Aftermaket Halogen Lightbulbs

I don't see how they could cause damage or void the warranty. However, CR had a report awhile back on the brighter aftermarket bulbs. On average they weren't any better than the standard ones.
As has come up in the LED threads, the reflector was designed around the standard bulb. The brighter aftermarket one could be physically brighter, but with its size and shape, you could end up with less light reflected onto the road.
Personnally, I'd wait until the bulbs go before considering trying something new.

 

we have SilverStars in both Prius and wouldn't want to be without them now that we have two winters on them. Standard halogens now seem like candles. I'll agree with Tideland about the extra light during that fog session last winter.

 

how did you put them in?? did you remove the entire headlight or just work your fingers in and around til you got it?

 

yeah i cant fit my hands behind there, they are too big any other ways to do it?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tideland Prius @ Feb 13 2007, 05:39 PM) [snapback]389890[/snapback]</div>

"The Prius' system is a bit of a PITA."
That is putting it mildly!
He failed to mention that you have to do everything by feel. You cannot see what you are working on without a mirror and then everything is backwards.

I have replaced both of mine as they burned out(30 and 35,000 miles) with the regular unit but will probably change to SilverStars when the next one burns out.

 

yeah i noticed it was all by feel, lol i tired to take out the right one today at work and broke 4 of the clips holding the black plastic in place! so im taking it as there is no way to remove the entire headlight? and i noticed that there was a mayonnaise like cream inside the plug. is that normal??

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Conine @ Feb 13 2007, 06:47 PM) [snapback]389933[/snapback]</div>

On the RH side of the car you get fairly easy access by taking off the snorkel for the air intake, that is mentioned in the owners manual the LH side is the difficult one. The rubber rings turn off the back of the assy. and yes there is grease in the socket that plugs onto the bulb. It's a bit of a struggle but to take out the H/L assy requires removal of the front bumper and all associated parts. A little patience or the neighbours or you kids small hands will help your H/L project.
Edit: the secret to the black plugs that hold the air deflection panel on is to push the pin in the middle in about 3/16" with a pencil or small screw driver or even a key, then pull them up and out of the panel.

 

cool thanks for the info i will see if i can get this done sometime tomm, but i doubt it, because ive always had problems with headlights

 

I looked up the bulb data from the sylvania site and the Silverstar lifetimes for a 9003 bulb are 150 hours on the low beam filament and 50 hours on the high beam compared to 800/150 hours for a regular halogen lamp, so you definitely are sacrificing bulb life..

I've got the XtraVision bulbs, which are apparently equivalent to the European Silverstars (no blue tint) in my car and they are noticably brighter and whiter than standard halogens. I cannot stand the blue tinted bulbs though; I have night contrast issues, and blue at night just causes glare to me and these bulbs simply do *not* look "whiter" to my eyes, in fact, oncoming vehicles with blue-tinted bulbs have a distinct "baby blue" or cyan halo around them and they look nothing like HID bulbs which I have no problems with- HIDs are very "white" with a slight purplish-blue fringe.. This is quite different than tinting the light blue all over.. I think the effect is more pyschological than real, especially as science tells us that our eyes are much less sensitive to blue, and the blue gets scattered more readily (ie, that's why the sky is blue)..

 

mine have 3 years of DRL's and night time useage and some hi beam without problems 3 years in her car as well and still on the origionals in both. I do know that Tideland Prius has had some burn out but "cross fingers" ours are still working fine. I agree with C4 that the blue tint are just annoying.

 

It may be possible to undo a couple of the headlight unit and quarter-
panel bolts and get a little more maneuvering room by pushing things
aside that extra half-inch. I've managed to access the back of both
lights without it just for proof of concept and to figure out which
way those little spring retainers are pointing, and it *is* a PITA.
.
At one of the training weekends some of the techs loosened up the
nosepiece of another '04 enough to actually remove the entire
headlight unit -- apparently there are several tricks applicable to
many newer cars, but unfortunately I didn't watch closely enough to
remember exactly how they did it. But maybe when the weather warms
up, an investigation and resulting web-page will be in order...
.
_H*

 

I just put them in, it was no real big deal. There are a lot worse things to get to than the bulbs in a Prius. Doubt that I spent all of 10 minutes re and re'n the h/l bulbs in either car.

 

Hobbit- on a semi-related issue- do you know if there's an easy way to remove the entire headlight units or at least get them out of the vehicle sufficiently to pop the latches on the transparent lens? (I can pop the ones on top, but can't get to the ones hidden on the sides/bottom)..

The reason for this is that my car is now 7 years old and the headlights are now rather rough on the outside and on the inside: 7 years of condensation and moisture have left a film on the inside of the lens and on the reflector surfaces so I'd love to be able to clean the inside and then buff the stone dings and scratches off the outside.. I know that in the winter, just the dirt and salt film accumulating on the lens will dramatically reduce the headlight output, so I'm sure that cleaning the lens and reflector will restore that much more light output.. Unfortunately, the only way I can see of getting the headlight units out is by first removing the front bumper assembly..

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(c4 @ Feb 15 2007, 06:36 AM) [snapback]390807[/snapback]</div>

on the Classic and the G2 you have to pull the front bumper cover. It's really not a big job a bunch of screws and pop the latches and it falls off. That gives you access to the lower mounting bolts for the H/L assy.
Edit: I use a product called GT88 on clean soft cloths to polish the lens and it makes a big difference. I don't think you can get the lens off, I think it's sealed with acrylic sealant.

 

The clear lens just looks like it is held on by a bunch of plastic latches- I've looked fairly closely at the front edge and there doesn't seem to be any sealant or anything else there, but even if it is glued on, at the very least, if I could get the unit out, I could remove the bulbs and insert a stick or something with a swab at the end through the bulb holes and wipe off the inside of the lens that way..

As for cleaning the outside, I've already polished it as best I could with a number of plastic polishing compounds and even a felt bob and compound on a pneumatic die grinder, but again, after 7 years of stone and dust impact, the lens is pretty bad, and I really need to get it on the big bench buffer to really get it really clear and shining.. Loctite sells a headlight kit with several grades of sandpaper and a bottle of polish, which I suppose would also work, but having tried this before, it's a *LOT* of work to do by hand..

 

forget the Locktite stuff I used it when it first came out and that is for people who don't have a life of any kind and need a hobby. You could tape off the fenders and bumper and attack it with a 7" polisher and glazeing compound. But if you've never done serious polishing before be warned that you can do more damage than you ever thought possible in less time than you'd ever think possible! I watched a guy polish a hole thru a Ford Tarus h/l lense.