I was browsing on ebay like im sure most of you do. and found these cheap xeion light up grades for my bronco. Has anyone used them or seen if there for real. i keep think about how nice it would be to see and new head lights for these rigs aint cheap.

They just sound to good to be true.

opinions anyone

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...&category=6777

 

I ran these bulbs, or similar, on my '00 Explorer religiously. They are far better than stock and easy to swap out. I paid much more then what they are asking. I purchased mine at a local speed shop for imports.
They are worth every penney IMO. I am considering making the swap to my 86 sealed beams as well. Just need to buy the new housings.

 

Xenon lamp retrofits will be all the rage and the thing to have until the lamps reach the end of their service life. At which point in time they will begin to flicker, turn more green-yellow than your original Halogen cycle lamps, and when they fail will burst with enough force to destroy the reflector in your headlamp assy.. You won't hear about that for a few years to come though because they are relatively new to the automotive industry applications and the one real positive thing that can be said is that they will last for (in many cases) 5-7 thousand hours as opposed to halogen cycle lamps which will only go about 3-4 thousand in a "laboratory" environment.

 

so what are you saying grey that its best to keep the stock headlights then to fittle with something that will explode in du time?? Have you used these type lights before and are giving specific examples or is this just what you have heard??

Thanks

 

I tried these bulbs, and in town were okay. When I got to the dark roads towards my house, they really sucked. I ran them about 3 days, then sold them to a friend.

They are a halogen bulb with a small amount of xenon in the mixture, and the glass is painted blue, purple, green, whatever color you like. The usually blue filter applied to the bulb filters all colors except the blue spectrum. This makes the bulb seem whitish-blue when running them at night, but actually reduces your vision. You are better off with standard Halogen bulbs as far as illuminating the road better due to the more yellow light. True HID systems are excellent with the white light, but they emit 3-4 times as much light as these imitation bulbs.

They tend to be higher wattage, and will draw more current in turn. They have melted plastic reflectors before from the extra heat.

IMO, stay away. Check out this site for an excellent explanation:
http://lighting.mbz.org/

 

adelyser,

Thanks for posting that link. Very informative. So, if I interpret what it said correctly, my vision increase was purely psychological. I disagree with that. I did notice some of the affects in poor weather that they mentioned when I ran "blue" colored bulbs. I ran Xenon clear bulbs in my explorer and felt they gave a very distinct advantage over stock. These were not some unknown company, but purchased through Sylvania-Ostram. They were not available in the US at that time, not sure now. Connections in Europe helps.

Bottom line: "Blue" lights are not effective, some are very bad, some just no better than stock.

 

What I am saying is that Xenon short arc lamps have been used in the entertainment industry for the past 15-20 years. They are not the new thing that auto manufacturers would have you believe. Having worked with the "big brothers" of these lamps, I know a few things about the inherent concerns that come with their use. They are widely used in followspots (spotlights). These fixtures use 1000watt to 7000watt versions of the little things in newer cars.

However they work on the same principal and require tremendous internal pressure and heat to maintain the "arc" that generates the light. The reason these lamps look so "blue" is because there is NO FILAMENT in them. When they age, the arc is not as stable and the Xenon gas that helps to maintain the stability of the arc seeps out of the lamp....just like Halogen gas seeps out of a Halogen lamp over time. When this happens, the anode and cathode (contacts inside the lamp) that the arc jumps from become dirty, and worn from the heat generated by the arc. As they wear, the arc has to jump further...now you are saying "Greystreak, how much further can a 100th or 1000th of an inch make?" Well, you know how much difference a badly gapped spark plug will make. I rest my case. The "yellowing" occurs when the Xenon begins to seep out. When it leaks out something leaks in.....air with oxygen in it which reduces the temp. of the arc and turns it yellow.

The inherent possibility of the lamp exploding is always there. Unlike a Halgen lamp which will merely burn out much faster if you inadvertently touch the quartz envelope of the lamp, a Xenon arc lamp is pressurized from the inside rather than being vaccuum sealed like most other lamps. The manufacturing process requires stuffing as much Xenon into the lamp envelope as possible to maintain the arc. Scratch, or drop one of them and it will NOT IMPLODE like most lamps but EXPLODE. And with a good amount of force. Moreso if the lamp is hot. Now, these little ones may not explode with near the force of their big brothers but the potential for flying quartz is worse if it is being propelled outward rather than being sucked in when the quartz shatters. (The big lamps have been known to blow with enough force to reshape 18 guage sheet metal). Now don't be alarmed, the little guys aren't nearly that powerful but they will fail and possibly embed small bits of hot quartz into your plastic reflector.

