What are the brightest headlamp bulbs I can use in an E36?

[MitchT]

TLDR:

Are there any really bright bulbs I can buy for my E36 3 Series which will be a direct replacement for the bog standard ones I usually get from Halfords and which will afford me a better standard of visibility, particularly on unlit roads with brightly illuminated vehicles traveling towards me?

Long(er) version:

I met a friend for dinner yesterday evening. Driving home in my E36 3 Series in the dark involved a good 20 minutes on unlit country roads. The dipped headlights were, frankly, inadequate, though main beam was good enough. The real issue was that whenever someone was coming the other way and I couldn't use the main beam I found myself having to slow down as it was so difficult see where I was going, such was the inadequacy of my dipped headlights once my eyes had adjusted to compensate for the lights of the oncoming vehicle. If the car coming the other way had HIDs there was nothing but dazzling light with an adjacent black void in which nothing at all was visible and the whole experience was bordering on terrifying!

I'm wondering if there are some better bulbs I can use which will offer a modicum of visibility in such a scenario. A quick Google suggests Phillips "X-tremeVision" bulbs will be compatible. Does anyone here have first hand experience of them or something similar?

[d_a_n1979]

It's not just the bulbs, but the reflector in the headlight too...

If the chrome has broken down with age and started to disappear, no matter which bulb you fit, the light will always be crap.

I'm a big fan of Osram Nightbreaker bulbs and their 'Cool Blue Intense' bulbs too, but only if the headlights are in decent order

[MitchT]

That's interesting and something that wouldn't have occurred to me. Would the chrome be visibly deteriorated without having to dismantle a headlamp unit?

[shalmaneser]

There are some good xenon projector retrofit kits out there if you really want to get some good headlights.

[Pica-Pica]

The lens will have discoloured and deteriorated too.

[MiseryStreak]

The more expensive brighter bulbs have a much shorter service life. Look at the small print (only available on the data sheet, not in the brochure) on Osram bulbs for example, their super bright bulbs (2,600 lm) have an estimated life of just 23 hours, compared with 1,000 hours of their ultra life bulb (1,350 lm):





Halfords own brand and other makes are similar. The light that burns twice as bright…

[MitchT]

Looks like there's no holy grail solution then... loads to have potentially gone wrong with the headlamp units... short lived bright bulbs or expensive and more sophisticated solutions. Might just have to stick to better lit roads in this car!

[Pica-Pica]

If you do replace the whole lamp unit, a word of caution. The cheapo look-alike E***parts are crap. The OEM ones are best, but expensive. Probably about the same price as the car is worth trade TBHonest.

[g3org3y]

MitchT said:

Looks like there's no holy grail solution then... loads to have potentially gone wrong with the headlamp units... short lived bright bulbs or expensive and more sophisticated solutions. Might just have to stick to better lit roads in this car!

IME, Osram Nightbreakers as mentioned above are a notable improvement to stock bulbs. I've used them in both my E36 and E46 with no issues as well as the equivalents from Philips (Vision Plus & X-Treme Vision iirc)

Back in the day I had an aftermarket HID kit on my E36. (I even had angel eyes, such was the fashion of the day )



They were definitely a step up over the upgraded bulbs. Obviously more of a faff to install. Had to mess about with the wiring, install/mount the ballast etc. Kept the lenses in situ to reduce scatter (some people used to remove for a 'cleaner' look) so once aligned properly I didn't have any issued with oncomers flashing me. They were 6000k. I think OEM is more like 4300k.

Edited by g3org3y on Sunday 31st October 14:23

[skylarking808]

I use Osram Nightbreaker Silvers on my E36 with a noticable difference

[MitchT]

skylarking808 said:

I use Osram Nightbreaker Silvers on my E36 with a noticable difference

These seem to get good reviews so I think I'll give them a go.

Thanks all for the comments!

[naturalaspiration]

It is easy to replace the H1 bulb with an aftermarket H1 HID kit. If you want it to look OE get original used BMW Hella ballasts. Ideally first open the headlights and clean them - dust likes to settle on the inside of the projector lenses. Also very gently wipe the dust off the reflectors.

[skylarking808]

[quote=MitchT]
These seem to get good reviews so I think I'll give them a go.

Its worth £15 to give it a go on the dipped beam first.
Had stronger bulbs from other manufactures in the past but did not last long. Used silver nightbreakers in most of my older cars.

[MitchT]

skylarking808 said:

Its worth £15 to give it a go on the dipped beam first.

Make sense. The main beam is alright as it is. The main issue I have is with dipped headlights when I'm being dazzled by oncoming vehicles with HIDs.

[MitchT]

I started wondering about LED bulbs and found these...

https://www.philips.co.uk/c-e/au/car-lights/headli...

... but the checker doesn't come up with them when I put in my vehicle type. Would they not be compatible with my E36 even though they're available as H7s?

[skylarking808]

I only use Osram's as mentioned so not familiar with Philips - although a great brand.

E36 uses H7 annd H1 I think, so if it's stating H7 fitment then should be ok?

[iguana]

When ever I've tried brighter bulbs they've not lasted long & I've ended up going back to regular bulbs.

Just removed a crappy non OEM HID kit off a car of mine with just regular new bulbs & tbh light isn't much difference, obvs it's less white now is all.

[MitchT]

skylarking808 said:

E36 uses H7 annd H1 I think, so if it's stating H7 fitment then should be ok?

That's what I thought, but when I use the checker on the site and put in my car details those bulbs don't come up as an option. I was wondering if LED bulbs require some kind of electrical set up that an older car doesn't have, perhaps.