Headlights

[JKSEN]

What are the brightest road legal headlights I could get for my 2012 Fiesta? Preferably cool white colour since they look much nicer.

 

Thanks 

[Jezza54]

Check powerbulbs.com

from my experience I would say Osram nightbreaker bulbs or Philips +130%

[Jonro2009]

As above, however Osram have now brought out NightBreaker Laser which are supposed to be equivalent to Phillips Xtreme 130%. I have had NightBreakers in the past and I am currently using the Phillips, in my experience they perform very similarly. Personally I prefer the Phillips because they seem to have lasted longer but with both these bulbs what you gain in aesthetics you lose in longevity. 

I have a Mk5 Mondeo and a mk7.5 Fiesta and the bulbs in the Fiesta I have left stock as there is not a lot of difference in output between them and the 2 bulbs mentioned above. The upgrades do look better though, they look a lot more crisp and at some angles give off a slight blue tinge. The fez is the wife’s so I spend as little on that as I can, that way I have more for the Mondeo lol. 

There are some that say the Halfrauds own bulbs are pretty good and are in fact produced by Osram, I’ve not tried them and don’t think I will but maybe you would be interested? 

Little tip, when you change the headlights don’t forget to change the side lights too or you will hate the difference. If you go for CREE, which I recommend, then don’t forget to get ones that are CANbus friendly with built in resistors. That way you won’t get a flicker 🙂 . I can’t see which year fez you have, if you have the orange indicator bulbs then get them changed too. Either Diadem silver ones or the LED ones with built in resistors from Autobeam.

[zain611]

Philips do a white vision which says 4300k however they give 60% extra light which doesn't beat their xtreme vision however the xtreme vision is a little more yellow in colour. I was originally planning on getting the white vision back when I was looking for a fiesta but as the car came with HIDs I thought these look better and brighter. Philips also do some extreme vision led sidelight bulbs in 3 different colours so you could get this along with the white vision so both the main and side lights match in colour. 

I'd vouch for jonro about getting the premium LED indicators from autobeam. You don't need resistors plus they are very bright. No one can say to you they didn't see you indicating. 

[captpicard]

Phillip's race vision 

[zain611]

37 minutes ago, captpicard said:

Phillip's race vision 

Only problem with the race vision is that it's lifespan is a bit shorter than the xtreme vision. 

[JKSEN]

Thanks everyone, I'll definitely check these out. 

[ToXIcG]

52 minutes ago, zain611 said:

Only problem with the race vision is that it's lifespan is a bit shorter than the xtreme vision. 

Also apparently race visions are not strictly road legal while xtreme visions are.

[captpicard]

1 hour ago, zain611 said:

Only problem with the race vision is that it's lifespan is a bit shorter than the xtreme vision. 

That it may be but the light output is incredible 

[lwatson99]

I wouldn’t recommend AutoBeam LED

I have got both dipped beam and full beam and although they are OK, the light output is awful in any rain, and the distance they can throw isn’t great compared to halogen.

most likely going to switch back to halogen unfortunately as the LED’s just don’t cut it. 

[zain611]

1 hour ago, captpicard said:

That it may be but the light output is incredible 

For someone who doesn't drive a lot in the dark like myself the racing vision wouldn't be bad considering you won't put your lights on that often. I can't remember if they are road legal. Philips do 2 more lights, one called diamond vision and another I think called Crystal vision. One gave out I think 6000k and I've forgotten what the other one gives out but I'm sure it's to a white / blue colour. These 2 are sadly not road legal and from what I've heard have a bad light output which may be why they are not permitted. From what I've heard the more kelvin you push out of a halogen bulb the lower the light output goes. 

 

44 minutes ago, lwatson99 said:

I wouldn’t recommend AutoBeam LED

I have got both dipped beam and full beam and although they are OK, the light output is awful in any rain, and the distance they can throw isn’t great compared to halogen.

most likely going to switch back to halogen unfortunately as the LED’s just don’t cut it. 

That is strange to hear. I thought LEDs were brighter than halogens. Have you asked them what lumens their LEDs give out. I will recommend their premium range. I bought their premium indicators which were blindingly bright and strongly recommend them. You could try the Phillips xtreme vision if your thinking of changing back to halogen. 

[Jonro2009]

I wouldn’t recommend AutoBeam LED
I have got both dipped beam and full beam and although they are OK, the light output is awful in any rain, and the distance they can throw isn’t great compared to halogen.
most likely going to switch back to halogen unfortunately as the LED’s just don’t cut it. 

It’s not just Autobeam LEDs, it’s pretty much all after market LED Bulbs. The ones used in OEM setups are much better but still have the same problems on a smaller scale. The throw of the light is poor, you could spit further to be honest. I wouldn’t even consider them as an option. Aftermarket HIDs are by far the most superior upgrade, sadly they are not road legal though despite what anyone says. The HID bulbs used in OEM headlights aren’t strictly road legal, they are only legal/type approved when fitted in conjunction with the correct housing, self levellers and washers (unless they are lower than a certain lumen and then they don’t need washers).

