Hi.

Guess what? One of my Philips Xtremes has blown! ( after 7.5 months and 16.5k and at the start of winter - Great timing! ). My wife drives to and from daily in the dark so we need something better than Skoda OE as a lot of dipped beam country road driving involved. I am peeeed off the xtremes have let us down and they are getting sent to Eindhoven through Philips customer service dpt. I would urge everyone in the same boat to do the same! Sounds like they will be replaced FOC. Will wait and see. I have read all the posts on the reliabilty issues on these bulbs and I dont want to go down the same road again, but I dont want crap less powerful bulbs either. Going by Auto Express tests these are the only two worth looking at due to their beam ratings. Have nightbreakers as full beam but I have heard they are not reliable or suited to dipped so they are discounted. No others will be taken on. Any experience anyone has on these please share! I dont want my wife driving 300 miles a week in winter on OE in between the x tremes getting tested and the outcome. I would like the Vision Plus for their beam rating but they seem a bit boring and have heard of reliabilty issues by trawling through the web on everybodies forums. The BlueVision appeal more, but are they worth dropping the beam count for a bit of "style"? Would like the Xenon look as we have a racy blue octy vrs but are they BVs really stylish or would I be better going for the VPs. Thanks in advance.:confused: BTW Regl bulbs far cheapest doing the homework unless anyone can offer up anything different?

Edited 8 November, 200916 yr by czechsmasher

Thanks, but even with the discount there is still quite a difference for the same product. Worthwhile checking ALL the sites though.

Edited 8 November, 200916 yr by czechsmasher

Have a look at lidl as they have 50% bulbs for £4.

IMHO the 80/90% bulbs don't last long at all and they do all warn this.

I would suggest:

- Osram silverstar (+50%)

- Phillips GT150 (Also called night vision, these have a blue cap, but no coating on the glass) (+50%)

- Philips vision plus. (+50%)

- Osram all weather plus (+30% and yellowed coating for good vision in heavy rain and fog)

Fitted the previously recommended Phillips upgrades to my car.

Disappointed that there is not a noticeable improvement in intensity.Racing beams indeed.

If you really really don't want Phillips Vision Plus, Osram Silverstars.

Gregoir, you are aware that a "+N%" rating is a measure of the increase in light returned from a specified reference object at a fixed position from a specified reference light shell, not an increase in range?

I did not mention range, only intensity.Honestly.

But as the whole beam should get brighter , the bits round the edge which also get brighter might effectively extend the useful range. Like the Osram +50% did on my old Passat. But not for my FL Octavia:thumbdwn:

Which ones and who said anything about racing beams?

ive used the lidl bulbs and they are very good, if you can get them that is they only come out now and again.

definitely worth a go £4 wont break the bank.

Sorry, Im only interested in these two variations of bulb. Osram Silverstar have got a beam rating of 98 and therefore are non starters! The other ones mentioned I've never even heard of or have any tested results on so they are a no go too. If anyone has any experience of either Vision Plus or Blue Vision it would be great to hear. The reason i am going for one of these two is that they have came out tops in the magazine test.

Blue vision are IMHO poor, because they have a blue coating and so you have less usable light.

Sure they might be the best of the blue bulbs, but the blues are all poor.

I've run the Vision plus (in H4 format) and honestly didn't rate them particularly highly also found they didn't last that long, although still over a year.

I have now gone back to osram silverstars and think these are the best of the 50% bulbs.

What is this "beam rating" of what you speak?

As for the awards, I sometimes get the impression that some of the ratings are based on sponsorship amounts.

I've never heard of "beam rating" either.

czechsmasher, have you considered an aftermarket HID kit?

It seems that this would solve all your problems in one fell swoop.

You want untimate light output, well 4300k HID bulbs would give you that....!

You want the cool Xenon look, well nothing but the real thing here....!

You want long life from your bulbs, HID bulbs last 2 to 3 times longer than standard halogens....!

Plenty of opinions here about their legality as OE HIDs have automatic self levelling and headlamp wash, but so long as you're sensible with the alignment and keep the lamps clean then you'll not have any issues, especially as the Octavia has HIDs as standard so plod wouldn't know otherwise (unless they were looking for the headlamp wash caps).

Also no MOT problems either, my old Mazda 6 sailed through.

Just don't go for the cheapest kit, but you don't have to pay £100s to get something decent either, just use a UK source like HIDs direct. Installation is easy peasy and you'll be well chuffed by the results.

