Brighter bulbs

[ralphsanders]

Hi all, has anyone used "Brighter bulbs" which claim to be 50% brighter, presumably they are 50% hotter and does this burn off the reflective material from the head lamp lense?

[stats007]

Brightness is a factor of colour temperature, whilst some may run hotter, the infrared portion of light radiation is reduced - there should be no problem with lens discolouration. Osram Silverstars are a typical replcement.

[Parrot of Doom]

You'd get better results running the lights off the battery, via a relay. Not sure how that would work with the software and the 'bulb out' message though.

[ralphsanders]

Thanks Fitted The Osrams Will Let You Know How Much Brighter They Are When Its Dark!

Kind Regards.

R

[reflexboy]

Me got Silverstars in me Silver-star car.....Huge improvement from the poor W202 lenses

[ralphsanders]

Just tried out the new Osram's and wow are they bright. I pitty anyone that gets cought in the main beam they will burn out their retinas.

I recommend them as a very cheap and worthwhile upgrade.
:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[BTB 500]

Yup, and legal too ... unlike fitting the 100W "off road" bulbs you can get in any Halfords :rolleyes:

I have Silver Stars in my R129.

[Vips]

Thanks Fitted The Osrams Will Let You Know How Much Brighter They Are When Its Dark!

Kind Regards.

R
Can you tell me how much you paid and where you got them from?

[ralphsanders]

I got them from Class Cars in Kent (www.classcarskent.co.uk (http://www.classcarskent.co.uk)) 01304 619990 they are £ 25 per set (2 needed) fitted. But if you just purchase the bulbs mail-order, if he will post them, he might negotiate on the price. Good luck!

[stats007]

You can get them for £12.49 delivered on eBay.

[ralphsanders]

Oh Bu**er!

[stats007]

Sorry! Have a look here (http://search.ebay.co.uk/_W0QQsassZkonectaQQhtZ-1)

[v_man]

ralph did you get the blue vision ones?

[Vips]

thanks guys, I'll check both sites out.

[Shude]

I recently bought some bulbs from www.autobulbs.com they seem to have a decent range and they always have some kind of offer or freebie.

[ralphsanders]

No I went for the white'n'bright!

[v_man]

Ok cool. Would you say the blue ones are just as bright?

[ralphsanders]

I have never used the blue ones, I am not sure that they are road legal. I would have thought that they are just as bright tho. But on the otherhand blue headlight bulbs are a slippery slope to get onto. Where will it stop, lights under the sills and diff, not to mention a fat ice system!

just kiddin I think Blue ones look good on a silver car, it just when I got them they only had white so no chice!

Have fun!

[IanAlexander2]

You can get them for £12.49 delivered on eBay.
Which is what I did.....and my they are good....:D

[stats007]

Well after I suggested them to you (via BTB 500) I bought some myself! Have yet to fit them, however.

How are the Brembos?

[Shude]

I have never used the blue ones, I am not sure that they are road legal.
The Philips "BlueVision" bulbs are just white, the light does not look blue at all.

[Alex Argent]

Sorry! Have a look here (http://search.ebay.co.uk/_W0QQsassZkonectaQQhtZ-1)

Nice lead stats007!

Just ordered 2 lots of SilverStars from them. One H1 pair for main beam and one H7 pair for dipped. £12.49 and £16.49 respectively delivered free. Good value I'd say. I'll let you have my thoughts once they're up and running.

Alex

[stats007]

Can you get them for sidelights or not worth it? Mine look a bit too yellow. Dipped are Xenons so quite a contrast.

[Satch]

Can you get them for sidelights or not worth it? Mine look a bit too yellow. Dipped are Xenons so quite a contrast.

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=24174

[IanAlexander2]

How are the Brembos?


They keep stopping me........:bannana:

[jj_22]

Have used the 50% Brighter Osram Silver Star bulbs in my SEAT Toledo and now my W208 CLK and been mightily impressed by them. However they are beaten into the ground by the Xenon lights on my wifes A3 !! One on the most worthwhile options if you are buying a new Merc. Still the Silver Stars a close second to those purchasing pre-loved cars. £18 for H7's in Swathling Auto Spares in Southampton (darn cheap for a little independant and considerably cheaper than the Halfords own brand stuff)

[stats007]

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=24174

Thanks Satch - I was hoping for Silver Stars to match the main beam - do we have an 'H' code for sidelights if H1 are main and H7 are dipped?

[GregE240]

What bulb fits in the R129 SL? Is it H4?

1990 car.

Thanks,
Greg

[stats007]

I suppose it depends what headlights you have - main beam are H1 on mine - I have Xenons for dipped so don't know about those.

