Hi all. About to order a Skoda Octy II and stumbled on this forum - you seem a very friendly, well-informed lot!

Only question mark on the spec is whether to order Xenons. I do a lot of rural driving where the roads are unlit and traffic is not very dense - but dense enough that you are driving on dipped beam most of the time. The dipped beam in my wife's car (Golf MKV) is not quite bright enough for me and I would assume that Octy II is pretty similar.

Unfortunately there are no cars with Xenons fitted nearby so I cannot tell from a real-life example. Do people view the Xenons as a useful add on to address this problem? Are there any downsides?

Not interested in how the car "looks" to other people, just the functionality of the light.

Thanks for your help!

I can't personally speak for xenons as I've never had them, but I have upgraded from standard bulbs to Philips X-Tremes and noticed a marked difference in visibility, and so far I've not been flashed once.

They cost less than £30 for the pair from Powerbulbs, so are markedly less than investing in xenons.

Hope that helps, and welcome to the site

I have Xenons, albeit not on a Skoda. On full beam, worth every penny, no doubt whatsoever.

Dipped beam, a liitle above average IMO.

IIRC headlights on my old Octavia vRS were grim in standard format, and not a lot better with better bulbs.

Oh yes.

They're in a league of their own, not only in brightness, but they generally last a lot longer too than any halogen headlight.

The drawbacks are:

1/ Cost. Expensive to buy & expensive to replace should one get broken either by accident, vandalism or if you're unlucky enough to have it happen, simply go kaput.

2/ You sometimes get flashed by other motorists who dislike them.

Well as far as I'm concerned they're perfectly legal & as long as they're set up correctly aligned correctly too, then I don't particularly care if you don't like them.

I've got them & I'm afraid that's tough.

I'll be specifying them again on the new one too, as I think they're worth the extra cash.

Only question mark on the spec is whether to order Xenons. I do a lot of rural driving where the roads are unlit and traffic is not very dense - but dense enough that you are driving on dipped beam most of the time. The dipped beam in my wife's car (Golf MKV) is not quite bright enough for me and I would assume that Octy II is pretty similar.

Unfortunately there are no cars with Xenons fitted nearby so I cannot tell from a real-life example. Do people view the Xenons as a useful add on to address this problem? Are there any downsides?

I bought my first car with xenons in 2003, a Ford Focus and will never ever go back to just halogens. They really are that good - particularly here in Finland during autumn and winter.

Now I have a 2008 (Finnish spec) Octy II vRS, which came standard with the dipped beam xenons that are even better than in the Focus (as do our Elegance, Scout and L&K).

There are only two things I miss from my old Focus - the Xenon high beams as the Octy halogen high beams are really quite useless (I've even considered wiring them off and installing Hella Luminator Compact Xenon spotlights) and heated windscreen option (thaws the ice very well in winter for easy removal).

The only downside that I can think of is the glare that makes it easy for other drivers to recognize an Octy II (pre-facelift). It is not dangerous but is noticeable and I think it is due to the lights being set up with a "cup" in front of them.

Edited 19 August, 200916 yr by warthog66

They're in a league of their own, not only in brightness, but they generally last a lot longer too than any halogen headlight.

Just as well.

Xenons - £700 option = 23 sets of Philips X-Tremes, so if the X-tremes last 12 months thats 23 years of driving

I have Xenons, albeit not on a Skoda. On full beam, worth every penny, no doubt whatsoever.

Dipped beam, a liitle above average IMO.

IIRC headlights on my old Octavia vRS were grim in standard format, and not a lot better with better bulbs.

Main beam bulbs on the Octy are normal, not Xenons. This is my first car with Xenons (dipped beam) and I wouldn't be without them...

Brilliant (pun intended), can't believe how good they are. Pity my '57 Octy hasn't got Xenon main beam

In a word 'YES'. Xenons give a much most consistent spread of bright light and are worth every penny. Personally I would now never purchase a car without them. The Ultra-Bright halogen bulbs (no matter how well reviewed) will never get close to the light output of xenons - I have done side to side comparisons. Top of my options list, above everything else !

