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User avatar
By TazR
#157841
Autoexpress run tests on various catagories of bulbs, below is the results, minus pics of the bulbs.

Bulbs - Standard

The Test

You can retro-fit super-bright xenon lights to a growing number of cars, but for most of us, replacing the bulbs is the only option for improving safety as the nights get longer.

After all, equipping your Ford Focus or VW Golf with a top-of-the-range gas-discharge system could set you back well over £1,000, while a decent pair of bulbs is only around £20. As we have learned from previous headlamp bulb assessments, though, the variation in performance between best and worst is vast.

Judging by your response to past tests, night visibility is a high priority, and many of you are keen to up-grade. Yet the industry does little to help the motorist. While there's a wide range of products, they often use bewildering or misleading names. Confusion often arises over gas discharge or xenon lights, as seen on BMWs, Mercedes and Audis. These use a totally different technology from that of conventional bulbs, as the source of light is an arc burning between two electrodes in xenon gas rather than a filament. The result is a bright blue-white glow.

But manufacturers also put xenon into conventional halogen bulbs - for longevity - and claim higher performance. How many motorists have bought these, thinking they were going to get the same units as used in the BMW 7-Series?

Power claims can be misunderstood, too. The most common one is '30 per cent extra' light, but a standard 12V bulb with such a high output would be illegal. The figure refers to the amount of light on the kerb 75 metres ahead of the car - a critical point for night driving.

This stronger light is achieved by burning a smaller filament harder, to give a tighter focus to the beam. Philips and Osram make 50 per cent brighter bulbs, and some examples claim 'plus 60 per cent', although they were launched too late for this test. We assessed plus 50, plus 30 and standard bulbs - in general, expect to pay more for better performers. A further complication is blue bulbs, which aim to give a BMW or Audi look using filters or coatings to achieve the colour. These coatings actually cut light, and coloured units perform poorly. Don't confuse these with all-weather bulbs, which have a yellow beam for driving in fog.

Unlike most of our tests, you can't just pick a pack off the shelf to get the bulb we tested. Philips, Osram and GE supply car makers, and build bulbs to their customers' standards, which are higher than the law requires. Buy one of their packs and you get one of their bulbs. Others, such as Halfords, Lucas, Bosch and Hella, use suppliers, and regularly change them. The only way to ensure you get what we tested is to read the name etched on the base.

We returned to Philips' test centre in Aachen, Germany, where our last test had been carried out. All the bulbs were seasoned for an hour to settle output before power draw and light production were measured in a photometric sphere. Build quality was checked, particularly the position (geometry) of the filament and shield, as these have the biggest effect on the beam. Finally we went into the light tunnel, where the dip beam was measured for glare and light on the road. To get an overall rating, we added the light measurements for 50 metres ahead at the centre and edge of the carriageway, plus twice the 75m kerbside figure.

Where a bulb failed to produce a beam within UK legal requirements, it received only one rating or star. All our test samples were bought, to prevent 'filtering' by manufacturers, and the cost quoted is what we paid for a pair. However, price had no influence on our results, as it varied so widely among sources. The lighting tests we carried out were overseen by AA Technical Information Centre engineer Rory Stockbridge.



Lucas

Rating:
Price: £6.60 (RRP)
Type: Standard
Beam: 60
Despite its long-life stablemate's excellent result, the standard Lucas bulb had problems with glare and only just achieved the required limit. This took its toll on the beam, for which all the measurements were low.

Hella

Rating:
Price: £5.53 (factor)
Type: Standard
Beam: 74.2
A solid performance from Hella's bulb. It produced the best result in class at 75m, which even beat some of the plus 30 versions. The pay-off, however, was a darker foreground, and there was some patchiness in the beam close to the car.

Osram

Rating:
Price: £12.38 (mail order)
Type: Standard
Beam: 73.8

We had expected more from a top producer, but there is nothing to be ashamed of here. A good, even spread of light, free from dark patches, showed its class. But the light values were a bit less than the best across the carriageway.



Vauxhall VRB472

Rating:
Price: £6.72 (main dealer)
Type: Standard
Beam: 73.4
Going to your main dealer need not always be the costly option, and this Vauxhall product easily undercuts high street prices. The bulb, built by Philips' Narva subsidiary, has a well shaped pattern and sharp cut-off, preventing glare.

Osram PRC

Rating:
Price: N/A
Type: Standard
Beam: 70.4
Sourced from an industry contact, this unit proves not all bulbs from the Far East are poorly made. Built in the People's Republic of China for Osram, the PRC produced a good, even beam - but a little too much light close to the car.

