Brighter headlights for Sport Trac

Are there any aftermarket headlight assemblies that are brighter than the stock ones on my 2001 Sport Trac? Or bulbs (LED/higher wattage) that will make them brighter...I don't want to do HID. I already have silverstar ultra bulbs, and the headlights still aren't very good.
I've seen the blacked out replacement lights from companies like Anzo and Recon...do any of those have a better design that will be brighter than the stock lights?
I also found these projector lights (http://www.spyderauto.com/categorylist.php?id=projector headlight&car_make=Ford&car_model=Ranger), and these would be nice if I can find them for the Sport Trac.

 

[Anime]

The aftermarket projector lamps are generally cheap junk that is made for cosmetic purposes and is sold as "off road use only" because they don't meet any Federal standards, but some people do use them in place of stock lamps on the road and they can be okay.

Factory headlights are pretty well engineered these days, and usually a lack of output is caused by cloudy/yellowed lenses, corroded wiring/poor grounding, or using poor quality bulbs.

Silverstar bulbs actually put out LESS light than even stock bulbs.

Yes, Sylvania uses tricky marketing language to trick you into thinking their "whiter" bulbs are "brighter", but they recently lost a lawsuit due to that and now have redesigned packages that are still worded tricky but slightly less so.

Silverstar bulbs are COSMETIC and are designed to put out BLUE/WHITE light to mimic the look of HID - to other drivers. They actually output LESS LIGHT on the road, which is where you want it for visibility when driving at night.

If you want BRIGHTER lights (meaning more light ON THE ROAD) I would suggest getting some Sylvania XtraVision bulbs. These use the similar brighter filament of the Silverstars, but without the light-robbing blue coating that kills output. They also cost a lot less.

You could also get some plastic polish lens cleaner and protectant (Meguiar's Plast-X polish and protectant works good) or some other brand name headlight restoration kit if the lenses are yellowed and need to be cleaned up. This, along with decent bulbs, will give you a LOT more light on the road.

 

[ncyrider]

Good information, I'll get some new bulbs. I've been using mcguiers polishing compound on the headlights because they are a bit faded, but it takes a long time to get them looking better. Is the plast-x polish better than compound?

 

[Anime]

I don't know for sure that it's any better, it may even be the same thing in different bottles. I like using the PlastX since Meguiars also has a plastic UV protectant to go along with it, which you apply after the polish so the lenses don't yellow as fast. it doesn't seem to work that well, but it's better than nothing and there's no way to really apply the factory UV coating again.

In general, any good rubbing/polishing compound (including toothpaste) will do the job if you keep at it long enough, but maybe the PlastX is better for the polycarbonate lenses.

If they are really yellowed and polishing them several times doesn't do the trick, you can resort to a restoration kit or just get some 2000-3000 grit sandpaper and wet-sand them a few times, wash them off, then use the polishing compound again a few times and they should look better.

If you really want to put some work into it, you can get 1000 grit sandpaper and start with that, then use 1500 grit, then move up to the 2000 grit, and keep going as high as you can get, and finish with cleaning and then using the polishing compound. But usually you can just get a headlight restoration kit for under 10 bucks rather than spending a whole lot of money on sandpaper sheets.

Also keep in mind you can always just get replacement factory headlight housings or even stock-appearance aftermarket ones. A pair of OEM-reflector style lamps can be pretty inexpensive, especially compared to the price of those projector-style assemblies.

 

[morbid81]

honestly if your stock housings, are badly faded and yellowed, replace them that should give you more output with halogen bulbs, i switched mine over with aftermarket housings and hid's and noticed a significant improvement on output. I couldn't see crap at night with halogen heres a few pics of my Explorer.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ofuvt2dqkjkcrh8/truck.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/xo3lyh1xxy7ltp4/hids fogs.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ikqr4llz1rs4kqh/hid fogs.jpg?dl=0

but again it's your truck you can do with it what you wish. Mine also has a hid fog light kit

 

[toypaseo]

Take a look at Philips Xtreme Power bulbs. I have some in my Paseo. ALOT better than the regular Silvania Silverstars that they replaced. I also have a set in my Explorer. The Philips Xtreme Vision bulbs are supposed to be even better, so I will be looking at them when the Xtreme Power bulbs die.

