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Xenon PLUS bulbs? Osram Nightbreaker unlimited Xenarc.

amullo

Ready to race!
Hey guys.
Just picked up some Osram Nightreaker Unlimited Xenarc bulbs for my bmw and I was wondering if anyone had tried them on the mk7?

Apperently Phillips also has an upgraded xenon bulb called the Phillips Xtreme vision xenon.

Thoughts? Stands to reason that since they have had upgraded Halogens so long that Xenon plus bulbs would be out.

These are the d1s for my bmw
 

Avanti

Go Kart Champion
Location
UK
People seem to get confused over bulbs and brightness, lumens is the measure of light intensity, xenons are not brighter than halogens, they are just a different colour temperature like about 4200 -5500kelvin vs halogens of 3000kelvin.
The beam pattern has to remain the same on the car otherwise in many countries it is illegal as well as cause annoyance to other road users.

The colour temperature is just that, it's not more is better, if you had bulbs say 7000k it would look more blue than white and the colours of objects may appear different.

It's not a one horse race with xenons, the white light is good infront of the vehicle, but it means the eys adjust and so looking out at the side of the car appears darker.
 

ZrC

Ready to race!
Location
NJ
People seem to get confused over bulbs and brightness, lumens is the measure of light intensity, xenons are not brighter than halogens, they are just a different colour temperature like about 4200 -5500kelvin vs halogens of 3000kelvin.
The beam pattern has to remain the same on the car otherwise in many countries it is illegal as well as cause annoyance to other road users.

The colour temperature is just that, it's not more is better, if you had bulbs say 7000k it would look more blue than white and the colours of objects may appear different.

It's not a one horse race with xenons, the white light is good infront of the vehicle, but it means the eys adjust and so looking out at the side of the car appears darker.

Xenon is just the gas the bulb is filled with which is found in HID bulbs. HID bulbs are brighter than any halogen usually by double the lumens and run at less than half the power. Which is why all street lights run HID bulbs over halogens although they are usually filled with high pressure sodium which give the orange/yellow tint. In the end, xenon lamps ARE brighter than halogens.

OP: I'm sure those bulbs may give you a few extra lumens but it won't be night and day difference as going from halogens to HIDs.
 
Last edited:

Avanti

Go Kart Champion
Location
UK
Xenon is just the gas the bulb is filled with which is found in HID bulbs. HID bulbs are brighter than any halogen usually by double the lumens and run at less than half the power. Which is why all street lights run HID bulbs over halogens although they are usually filled with high pressure sodium which give the orange/yellow tint. In the end, xenon lamps ARE brighter than halogens.

OP: I'm sure those bulbs may give you a few extra lumens but it won't be night and day difference as going from halogens to HIDs.

You mean they give off more lumens/watt?
The OP only has to look at some youtube vids etc for comparison between the two types.
 

ZrC

Ready to race!
Location
NJ
You mean they give off more lumens/watt?
The OP only has to look at some youtube vids etc for comparison between the two types.

Yes, a halogen will give off about 25 lumens per watt so you're looking at about 1375 lumens from a single 55 watt headlight. An HID will do around 75 lumens per watt which a standard 35 watt bulb will do 2625 lumens.

Halogens have very little wiggle room for lumen improvement (better gas, increased wattage, etc) but usually at the expensive of bulb life. HIDs can range from 50 lumens per watt (crappy ebay brands) to 100 lumens per watt (high end Philips, etc)
 

amullo

Ready to race!
I know all about xenon vs halogen aswell as lumens vs candela. The bulbs above are marketed as giving more light output then the stock xenon bulbs. I wanted to hear about your opinions on them. Givven that they seem to run slightly colder, Im guessing that to some degree that could help visually. Im also guessing they are geared toward more performance with shorter longevity.
Its an intresting swap to make if they work. Both highbeam and lowbeam should benefit..
Also, givven how well nightbreakers in halogen work, id be surprised if it was all talk. Its an Osram product, not some 7000k china bulb..
 

ZrC

Ready to race!
Location
NJ
I'm interested in an A/B comparison as well. Just not ready to shell out $90 for one bulb to test. If they really are a good as them claim I might just do it and use my current ones as spares.
 

amullo

Ready to race!
I plan a comparrison with them on my BMW. Want to test on that as the bulbs are already 5-years old.

Question: What Xenon bulbs are in our Mk7? D1S aswell?
Talking factory fited xenon ofcourse.
 
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