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Which bulbs would you recommend? I'm only looking to change the bulbs, don't want to spend time and money into installing a kit-and I don't want to blind other drivers either. I'm just looking for a nice clean light.
I wouldn't mind if they had a slight blue tint to them-but not illegal and not offensive to others.
IF your car has "standard" bulbs, especially if they have some years on them ...
then you may benefit from upgrading to the latest higher performing bulbs, such as Sylvania's top-of-the-line halogen bulbs. These are the same wattage as the OE bulbs, but have more light output than standard halogen bulbs.
I've done this with both my sealed beam and replaceable bulb headlight vehicles, and the difference is significant driving on our country roads where there is nothing but your car lighting and the road and any moonlight to drive at night. Did a comparo on our two Subie OBW's ... somewhat sceptically bought the brightstar bulbs and installed them on one car and drove it for a few nights and could identify landmarks ahead as I was passing them. Then drove my wife's OBW with OE bulbs in it and realized that I wasn't seeing as far ahead as I'd gotten used to with my car/better bulbs.
I then replaced the halogen seal beams in my Dodge RV van with the Sylvania upgraded bulbs, and the difference was comparable to getting a new lighting system.
Don't forget that the lens condition is important, too. If you've got replaceable bulb headlight units with cloudy front plastic lenses, get one of the kits to clean these up and use it. The difference in light output and beam focus on the road is dramatic.
GE Nighthawks or Philips XtremeVision are two of the more popular options out there. Sylvania Silverstars aren't well thought of due to their very short life, though I had similar results with the GEs. Running the Philips right now. So far, so good.
Are the GE, Phillips and Sylvania you guys recommend HID or xenon? and what is the difference? I like the type where you get more lighting to the sides of the vehicle-do all of them provide wider angle?
HID/Xenon? No, they're not. I believe they're just upgraded halogen lights.
Assuming you don't stick an HID unit in a housing that was never designed for it (PLEASE don't do that!), the bulb should not affect how much light is thrown to the sides. That's determined by the geometry of the headlight housing and its reflectors. It's my understanding that this is controlled very deliberately by DOT regs so that you don't blind oncoming traffic (which is also the reason using HIDs in a non-HID housing is such a bad idea).
All the bulbs recommended are DOT legal. They'll let you see a bit farther down the road and will make what you see a good bit brighter/clearer (more white vs yellow).
Are the GE, Phillips and Sylvania you guys recommend HID or xenon? and what is the difference? I like the type where you get more lighting to the sides of the vehicle-do all of them provide wider angle?
HID is a totally different lighting system than a filament based bulb. If your vehicle didn't come with HID, then it's a project to retro-fit it on many cars, with different lamp assemblies and the power supply box. For some cars, it's not a practical option and it can run into $hundreds.
Xenon is a halogen type filament bulb, and that's what the bulbs are that have been posted.
All of the suggested bulbs have more light and a wider/longer light pattern than the OE bulbs. Best to take a look at the packaging for each, which have beam pattern diagrams on them. At your parts store retailer, you may find a display section of the various bulbs/price points ... and maybe even a sales promo special. That's how I selected the Sylvania bulbs for my cars, they were on special at half the price of the other upgrade bulbs ... and I've been very happy with their performance and service life, they were only a few dollars more than standard bulbs with the promotional pricing. I'd have bought the phillips or GE if they were the bulbs on special at the time, I have no particular brand loyalty for this item.
Stay away from HID aftermarket kits as they are not designed for use in your lamp, period. The only way to properly do an HID is to retrofit the car by basically cutting the housing and installing a lens/bulb/ballast from say an Audi, BMW, etc. Then you have to go through the wiring, leveling, aiming, and other things to ensure it is correct.
Also stay away from Sylvania Silver Star bulbs, they may be brighter but also come with a 300 hour life, compared with 1000 hours for your standard OEM halogen bulbs.
The things to look for in bulbs are life and lumens. Do not listen to or follow packages that only rate in Kelvin (K) to show that their light is "daylight", that means nothing. A Lumen is the correct measure of output on a lamp. Most low beams operate between 700-1100 lumen while a high beam is 1200-1500 depending.
Philips Xtreme Vision and GE Nighthawk are both very good bulbs to purchase and will provide a great light for a long time. Colored bulbs such as those on Silverstars are for appearances only and actually reduce light output despite the color.
Also, when replacing a bulb be sure to use a nitrile glove or lint free rag because touching the bulb itself reduces its life and efficiency due to the natural body oils places on the glass.
Beyond the advice already given about the top-of-line halogen bulbs or sealed beams, if your car does not have the headlights on relays from the factory (most Japanese do) putting the headlights on relays (the Bosch relay sold for hot-start problems in VW cars works well) can help a lot.
Worked a treat on my old Scirocco.
Going to a higher than stock wattage usually does not give that much better light, since the reflector needs to be different for the higher wattage.
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