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Bulb Change |
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Chopped
Forum Member Joined: 10 Jan 2016 Location: Hook, Hants Status: Offline Points: 43 |
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Posted: 31 Jan 2016 at 2:57pm |
I bought this set of bulbs for my car: H7 H7 H11 501 100w Super White Xenon HID High/Low/Fog/Side Light Bulbs Set
I've just checked in the manual & it says 12v 55w for all bulbs, Is this ok to have 100w bulbs in or could it do some damage.
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RParkinson
Club Member Joined: 28 Nov 2012 Location: North Yorkshire Status: Offline Points: 183 |
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100W bulbs may well get too hot and start to melt or burn things, they are also illegal for road use in the UK.
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2013 F06 M6 Gran Coupe
2003 E39 M5 1980 E26 |
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Chopped
Forum Member Joined: 10 Jan 2016 Location: Hook, Hants Status: Offline Points: 43 |
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Changed the 100W bulbs for the standard 55w Super White bulbs, so much brighter than the standard ones.
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Mike Fishwick
Forum Member Joined: 04 Aug 2006 Location: France Status: Offline Points: 2742 |
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Orignial bulbs are usually of the 'Long Life' type, where brightness is sacrificed for life, so reducing the manufacturer's liability to replace bulbs under warranty. If you look closely you will find something like 'Philips H7 LL' on the back of the mounting flange, this denoting a Long Life bulb.
Once power exceeds about 85 watts the larger filament makes focussing very difficult, the law of diminishing returns coming in. The current taken by a 100 watt bulb is double that of a 50 watt bulb, which causes additional voltage drops in the wiring, and increased load on the switches and relays. These bulbs generally do not focus well, most of the additional power being lost by poor beam control, so producing dazzle to annoy approaching drivers. Another problem is that most of these bulbs are made in anonymous factories in the far east or eastern europe, and in spite of the 'EC' marking they do not comply with its requirements. This applies to most bulbs, including Ring, Bosch, PIAA, Lucas, Halfords etc etc. Only buy bulbs marked as Philips, Osram, or Sylvania, which are properly made, with correctly-aligned filaments. |
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