100 watt bulbs??

[harry brauns]

Hi XC friends, I am thinking of replacing my standard frond bulbs with 100 watt bulbs. Can I do that without risk? And will it bring more light in the darkness.
HCB

[Sasquatch]

some links for you:

Better headlight bulbs out there? (http://www.v70xc.com/forums/showthread.php?amp;t=5310)

Replacement bulbs (http://www.v70xc.com/forums/showthread.php?amp;t=1678)

overwatt low and high beams (http://www.v70xc.com/forums/showthread.php?amp;t=4969)

I'd just wait until they burned out if I were you: Headlight Bulb Burning Out (http://www.v70xc.com/forums/showthread.php?amp;t=5282)

see also:
Osram All Season Super H1 Fog Bulbs (http://www.v70xc.com/forums/showthread.php?amp;t=4945)


There may be more, but I found these pretty quickly.

[VWVespaVolvoinVA]

Assuming you are merely putting overpowered bulbs in otherwise imperfect (U.S. spec) lenses:

Without risk to oncoming drivers' eyes? No, your car will become at least an annoyance and likely a risk to other traffic and to yourself. Lots of your excess light will find its way into drivers' eyes.

Without risk to your wiring harness? Don't know.

Without risk to your car in general? Not if you blind some immature and short-tempered drivers who find where you park and have their screwdrivers with them.

Without risk to you? It depends on how you handle the stream of oncoming drivers who will be flashing you with their high beams, and who you tick off when you flash back. You'll probably never see the beer bottle until it hits your windshield.

As you can tell, I am not a fan of overwattage bulbs in lamps that do not prevent excess light from getting up into others' eyes.

Perhaps you could find some European code headlights, which tend to have a more focused beam with a sharp cutoff that keeps excess glare from getting up and away. But keep overwattage bulbs for high beam only, where you wouldn't use them with oncoming traffic around.

[KILOFINAL]

I'm not an expert on automotive electrical systems, but I don't think it's a great idea to put 100W bulbs in a car with wiring designed for 55W.

[littlewaywelt]

Hi XC friends, I am thinking of replacing my standard frond bulbs with 100 watt bulbs. Can I do that without risk? And will it bring more light in the darkness.
HCB
more light to you. more of danger to those coming towards you.

[Sasquatch]

Was just looking up some bulbs and saw this post: overwatt low and high beams (http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4969&highlight=bulb)

Why is it closed?:confused::confused:


Also, since they are almost exactly the same, this thread (this one you are reading) can be merged with: Better headlight bulbs out there? (http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5310&highlight=bulb)[thumbup]

[JRL]

You WILL burn up the wiring harness, guaranteed

[Sasquatch]

Was just looking up some bulbs and saw this post: overwatt low and high beams (http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4969&highlight=bulb)

Why is it closed?:confused::confused:


Also, since they are almost exactly the same, this thread (this one you are reading) can be merged with: Better headlight bulbs out there? (http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5310&highlight=bulb)[thumbup]

Ordered these the other day, and they are due to show up tomorrow:



Ceramic socket for H7 bulbs $9.69 2 $19.38
H7 bulbs: Osram Rallye 65w Ultra High Output H7 Special-Service Bulb SALE! $19.99 2 $39.98

from:http://store.candlepower.com/

[Chilled Man]

get HIDs install and reaim headlights

[JRL]

You will burn out the harness in a day (and maybe have a fire)!

[RockitShip]

You will burn out the harness in a day (and maybe have a fire)!

Ditto! Not worth it!
Just get a quality bulb. I personally like the Vision Plus bulbs by Philips. I can actually see a difference!
Or just install HID's like Chilled Man suggests.

[Sasquatch]

You will burn out the harness in a day (and maybe have a fire)!

Is this in reference to my latest post, or the original subject of 100 watt bulbs?

[billr99]

You will burn out the harness in a day (and maybe have a fire)!

Years ago when I was young and not as wise as I am now ;), I ran 100w high beams in my Datsun rally car. During the time I ran them I went thru 2 fuse blocks that melted as a result of running a total of 530w worth of headlights and driving lights. The quad headlights were run thru stock relays and wiring whereas the 2 pair of Cibie Super Oscars were run thru custom battery-feed wiring and resettable breakers and relays. The fuse block melted on the fuse going to the 100 watt bulbs. There was also a bit of melting on the plastic grille where it was near the high beams and I also broke one high beam lens via thermal stress when I went thru a not so dry ford and threw icy water up on the front of the car. And to top it all off, I never really thought they added much light when I was running at full chat with all the lights on. Considering they cost me at least one DNF because they overstressed a already weak electrical system, I went back to 55w bulbs.

Now admittedly, the old Datsun electrical systems were not very powerful and my setup really pushed what was available. But the wiring was pretty heavy in those old 510s, probably heavier than today's Volvos. I am not sure about any differences in the quality of plastic and glass between the two, but I would suggestion that for what could be just a slight difference in usable light output, it just isn't worth the effort and possible damages you could cause.

Cheers,

Bill

[Ocean Racer]

Interesting info in this thread.
What about 100w fog lights (H1)
I have been using them during our hot summer and so far have had no issues. Although I have not inspected them since installing.

[Sasquatch]

Interesting info in this thread.
What about 100w fog lights (H1)
I have been using them during our hot summer and so far have had no issues. Although I have not inspected them since installing.

Was that a straight bulb replacement only, or did you also do a relay?

[Ocean Racer]

Direct bulb replacement.

[icegrill]

ceramic socket covers sound perfect anywhere else to purchase them?