Headlight bulbs

[Earl]

Got a set of OEM crystal headlights, whats the máx watts that can be run in these with out melting them or having wiring issues?

[DRFVDR]

Stock bulbs are 65/55 which I think will be max

Not sure what the real next step up would be as 100/90 will be to much.

My suggestion would be to get the most out of what you have by running bigger wiring and relays.....

[DRFVDR]

yeah he can do that and then i can laugh at him when his next post is "I FAILED MY WOF BECAUSE I HAVE AFTERMARKET HIDS "

yes u can put a hid upgrade in

NO they are not legal

[spark_38]

Actually the stock bulbs in the Ver 5/6 are 55W/80W, brand is "LIFE" and they are Made in Japan. Previously they were 55W/60W, and of the Osram/Philips brand from Germany. The H4 fitting varies too - I've had to cut/file the top tab of most aftermarket bulbs to fit correctly to crystal lights.

Best bulbs I've found are the Philips Xtreme Power ones, still 55W/60W, without that annoying orange glow. Not cheap though - about $80 RRP, but who pays that these days...

[DRFVDR]

 spark_38 said:

Actually the stock bulbs in the Ver 5/6 are 55W/80W, brand is "LIFE" and they are Made in Japan. Previously they were 55W/60W, and of the Osram/Philips brand from Germany. The H4 fitting varies too - I've had to cut/file the top tab of most aftermarket bulbs to fit correctly to crystal lights.

Best bulbs I've found are the Philips Xtreme Power ones, still 55W/60W, without that annoying orange glow. Not cheap though - about $80 RRP, but who pays that these days...

I have had the issue with the H4 bulbs not fitting,in Japanese import lens on a RX,The bulb that fits CAN'T be a H4 as that is a standard, so must be another standard( have no idea what )

[D-Style]

 DRFVDR']

[quote name='spark_38 said:

Actually the stock bulbs in the Ver 5/6 are 55W/80W, brand is "LIFE" and they are Made in Japan. Previously they were 55W/60W, and of the Osram/Philips brand from Germany. The H4 fitting varies too - I've had to cut/file the top tab of most aftermarket bulbs to fit correctly to crystal lights.

Best bulbs I've found are the Philips Xtreme Power ones, still 55W/60W, without that annoying orange glow. Not cheap though - about $80 RRP, but who pays that these days...

/quote]

I have had the issue with the H4 bulbs not fitting,in Japanese import lens on a RX,The bulb that fits CAN'T be a H4 as that is a standard, so must be another standard( have no idea what )

On my RA i had issues with normal H4 fitting, but the light patten fail. Turn out they used a special H4 bulb.

When to Winger in Hams to get some. The guy in parts department reckon i was on drugs... so not much help. Ended up swaping headlight with normal WRX ones.

There might be a thread on here which has FHI part number for these bulbs.

[Earl]

So running 100W bulbs with relay and new wiring wouldn't be an option because the headlight itself would melt?

[DRFVDR]

The mount for the bulb will melt over time, I ran 100/90 in my legacy for a few years I ended up swapping out headlight units quite regularly, I also ran and still run a set of driving lights, Subarus headlights have always had a stigma of being pretty crap UNTIL they started to run the HID setups

Try a whiter bulb and most certainly run a set of relays and bigger wiring

[Earl]

Just out of interest I fitted the OEM crystals this weekend, lots better than the old OEM ones. Intially,changed one and tried out for comparison) Anyway I had three crystals (just the way I bought them) one is a little different on the back it had moulded into it 100w/80w the other two where just standard wattage. Could this be an STI one? Its a left one. Any one got a cheap right one? Other than this it looks the same.

[DRFVDR]

You may find that the 80/100 one is one of those that are NOT H4 but some weird subaru only bulb try a normal H4 bulb in it and see if it fits easy

[spark_38]

 Earl said:

So running 100W bulbs with relay and new wiring wouldn't be an option because the headlight itself would melt?

The factory wiring would handle the extra current/heat for a while before the plastic plug starts melting, so 90/100 bulbs are not recommended. The older Impreza up to 1998 had thicker wiring for the headlights in the loom so would handle the extra current.

I think there appears to be a difference between Japanese and European H4 standards for bulbs.

Much like their 6.5" speaker standards...