT in the event that you are correct, you could succeed in saving people money, so when it is convenient for you, go ahead and take the pics and post them. One way or the other, we can settle the issue for future purchasers.

 

I too fell victim to the marketing hype of the Silverstars. I bought them and I love the way they look on the car, and I honestly still feel that they illuminate objects in front of me better than my stock headlights - but if i were to do it all over again, I would probably go with Xtravisions.

There is no question that the blue coating on the Silverstars blocks some of the light, making the output dimmer. The Xtravisions do not have this coating, so all of the light passes through the bulb and onto the road. The Silverstars are 5 watts over stock, but is this difference large enough to overcome the light blocked by the blue coating?

Somebody needs to do a comparison of the Silverstars vs. Xtravisions vs. stock under controlled conditions.

Daniel Stern's lighting site has some interesting things to say about these blue-coated bulbs. Note that the "Silverstars" mentioned in this article are not the same bulbs as the Silverstars sold in North America.
http://lighting.mbz.org/tech/bulbs/blue/good/good.html