Recently got the LED Fog/DRL’s from MX5 Parts and I’m really pleased with them, however they make the other front lights look drab and old by comparison. Does anyone have any recommendations for bulbs that are as white as possible while still being road legal? A lot of the bulbs I’m looking at are being reviewed as not as bright as OEM to the point of being borderline dangerous or being non road legal.
The preferred choice seems to be OSRAM Nightbreakers but they don’t seem to come in a H9 which is what I need for main beam (correct me if I’m wrong)
Judging by this I need a set of H7s H9s and 501s? H7s and 501s seem simple enough it’s just the H9s but with the driving I usually do the H9s won’t be on very often so it’s not too bad if they’re a little peachy.
I don’t know about colour, but the received wisdom and my own sometime experience of trying to improve headlamps is to stick with branded ones such as Osram and Philips, and not to go for the brightest end of the range which have a short life. Compare the claimed lifetime of Osram Nightbreaker Silver (+100%) and Laser (+150%) versions. The brightest ones I have tried only lasted months.
I haven’t tried Ring, I think they do OK in this Autoexpress test (ranges have been updated since it was done but it does give clues as to what the variations in performance can be).
Particularly if the lamps are difficult to change, I’d not be too ambitious with the claimed improvement - there’s a clear trade-off between life and brightness.
From the research I’ve done it seems the it’s seems changing the bulbs in an NC isn’t the easiest thing to do. I’ve discovered these today but I need to do some more digging on the legality of them. As the NC’s lights are projector there shouldn’t be a risk of dazzling other drivers, but they might not fit due to the L shaped fitment.
I’ve tried unbranded bulbs in the past and the life has been less than useless. Never had a Ring bulb blow and I’ve also used them on several cars. Had a 56 plate Mazda 6 a few years back. Thought the projector reflectors must be shot because the beam pattern was terrible and output was poor. Swapped to Ring Xenon Ultima and the result was crisp white light with a perfect beam pattern.
Mine were changed for Osram Nightreaker’s yesterday but I don’t do a huge amount of night driving so the lifespan is less of a concern from my perspective.