Elta

Rating:
Price: £8.99 (shop)
Type: Standard
Beam: 69.7
Elta is a wholesaler, and its German-built bulb put in a reasonable set of results. The light on the carriageway was a little less than some rivals, but the beam was a good shape with a decent cut-off to prevent glare affecting oncoming road users.



Peugeot 6216.55

Rating:
Price: £8.78 (main dealer)
Type: Standard
Beam: 65.8
Made by General Electric in Hungary, Peugeot's offering gave a pretty similar performance to that of the Unipart GLB472. Light output was lower, but less well controlled, and it only just scraped through the legal glare requirements.

Unipart GLB472
Rating:
Price: £9.59 (main dealer)
Type: Standard
Beam: 67.9
Another from GE's Hungarian operation, Tungsram, the pack boasts it is recommended by Rover - but there are better standard bulbs on offer. Light output was on the low side, and the beam rating proved disappointing.

Motaquip

Rating:
Price: £7.59 (main dealer)
Type: Standard
Beam: 76.8
Picked up from a Peugeot dealer, our Recommended standard bulb comes a very close second. Indeed it beat the winning Lucas at 50m, but lost out at 75m. The beam was clean and consistent, with good foreground illumination.



Li-TECH P43t-38

Rating:
Price: £7 (shop)
Type: Standard
Beam: N/R
Driving towards a car fitted with these would be unpleasant, as it throws out a massive amount of glare, thanks to serious geometry problems. There's plenty of light on the road, but it is so uncontrolled that it's a real hazard to other drivers.

Carlex Autobulb

Rating:
Price: £9.98 (shop)
Type: Standard
Beam: N/R
We soon discovered that this one was extremely hard to measure. Either it produced horrendous amounts of glare or emitted a beam so weak, it failed to meet legal requirements. A bulb that will do its buyer no favours at night.

Direct Components

Rating:
Price: £1.62 (factor)
Type: Standard
Beam: N/R
Initially, these looked like a real bargain - a pack of 10 cost less than some individual bulbs elsewhere on this test. How wrong we were. A serious build problem meant massive glare for oncoming drivers - almost twice the permitted figure.



Ring Autobulb

Rating:
Price: £4.65 (factor)
Type: Standard
Beam: N/R
Not a good result for the brand found in many small accessory shops. The KX-stamped bulb has significant build problems, which meant excessive glare. Trouble is, the buyer would probably not know, as beam figures were about right for this class.

Elta ELBX472

Rating:
Price: £8.99 (shop)
Type: Standard
Beam: 54
Another standard lamp offering from Elta, but nowhere near as good as its stablemate. Geometry problems were at the heart of this disappointing performance, but the beam was within legal requirements.

Halfords

Rating:
Price: £11.98 (shop)
Type: Standard
Beam: 51.1
AS with the Elta ELBX, this unit suffered significant geometry problems, although the beam would not pose a danger to other road users. That noted, it would not be much use to the buyer, as all the levels were so low as to be a long way behind the best here.



Jagan

Rating:
Price: N/A
Type: Standard
Beam: N/R
As it has performed poorly in previous tests, we were keen to see if matters had improved for Jagan. We sourced this from an industry contact - so can't quote a price - but at any money, it would be extremely poor value. A wayward build gave massive glare and a very weak beam.

Lucas Premium LL

Rating:
Price: £7.54 (RRP)
Type: Standard
Beam: 76.9
only does this outperform standard rivals, but our Best Buy should also last longer. The LL stands for long life and Lucas claims a 20 per cent extension over the regular alternatives. It carries wholesaler Elta's stamp, and is our choice among standard units.

Pro-light

Rating:
Price: £7 (shop)
Type: Standard
Beam: N/R
Producer Linzhi needs to rethink its manufacturing process. A host of build failures were compounded by a beam so far out, it was almost impossible to measure. The choice was either a massive glare or a barely visible beam.



Autobar Mega White

Rating:
Price: £24.99 (shop)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: N/R
Dawoo, the Korean parts specialist which makes Autobar, should look at its production line. The heavily blue-tinted bulb was so far out of true that the beam was very tricky to measure at all. The glare was massive and light on the road was minimal.

White Prism Orange

Rating:
Price: £14.99 (shop)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: 65.3
Despite geometry problems for White Prism, it just managed to produce a beam within the legal requirements. Glare was a problem, though, and was measured very near the limit. But the amount of light on the road was poor, and looked more grubby than orange.