Can you tell I quite like mine !

welcome to Briskoda.

Xenons? In a word - YES

I echo all of what has been said above and suggest you ignore any argument about the relative cost of replacement bulbs as irrelevant, as Xenons are so much more superior than ordinary halogen lights that they do not bear comparison.

The only downside to the Octavia's Xenons is that you can't yet get bi-xenons i.e. main beam being xenon as well. Maybe one day.

Good luck with your intended purchase.

I'd get them as a factory fit, or just run the 30% or 50% brighter halogens in them.

I can't recommend the 80/90% brighter bulbs as none I have used have ever lasted out a full year and IMHO the life is far too short unless you do very limited amounts of lights on driving.

I ran Philips Xtreme power for years in my last car (Seat Leon) with no issues. But I wanted Xenons in my new car, so got them for my Octy vRS. Simply awesome. The only real objection is cost, but like many others I won't get a car without them now as they are significantly brighter and better at illuminating signs in particular.

xenons id go for too.Don't know about what others think on here who have them,but i find that the light is also calming on the eyes.

Looks like I'd better get xenons next time I change the car then

I did make it clear that I wasn't talking from any personal experience of them - if that can rank as a defence

I can though still confirm that the X-Tremes do give an advantage over standard bulbs

All depends what percentage of driving is spent on headlights as to whether the £700 is value for money or not

Definitely worth having. Get the dealer to chuck 'em in otherwise you'll walk away.

Having had cars with and without, i would say:

If you dont have them, you end up wishing you did

If you do have them, then you end up thinking how you could have spent the money in so so many better ways.

Personally i think they're worth a premium of £250. Since you cant get them for that, i'd say that anyone considering whether to add them as an option should do so if the car is already well within budget, but not bother if you are concerned about cost.

Hi lads listening in I have just bought a superb s so no xenon can i just replace bulbs or do i have to change the light unit :rofl: it has good light better than the seat altea i part ex it for

Thanks all. Order placed with Xenons included. Can't wait!

xenons not the best in the wet, but providing they are set up properly i would have them again even if people who havent had xenons dont understand the kick up they have. This is also coming from someone who hated them at first because after a dozen or so visits to the dealer (yes it took that long) to actually get the xenons set up correct.

Ok, slightly off topic but still related - as it is mandatory in many parts of europe to carry a set of spare bulbs, does this include a space Xenon lamp?

This is also coming from someone who hated them at first because after a dozen or so visits to the dealer (yes it took that long) to actually get the xenons set up correct.

And I was grumpy because it took my dealer 3 goes to get them adjusted correctly.

A disadvantage of the factory Xenons is that if you start the engine with the lights unplugged for any reason the headlight controller gets all sulky and won't level the lights, leaving them blinding all and sundry until you get the error code fixed with VagCom/VCDS or the dealer tool.

I find the kick up in the passenger side of the beam is useful in seeing Kangaroos and Wombats on the side of the road without dazzling oncoming drivers.

If you want to improve the std halogen lights I can recommend Osram Rallye 65W H7 bulbs for lo beam (same life as std globes, but big increase in lumens), and Philips X-treme 55W H1 for Hi beam (good improvement in lumens, not quite as long lived as std bulbs). But even with the better globes, the Xenons are way better than the halogens.

As has been said once you've had Xenons you won't go back. Had them on my first Octy and now on the vRS was my first choice of extra on the list and a must have IMHO. Tried in previous cars the brighter bulbs of various makes with various results and at some expense but nothing comes close to Xenons.

+1 on the philips x-treme

£25 well spent and mine have been in 12 months and they are on 2 hrs a day on average.

Personally I'd go for the x-tremes eve if I have to replace them yearly still cheaper than the xenons.