Which One Is Better?

[camlex]

Hello,

I am thinking to upgrade my 97 ES300’s lights (Low, High & Fog) . I have PIAA Extreme White and Silverstar in mind. Which one is good and where I can find best price?

Thanks,

[lexusk8]

I have PIAA Xtreme White in the low beams of my '01 ES, and they've been running superb for the last 1-1/2 years. I used to also have PIAA Xtreme White for the fogs, but one of the bulbs blew out after about 1 year of use. Now I'm running stock halogen fogs and that's fine with me. In fact I advise sticking with regular stocks for the fogs as the white light from the fogs, despite its good looks, won't cut into the fog as much as halogen or yellow fogs (think of GS and IS fogs).

I know steviej has PIAA bulbs for the high beams in his '02 ES, and I'm sure he'll say positive comments regarding PIAA :D

[camlex]

Thank you,

I bought Low beam H7 and installed it. They are great lights. There is a big difference between Stock light and PIAA. I also bought H3 Fog lights, but I don't know how to install them.

Please guide me.

Thanks,

[lexusk8]

I also bought H3 Fog lights, but I don't know how to install them.

Please guide me.

Thanks,

←

steviej posted fog light installation instructions in the middle of the thread below. That should help you :)

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...wtopic=1999&hl=

[vcv10guy]

I recently changed my standard oem bulbs to the silverstars (low beams) and it's a whole lot better now :) . Glad you like your PIAA's Cam.

[theinfamious]

I currently have the silverstars installed in my low beams but after 6 months of use, one of the bulbs blew out. I am considering PIAA's, Nokya or Narva's next. I have H3 Narva Gold's in my fogs right now and I am loving them.

[lexusk8]

Well after 1-1/2 years of use, one of the PIAA Xtreme White bulbs in my low beams blew out recently, and now I'm back to stock halogen :cries:

But at least I got my money's worth with the PIAA, and it's time to move on to another brand. Ebay's tempting me.. ;)

[mrsel3]

Well after 1-1/2 years of use, one of the PIAA Xtreme White bulbs in my low beams blew out recently, and now I'm back to stock halogen  :cries:

But at least I got my money's worth with the PIAA, and it's time to move on to another brand.  Ebay's tempting me.. ;)

←

What was the color like? Like 02 ES or purpleish liek mercedes or BMW. I want to eplace the bulbs in my 04 Solara.

Thanks

[vcv10guy]

I currently have the silverstars installed in my low beams but after 6 months of use, one of the bulbs blew out.  I am considering PIAA's, Nokya or Narva's next.  I have H3 Narva Gold's in my fogs right now and I am loving them.

←

That's what I'm worried about with the silverstars. I keep on hearing that they don't last too long all over the forums. If they do blow out prematurely, I'll consider the PIAA bulbs as well.

[gumbytech]

I recently did some research into replacements for the OEM lighting. I have a 97 ES300

High 9005

Low H7

Fog H3

I highly recommend people spend some time at this website for some important info about lighting. Be cautious, there is much marketing hype about lights.

I purchased all my lamps from this guy (I am not affiliated in anyway). They are just ordered so I can't speak from experience yet.

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/home.html

Below is email (2/26) from him with his recommendation:

Fog: H3 Gold, $13/ea.

Low: Ultra High Efficacy Plus 50 bulb (Osram Silverstar +50, Narva

Rangepower+50, Tungsram Megalicht +50, etc. -- we currently stock the

Tungsram) $17.50/ea

High: New 9011 "light cannon" bulb.

The new bulbs are not some tinted or overwattage version of 9005, but

rather employ a relatively new technology called HIR, Halogen Infrared.

The mechanical dimensions of the bulb are all virtually identical to the

9005, but the bulb glass is spherical instead of tubular, with the sphere

centered around the filament. There is a "Durable IR Reflective" coating

on the spherical glass. Infrared = heat, so the coating causes heat to be

reflected back to the filament at the center of the sphere. This causes

the filament to become much hotter (producing more light) than it can by

passing electricity through it, *without* the shorter life or greater heat

production that comes with overwattage bulbs (to say nothing of

overwattage bulbs' incompatibility with stock wiring.)

Here's the comparison:

High beam stock: 9005, 12.8V, 65W, 1700 lumens, 320 hours

High beam new: HIR1, 12.8V, 65W, 2530 lumens, 320 hours

These bulbs are spendy - $34/ea - but their cost is worth considering in

context: Any number of companies will charge you more than this for a

tarted-up 9005 with blue colored glass (PIAA and Sylvania Silverstar come

to mind) that doesn't produce more light and has a very short lifespan.

The HIR bulbs have a double-wide top ear on the plastic bulb base, this is

to comply with the law requiring different bulbs to have different bases.

The extra-wide plastic top ear is easily trimmed or filed to make the bulb

fit your headlamp's bulb receptacle. Once that's done, they go directly

into the headlamp, and the existing sockets snap on.

I don't have access to my car now and won't have chance to install them until mid April, but I'll let you know how it goes. Good luck.

Dan

[melhadri]

Great source. I also bought my Narva Golds H3 from Daniel Stern. He is a very honest and advice giving fellow. For those of you who want bulbs that will output nothing but great white light then he is the man to consult with. For those that want the illegal blue tinted bulbs then I would look elsewhere (ebay) b/c he makes its it very clear that he will not jeopardize you or other peoples vision on the road. He also sells all sorts of lighting accessories. Check out the website above.

[lexusk8]

Well after 1-1/2 years of use, one of the PIAA Xtreme White bulbs in my low beams blew out recently, and now I'm back to stock halogen :cries:

But at least I got my money's worth with the PIAA, and it's time to move on to another brand.  Ebay's tempting me.. ;)

←

What was the color like? Like 02 ES or purpleish liek mercedes or BMW. I want to eplace the bulbs in my 04 Solara.

Thanks

←

The color temp for these PIAA Xtreme White bulbs is 4150K, so the color is pretty much a perfect white (makes the stock fogs look brownish comparably) ;) I highly recommend PIAA for HID look-a-like bulbs; they are a reliable product.

Remember that HIDs cannot suitably be compared to halogen (aftermarket or factory). Very big difference between them in terms of light output and cutoff.

[lexusk8]

BTW, I just purchased and installed a set of Sylvania Silverstars in my lows the other day. Everything's working great and looking good so far. Reading the danielsternlighting web site from one of the posts above gave me some insight on what I realistically want to achieve from automotive lighting :D

I sort of missed these Silverstars after installing them in my '96 ES a few years ago, and at that time, they lasted at least a year before I sold the '96 altogether. I'm sure these Silverstars will do fine in the '01 :)

[melhadri]

The Sylvania Silverstars (USA) look great however I think they have a slightly tinted glass. If anyone is looking for pure white, not blue, light output then Daniel Stern recommends the ultra high efficiency silverstars (outside USA). I believe their made by Osram. I also hear lots of good things about the Narva Rangepower bulbs, which are considered hyperwhite. I am most likely going to buy the 55W Osram Silverstar Ultra High Efficacy Plus 50: $17.50/ea (outside USA). Avoid the ebay bulbs. A couple of my friends bought some the tinted blue bulbs (Eurodezign...etc.) from ebay and it melted their wiring.