Anyone know anything about headlights?

[jmendez29]

A few months ago, maybe as much as 4 months, one of my headlights on my new (used) car went out. No big deal, I'll just get replacements. Being a new car, and not knowing how old the lights were, I decided to replace both of them so that I can know the history of the parts. So I went to an online forum for my car to find out recommendations on lights. After a bunch of research, I decided to buy the Sylvania Xtravision bulbs. I've had the Silverstar lights before and didn't really care for them, but hoped that these would perform better, and they did, so I didn't complain.

Two days ago, one of my buddies told me that one of my bulbs was burned out. I haven't been driving much after dark lately and I have daytime running lights so that's how he noticed and I didn't. So I replaced the bulb, while being mildly annoyed that I seem to have the same problem as the Silverstars. Now this morning, I saw my lights flicker a little bit after starting my car. I checked my headlights and sure enough, the other bulb burned out. WTF? Seriously? Can sylvania make a decent headlight bulb?

So the point of the story, can anyone make a decent recommendation on a quality headlight bulb? I don't mind paying a little extra if I know that I won't have to bother with it for a while.

 

[TXCrash]

I've found that the more you pay for a bub the better it looks and the sooner it burns out.

Sylvania at least used to have a chart on the back of their packages. The longest lasting bulb from them is the cheapest "normal" bulb.

 

[jmendez29]

I've found that the more you pay for a bub the better it looks and the sooner it burns out.

Sylvania at least used to have a chart on the back of their packages. The longest lasting bulb from them is the cheapest "normal" bulb.

The issue that I have with this is that even if I bought their most expensive bulb (which I didn't) I still shouldn't have to change my headlights more frequently than my motor oil. I was always under the impression that Sylvania made a pretty good product, so it never occurred to me that this would be a problem. But so far, two for two on a crap product. I've had the same issue with both of the bulbs that I bought from them and I took all the same precautions with these bulbs that I did with every other Halogen that I've ever installed.

 

[devanmc]

I've found that the more you pay for a bub the better it looks and the sooner it burns out.

Sylvania at least used to have a chart on the back of their packages. The longest lasting bulb from them is the cheapest "normal" bulb.

+1

also, if your looking for "more light". May i ask what size/style bulb your car uses. On some cars it is possible to install the high beam bulbs in the low beam. which will get you quiet abit more light. While still aiming to toward the ground, and not blinding everyone.

 

[Homercidal]

Are you driving a Kia? My FIL had basically replaced ALL of the outside lights on the MIL's car before she got in a wreck. Seemed like every time I went down there we were pulling a light out and changing the bulb.

 

[jafo28]

You're not touching the glass portion of the bulb when you install it are you? If so, this with kill the life of a headlight bulb.

 

[jmendez29]

+1

also, if your looking for "more light". May i ask what size/style bulb your car uses. On some cars it is possible to install the high beam bulbs in the low beam. which will get you quiet abit more light. While still aiming to toward the ground, and not blinding everyone.

I can't say that I remember the size of the bulb, so I had to look it up. It's an H7. I've never tried mixing the highs and lows so that shouldn't be an issue. It's not really something I'd be willing to try either.

Are you driving a Kia? My FIL had basically replaced ALL of the outside lights on the MIL's car before she got in a wreck. Seemed like every time I went down there we were pulling a light out and changing the bulb.

Heh. That's gotta be frustrating.

 

[nutty_gnome]

Yeah the Kia-mobiles are known to eat lights and batteries at an extraordinary rate. Mine sure does.

 

[jmendez29]

You're not touching the glass portion of the bulb when you install it are you? If so, this with kill the life of a headlight bulb.

I've had the same issue with both of the bulbs that I bought from them and I took all the same precautions with these bulbs that I did with every other Halogen that I've ever installed.

This would include not touching the glass part of the bulb. And I am also rediculously careful not to touch anything on its way to being installed. In this car, I actually laid out some shop towels as a barrier because the area is pretty cramped for access.

 

[broadbill]

I had the same issue....I changed both my headlight bulbs in April (Low beam on one side was burned out), and just recently one of these new ones just burned out again (lasted about 2 months). In reading about it on the auto forum, there is no rhyme/reason a bulb burning out, so its back to NAPA brand cheapos for me.

