Stock v/s Sylvania HV's Headlight bulbs

Hi all!


Has anyone had a chance to compare the stock (9003) bulbs in ~98 Civics vs.
the Sylvania 9003HV or any other "upgrade" bulb?

Any preference/suggestions?

Thanks all!


TB

 

If you need more light then what is provided by the factory, you might
think about not driving. If it's a fashion statement, pick something
that doesn't irritate other drivers.

 

Well said...

 

Gentlemen,

I am searching for a civilized upgrade to my Civic's stock bulbs. I ~am~
concerned with how it would affect drivers in the oncoming traffic and am
confident that there exists a replacement that will provide better
illumination than my current bulbs AND keep the light below other drivers'
eye level. I was looking for some direction in this forum, but I am instead
being told to give up driving! A bit too harsh, wouldn't you agree?

My initial question remains unanswered--has anyone come across a (civilized)
upgrade for 9003 bulbs?

Tera BAAP

 

I have replaced the stock 9003 bulbs on my '94 Civic with Sylvania
9003XV and did see some improvement. Halogen bulbs get dimmer with age,
so I do not know how much of the improvement was due to the old age of
the stock bulbs and how much was due to the 9003XV being better than
standard 9003.

I later added Xenarc 1010 auxiliary HID low beams to the car and that
was a dramatic improvement. These are true HID lights and they are DOT
compliant. Aimed correctly they are quite civilized.

One alternative to 9003 bulbs are the Osram Silverstar H4 bulbs. These
are not the same bulbs as the Sylvania Silverstars. The Osram H4 ST is
50% brighter than standard H4 bulbs but are still 60W/55W bulbs. H4 is
the European equivalent to the 9003 bulb and is not tested for DOT
compliance. Check http://www.suvlights.com/ for more info.

 

I was looking for some direction in this forum, but I am instead

Yes, consider posting this question at: rec.autos.driving and ping Daniel
Stern ( http://lighting.mbz.org/ ) with your query. Be teachable...

 

Don't worry about people that post responses that hurt your feelings. Just
remember that most people are nice and you should ignor those that love to
hurt your feelings and feelings of other people. I recently suggested to
several people that has serious problems with their Honda vehicles to take
their vehicles to professional mechanics since it was obvious from their
posts that they had never before ever done any mechanical work on any car.
Some stupid person posted that I should have told those people how to fix
their cars instead of suggesting the hiring of professional mechanics to
fix their cars. He was the only person that complained and I believe
everyone else realized that my advice was great. I paid more attention to
the intelligent people than stupid people llike the person that told you
to stop driving.

 

Well said and kudos to you for taking the highroad. Don't let those
two losers bother you. They obviously have some issues they need to
work out and are taking it out in here. tsk, tsk... They're called
TROLLS and they're the lowest form of life in the newsgroup
communities. Just ignore them.

The others though have already posted good replies, so it still was
worth it for you to post in here.

 

Thank you all, for your input.

Cheers!

 

I also am intersted in upgrading my headlights on my '01 Accord. I
have had night vision problems for years and have, in the past,
upgraded my sealed beam headlights to bulb type "Z" beams.

The lights that blind me as I drive are not on Hondas, they are on
full size pickups and full size SUVs.

 

I researched this question on the Internet including the excellent site
associated with Daniel Stern. There is nothing >legal< available that
will improve the performance of 9005 high beam bulbs. The extra cost
extreme white sort of bulbs will actually supply fewer lumens and have a
shorter life expectancy (though they do look "cool").

http://www.overboost.com/story.asp?id=102

There is additional output available for the 9006 Xtravision, but 1030
lumens as opposed to the standard 1000 lumens is not worth the drive to
Pep Boys.

http://lighting.mbz.org/tech/bulbs/bulb_types/bulb_types.html

 

Ok, so just in case anyone out there (who is searching for a good upgrade
for their H4/9003/HB2 bulbs) wants to know, I have narrowed my choice down
to Osram Silverstars. These are NOT the Sylvania Silverstars that you see
at Pep Boys. These are the made by Sylvania's parent (?) company and are
marketed in Europe. Take a look:
http://www.osram.com/products/automotive/upgrade/silverstar.html

Here's some copmparative info (taken from an earlier post authored by Daniel
Stern):
http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/?http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/product_test/product_test_story.php?id=39917

Here's Mr. Stern's original (and informative) post:
http://www.talkaboutautos.com/group/rec.autos.driving/messages/525825.html

I will be picking them up from Stern's website (http://lighting.mbz.org/)
for $17 each, plus shipping. The website does not feature them but he'll
get them for you if you ask.

I'll keep you all posted about my experience with them...

Good luck!

 

As far as light below other's eyes, the Civic is almost the lowest
thing on the road, so that isn't a problem. The problem is when the
X5's and MDX's have the tiny blue headlights that point straight at
the retinas of compact car drivers. I have tried three sets of "xenon"
replacements from Ebay, two in my Civic, one in my wife's Stratus. All
three died within 6 months. My wife's went out in 3 months within 24
hours of each other, so she had no low beams!!! I would recommend
either Sylvania Silverstar or the PIAA bulbs, as I have heard of many
people running these for over a year with no problems. BTW, I was
running 65/100W bulbs on stock wiring in Oklahoma summers with no heat
issues, so unless you live in Phoenix or Tuscon, you should be fine.

Nate

 

I would agree in principle with the lumens except for one issue. The
human eye does not absorb all colors equally. I can tell you from
personal experience that color of the light DRAMATICALLY affects
visibility. I used to live on the USS Harry S. Truman, and they used
sodium-arc lamps at night because the yellow light would not be as
visible far away, so they could use roughly the same amount of lumens
as the sun gave in the daytime in the hangar bay. You still couldn't
see a thing, it was all washed out and things would fade into the
background. The human eye sees contrast better with light similar in
characteristics to sunlight on overcast days, which in the 6500-8500
Kelvin range. Most headlights are in the 3200K area, with the HID's
being in the 4100K range. The closer to overcast sunlight you can get,
the better you will see, but unfortunately modern technology hasn't
gotten there yet. So, as you can see, lumens is just the tip of the
iceburg. Check out some of the photography sites to see what I mean.
Remember, even though the DIRECT measurement of the headlight might be
at maximum when using a "human eye based" photodetector, that does NOT
mean that the REFLECTED light is at maximum!!!!

http://www.photo.net/photo/edscott/cf000030.htm

Nate