[Shude]

H4 bulbs are combined dip/beam, H7 and H1 bulbs are single function bulbs.

Sidelights are usually 5 watt wedge fitment aka "peanut" style bulb.

[stats007]

£3.75 for Osram 5W Cool Blue Sidelights (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/OSRAM-W5W-COOL-BLUE-Sidelight-Bulbs-Pair_W0QQitemZ8046556804QQcategoryZ72233QQrdZ1QQcm dZViewItem)

[Shude]

I paid nothing for my whiter sidelight bulbs when I bought some silvervision indicators from powerbulbs :)

[BTB 500]

Yup I got a free pair of sidelight bulbs with my Silver Stars, from Power Bulbs.

[stats007]

How much were they in total?

Edit:

Powerbulbs (http://www.powerbulbs.co.uk/) do H1 Silver Stars for £18.45 with free sidelights. Still cheaper on eBay :)

[Flyer]

Well, how topical! One of my headlight bulbs failed whilst we were in Newquay at the weekend. I tried to find a Halfords yesterday, but couldn't find one anywhere between Newquay and Bristol (and my low oil level warning came on, heading down Porlock Hill). And then I find this thread ...

Looking on the Powerbulbs site, it shows a H7 as the low and high beam bulb. I have the failed one in my hand and it is indeed a H7, so I could just order a H7.

If I wanted to replace the sidelights as well, does anyone know if that would be a H7 as well? EDIT: looks like that would be a W5W.

Shude, the indicator bulbs you bought, were they the PY21W type? Presumably, this is a standard fitting? Quite like the look of the SilverVision ones.

Has anyone tried the PowerBulbs PowerPlus bulbs? They are having a BOGOF offer at the minute, so could get both the main and low done for £25.

Funny, never given my bulbs a second thought before the weekend :D

[Shude]

Shude, the indicator bulbs you bought, were they the PY21W type? Presumably, this is a standard fitting? Quite like the look of the SilverVision ones.
Yes, I bought two packs of the silvervisions and got bluevision sidelights for free. Powerbulbs always have some deal or other on.

The silvervisions don't look as silver as they used to but have the same effect.

I recently recovered all the bulbs from my old headlamp units so I have lots of spare H7s and a few spare H1s so bulbs aren't a problem for me right now ;)

[uumode]

I was disappointed when I fitted Osram Silverstar to my W210, it was no brighter than the existing fitment. (perhaps it depends if you have a really healthy battery to supply enough juice).

As it was no brighter, I left the old unblown bulb in as it looked like a right hassle trying to get the offside bulb out! (supposed to replace in pairs).

On my Polo Osram Silverstar is subjectively brighter than the old std fit bulbs (but it won't burn out your retinas) - perhaps it depends heavily on the car's circuits?

[uumode]

Slightly off topic, I often see old bangers, G,H,J etc reg, shamby unlooked after bodywork, with a slightly misaligned headlamp, but with an absolutely intense retina blinding light. I'm sure these can't be more expensive 50% brighter lights :crazy:

[BTB 500]

The standard headlights lights on my VW Sharan (you can't specify xenons with 4Motion - wonder why?) are excellent, so I didn't bother replacing those. But the Silver Stars were definitely an improvement on my R129.

[big x]

I was disappointed when I fitted Osram Silverstar to my W210, it was no brighter than the existing fitment. (perhaps it depends if you have a really healthy battery to supply enough juice).

As it was no brighter, I left the old unblown bulb in as it looked like a right hassle trying to get the offside bulb out! (supposed to replace in pairs).

On my Polo Osram Silverstar is subjectively brighter than the old std fit bulbs (but it won't burn out your retinas) - perhaps it depends heavily on the car's circuits?

I've measured the Siverstars with a lightmeter and they are exactly (within 1/10 th of a stop) 50% brighter than the normal OE Osrams in a W202.Impressive.http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/m444uk/dance.gif
I was comparing them to normal Osram bulbs today and funnily enough everything on the hardware side looks identical apart from the actual filament.

adam

[BTB 500]

I was comparing them to normal Osram bulbs today and funnily enough everything on the hardware side looks identical apart from the actual filament.

Aren't they filled with a different gas?

[BigBenz]

Hi,
Thought I'd recommend www.consumabulbs.com :bannana: very competitive prices, easy to use selection system and reliable fast service. I had to return a Silver Star bulb (faulty manufacture) and Simon sent the replacement before he received the faulty bulb back.:D
Nige

[Flyer]

Yes, I bought two packs of the silvervisions and got bluevision sidelights for free. Powerbulbs always have some deal or other on.

