Headlight Reflective Coating

[MoVolvos]

Hi Zhenya,

The bulbs are white and brighter than OE bulbs especially when in my Odyssey. For Stage 0 (I believe that is the term) they are brighter than OE. As for my Volvo they were purchased before I knew about the reflector problems so it will not give off as much light but still more than Halogens. The are indeed brighter than OE and better quality but if they last a couple of years and for $6.95 you can get a new set that is not bad. Love my first old Volvo purchased in Jan 2012 for it's drive and not really there for speed or show. I think for the money and lumen it is alright as a stock replacement.

Blessings,

BKM

[erikv11]

Last a couple years?? What he is saying is, you are probably looking at more like a couple months.

But wait and see, who knows!

[MoVolvos]

Last a couple years?? What he is saying is, you are probably looking at more like a couple months.

But wait and see, who knows!

You are probably right in that it is my first car with daytime running lights. My brother owned a Passat for 3 year and it needed changing right before selling it. Probably had them also. How long do low beams last in a Volvo or they are just expected not to last long?

Blessings,

BKM

[zhenya]

Hi Zhenya,

The bulbs are white and brighter than OE bulbs especially when in my Odyssey. For Stage 0 (I believe that is the term) they are brighter than OE. As for my Volvo they were purchased before I knew about the reflector problems so it will not give off as much light but still more than Halogens. The are indeed brighter than OE and better quality but if they last a couple of years and for $6.95 you can get a new set that is not bad. Love my first old Volvo purchased in Jan 2012 for it's drive and not really there for speed or show. I think for the money and lumen it is alright as a stock replacement.

Blessings,

BKM

There are only two ways to make a bulb brighter; you can increase the wattage which is generally a bad idea because it strains an electrical system not designed to carry that amount of current, as well as risking damaging the plastic housing the bulb is placed in from the additional heat, or you can increase the lumen output through precision filament winding. The latter is how reputable manufacturers control their bulb output. There is, however, a direct relationship between this method and bulb lifespan. A 'standard' bulb has an acceptable trade-off between the focus of the beam and adequate lifespan (let's say 650 hours). A 'long life' bulb reduces focus (and hence visibility), but may have a lifespan of 3000 hours. A 'mega efficacy' (ie. +80) bulb has better focus (more lumens - better visibility), but may only last 300 hours. That's it, no tricks. But to do this well requires very high quality control so nobody really makes 'true' mega-efficacy bulbs except the best manufacturers in their best facilities.

To make the bulb have a white or blue tint, a coating is applied to the glass. At best, that coating will minimally interfere with the light output, but realistically, adding any color is going to remove some of the visible light. Hence colored bulbs are typically slightly over-driven as compared to a 'standard' bulb in order to make up for the light lost from the coating. Unfortunately for the consumer, you get the worst of both worlds - less light and less life - in the case of the Ebay bulbs, at least that's at low cost (but see my statement above about the QC required to make a good high output bulb - you aren't going to find it on a $6.99/lifetime warranty bulb, that's for sure) - but in the cases of companies like PIAA - you are also paying a premium for the privilege!

So that's it; one doesn't need to know anything else about your ebay bulbs except that they are colored to know that there is an alternative product out there that puts out more light - one that doesn't have the coating!

[MoVolvos]

Hi zhenya,

Thanks for all the information about bulbs. I've used the EBay bulbs on and off since 2003 first in my brothers P71 Crown Vic and on several other cars and have paid the $6.95 twice to get replacements so I am OK with their promise of lifetime warranty and I know there are much, much better bulbs with better lumen as I have mentioned several times already they are just whiter and brighter perhaps not by much.

My question to erikv11 and/or to other members after all that was on the average longevity of an average low beam Halogen H7 bulb in the headlight assembly. Due to the enclosure do S70's bulbs have a shorter than average longevity as compared to other cars. Sorry, if you did not understand my question. Thanks again for all the useful information.

Blessings,

BKM

[tireboy-1]

The bulb works great in the 2000 Odyssey and is white and brighter then Halogen H7's with Lifetime Warranty. Have used these and for $6.95 and one bad bulb sent back to the manufacturer (standard envelope is fine just wrap in tape) they will send you a new set. VW Passats have hot enclosures and burn bulbs at a very fast rate.