 

[E-Mursed]

You might want to bite the bullet and have your electrical system checked...especially the lighting circuits.

Being that it is a used car, you might have an underlying problem.

 

[GNBrews]

Have you considered switching to xenon HID? The bulbs last soo much longer, and the light output is phenomenal. There are retrofit kits available on eBay for approx. $40, in a myriad of color temperatures.

 

[Im_Lars]

I have owned a repair shop for over 20 years and sold Silverstars and other brighter bulbs for about 6 months. Almost everyone of them came back burnt out to soon. We contacted Sylvania and they told us to tell are customer that the best they could get would be about 100 hours. That's the best, the average is more like 50 hours. Try putting stock bulbs in and I think you will be much happier with the longer life.

 

[SwampassJ]

 

[pauljmccain]

Just use regular bulbs. Sylvania's stuff is way overrated. If you're a DIYer, install an HID conversion kit.

(Coming from someone who owns one of the biggest automotive lighting retailers in the country)

 

[jetmechG550]

Your DRL are part of the problem as well if you have "auto" on for your lighting. Many aftermarket HID kits will specifically say to not use the auto feature as it can cause premature failure. Unless DRL are required by law in your state, then I would go to the dealer or another shop and have the feature disabled.

 

[pauljmccain]

Aftermarket HID kits won't work at all with DRLs- they work by pulsing the halogen bulb quickly, which for halogen simply makes the bulb appear dim. But with HIDs, it just keeps igniting them about 5 times a second. All you need is a warning canceller (basically a fancy capacitor) to equalize the pulsed current. No need to have anything modified or disabled.

 

[lumpher]

maybe there's something simple, like an electrical problem. i bought a 2002, sold it in 2008; never replaced a bulb, and it's lights were on for all 97k miles i drove. i have a 1999 pickup, 96k miles; never replaced the headlights, and they're on all the time the truck is running. i now also have a 2009 kia, never replaced the bulbs. i don't think the problem is bulb-related

 

[bniesen]

Check where the headlights ground to and make sure its not corroded. Also check the resistance between your headligt leads to ground. Check to see that the connection to your headlights are not corroded, this would be a clear sign that you have a ground issue OR you have a seal issue with your lightbulb connection. I had the same issue and totaly changed both sides of the light bulb connection and I have'nt had a problem since.

 

[jmendez29]

I have owned a repair shop for over 20 years and sold Silverstars and other brighter bulbs for about 6 months. Almost everyone of them came back burnt out to soon. We contacted Sylvania and they told us to tell are customer that the best they could get would be about 100 hours. That's the best, the average is more like 50 hours. Try putting stock bulbs in and I think you will be much happier with the longer life.

Thanks for the info, this helps me feel better about my decision. For now, I just bought the el crapo cheap bulbs. Unfortunately, all I can find is sylvania, but its the cheap ones. At some point, I'll probably get the HIDs but that's when I get more chance to learn about them and what I have to do to my car to change over.

maybe there's something simple, like an electrical problem. i bought a 2002, sold it in 2008; never replaced a bulb, and it's lights were on for all 97k miles i drove. i have a 1999 pickup, 96k miles; never replaced the headlights, and they're on all the time the truck is running. i now also have a 2009 kia, never replaced the bulbs. i don't think the problem is bulb-related

Ok, so you had good experiences. I had bad. At this point there's not a lot anyone can say that will change my mind about "premium" headlight bulbs. I had a 1998 Dodge Ram that I put them in and they failed way prematurely, and that's without running lights. My current car, 2007 Subaru Legacy, has running lights, but I keep the headlights on at all times anyway because they turn off when I turn the car off. And I forgot to mention my snowmobile that I had put them on. The scariest part about that one was when it failed in the middle of the night in the woods. I made it out fine after I slowed down but until then, it scared the crap out of me. And of all of these vehicles, none of them had any issue with electrical. And just for the sake of looking into it, I don't see anything wrong with the current one. Even the grounding bolts still look brand new.

Sylvania Silverstars just suck and if I could have found any other manufacturer on short notice, I wouldn't have given them any more of my money.

 

[SC_Ryan]

Is your car an 05-06 Subaru Legacy by any chance?