The silvervisions don't look as silver as they used to but have the same effect.

I recently recovered all the bulbs from my old headlamp units so I have lots of spare H7s and a few spare H1s so bulbs aren't a problem for me right now ;)
Ordered from PowerBulbs on Tuesday, arrived Wednesday morning. Went for the Philips VisionPlus (H7) and Philips SilverVision (PY21W) for the indicators and got the sidelights (Philips BlueVision) free. Not sure what the blue will look like, but can't complain for free :)

[BTB 500]

Not sure what the blue will look like, but can't complain for free :)

Yup I put them in the car as spares, may try them one day if I get the time!

[Shude]

Not sure what the blue will look like, but can't complain for free :)
They are blue to look at but the light output is slightly whiter than normal.

[Flyer]

Well, fitted all the bulbs, except the BlueVision. They have a W5W fitting, which is obviously wrong. Looks like it should be a H6W fitting. Nick, did you ask for a H6W bulb (presuming your sidelights are the same as mine) on the free offer?

[Shude]

Well, fitted all the bulbs, except the BlueVision. They have a W5W fitting, which is obviously wrong. Looks like it should be a H6W fitting. Nick, did you ask for a H6W bulb (presuming your sidelights are the same as mine) on the free offer?
I didn't ask for anything! Have you compared bulbs with the current ones?

[Flyer]

I didn't ask for anything! Have you compared bulbs with the current ones?
Yep, totally different:

Pretty sure this is what's in now (H6W):
http://www.powerbulbs.co.uk/uploads/images_categories/99.jpg

This is what they have sent (W5W):
http://www.powerbulbs.co.uk/uploads/images_categories/80.gif

They say W5W fits 95% of cars; guess the CLK is in the 5% :rolleyes:

[l5foye]

Being a cheapskate, I fitted Ring Xenons at £10 ! The blurb says they are up to 60% brighter than usual fitments. They certainly seem to be brighter.

[Spinal]

Out of curiosity, what WOULD putting a set of 100W/130W bulbs into the high-beam slots of a W202 do to the electrics? (needless to say, these wouldn't be used on the road in the UK... in certain countries (like the one I come from :p) EXTREMELY powerfull high beams can be quite handy...)

Michele

[Ted]

If you drove them via a relay, it shouldnt be a problem - I don't know how you would defeat the bulb failure warning though.

You would also have to consider how the headlamp would cope with twice the amount of heat generated.

[Spinal]

If you drove them via a relay, it shouldnt be a problem - I don't know how you would defeat the bulb failure warning though.

You would also have to consider how the headlamp would cope with twice the amount of heat generated.

Thanks, the things I was most concerned with was the heat and the excess load on the alternator. As I'm counting an extra 150W, I'm guessing the alternator will hold it (I've seen much more power hungry appliances running off my car :p); but that doesn't take into account the heat... hmm...

I guess I'll go with 55W bulbs... need to do some research on which are "best" though... ;)

[Howard]

Don't know if its any help Michele , but in days gone by i used to run 100/130 w 's in all the lights on my Mk1 Golf Cabrio ....

:devil: 1/2 a Kw used to light the road up nicely , and on cold nights you could keep warm by standing in front of the car with the lights on main beam , or blister paint at 10 yards ( not really :rolleyes: ) ...... didn't seem to damage the lights at all , but then they weren't Mercedes lights ....

[Spinal]

Don't know if its any help Michele , but in days gone by i used to run 100/130 w 's in all the lights on my Mk1 Golf Cabrio ....

:devil: 1/2 a Kw used to light the road up nicely , and on cold nights you could keep warm by standing in front of the car with the lights on main beam , or blister paint at 10 yards ( not really :rolleyes: ) ...... didn't seem to damage the lights at all , but then they weren't Mercedes lights ....


LOL! Now, you AREN'T comparing a merc to a vw, are you? :p I have a feeling that merc-owners would have something to say :p What worries me most is the reflector melting... I do believe there is plastic behind... (and something about a bulb-blown indicator comign on...). As soon as I gather a good list of bulbs out there, I'll post a poll to see which ones to get ;)

Michele

[cheshirecat]

to save the risks involved I have just ordered Philips new +80's but standard wattage, due in the next couple of weeks

[Spinal]

Ok, I have a quick and dirty list... anyone know of any other bulbs?
(Some have prices, some wattage, some both, some none...)
Osram Cool Blue (55w)
Osram Silverstar Brighter Light (55W)
Unknown 130W bulb (6.71 for 2) http://www.consumabulbs.com/files/bdet.php?id=85
Ring Rally Sport (130W) (19.99)
Ring Ultra Xenon H1 (Pair) + FREE SIDELIGHTS (19.99)
Ring Ice Blue Bulbs (12.99)
Philips Vision Plus (17.50)
Philips Blue Vison ULTRA(24.99)
Philips Rally H1 100W (23.99)
PIAA Platinum White Bulbs (48.99)
PIAA Plasma Spark Blue (55W)(66.99)
PIAA Extreme Plus Bulbs (66.99)

[Howard]

I have Silverstars in the whale, and very pleased i am with them ....

