Headlight Recommendations

[xpanmanx]

Greetings,

I'm looking for recommendations for replacement headlamp housings for my Y2K Expy. Can someone assist?

I've had a Sylvania Xenarc HD 2010 kit for 3 years - it's one of my all-time favorite purchases. Unfortunately, a smoky residue has begun to appear and grow darker on the inside of the lens on both modules. Light output is slowly diminishing over time, especially on the passenger side, and in daylight, the clear look of the lens is a distant memory. Has anyone else seen this? Can it be cleaned somehow?

Sylvania stopped making this kit about 2 years ago. Replacement parts are no longer available. I suppose I could find another complete kit, somewhere, but times are tighter now and I can't sink another half a large into headlights.

Fortunately, Sylvania says that they're going to refund my purchase in its entirety, because I notified them of the problem before the 3-year warranty ran out. That's stellar!

So...any recommendations for something that will shine brighter than the OEM housings without making my truck look like a teenager's cruiser?

Best regards,

Tim ==

 

[ELVATO]

I have a 2003, so the headlight styles are a bit different. IMO, clear headlights look alot better than the older "cloudy" headlights.

Also, I've never used a kit, per say, but I've tried two diferent headlight bulbs.

The GE Nighthawks(I think that's what they're called.) At the time, I was only able to take off the passenger side headlight, so I only replaced that bulb. Between the stock bulb on the driver side and the GE bulb on the passenger side, there was no noticable difference in light output or color.

One day, I saw some Sylvania Silverstars on sale, so I bought these. Got them installed at a Goodyear place. The color is different than stock. Not "ricer-fake HID blue" look, but there is a definate shift in color. Compared to the stock bulbs, the Silverstars also seem to be brighter, be it because the bulbs are brighter, or because the "whiter" light reflects better off the road and signs.


As a side note, I have seen that Sylvania has come out with better headlights than the Silverstars. The Silverstar Ultras. They're about 10 dollars more expensive. I wonder how much brighter they are compared to the Silverstars

 

[ziad_yamin]

Out of curiosity ..

I am not an expert in this, but when the OEM lights are replaced by XENON or any other brighter lights, does the electrical system get affected? Does it need to get fine tuned to be able to support those power-hungry lights?

 

[ELVATO]

From the bulbs that I have used, no, they don't seem to draw any more power than stock.

 

[xpanmanx]

The Xenarc kit draws less current than the stock high-beams.

 

[IndyExpedition]

Just something I thought I would mention...have you tried cleaning out the stock headlight lenses? Mine looked kind of milky and dull. I just used a very small amount of liquid soap, super hot water and then some conpressed air...let them lay out overnight and they were good to go! I don't mind the stock look headlamps myself but wanted them brighter. Cleaning the lenses made all the difference in the world...that and swapping the bulbs with new silvania's ultra brights (I think...got them at Pepboys for like $40). This is the cheapest way to do it...cost $40! They have a slight blue ting that's clean looking without looking cheap or fake.

 

[ELVATO]

Hmm, I've been wondering how much brighter those Ultras are compared to the "original" Silverstars. Then again, I'm not complaining about the Silverstars. Maybe I could just replace the lowbeams with Ultras, keeping the Silverstars as highs.

 

[DaveS1955]

I replaced all four bulbs on my 2003 with Silverstars. The first thing I noticed was the increase in distance the light shined. The distance increase was a good 100 to 300 feet depending on terrain. This was observed by noticing when a particular Stop sign became visible while driving.

One thing about the Silverstars however is that if you put them behind smoke tinted lenses (e.g. 2001 Mustang headlights) the change is noticable but not as drastic as when they are behind clear clenses (2003 Expedition).

 

[ELVATO]

Yea, the road signs and lane dividers really do light up much better.

I don't know if you can make a direct comparison between different cars when it cames to light output. Some cars simply have better reflectors/headlights in general. But yes, I would assume that but them behind some tinted lenses would make a not so drastice improvement.