Hi folks,

I have a 2000 Ranger and 2 questions:

1.) It came with those small flippy side mirrors and I want to replace them with the nicer (and bigger) ones like you see as an option on some of the newer Rangers. I don't want to pay dealer price. Any recommondation to an aftermarket source or retailer for an exact fit? If I decide to go to the boneyard to get a set, what years/makes can I use to swap them out?

2.) I want to get some better and brighter headlights for my truck as well. I have seen many different manufactuers, but what is a good quality light bulb that will help with better vision.

Thanks in advance for all replies.

Best,

Bob

 

as far as for the mirrors..i cant give you much info there..but as far as for the headlights..silvania silverstars...hopefully i was able to help ya a bit...

Anthony

 

Thanks Anthony,

I was actually looking at those Silverstars...what experience do you have with them? Are they much brighter, etc like the package says? I want something that will give me an immediate improvement as I travel a lot of unlit back roads. Great hearing from you.

Best,

Bob

 

There are numerous auctions on eBay for Ranger mirrors. Search for "ranger mirror." I personally replaced the flimsy "flag" style mirrors on my 99 Ranger with Street Scene mirrors. See my homepage for pics.

As for headlight bulbs, the Silverstar is a popular choice. I considered buying them but decided against it after further research. Check out the link below. It is a very informative and well-written post about the Silverstars and blue-tinted bulbs in general. It is definately a must read for anyone considering "upgrading" their headlamp bulbs.

http://www.talkaboutautos.com/group/...es/525825.html

 

Have you thought about adding driving lights?

 

I have many experiences with different headlights in my Bronco II. I started off with the plain halogens nothign fancy, but wanted that cool blue look, so I spent $30 on those and they were brighter than standard halogen, but they weren't bright enough. Every one around me has the HID lights so mine seemed dim, so I went out to find the best bulb and researched on lumens and the wattages and the gasses that fill the bulb, and I found the Silverstar's to be the best, other than a few Japanese lights, that use less wattage, but put out a brighter light than the Silverstars, but they're illegal and not DOT approved, and cost about $90 a pair. But I bought the Silverstar's and noticed a huge improvement even over the bluish lights. Then upgraded to diamond cut lenses, instead of that frosted over headlights, now they're like glass, and are almost as bright as the HID's.

 

Hey kontai69...that was a very informative link you posted. Making me do the double take on getting Silverstars! Thanks for throwing that into the discussion, was good info!

 

Your welcome. I came across that article when a Google-searched the Silverstars. It was written by Daniel Stern, who appears to be an automotive lighting guru. If you want to read more from him, check out his webpage...
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/t...lbs/bulbs.html

From what I learned from Stern's articles, if you want the best, most intense bulb, the Sylvania Xtravision (XV) is the way to go. The XV is the exact same bulb as the Silverstar but doesn't have the blue tint on the glass. The XV's intensity is higher than the Silverstar since the latter's blue coating cuts down on the total light output by filtering out the yellow spectrum of the total light emitted from the filament. This is what produces the "whiter" light associated with the Silverstars. Most people perceive this "whiter" light as being "brighter," when in reality it usually is not the case. The subjective nature of light brightness accounts for the large variation in opinions regarding Silverstars or any other blue-tinted aftermarket bulb. I've read alot of people saying that the difference between stock and aftermarket bulbs is like "night and day," while others say they see no discernable difference. Light intensity, on the other hand, is objective and quantifiable using a light meter.

From this info, if you want the most light intensity for your money and don't care for the trendy "HID" look, the Xtravision is the way to go. The run about 1/2 the price of Silverstars. But keep in mind that the higher output filament in both the XV and Silverstars will reduce bulb longevity when compared to a "stock" bulb.

I have no first hand experience, but Sylvania's own website states the longevity of the Silverstar to be only 1 year. Here is a quote taken verbatim from Sylvania's own website...

"The life expectancy of a SilverStar halogen light source is dependent on the driver’s use of the lights, which vary by season, time of day and number of miles driven. We estimate the SilverStar halogen lights to have a life span of up to one year under average driving conditions."

http://www.sylvania.com/ConsumerProd...skedQuestions/

IMO, $35-40 for a set of bulbs that lasts UP TO one year doesn't seem like a good deal. I'm still running my original stock bulbs after 6 years.

 

Thanks for all your quick replies. In reference to the bulb research, and great research it is I believe, I think that I will purchase the Sylvania Xtravision as recommended. And at sometime in the sprind I will look into the diamond lenses, as they seem to have good reviews as well. Again, thanks for your time. This is a great forum to belong to!

Bob