And as @zain611 correctly says, the higher the temperature in Kelvin the lower the ‘useable’ light is on the road. Those 8000K bulbs on the Corsa’s you see at Maccie D’s not only look ridiculous but they are dangerous too.

My Xtreme Vision bulbs have been in for 18months now and are still going strong, they’ve lasted longer than my first marriage in fact [emoji23] [emoji23]


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[lwatson99]

9 hours ago, zain611 said:

For someone who doesn't drive a lot in the dark like myself the racing vision wouldn't be bad considering you won't put your lights on that often. I can't remember if they are road legal. Philips do 2 more lights, one called diamond vision and another I think called Crystal vision. One gave out I think 6000k and I've forgotten what the other one gives out but I'm sure it's to a white / blue colour. These 2 are sadly not road legal and from what I've heard have a bad light output which may be why they are not permitted. From what I've heard the more kelvin you push out of a halogen bulb the lower the light output goes. 

 

That is strange to hear. I thought LEDs were brighter than halogens. Have you asked them what lumens their LEDs give out. I will recommend their premium range. I bought their premium indicators which were blindingly bright and strongly recommend them. You could try the Phillips xtreme vision if your thinking of changing back to halogen. 

The LED’s are retina cleansing at close range, but don’t have a great throw distance, which is fine until your going 50/60+ mph and need to use a bit of extra vision distance, that’s there only downfall.

if you only ever do town driving then they’re great, just not so good in the dark where you want to see a long way ahead

[zain611]

Can't I use LEDs for fog lights. I was looking at some nighteye ones which says they have 10000 lumens. Nighteye don't seem to be a bad brand for their lumen output which is what I particularly look for in an LED. 

[Jonro2009]

You can put LEDs in your fogs, although I don’t see the point to be honest. You will have exactly the same issue as if they were in you headlights. Illumination near the car is great but distance is poor. You don’t want masses of bright white light from your fogs anyway, it would just reflect off the fog and right into your eyes making things worse for you.
If you plan to use your fog lights as normal everyday driving lights then they will give off a very crisp light that would match HIDs etc. Of course, you would only be using them in fog as the HC states wouldn’t you [emoji6]
I have to say that I can’t stand to see fog lights on when it isn’t foggy


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[zain611]

Thanks Jonro, really wanted to get these so all my front lights will be matching a nice white light. I only switch my lights on when it's necessary so hopefully they last longer. 

[merlin_gr]

Hi guys, i m hijacking this thread coz its the same subject. I want to change my bulbs with the whiter osrams or philips, but i m concerned about the life expectancy. I dont want them more white than 4200K and biggest priority is the longlife! I think Night Breakers or white vision are my choices. What are your suggestions? Thanks in advance. 

[zain611]

If you want halogens I'd recommend the Philips xtreme vision for its 130% better light output. It's I think it's a little more yellow to the standard bulbs however you can opt for the white vision. It gives around 60% more light which isn't as good as xtreme vision but it's more of a whiter light. There was a guy on YouTube who compared all the philips and osram bulbs and I'm sure he said he recommends the white vision if your looking for safety and style. 

[kpg]

I have Osram hyper blues they look great but light output not so good. They've lasted a long time though. I actually think there's a hyper blue intense version out now.

[zain611]

Are those road legal? Philips do some similar bulbs but they are not road legal most likely because of the little light output 

[kpg]

Are those road legal? Philips do some similar bulbs but they are not road legal most likely because of the little light output 

Not sure but I passed MOT with them in a few weeks ago lol

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[zain611]

That's good to hear but are you happy with the light output. When I'm driving in the dark I mainly get scared when driving past zebra crossings as sometimes you get pedestrians who are hard to see. Wish the government could put lamps on the sides of the crossings to light up the pavement making pedestrians more visible. 

[kpg]

That's good to hear but are you happy with the light output. When I'm driving in the dark I mainly get scared when driving past zebra crossings as sometimes you get pedestrians who are hard to see. Wish the government could put lamps on the sides of the crossings to light up the pavement making pedestrians more visible. 

Not 100% happy no. The light fades away quite quickly the further it gets from the car. Although I have a suspicion that the last time they were aligned they adjusted them too low.

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[ToXIcG]

1 minute ago, kpg said:

Not 100% happy no. The light fades away quite quickly the further it gets from the car. Although I have a suspicion that the last time they were aligned they adjusted them too low.

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I have noticed the fading away quicker after fitting my Phillips Extreme Visions, the light is definitely whiter and probably brighter though so i'm getting used to them.