100 Series - Headlight upgrade possibilities (1 Viewer)

[shocker]

And they actually produce less lumens....

 

[hoser]

I was curious so I checked the manufactures website. Sylvania lists both the standard H1 Halogen bulb and the Silverstar bulb at 1410 Lumens (+/- 210 lm). This is for the LX470, I didn't compare the LC bulbs.

 

[shocker]

I was curious so I checked the manufactures website. Sylvania lists both the standard H1 Halogen bulb and the Silverstar bulb at 1410 Lumens (+/- 210 lm). This is for the LX470, I didn't compare the LC bulbs.

The US marketed Silverstars are basically a halogen bulb with a blue tinting. The blue tinting makes the light look whiter, but actually serves like the blue tint stripe on the top of a windshield: it blocks light.

In other words, the US Silverstars are worthless aesthetic crap.

I say US Silverstars, though, because in Europe, the "Silverstar" name actually means a better bulb. The Osram (same company as sylvania) +50 bulbs I got from Daniel Stern for waaaaay cheaper than the US Silverstars are sold for were the European legit versions. They have no tinting on them at all, and look brighter because they are brighter.

 

[hoser]

Ah, cool. Maybe I'll pick up some Osram Plus 50 bulbs. The whiter light looks nicer but better visibility is what's more important to me.

 

[shocker]

Ah, cool. Maybe I'll pick up some Osram Plus 50 bulbs. The whiter light looks nicer but better visibility is what's more important to me.

AFAIK the only place you'd be able to get the good bulbs is online, from a place like danielsternlighting.com. He doesn't have much of an internet commerce site, though, it's more of a call and order thing.

But, very good service, very reliable.

If memory serves, the H1 lights were less than 10 a piece, which is cheaper than the Silverstars you see on the shelf in US parts stores.

The HIRs are a bit more, like around 40/per. But their life is equal to that of a standard bulb, so it's a one-time cost for all intents and purposes that reaps major rewards.

 

[Landpimp]

Daniel Stern is THE man, I have been chating with him all last week, he had the odd H-4 with the P45T base I needed(for the Kioto E-codes), and check this out, he found them with the yellow(correct for this light) bulbs. He also found me some bulbs for this little OEM fj40 fog lights. I have about $200 worth of vintage bulbs on the way from him.

This guy KNOWS his stuff!!!!!

John

AFAIK the only place you'd be able to get the good bulbs is online, from a place like danielsternlighting.com. He doesn't have much of an internet commerce site, though, it's more of a call and order thing.

But, very good service, very reliable.

If memory serves, the H1 lights were less than 10 a piece, which is cheaper than the Silverstars you see on the shelf in US parts stores.

The HIRs are a bit more, like around 40/per. But their life is equal to that of a standard bulb, so it's a one-time cost for all intents and purposes that reaps major rewards.

 

[hoser]

AFAIK the only place you'd be able to get the good bulbs is online, from a place like danielsternlighting.com. He doesn't have much of an internet commerce site, though, it's more of a call and order thing.

But, very good service, very reliable.

If memory serves, the H1 lights were less than 10 a piece, which is cheaper than the Silverstars you see on the shelf in US parts stores.

The HIRs are a bit more, like around 40/per. But their life is equal to that of a standard bulb, so it's a one-time cost for all intents and purposes that reaps major rewards.

Daniel Stern has the Osram bulbs listed for $27/pr plus shipping. The Sylvania ones are $25/pr shipped on eBay. So they aren't cheaper, just better. I had the HIR ones on my FZJ80... I can't say the difference was as good as I had hoped.

 

[shocker]

Hmmm... I'm pretty sure those Osrams weren't that much when I bought them a year ago. Maybe the price has gone up, or...?

Don't know.

 

[mscott]

Just making sure everyone knows that the lumen output is our concern. The higher the better, rather than the "color" of the light. HID may look cool, but blue color produces fewer applicable lumens...

 

[tech_dog]

Does anyone know a valid reason why the LC, or even more so the LX, doesn't come standard with HI headlights? Why would a vehicle where a backup camera and mark levinson audio is standard not have HI lighting? There's got to be a reason other than cost.

 

[subspd]

Has anyone upgraded/downgraded??? the fogs with these?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/98-0...ryZ33709QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
It looks cool but is the light output any better?

 

[shocker]

Does anyone know a valid reason why the LC, or even more so the LX, doesn't come standard with HI headlights? Why would a vehicle where a backup camera and mark levinson audio is standard not have HI lighting? There's got to be a reason other than cost.

My guess is that they were probably designed in 95 or 96, and first introduced in 98. Before the HID thing hit big.

And rather than re-design the whole front end around HID optics, they just decided to wait for the next model rendition.

 

[Jim_Chow]

My guess is that they were probably designed in 95 or 96, and first introduced in 98. Before the HID thing hit big.

And rather than re-design the whole front end around HID optics, they just decided to wait for the next model rendition.

But if that were the case, the did bother to redesign the 100's headlamps for '06, reputedly the last model year. The way to do it right is to completely splice a HID reflector unit into the low beams. The JDM LX's (LC Cygnus) don't have HID's, either (they're halogen projectors). Toyota introduced the infra-red night vision assist on that model as a way of improving nighttime vision without using HID's, so you know they deliberately went through some effort to improve visibility. Is there any NHTSA law regarding HID's and stock vehicle heights? Does the GX470 come w/ HID's?

If you guys have ever seen infra-red night vision, it's much more effective than head lamps. You could turn off your headlights and drive fast on mountain roads with total visibility. The LX470 night vision assist is kind of a poor-man's consumer version of this.

 

[flyfish4life]

No HIDs on the GX. They are offered on the RX, FWIW.