Bosch Blue

Rating:
Price: £11.98 (shop)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: N/R
erious faults for this Gerlux-produced lamp included excessive power draw and too much light production. It was loose in the lamp holder, making beam measurements difficult. Not what we would expect from Bosch, given its performance elsewhere.



PIAA Super White

Rating:
Price: £48.15 (mail order)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: 75.8
We saw little evidence in the light tunnel of the pack's claim to raise output from the standard 60/55W to 110/100W. Nor was there much evidence to justify the outrageous price, but PIAA has to pay for its motorsport sponsorship somehow.

Ring Ice Blue

Rating:
Price: £15.93 (mail order)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: 74.8
Ring claims this is the 'next generation in car styling'. That's a little ambitious, and Ice Blue's white beam is not particularly bright. The coating really gobbles light, making the bulb less effective than many considerably cheaper standard units.

Halfords Laser Blue

Rating:
Price: £18.98 (shop)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: 71.1
As with Ring, Halfords went to Alite for its blue version, and the results were pretty similar with a good white colour but a relatively low intensity beam. The coating robbed even more light at 75m than on Ring's, and there was a sizeable dark spot close to the car.



PIAA Platinum

Rating:
Price: £86.95 (mail order)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: N/A
These Japanese imports promise to up power from 60/55W to 130/120W. Yet, like its stablemate, its beam in the tunnel was a long way behind the best blue. For competition cars only, though, and illegal to use on the road, as it has no E mark.

White Prism Green

Rating:
Price: £14.99 (shop)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: 69.8
A couple of minor geometry problems appeared, but did not affect the beam too much. However, the levels were pretty low and considerably cheaper standard bulbs did better. And if you want a green beam, you will be disappointed, as there was no more than a slight tint.

Autobar Hi Tints

Rating:
Price: £18.99 (shop)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: N/R
The 'ultimate legal upgrade', claims the pack. But not according to our tests, as they produced excessive glare, and the beam was way behind the best. And the colour was a mess, producing different shades including red and green.



Philips BlueVision

Rating:
Price: £24.99 (mail order)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: 78
Above the blue bulbs, Philips' BlueVision does well, as it uses the Premium's plus 30 per cent technology. Despite a lower light output than the winning Lucas Blue Lightning, it was a shade better at 75m. Pack includes blue sidelights.

Racing Blue

Rating:
Price: £14.99 (shop)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: N/R
If you plan on racing with a pair of these, we hope your car is better put together. You'll be unable to see much as all the values were low, with excessive glare for oncoming drivers. They can also expect to see red and green as well as blue. It should be black-flagged...

Osram Cool Blue

Rating:
Price: £18.02 (mail order)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: 77.9
Good 50m results kept Osram's blue bulb on a par with rival Philips, which was stronger further down the road. Osram uses plus 50 per cent technology here, which shows how much light the coating robs. But the beam is noticeably white.



Lucas Blue Lightning

Rating:
Price: £27.68 (RRP)
Type: Blue bulbs
Beam: 80.2
A light output close to the upper limit is the key here, with consistently high figures from the Osram-built unit. It's comfortably the best blue bulb, beating Osram's own contender, but performance is a long way behind the Premium bulbs.




Bulbs Plus 30 per cent

Halfords High Performance

Rating:
Price: £18.98 (shop)

Type: Premium plus 30 per cent

Beam: 73.7

Produced by Philips' east German subsidiary Narva, this bulb was a letdown for the high street chain and outperformed by several cheaper standard alternatives. It was down on all the readings and there was little sign of the claimed extra 30 per cent light at 75m.

Bosch Xenon Power

Rating:
Price: £18.98 (shop)

Type: Premium plus 30 per cent

Beam: 84.9

If you are in Halfords choosing between its own brand and the Bosch version, this should make the decision easy. Underneath the labelling is an Osram product which, as you'd expect, performed well across the range, giving a good, even beam without dark patches.

Lucas Premium Xenon

Rating:
Price: £21.15 (RRP)

Type: Premium plus 30 per cent

Beam: 86.7

Lucas will be pleased to come in only a fraction behind Philips and Osram, but it's not surprising, as this is an Osram-made bulb. Its superiority over lesser performers was very noticeable in the light tunnel, particularly at the 50m mark.



Hella 30 per cent brighter

Rating:
Price: £11.65 (factor)

Type: Premium plus 30 per cent

Beam: 83
No fancy packaging or sales hype from top headlamp maker Hella, but the bulb, by Osram, performs reasonably. As with the Lucas, it showed well at 50m only to fall back further down the road. But it had a good, even beam with no dark patches.

