Materials to Maintain Your ZHP IIIII Hand Protection IIIII Tools to Maintain Your ZHP
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  1. #1

    What are the hottest bulbs I can burn in oem xenon's?

    I drove through a bad storm last night and could barely see the lines on the road. Options? I have demons, I think they are the good ones.

  2. #2
    Nobody? Az?DW? Nothing?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
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    Western WI
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    Are you talking about 4300k versus 6500k or higher?

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Vancouver, Canada
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    3,588
    The lower Kelvin your bulbs are, the better you'll see in adverse conditions. The high the Kelvin, the cooler you'll look to a point.

    When it's pouring rain my Philips Ultinon 6000K's are difficult to see compared to my stock OEM Philips 4300K. But in the dry my 6000K look awesome on the ground and give a different color oncoming. 4300K on dry just look like more intense whiter halogen bulbs x 5.

    I also have 2500K yellow halogen bulbs in my inner beam. In the rain if I turn those on they reflect very far and penetrate the dark compared to regular 6000K bi-xenon which I find is overrated.

    I have 6000K HID fogs in the stock reflector units which project a more blue/purple hue on the ground but are super bright to light up the area in front of the car. Aimed 2" from the ground at 25 feet away, noone has ever flashed me and standing far away looking at it isn't that bad.

    Both HID headlights and fogs run at 35 watt. You can install 55 watt but I have heard that the increased power needed to start the bulbs put a strain one the light control module if wired straight. My friend's LCM started to smoke and burn after a few months of switching from 35 to 55 watt. To fix that, wire your 55 watt system to a relay. Increased temperature may not be healthy for your system especially if you have a sedan ZKW OEM projector system.

    If you have just a halogen system. I recommend staying stock on the headlights for the best reliable light output. For more light there are expensive Silverstars but they don't last very long for their price. And for the highbeams, Nokya 2500K bulbs. They're very pleasurable to use at highspeed on a dark interstate.
    --Trevor--
    Vancouver, BC

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Liberty Township, OH
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    37,935
    In short, the answer to your question is 12000K.....but you don't want those. I am not positive I know what you mean by hot. It is my opinion (as stated previously) that you would not want to go any higher that 6000k, or less than 4300k....



    Call Me Dane l 2/2004 330i ZHP l 18x8 ET45 BBS CK's wrapped with Michelin Pilot Sport AS3+ @ 245-40-18 l KW V1 Coilovers in front l KW V1 springs w/ Bilstein B8 dampeners in rear l BMW Performance Rotors l UUC StrutBarbarian l Racing Dynamics Rear Strut Bar l Jim Conforti Shark Injector l Light Birch Interior Trim l Bimmian Celly Mount l M3 Trunk Mat l l e90 Performance E-Brake & Shift Knob l M3 Tri-Stitched Boots l AL Headlight Retrofit with ZKW Lenses l CobyWheel Wrap w/M3 Stitching l LCM sw 4.5 triple blink and rear fogs l Maple Interior Trim

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Vancouver, Canada
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    3,588
    --Trevor--
    Vancouver, BC

  7. #7
    All very helpful. Thanks rover and dw. I looking for better visibility, so lower is better?
    Or is it brand that make more difference?

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Branford, CT
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    16,055
    4.3-5k is best for visibility, agreed with the chart DW posted.
    BP
    2005 330i ZHP / 6MT
    Imolarot / Naturbraun
    2003 330iT / 6MT
    Orientblau / Naturbraun




    It's not the car you drive, it's how you drive it.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Posts
    15,433
    Quote Originally Posted by az3579 View Post
    4.3-5k is best for visibility, agreed with the chart DW posted.
    Yep. Spot on. I'll be going with 4300K.

  10. #10
    spencers Guest
    Quote Originally Posted by Johnmadd View Post
    All very helpful. Thanks rover and dw. I looking for better visibility, so lower is better?
    Or is it brand that make more difference?
    Lower kelvin=better. Brand is also of great importance.
    Xenon bulbs gradually decrease in lumens over their lifetime.
    The lifetime of OEM bulbs being at or beyond 10+ years.
    Aftermarket bulbs are junk. They won't last you near as long, nor will they have the same light output as a brand-name bulb.

    Stick to Philips 85122+ D2S bulbs.
    You'd really be amazed at what a brand new set will do; and you'll be hard-pressed to find a bulb that does 3400 lumen for the price.

    This was after replacing my stock bulbs with brand new ones. I found an underground garage to show how bright they are.
    It's on a slight incline and the photo was taken with a phone, sorry.
    Last edited by spencers; 03-18-2011 at 11:57 AM.

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