On a final note, don't believe everything you read in magazine reviews. Backhanders are rife, and I bet the testing was done in a Philips Lab.

Some Octys with H4s have headlight washers as std kit.

Some Octys with H4s have headlight washers as std kit.

Indeed, good point, but this chaps car is a vRS which doesn't get them (at least mine hasn't)

BTW, love your sig....!

I thought the vRS was based on the Elegance spec?, and headlight washers are standard on the Elegance.

Hi,

Thanks for all replies. I think I will just go for the vision plus as I seem to have opened up a very big can of worms. The test was recently in Auto Express dated 14th October 09 and is available to read on their website free of charge. "To get our beam rating, we used an industry formula, adding the 50 metre readings and doubling the 75 metre figure - where light is needed most. We took an average from our two bulbs; the higher the rating the better" The test was conducted at the Philips' light tunnel in Aachen, Germany with H7, the size of the Octy's dipped bulb. Beam rating for the Vision Plus is 154, Blue Vision has 135, my concern is in going for the Blue Vision it will compromise on safety over style. I do however very much doubt the tests are affected by sponsorship as on a recent tyre test at the manufacturers tyre test facility the "home" brand did not come top and lost out to a leading competitor. Not interested in flirting with the law and gambling over insurance issues using other "kits" I have enough to worry about without adding to it! Just want powerful road legal bulbs which are safe but good and last or am I asking too much for all of that to be in the one package?

Edited 10 November, 200916 yr by czechsmasher

re 'Racing beams'. I assumed from the correspondence that some forumistas had actually bought these recommended bulbs (+80%) and knew what I meant. The Phillips packaging actually has that puffery on it.

Phillips bulbs win, in a magazine where Phillips put a lot of sponsorship, where the tests are done in Phillips test facility, using the "industry standard" ratings for quality provided by Phillips.

Sorry if I'm a cynic, but from my experience, the Phillips bulbs while good are not all that the test suggests they are.

The one thing that the test very definitely does confirm is that all "blue light bulbs" are is tinted filters on standard light temperature incandescents, with the expected loss in output.

Thanks for the replies, will go for the vision plus. They seem to be the best bet giving power and hopefully longer lifespan. Checked the edition of the mag for that week and the only sponsorship/advertising on behalf of Philips was from two well known and I assume independent (from Philips) internet bulb suppliers stocking Philips bulbs. I could understand the feeling of sponsorship if the winner came out to be a Rng. Usually they advertise in a full page on their 100% more light offering. Never seen a Philips advert in Auto Express and I buy it every week, Not only a Philips consumer as I have Nightbreakers for my mains but I am not convinced over the lifespans of X-Tremes due to my own experience but I've read on here that the Nightbreakers are not to be recommended for the dipped hence the reason for the original posting. In my experience the X-Tremes did come out as good as the reviews after driving with them for 7.5 months however the bulb failed! Its away for testing and hopefully will be replaced FOC and winging their way back from Eindhoven as we speak to then sit in a sorting office in the UK till Christmas.

If you look at the back of the bulb packets for many of these bulbs you will see a scale, some are a clock like circle.

The 30% bulbs seem to be either full or 3/4 full. The 50% half and the 80%/90% bulbs seem to show two segments only which is about 1/8th full (between 1 to 2 o'clock). Since the manufacturers say this I think the evidence of shorter life isn't far wide.

After all, if you have the same power, the extra light has to come from somewhere.

I don't think you'll be disappointed with the Phillips vision plus, it's just I have a personal preference for the osram silver star bulbs.

As long as it gets the desired effect for you it's all good

Thanks, aware the better performing bulbs go quicker than normal. the power has to have some trade off from somewhere but surely 7.5 months is really not on especially as it is now really only coming into winter? I read in a long term test of a fabia that it seemed to munch bulbs due to surges. Knowing my VRS and its reliabilty record this is probably more to do with the answer. Surely 50% bulbs should last at least a year??

My +50% H4s are now on just over 3 years from installation; can't remember make but bought from Powerbulbs.

50% bulbs last a lot longer than 80/90% bulbs IME and for the 50% bulbs they usually last over a year and then some.

Went for vision plus off regl website plus 10 pc off through a discount code, just over £14. Couldnt get anywhere near this price at any of the other sites including the briskoda discount.