'02 Ranger Edge. What are the best headlight bulbs to replace the stock ones? (*also meaning best bang for the buck). Is there a "yellowing of the lens" issue with stronger bulbs?

(West Coast - Canada).

 

Sylvania SilverStars, if you do a search on this forum for them, there is lots of good reading. best $40 you'l spend.

The yellowing of the lens is from sun not your headlights.

 

Thanks! Do you have an opinion on the PIAA bulbs? (they're $120.00/pair Cdn - ouch).

I just bought some "Optilux Extreme XP" bulbs for my wife's Honda Civic, but I haven't been able to see how they perform due to her work shift right now.

 

That's a lot of money for a set of headlight bulb, PIAA makes a lot of nice stuff but thats just way to much for headlight bulbs. I would consider a set of aux. driving lights from PIAA before spending that much on just bulbs.

 

Ranger lights are notorious for yellowing. Two fixes I've seen are using chrome polish on the outside, and either drilling and then filling two holes in the light to let the water that gets in there out or running a hair dryer/heatgun to dry them out.

 

PIAA StarWhites are one of the best bulbs you can get...but with that price, you might as well save up more for an HID Kit .

The SilverStars are great. The first time I turned them on at night I was very impressed. They are also very bright.

 

Below are very informative and well-written articles about the Silverstars and blue-tinted bulbs in general. It is definately a must read for anyone considering "upgrading" their headlamp bulbs. The info will spark some controversy, seeing how the Silverstars seem to have alot of "fanboys," but I will present them anyway for people to decide for themselves...
http://www.talkaboutautos.com/group/...es/525825.html
More info from the same author...
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/t...lbs/bulbs.html

From what I learned from the above sites, the Sylvania Xtravisions appear to be a better buy than the Silverstars. The Xtravisions are the exact same bulb as the Silverstar but don't have the blue tint on the glass. The Xtravision and Silverstar both utilize a higher output, overdriven filament, but operates at the same wattage as the stock bulb. And despite being identical in construction, the Xtravision'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 blue coating 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. Some people say the difference between stock and Silverstar is like "night and day," while others say they see little difference in brightness. 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 Xtravisions are the way to go. The run about 1/2 the price of Silverstars ($20 vs $40). But keep in mind that the higher output filament in both the Xtravisions and Silverstars will reduce bulb longevity when compared to a "stock" bulb. Here is a quote, taken verbatim, from Sylvania's very 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."
You can see the quote here for yourself...
http://www.sylvania.com/ConsumerProd...skedQuestions/