Let me temper this entire post with this. These are very long life lamps. Most people who run these lamps will not see these things happen with their headlamps in the length of time they own their cars. The third or fourth owners may. You won't see too many brand new lamps fail. They are much brighter than any incandescent lamp including halogen cycle lamps because they do not rely on the "incandescence" of any metal to generate light. They are basically very well controlled sparks! Maintained sparks, not unlike a welding arc, but sparks nonetheless. I would support their use readily because they are extrememly efficient but I fear that the everyday backyard mechanic will encounter one of these lamps at its worst and they can be very unfriendly to people who don't know how to handle them.

When their big brothers are replaced in spotlights, we wear heavy long sleeves, an apron, a face sheild, and gloves. I have seen what a lamp with an internal pressure of nearly 23 atmospheres can do to the inside of a steel spotlight when it decides to explode. Its enough to temper my judgement when dealing with ANY of these lamps no matter what their size.

Oh and by the way, no your visual acuity was not psychological, there is documented study to support the idea that light nearer the blue end of the spectrum is easier to see by. Why do you think "cool white" fluorescent lamps and mercury vapor lamps are used in warehouses and places of manufacture? They aid in creating a better contrast than the red end of the spectrum. Hence, to light your home or dinner for you and your girl, you use something warm and "redder". It feels warmer, cozier and sheecan't see the flaws as much! They only things you can fool by changing the "color temperature" of a lighting source are cameras. Motion picture cameras and video cameras don't shoot very good pictures in very warm, lighting. There are filters made to deliberately fool the cameras but the human eye isn't so easily tricked. I my line of work we deliberately shift color temperature all the time so that we can use quartz lamps to supplement sunlight outside. Most quartz Halogen lamps burn at about 3200 degrees Kelvin. Sunlight pushes 65-6600 degrees Kelvin we just see them both as "really bright" the camera knows the difference.

My sincere apologies for the length of this reply but this touches on an area that I can actually speak with some real authority. Engine codes and axle shafts are still just a hobby.

 

wow! great info! ANd I think a record post lenghth too!!

Craterjoe.

 

greystreak92,


Excellent post. The only problem is the Xenon replacement bulbs referred to are not true HID xenon bulbs. They are a halogen bulb with a mixture of xenon in the gas. They still have the filament, and work on standard incadescent technology.

I agree with everything you said about the xenon arc bulbs, and they are outstanding in automotive systems. The replacement bulbs with a blue coating on the bulb is what is referred to here, and is a really bad idea. While the headlights seem white or blue, they offer less visability due to the light filtering occuring at the bulb itself. Plain and simple, less light output = less visability.

The reason true xenon arc systems give more visability is because there is much, much more light output from those bulbs, and they only use 35 watts in a typical automotive system. When you apply a blue filter to a bulb, you reduce the amount of light output. This is why they don't really work well as hyped about with the marketing.

If you use the clear xenon mixed replacement bulbs, you will get more light output, and it may seem closer to white, but they won't be blue in color, and they do indeed work well. Some even have real dichroic filters on them, which also work. The Sylvania Xtra vision and Silverstars are both good examples of these bulbs. Wagner also makes a HO bulb with xenon, and is also clear. If you want to upgrade with your existing headlights, use these. If you want seriious light output, purchase a true HID system, which will include new lens assmeblies, bulbs, ballasts, and wiring.

 

Hey adelyser, where would i find those other bulbs that would be a direct replacement. The true hid is way to expensive for me, so those others you suggested sound good. Is there a web site I could view them at.

Thanks for everyones input, this is why I brought this up. They were cheap and from what I hear worthless. even though they are only 12 bucks, ill save that for beer. hehe

later

 

Kemicalburns---I bought my Silverstars about a month ago at Discount Auto Parts. I'm sure Autozone, Kragens and other shops sell them as well. The light is alot whiter than before. As far as better visability, I can see better but not great. To me they were worth the $50 bucks but I still need more light. Which means a couple of Hellas/Piaas/KCs are in my near future.

Brian

 

see I already have the KC's but no place to mount them yet. but there only good on the back roads. its the around town and hwy driving that those newer lights would help out. How do they do in the rain.

 

Napa sells Wagner, and you can find the Sylvania's at Autozone, Checker, and Pep Boys (not sure what's in your area). I put the Silverstars into my Expy, and they are good, but not what I expected. I actually prefer the Sylvania Xtra or Wagner bulbs.

 

Ok now everyone says the "Blue light bulbs are junk". What about the BMW, Lexus, Acura's, ect. The VP where I work had them on his 2003 BMW, they look COOL. Bright BUT definetly BLUE in color. I looked on BMW's web site and the Xeone upgrade costs $500.00. When I had my 83 Porsche 911 I could have bought the H% bulbs but they were NOT blue.
I just like the Blue Bright look. Can I get it for my 92 Bronco?
If so would I have to replace the wiring, relays, ect?

 

There is a true hid kit for your 92, it replaces the wiring and a bulbs, but the kit cost $500.00 . a little to much for my blood. it would **** me off if i hit a deer or something else and busted out the head light .