Headlight bulbs - Can I improve visability

[After Shock]

My 2005 E320 really seems to have awful headlight "throw". As in the headlights don't seem very bright. Long distance seems awful.

Could the bulbs be worn out? They are 9 years old I guess.

Has technology moved on in 9 years so I can fit different bulbs? If so which ones.

I was trying to decide if it was just me or whether I couldn't really see very well the other night.

 

[jdrrco]

I replaced the bulbs on my old ('04) CLK and I know the previous owner did on my current ('09) one. It seems the OEM spec were fairly feeble, plus they do fade over time. I chose after reading the article below, obviously only street legal spec, but the difference was considerable.

Car bulbs: 2013 group test & headlight reviews | Auto Express

 

[DSM10000]

If the bulbs are 9 years old they will have degraded, try Osram Nightbreakers or similar higher output 55W bulbs from other manufacturers. In addition your headlights might be getting opaque on the outside as the lacquer that is applied at production reacts to UV light and general abrasion by dust etc. Search on headlamp polishing on here and the internet,

Poor electrical connections, particularly poor earth connections can also reduce the power supplied at the headlamps and reduce output, it might also be useful to have a garage check the aim and levelling.

In addition to this you may have a reduction in your own night vision, not uncommon but worth a check-up by an optician.

 

[jdrrco]

Interesting comment in the AE article, that manufacturers don't automatically fit the brightest bulbs to new cars, being more concerned with longevity and avoiding warranty claims.

 

[GP801]

I have the Osram Nightbreaker Ultimate on the 124 - a car noted for its useless headlights. They result in something very useable - quite an achievement on a 124. I am sure a set of these or the Phillips Extreme Vision would improve things

 

[After Shock]

Thanks for the replies. I'm guessing my bulbs are just old and worn out.

Just reading reviews on Amazon. It's a toss up between Philips and Osram by the look of it.

Each looks very good.

Anyone want to point at one rather than the other?

Do these bulbs really only last months?

Ps. Optician recently told me my eyes were "ok". I did get some reading glasses but I keep forgetting to wear them.

 

[Blowpipe]

I gave up fitting gucci 'super bright' bulbs onto my other car as the failure rate was awful. And as you need the hands of a three year old to get into the gap to replace them, I gave up and went back to standard bulbs which actually last more than a month or so.

 

[bas358]

I've used the Philips as per Autoexpresses this year in my £150 corsa used for 12 car rallies. I have zenons in my c so miss good light.

I am going to fit to my historic rally car to compliment its spots and also to hid's clk.

They are good don none zenons

Sent from my iPhone using MBClub UK

 

[W210Virgin]

Thanks for the replies. I'm guessing my bulbs are just old and worn out.

Just reading reviews on Amazon. It's a toss up between Philips and Osram by the look of it.

Each looks very good.

Anyone want to point at one rather than the other?

Do these bulbs really only last months?

Ps. Optician recently told me my eyes were "ok". I did get some reading glasses but I keep forgetting to wear them.

Tungsten halogen bulbs do not deteriorate to any noticeable extent with age and they don't really wear out except to just fail. They are a simple resistor wire that just glows at the same rate until it fails because of shaking about or the tungsten in the filament eventually evaporating in the bulb at which point the filament breaks. Or a bit of both. You likely have deterioration of the lens externally and a small amount of the discolouration mentioned above has a very significant impact on the amount of usable light escaping from the headlight. Using brighter bulbs, like Nightbreakers, is a good idea, but the trade off is significantly reduced bulb life. There's no magic secret with t-h bulbs. Long life vs high output. Your choice. Some of the high output jobs will only last a few months of night driving. My brother has a 211 and says that the headlights are not much cop on it either so it may be like many cars, the headlights are just not that good to start with. The 210 headlights are not great either, even with Xenon that mine has. Xenon bulbs, BTW, do deteriorate with age, as they are a gas discharge type lamp that, through time, fails to glow as bright with use. The rate of reduction is very slow and barely noticeable. I'll be changing mine this year before the clocks change as I'd say mine are the originals at 12 years old! And the outer lens on them discolours as well. That crap lens plastic is the work of the devil and it should never have changed away from good old glass.

Hope that helps a bit.

 

[After Shock]

I seem to have been doing a lot of night time driving recently coming back from Birmingham along a dual carriageway that has old cat's eyes and useless white lines. With oncoming vehicles it can get quite unnerving. I've been debating the "am I imagining this" or is it duff bulbs/headlights for some months now. You have to grab full beam very quickly and then drop into dipped and almost hope and prey that you are on the road. Ok. Slight exaggeration but .......

I'm going to read the reviews on Amazon about the Osram night breaker and Phillips bulbs, as these seem the best two options, again and try them. For £18 it will be a useful experiment that doesn't break the bank anyway.

 

[After Shock]

Right then a few more questions.

Do I not have "Mercedes gas filled" bulbs that need to be swopped for the same/similar OEM bulb?

When you swop a bulb that is "different" according to the very clever "brain" of the electronics will it register "faulty bulb" ? If so is it an easy reset or a dealership visit? Can STAR remove the fault code.

Just been told these are the possibilities between going down the aftermarket route.

Also been told that Mercedes replacement bulbs are £150 which I could believe.

