just to update my last post. the price for a red brake light bulb for 09 focus, from a ford main dealer i rang two of them today one was £11.99+vat and the other £14.99 +vat and halfords do have them but, only get 1 in at a time £10.99. (my old post is below)

Hi all,like most people i like to have spare bulbs with me so i looked at my bulb kit from my old car. most are ok but not the stop & tail bulb. on my 09 focus 1.6tdi eocteh they are red bulbs as the lenes are clear. so went to halfords, no joy. the same at my local car parts shop, no joy there. so to ebay! i got 2 for £3.95 but when i got them the pins on the side of the bulbs were not off set like the ford ones, they will go with a bit of force and work but not ideal. but i bet ford would be more than £3.95 for two.

Hi, The pins are offset because the single red bulb has two functions, Tail 5 Watt and stop 21 watt. It has two elements in it so has to be able to fit only one way to ensure the correct element lights.

You are correct these bulbs are a rip off.

should of bought the LED versions so that you only probably need to replace once in life of car.

The red bulbs which are used in the Focus MK2.5 tail lights are relatively rare which partly explains the ridiculous price. As far as I know this exact type of light bulb is only used in a few vehicles (Focus MK2.5 Fiesta MK6.5 ST and some Saab models. In Holland most automotive part suppliers do not even sell them.

Because the rareness of this type of light bulb it is practically not produced as a LED version. I found a Chinese company which produced them on demand but in my opinion they are not bright enough. As an alternative Osram produces this type of light bulb as a Diadem version which has a blue/silver appearance but shines red. This Osram Diadem light bulb is even rarer and more expensive than the Original Ford light bulbs. I paid about €40,- for a pair of Osram Diadem light bulbs for my MK2.5 tail lights.

Agree'd, I bought mine off ebay and they are sweet as!

Take a look at my build thread on my signature.

I like the thought of those silver coated stop/tail bulbs, not too keen on the price though!

When I upgraded to 2.5 rear lights I was shocked to fin also that these bulbs were a fiver a pop in my local motor factors, he mentioned that Saab use them as well. And even then the red bulb sticks out like a sore thumb in the clear light units in my eyes!

Had thought about LED replacements but was skeptical about light output and the dual filament functionality, especially in daytime. I have fitted an LED strip to the upper part of my tail lights though for the dual-lit look, but get a contrast then at night between the deep red of the LED and the orangey-red of the halogen!

Silvatec don't do anything similar do they, like their indicator bulbs which just have a smoked silver coating but still flash amber?