The lighting in the Volvo is just sufficient with the paint when compared to the Odyssey and I used the standard H7 in the high-beam (good contrast). If I would do it again I would buy the entire assembly and not the Glass only (too late). For anyone changing their side marker or headlight lenses or assembly using After-market especially from EBay buy TYC brand not Eagle Eyes especially the Side Markers. The Eagle Eyes Side Markers I purchased were WOW very poorly assembled and cosmetically bad compared to the OE Hella Volvo although nice and new yet the plastic was thin and cheap.

You get what you pay for!!!

I inserted my AC thermometer into the lower hole in the back of the Head Light Assembly and got a temp reading around 160 if I remember correctly so the paint should be OK for awhile. Will check it again during the summer to determine if the paint will be cooked even though it may not last anyways with the low beam on all the time.

Blessings,

Is it a good idea to polish it sir? I guess for me it's a good idea, cheap, and I'm pretty sure you will not screw up the reflectors

[zhenya]

Hi zhenya,

My question to erikv11 and/or to other members after all that was on the average longevity of an average low beam Halogen H7 bulb in the headlight assembly. Due to the enclosure do S70's bulbs have a shorter than average longevity as compared to other cars. Sorry, if you did not understand my question. Thanks again for all the useful information.

Blessings,

BKM

Since these cars use lowbeams at full voltage as DRL's any time the car is on, they will use bulbs at a rate much faster than other cars that either have no DRL's, use an alternate bulb as DRL's, or under-volt the main bulbs in DRL mode. Take your 600 hour average lifespan and divide that by how much time the car is on. That's your lifespan.

On the 850 it is trivial to disable the DRL's. I'm not sure if that is the case on the S/V70's.

[jblackburn]

My S70 needs new bulbs about once every 8-12 months. One will burn out, and then the other side follows shortly after. Then again, I've also put 25,000+ miles on it a year for the past two years, so it's definitely driven a lot - and I keep my Daytime Running lights on - and use Silverstar bulbs with a shorter-than-average lifespan.

My experience with the ENTIRE car is that it loves to eat bulbs - especially taillights.

[MoVolvos]

The bulb works great in the 2000 Odyssey and is white and brighter then Halogen H7's with Lifetime Warranty. Have used these and for $6.95 and one bad bulb sent back to the manufacturer (standard envelope is fine just wrap in tape) they will send you a new set. VW Passats have hot enclosures and burn bulbs at a very fast rate.

The lighting in the Volvo is just sufficient with the paint when compared to the Odyssey and I used the standard H7 in the high-beam (good contrast). If I would do it again I would buy the entire assembly and not the Glass only (too late). For anyone changing their side marker or headlight lenses or assembly using After-market especially from EBay buy TYC brand not Eagle Eyes especially the Side Markers. The Eagle Eyes Side Markers I purchased were WOW very poorly assembled and cosmetically bad compared to the OE Hella Volvo although nice and new yet the plastic was thin and cheap.

You get what you pay for!!!

I inserted my AC thermometer into the lower hole in the back of the Head Light Assembly and got a temp reading around 160 if I remember correctly so the paint should be OK for awhile. Will check it again during the summer to determine if the paint will be cooked even though it may not last anyways with the low beam on all the time.

Blessings,

Is it a good idea to polish it sir? I guess for me it's a good idea, cheap, and I'm pretty sure you will not screw up the reflectors

I mentioned it in my original post that I try to clean it with Alcohol... Thanks though.

Blessings,

BKM

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[MoVolvos]

My S70 needs new bulbs about once every 8-12 months. One will burn out, and then the other side follows shortly after. Then again, I've also put 25,000+ miles on it a year for the past two years, so it's definitely driven a lot - and I keep my Daytime Running lights on - and use Silverstar bulbs with a shorter-than-average lifespan.

My experience with the ENTIRE car is that it loves to eat bulbs - especially taillights.

It looks like $6.95 a year for me on bulbs. Thanks.

Blessings,

BKM