Headlight H4 and LED reversing light bulbs.

[vanfox]

I'm looking to improve the light output of my headlights.
Presently I have the standard H4 bulbs, has anyone found any brighter/better bulbs?
I'm also looking to improve the light output from my reversing lights. I have the standard 21 watt filament bulbs at present.
Has anyone tried the LED equvalent unit?
Is it any brighter/better?

[Altransit]

I used to have the Philips Extreme +130% in mine, they're now in the Mk7

I fitted the LED reversing bulbs, and found that although the light was whiter, and seemingly brighter, the spread of light wasn't as good as a filament bulb

[Hondekop]

There are some +30% and +50% bulbs available, which provide more light. Proven +50% bulbs are e.g. Philips X-tremeVision and Osram Nightbreaker, albeit at the expense of greatly reduced lifetime and they are expensive. +30% bulbs can be had cheap everywhere, got them from Lidl, noticed an improvement, but not mind boggling.
Some while ago I had to replace a broken headlight glass, and I was surprised about the extra amount of light afterwards. Consequently I cleaned the other's glass and reflector as well (inside!), and this made a difference as well.


Ciao, Kai

[ceurieusneus]

Hi vanfox,
Have you already considered a visit to your ophtalmologist to check for a nyctalopia problem?
Hope this input was useful (not constructive)
cheers

[vanfox]

Eyes tested two months ago, all OK.
I have to reverse up a dark lane to my garage so a bit more light would help.

[bulls in transit]

Rear facing spotlight wired to rev light?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[vanfox]

I'm considering a halogen fog light wired to the reversing lights via a relay that works from the side lights so it only works at night. The limit for rear facing lights is 24 watt so I'm thinking about mounting it under the van so it can't be seen from the rear yet will give a good spread of light low down.

[finn_mccool]

Have tried white LEDs in the reversing lights, but as previously suggested, the throw isn't good and you end up getting just a really bright spot in the middle.

Unfortunately you need the combination of LED and the correct reflector shape to get the same throw as the filament it was designed for.

That being said, there are newer filament-style LED bulbs available - if they have them in the right size and colour, might be worth a shot?