Why isn't life simple anymore. I remember the days of old cars when you just chucked in any old bulb and off you went!

 

[W210Virgin]

Right then a few more questions.

Do I not have "Mercedes gas filled" bulbs that need to be swopped for the same/similar OEM bulb?

When you swop a bulb that is "different" according to the very clever "brain" of the electronics will it register "faulty bulb" ? If so is it an easy reset or a dealership visit? Can STAR remove the fault code.

Just been told these are the possibilities between going down the aftermarket route.

Also been told that Mercedes replacement bulbs are £150 which I could believe.

Why isn't life simple anymore. I remember the days of old cars when you just chucked in any old bulb and off you went!

If that's the case you are probably talking about Xenon 'bulbs'. You can buy them from Merc if you have money to waste but you could search around and buy Bosch, Philips or Osram ones for less than £100 for a pair. That's what Merc will probably use anyway. Physically changing them may be a bit tricky, but not being familiar with the 211, I'm not sure of the space available. If you're not competent get someone who is to do it for you. The control gear (ballast and ignitor) operate at very high voltage during ignition of the lamp and you need to be careful. If you're not sure what lamps you have, check and see if you have manual headlight adjustment on the dash. If you have your bulbs are standard tungsten-halogen; if you have not, you have Xenon lamps when the range adjustment is automatic. A 2005 model may need a lamp change simply due to age (depending on hours run obviously) but it is likely that you will never change them again. Just don't get cheap non-branded crap!

 

[After Shock]

If that's the case you are probably talking about Xenon 'bulbs'. You can buy them from Merc if you have money to waste but you could search around and buy Bosch, Philips or Osram ones for less than £100 for a pair. That's what Merc will probably use anyway. Physically changing them may be a bit tricky, but not being familiar with the 211, I'm not sure of the space available. If you're not competent get someone who is to do it for you. The control gear (ballast and ignitor) operate at very high voltage during ignition of the lamp and you need to be careful. If you're not sure what lamps you have, check and see if you have manual headlight adjustment on the dash. If you have your bulbs are standard tungsten-halogen; if you have not, you have Xenon lamps when the range adjustment is automatic. A 2005 model may need a lamp change simply due to age (depending on hours run obviously) but it is likely that you will never change them again. Just don't get cheap non-branded crap!

I just spoke with the mechanic who looks after my car. Top guy. A proper "car mechanic"

To quote him. "Pop round Dave and I'll stick my head under the bonnet or you might be wasting your money. I've got a wheelbarrow load of bulbs you can stick in here that probably won't be any better".

I'll update when I can see where I am going with this!

 

[DSM10000]

Any halogen bulb may be used as a direct replacement, equally, any Xenon bulb may be used as long as it is of the same type. Mercedes almost certainly do not make the bulbs they fit or sell.

If your "proper mechanic" has a lot of conventional halogen bulbs then he is likely to be correct and there will be little improvement, the higher output bulbs however, are noticeably much brighter but if the reflectors or lenses are in poor condition then light output is being wasted.

 

[GP801]

Not noticed any longevity issues with either the Phillips or Osram. The 124 is run all the time with headlamps on, day and night. (Its the law in Italy although perhaps only 30% obey it) So far not had any what I would call premature failures.

 

[After Shock]

If your "proper mechanic" has a lot of conventional halogen bulbs then he is likely to be correct and there will be little improvement, the higher output bulbs however, are noticeably much brighter but if the reflectors or lenses are in poor condition then light output is being wasted.

Think he was taking the proverbial as it were.

Actually I must check lenses and reflectors though your right.

 

[rf065]

Not noticed any longevity issues with either the Phillips or Osram. The 124 is run all the time with headlamps on, day and night. (Its the law in Italy although perhaps only 30% obey it) So far not had any what I would call premature failures.

I'm the opposite, I gave up with both Philips & Osrams uprated bulbs as they only lasted 6 months to a year before every one eventually gave up.

Currently running the original bulbs that the car left the factory with, 8 years old and still going strong.

Russ

 

[After Shock]

I'm the opposite, I gave up with both Philips & Osrams uprated bulbs as they only lasted 6 months to a year before every one eventually gave up.

Currently running the original bulbs that the car left the factory with, 8 years old and still going strong.

Russ

There is a button to thank a reply but no button to "not thank" a rely!

"thanks" Russ

 

[rf065]

There is a button to thank a reply but no button to "not thank" a rely!

"thanks" Russ

Not sure what your point is?
You aked for advice on uprated headlight bulbs, did I tell you something you didn't want to hear?

Russ

 

[bigjacques1]

This might be a bit out of date reply but I was in the same position a few months ago as I also when thru the whole motion of which is best.I must have 8 sets of bulbs in my shed.I did all the research and opinions of loads of people.I tried OSRAM Nightbreakers to PHILIPS Extreme and loads of suggested brands.They were all very disappointing and similar.I fitted the RING 120+ to my wife's 2003 Clio a year ago and the light seemed so much better than my 2006 c class.So I decided to try the same in my car and after spending a fortune on bulbs as they all average between £15 - £20 per set,the RING bulbs are far better than any of the others I have tried.Give them a try next time as I will only use the RING in the future.