Ring Xenon Plus

Rating:
Price: £9.37 (factor)

Type: Premium plus 30 per cent

Beam: 82.6

As with Halfords' unit Ring's Xenon Plus comes from Narva, but it really pushed the limits of light output and had a high power draw. However, that did not lead to a good beam pattern - its 75m score was the worst in class. On the wall, it had a good cut- off, but the main centre of light was small.

Philips Premium

Rating:
Price: £21.12 (mail order)

Type: Premium plus 30 per cent

Beam: 87.7

A best buy for Philips in the plus 30 category is revenge for its defeat in the plus 50 class. As we paid for mail order delivery, the price was pushed above that of VisionPlus or Silverstar. From a shop, it would be less. A great performer, particularly at mid-range.



Osram Super

Rating:
Price: £12.26 (mail order)

Type: Premium plus 30 per cent

Beam: 86.9

The Super chased Philips' Premium, its original-equipment rival hard, and achieved its result with a lower power draw and light output, leading to a Recommended award. Essentially, however, there is nothing to choose between these top brands.



Bulbs - Plus 50 per cent

Osram Silverstar

Rating:
Price: £16.37 (mail order)

Type: Plus 50 per cent

Beam: 96.9

The flagship bulb in Osram's range, the Silverstar's 75m figure was only a fraction better than that of arch-rival Philips (right), but it performed significantly better at 50m. Add a price advantage, and the Osram's plus 50 per cent competitor is our Best Buy.

Philips VisionPlus

Rating:
Price: £19.98 (mail order)

Type: Plus 50 per cent

Beam: 95.1

It's behind Osram's finest, but Philips' top-of-the-range option is a superb bulb which performed comfortably ahead of the plus 30 per cent premium versions. You just cannot ignore that performance, which is why the VisionPlus merits our Recommended award.


Verdict

The best models in this test are plus 50 per cent bulbs. And, as their prices have dropped since they were first launched, they have become an even better prospect. In this class, Osram gets the nod over Philips.

The tables are turned in the premium plus 30 sector. These two top categories are the preserve of the original equipment producers and anything with Philips or Osram on it is a guarantee of quality. For the standard bulbs, Lucas just gets the nod over Motaquip.

As in previous tests, we have not chosen a blue bulb, as we feel these are purely fashion items which perform significantly worse than the other categories. If you must have a pair, go for the Philips or Osram - either own-brand or in a Lucas pack.
Bulbs - Standard
1 Lucas Premium LL
2 Motaquip


Contacts

Bosch 01895 838551
Elta 01675 466999
Halfords 08457 626625
Hella (Prolek) 0800 435488
Lucas 0800 328 9889
Motaquip 024 7688 3276
Osram 01744 812221
Peugeot (see Yellow Pages)
Philips 0115 950 6514
PIAA (Demon Tweeks) 01978 664474
Ring 0113 276 7676
Unipart 01865 778966
Vauxhall (see Yellow Pages)
White Prism 0113 276 7244
User avatar
By ICBM
#199650
Interesting read, that! Shame i didn't spot it before i got my new 50% Halfords! They are far better than the standard though, but i can't help feeling there is better for the money now!!
User avatar
By Neily03
#199677
Just ordered a pair of Philips VisionPlus!! :)
User avatar
By GRTYPE-R
#259443
I Installed the Philips VisionPlus thiw morning..
I can say that during night driving there is no improvement compared wit the PIAA Extreme White....
User avatar
By badmastard
#420958
look on ebay and type in piaa in the search box. they have some 7500k plasma blue for 40 quid plus 8 ponds postage and package. i have ordered mine. i owned some plasma blue which produce 5000k and they were awesome. they bring out a nice clear white beam with a hint of blue. they have alsorts of sizes.
User avatar
By Mr Nice
#1941089
I have a 04 ctr and most websites are saying h4's, having bought a pair they dont fit. Does anyone know what size are the low beam bulbs ?

Any recomendations would be welcome.

Thanks
User avatar
By rico83
#1941096
Mr Nice wrote:I have a 04 ctr and most websites are saying h4's, having bought a pair they dont fit. Does anyone know what size are the low beam bulbs ?

Any recomendations would be welcome.

Thanks
h7
User avatar
By rico83
#1942609
Mr Nice wrote:Honda Dealer has just told me its H1, who is right ?

poo, sorry mate, I meant H1 :oops: Thats what I have in my facelift.
User avatar
By chappers51
#2001996
after picking up my jdm ctr i noticed the bulbs wernt as bright as my previous car, i was just wondering what bulbs to get and where from?

want a nice bright light with a blue tint

Long time ago I had and Ep3 for 220k kilometers in[…]