How Did We See With Halogen Headlights? by Doug DeMuro

[-Virgil-]

I'm pretty sure the ones in the video are the ones he installed.

The ones in the video are stock '02+ H4 (HB2) halogen headlamps -- we can't see what bulbs (or "bulbs") he's put into them.

 

[LeanBurn]

Up against all the lights currently available...I still prefer halogens..100 CRI is tough to beat.

I saw a 1980 Volvo 240 the other day with the very large halogen headlamps and the old question came up again in my mind "what would it be like to drive with those bad boys on a no moon night?"

 

[Alaric Darconville]

Up against all the lights currently available...I still prefer halogens..100 CRI is tough to beat.

All other things being equal, choose the higher CRI. But all other things aren't equal, so choose the lamps with the better beam pattern.

I saw a 1980 Volvo 240 the other day with the very large halogen headlamps and the old question came up again in my mind "what would it be like to drive with those bad boys on a no moon night?"

It depends on how good the beam pattern was-- and don't forget that a headlighting system can be subjectively good but objectively bad. If those were the 200-series with the composite halogen headlamps using the HB1 ("9004"), I would prefer the dual sealed beam halogen. The headlamps with the HB1 *had* to be large to overcome shortcomings in that bulb's design (said bulb being optimized for cost, not performance).

Also, what Volvo from that era doesn't now have giant yellow translucent rectangles of haze where a lens once had been?

 

[-Virgil-]

Up against all the lights currently available...I still prefer halogens..100 CRI is tough to beat.

But, CRI has a (much) less important role to play in headlamp safety performance. Photometric performance (how much light, distributed how) is very much more important.

I saw a 1980 Volvo 240 the other day with the very large halogen headlamps and the old question came up again in my mind "what would it be like to drive with those bad boys on a no moon night?"

The 1986 240 was the first Volvo in the North American market to get composite headlights. They were made by Valeo under the Cibie brand. They used the HB1 (9004) bulb and had plastic lenses very much less durable than those cars themselves. Better than the same lamp in a smaller size, but still not a lamp I would want to have to drive with at night. However, you being in Canada, you're somewhat more likely to encounter an old Volvo that has been retrofitted with European headlamps. Performance and "drivability" would then depend on which lamps you saw, and what conditions they were in.

 

[TechGuru]

Something else that makes Halogen look bad on older vehicles is voltage drop. Many older vehicles do not use a relay and run the headlight voltage though the interior headlight switch causing a long line of wiring for voltage drop.

I remember back in the 1990's. Had a 1988 Mercedes-Benz and a 1988 Hyundai Excel parked next to each other with headlights on. Both using 9004 capsules. The Hyundai was way brighter because it used a relay system.

If you have such a older vehicle it would be well worth the effort to install a headlight relay circuit.

 

[Hamilton Felix]

Back in the 70's and at least through the 90's I wanted halogen lights with ever More Power! I discovered Cibie and Marchal, and I bought bigger bulbs, put in heavier wiring, relays, etc. But since finding this forum, experimenting a bit with HID (anyone want the set of StarrHID lights I pulled from my Crown Vic after they started acting up?) and a little bit with LED, I've caught on that the type of light source Does Not Matter (unless you have serious power and/or space limitations). What matters is the beam pattern, where the headlamps put that light - and, of course, avoiding that irritating blue color.

Both of our 2007 Corollas were given factory new headlights, 9012 & 9011 bulbs, and some careful aiming. We are very pleased with them.

As long as I have adequate alternator and battery, I'll use whatever does the job best. LED is great, high efficiency, long life, etc. But cheap LED will have the same drawback as cheap halogen, lousy beam pattern. Cost is a factor, but I'm much more likely to cheap out on occasional use work lights than on anything I need to drive. Heck, even the old sealed beam lamps have advantages for occasional use equipment that sits outdoors. As long as the connections are preserved, weather will never eat those glass lamps.

I'm done with worrying about what it is; I'll concentrate on how it performs.

 

[weedkill3]

Back in 2004, I rented a 2004 Ford Freestar. Drove to the airport at night and couldn't believe how good the halogen headlights were. I kid you not, even better distance light than some HIDs.

The van itself sucked, could n;t fold down seats easily like Chrylers stow and go....but anywho.

This vehicle used a 9008 bulb. I was really impressed.

 

[-Virgil-]

Weedkill, that really just goes to show how unreliable our eyes are for determining how well headlamps work: subjective impressions aside, the H13 headlamps on the Freestar aren't the worst ever, but they're nowhere near the best, and their objective, real performance is completely left in the dust by virtually any factory HID system.

It's possible (pretty likely, in fact) that you thought the Freestar's headlamps were great because of how certain aspects of their performance compared to the lights on the car you were used to driving, and/or because they were misaimed too high. That can artificially make even a lousy low beam seem terrific, because in effect they're operating as high beams.