Do They Just Burn Out, Or Do They Fade Away?

Question for the group:

Do headlight bulbs lose any/some of their luminance over time, or do
they stay as good as day one until they burn out?

Patrick
'93 Cobra
'83 LTD

Don't know for certain but I'd guess the bulbs actually burn brighter as
they age. Now, that is more than offset by your lenses becoming cloudier as
they age.

--
Richard

'94 GT 'vert
Under Drive Pulleys
Transgo HD2 Reprogramming Kit
High Stall Torque Converter
4:10 Gears
Gripp Sub Frame Connectors (welded)
FRPP Aluminum Drive shaft
FRPP M5400-A Suspension
Laser Red

"Patrick" > wrote in message
om...
> Question for the group:
>
> Do headlight bulbs lose any/some of their luminance over time, or do
> they stay as good as day one until they burn out?
>
> Patrick
> '93 Cobra
> '83 LTD

Around 12/2/2004 8:35 PM, Patrick wrote:

> Question for the group:
>
> Do headlight bulbs lose any/some of their luminance over time, or do
> they stay as good as day one until they burn out?

As far as I know, the old incandescents degraded over time, while modern
halogens and HID lamps generally don't.

You could e-mail Daniel Stern to find out for sure.
http://www.danielsternlighting.com

Ah, here's a couple pages on the halogen cycle and dimming:
http://www.ushio.com/support_FAQ.htm#6
http://vsg.cape.com/~pbaum/halogen.htm#dimming

--
/ Garth - '83 GL V6stang Hatch <Former MW #7> \
| My V6stang: http://www.v6stang.com/v6stang |
| RAMFM Merchandise: http://www.cafeshops.com/ramfm |
\ Mail for secure reply information /

Garth Almgren opined in :

> Around 12/2/2004 8:35 PM, Patrick wrote:
>
>> Question for the group:
>>
>> Do headlight bulbs lose any/some of their luminance over time, or do
>> they stay as good as day one until they burn out?
>
> As far as I know, the old incandescents degraded over time, while modern
> halogens and HID lamps generally don't.
>
> You could e-mail Daniel Stern to find out for sure.
> http://www.danielsternlighting.com

He'll just suggest that you sell the Mustang and buy a Beemer!

On 12/3/2004 6:20 AM, Backyard Mechanic wrote:

> Garth Almgren opined in :
>
>>You could e-mail Daniel Stern to find out for sure.
>>http://www.danielsternlighting.com
>
>
> He'll just suggest that you sell the Mustang and buy a Beemer!

That's a "Bimmer," if you're thinking of the cars. "Beemers" are the
motorcycles. (Or so I've been told.)



It is true, though, that modern Mustang headlights leave little room for
much-needed improvement. There is no E-code replacement available for
'94 and newer aside from the ill-fitting Hyundai lamps. I don't know if
an E-code upgrade exists for the aero Foxes, but I'm betting it'd be
expensive if there was. Here's hoping the '05 will be easier/cheaper to
upgrade!

For cars with sealed beams like mine and Patrick's LTD, it's a simple
(if a little pricey) matter to switch to E-code lamps if you want better
lighting.


--
/ Garth - '83 GL V6stang Hatch <Former MW #7> \
| My V6stang: http://www.v6stang.com/v6stang |
| RAMFM Merchandise: http://www.cafeshops.com/ramfm |
\ Mail for secure reply information /

Garth Almgren > wrote in message >...

> It is true, though, that modern Mustang headlights leave little room for
> much-needed improvement. There is no E-code replacement available for
> '94 and newer aside from the ill-fitting Hyundai lamps. I don't know if
> an E-code upgrade exists for the aero Foxes, but I'm betting it'd be
> expensive if there was. Here's hoping the '05 will be easier/cheaper to
> upgrade!

> For cars with sealed beams like mine and Patrick's LTD, it's a simple
> (if a little pricey) matter to switch to E-code lamps if you want better
> lighting.

Garth,

Tell me about these E-code lamps. I replaced the original low-beam
headlights with some new quality units, but couldn't find any good
replacement high-beams. No one makes 'em, that I know of.

Patrick
'93 Cobra
'83 LTD

Patrick wrote:
> Question for the group:
>
> Do headlight bulbs lose any/some of their luminance over time, or do
> they stay as good as day one until they burn out?
>
> Patrick
> '93 Cobra
> '83 LTD


Yeah, I've seen halogens do that before they soon blow out.