[BTB 500]

Yup I have Silverstars in my R129 - big improvement for not much money.

I added halogen spotlights to a Fiat 126 I had many years ago ... those and the headlights together pulled more current than the maximum output of the weedy little dynamo (not alternator) it had. That's OK in short doses - you are just discharging the battery.

I had rather more fun with a Vauxhall Viva that I also added spotlights to. One night I was down in Cornwall with my mates, hammering along a sunken lane in the middle of the night - spotlights etc. blazing. Unknown to me, the main supply from battery to fusebox had a thermal trip (circuit breaker) in it - which operated at a certain current, based on a bi-metal strip heating up (so not very precise). Anyway I switched the heated rear windscreen on and guess what - everything electrical suddenly went and we were charging along at about 60 in pitch black :eek:

Longest second or two in my life until the breaker reset (they are a bit like a glorified indicator relay) and everything came back on.

[Howard]

:eek:

When i lived down in cornwall, we used to flick all the lights off for a second as we approached a junction or crossroads or tight corner , so we could see if we needed to slow down for it or if we could safely drop onto the other side of the road to take the corners fast ..... :rolleyes:

Its horribly scary , i agree

[Spinal]

:eek:

When i lived down in cornwall, we used to flick all the lights off for a second as we approached a junction or crossroads or tight corner , so we could see if we needed to slow down for it or if we could safely drop onto the other side of the road to take the corners fast ..... :rolleyes:

Its horribly scary , i agree

LMAO! One begs to wonder, did everyone do that? If so, wouldn't both cars have their light off? :p

As for bulbs, I got a pair of silverstars for my dipped beams(55W) and one of those cheapo 130W halogen things to fiddle with on my high beams (I always have the random halfords 50% brighter bulbs I had in there before if needed).

I tried them out, only to realise something as I flicked on the high beam switch... fuses! A fizz later, I need to goto halfords to buy some fuses. Out of curiosity, if I were to fit an... oh-uhmm 10A instead of a 7.5A fuse (if my physics serves me right, which it rarely does :p) what adverse effects could this have on the car? Are the wire's thick enough to handle the extra drain? I know the alternator can handle it (in my more immature days I had a 400W amp in the boot with a 1farad capacitor) so an extra 150W shouldn't affect that too much, but I'm worried about the wiring loom. Heat shouldn't be an issue as being high beams, they will be used (outside of the UK and off road only of course :p) only for a few seconds at a time.

A final query, what fog lights does everyone have? Is it worth upgrading those to a 50% brighter bulb? Do yellow-tinter brighter bulbs even exist?

Michele

[1998K]

Dear Michele, I'm already 3 year I've installed 100W bulbs, I've installed suitable relay and bigger size cable with dedicate fuse. 12V supply is from the engine bay directly.

In the factory W202 glass it seems there are enough room to avoid any plastic melting, also the H1/H4 connectors are as from factory, I've modified only the main supply, to the headlight housing itself.

As soon I fire the mainbeam, of course the "bulb failure" light up, but I utilize as referece that main beams are on.


I'm wondering if this modification is possible to W203 class.

Marco

[jdrrco]

Silverstar seem to be the best to go for, reading the responses on here.

Anyone know which size/set would I need for the 190?

[jdrrco]

Ok, found them - H4s.

£11.64 on ebay inc postage!!

[tim.mcd]

Philips SilverVision (PY21W) for the indicators and got the sidelights (Philips BlueVision) free. :)

Was the indicator upgrade worthwhile? I haven't seen that mentioned before. Have just upgraded to 50% brighter H1 and H7's.

Tim

[Flyer]

Was the indicator upgrade worthwhile? I haven't seen that mentioned before. Have just upgraded to 50% brighter H1 and H7's.
Yep, if only because it gets rid of the 'fried egg' look. They just hide the colour of the bulb so that instead of being orange, they appear chrome. There's some photos on a thread somewhere showing 'before' and 'after'.

ETA: found it: http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=25430&highlight=indicator+bulbs