--
YOU are the real piece of work in this post. I think you are
a couple of drumsticks short of a picnic there bud. - SVTKate

Garth Almgren wrote:

> Around 12/2/2004 8:35 PM, Patrick wrote:
>
>> Question for the group:
>>
>> Do headlight bulbs lose any/some of their luminance over time, or do
>> they stay as good as day one until they burn out?
>
>
> As far as I know, the old incandescents degraded over time, while modern
> halogens and HID lamps generally don't.
>
> You could e-mail Daniel Stern to find out for sure.
> http://www.danielsternlighting.com

Oh GOD! don't get him started in here again!! :-p


--
YOU are the real piece of work in this post. I think you are
a couple of drumsticks short of a picnic there bud. - SVTKate

Around 12/3/2004 6:39 PM, Patrick wrote:

> Garth Almgren > wrote in message >...
>
>>It is true, though, that modern Mustang headlights leave little room for
>>much-needed improvement. There is no E-code replacement available for
>>'94 and newer aside from the ill-fitting Hyundai lamps. I don't know if
>>an E-code upgrade exists for the aero Foxes, but I'm betting it'd be
>>expensive if there was. Here's hoping the '05 will be easier/cheaper to
>>upgrade!
>>
>>For cars with sealed beams like mine and Patrick's LTD, it's a simple
>>(if a little pricey) matter to switch to E-code lamps if you want better
>>lighting.
>
>
> Garth,
>
> Tell me about these E-code lamps. I replaced the original low-beam
> headlights with some new quality units, but couldn't find any good
> replacement high-beams. No one makes 'em, that I know of.

E-code just means a lamp that has met Europe's more stringent lighting
specifications and standards. A good explanation is here on the last
version of Dan Stern's headlamp FAQ I could find:
<http://web.archive.org/web/20020202220040/http://lighting.mbz.org/faq/#ecode>

Well, when the high beam with a hole in it on my Mustang finally burned
out, I asked Stern what would be good for replacement options.

He said the absolute best thing you could do would be to get the Cibié
H1 high beams as shown on his website
<http://www.danielsternlighting.com/products/products.html> (scroll down
to the 165mm x 100mm lamps) *and* rewire your headlights with his
RIK-4 relay kit.

I didn't want to pay $61 a lamp, so Stern suggested an alternative,
which has worked well for me so far. I ordered a single H7935-1 Halogen
spotlamp from him for about $30, and installed it in the left high beam
socket. Once I got it aimed properly, it did a great job of illuminating
a *long, long* way down the road. The reason for only one is that you
still need a standard H4651 high beam to fill in the surrounding area
that a spotlight doesn't reach.

The lamp does such a good job of focusing and projecting that I can
stand six feet away and feel the heat if I stick my hand in the hotspot
of the beam.

--
/ Garth - '83 GL V6stang Hatch <Former MW #7> \
| My V6stang: http://www.v6stang.com/v6stang |
| RAMFM Merchandise: http://www.cafeshops.com/ramfm |
\ Mail for secure reply information /

Here's your answer about bulbs Garth

http://invsee.asu.edu/nmodules/light...nout.html#burn

--
Richard

'94 GT 'vert
Under Drive Pulleys
Transgo HD2 Reprogramming Kit
High Stall Torque Converter
4:10 Gears
Gripp Sub Frame Connectors (welded)
FRPP Aluminum Drive shaft
FRPP M5400-A Suspension
Laser Red

"Garth Almgren" > wrote in message
...
> Around 12/3/2004 6:39 PM, Patrick wrote:
>
> > Garth Almgren > wrote in message
>...
> >
> >>It is true, though, that modern Mustang headlights leave little room for
> >>much-needed improvement. There is no E-code replacement available for
> >>'94 and newer aside from the ill-fitting Hyundai lamps. I don't know if
> >>an E-code upgrade exists for the aero Foxes, but I'm betting it'd be
> >>expensive if there was. Here's hoping the '05 will be easier/cheaper to
> >>upgrade!
> >>
> >>For cars with sealed beams like mine and Patrick's LTD, it's a simple
> >>(if a little pricey) matter to switch to E-code lamps if you want better
> >>lighting.
> >
> >
> > Garth,
> >
> > Tell me about these E-code lamps. I replaced the original low-beam
> > headlights with some new quality units, but couldn't find any good
> > replacement high-beams. No one makes 'em, that I know of.
>
> E-code just means a lamp that has met Europe's more stringent lighting
> specifications and standards. A good explanation is here on the last
> version of Dan Stern's headlamp FAQ I could find:
>
<http://web.archive.org/web/200202022....org/faq/#ecod
e>
>
> Well, when the high beam with a hole in it on my Mustang finally burned
> out, I asked Stern what would be good for replacement options.
>
> He said the absolute best thing you could do would be to get the Cibié
> H1 high beams as shown on his website
> <http://www.danielsternlighting.com/products/products.html> (scroll down
> to the 165mm x 100mm lamps) *and* rewire your headlights with his
> RIK-4 relay kit.
>
> I didn't want to pay $61 a lamp, so Stern suggested an alternative,
> which has worked well for me so far. I ordered a single H7935-1 Halogen
> spotlamp from him for about $30, and installed it in the left high beam
> socket. Once I got it aimed properly, it did a great job of illuminating
> a *long, long* way down the road. The reason for only one is that you
> still need a standard H4651 high beam to fill in the surrounding area
> that a spotlight doesn't reach.
>
> The lamp does such a good job of focusing and projecting that I can
> stand six feet away and feel the heat if I stick my hand in the hotspot
> of the beam.
>
> --
> / Garth - '83 GL V6stang Hatch <Former MW #7> \
> | My V6stang: http://www.v6stang.com/v6stang |
> | RAMFM Merchandise: http://www.cafeshops.com/ramfm |
> \ Mail for secure reply information /