 

[ncyrider]

Looking at the sylvania xtra vision bulbs and the philips xtreme power/xtreme vision bulbs, it seems like the Philips bulbs are better. They claim "80% - 100% brighter" and brightest halogen bulbs on the market. They are also a lot more expensive, but are they just trying to rip people off in the same way the Silverstar ultra bulbs do?
I want bulbs that actually are brighter and give out more light, not just appear brighter because they have a cool looking white/blue color or something. Don't care how much they cost...Which bulbs should I get?

 

[toypaseo]

Sylvania puts a light blue coating on the Silverstar Ultras to make the light whiter, but this tint also blocks some of the light so it's less bright.

Silverstars are whiter appearing, but the Philips are brighter but "yellowish" as most halogen bulbs are.

For some informative reading, look up online "Auto Express" and Philips Xtreme Vision. The Xtreme Power bulbs were past winners of their yearly headlight bulb tests. That is why I originally started looking at those. The Xtreme Vision bulbs were the 2014 winner, http://www.powerbulbs.com/us/blog/2014/05/philips-win-auto-express-headlamp-bulb-of-2014

Before I bought my Xtreme Power bulbs, I was also looking at Osram Silverstars. Note Osram, not Sylvania. The Osram ones are not blue coated.

I see there is a new Philips Xtreme Vision bulb out. It's +130% conpared to the +100%, http://www.powerbulbs.com/us/blog/2...x-treme-vision-and-philips-x-treme-vision-130

 

[5whiskey]

I've had good luck with philips crystal vision. It *IS* coated in a manner similar to the Silver Star Ultras, however they were in fact brighter than my previous bulbs by a good bit. They were also whiter. Not ricer blue. Just pure white.

You could look at LED... they're a good bit brighter but high beams usually aren't as good. I wish I had went LED since I have a third gen ex and I have a separate bulb for high beams. Oh well. LEDs are expensive too. Maybe one day if I win the lottery

 

[ncyrider]

Cool, I will be ordering me some xtreme vision 100 or 130 bulbs soon. But my Sport Trac bulbs are 9007, and the xtreme 130's only come in H1, H4,and H7. Do one of these have the same fitment as 9007's? or do I just need to get the xtreme 100's (they come in 9007)?

 

[toypaseo]

H1, H4, and H7 are not direct replacements for a 9007.

 

[Anime]

Those bulbs made in the Xtreme 130 line can be made to be "130% brighter" because they have metal bases, so running the bulb hotter is ok.

Bulbs like a 9007 have a plastic base, so the "100% brighter" bulbs are probably at the thermal limit and anything more would be a safety hazard.


I'd still say the Sylvania XtraVision are the best all-around brighter bulbs. Mostly because of the price and ease of availability.

The Philips Xtreme 9007 bulbs are probably slightly brighter, but they also cost more and have shorter life. They are better than the Silverstars for sure though.

Amazon has the 9007's for ~$30:

http://www.amazon.com/Philips-9007XVS2-X-Treme-Vision-Headlight/dp/B00BQWQLP4

 

[Big_Pezzy]

I have the phillips extreme vision and I have to say that they are excellent. I've had them for almost 2 years and they are still running strong. Definitely brighter than stock or basic replacement bulbs. Only way to be brighter would get HIDs

 

[01STrunner]

I've used LED bulbs in my 6.4L power stroke without issues. I replaced the fogs and heads. No problems of too bright to oncoming traffic but there is a ton more useable light. Much brighter and whiter. 5000K color, by the way.

 

[OffTrac]

I bought Silvania XtraVision bulbs two years ago because I got them at a great price. They've been sitting in the barn ever since. Just installed them a few days ago. I wish I hadn't waited so long to install. I figured they be a bit of an improvement but they exceeded my expectations. Maybe not the "best" or "brightest" option listed here but I'm satisfied.

 

[DjDom]

I've used LED bulbs in my 6.4L power stroke without issues. I replaced the fogs and heads. No problems of too bright to oncoming traffic but there is a ton more useable light. Much brighter and whiter. 5000K color, by the way.

Just curious, which LEDs are you running, and where did you get them?

 

[01STrunner]

I got them from http://dirtydiesels.com. The guy to talk to there is Josh. I've met him on the Powerstroke forums and he's a really good guy. They're a little expensive but since they won't burn out and Silverstar Ultras are $50 a pair I thought it was worth it.

I believe the manufacturing company of the bulbs is Lifetime LED, but I'm just going off memory so don't quote me on that.

 

[michelberry]

Forget about those outdated halogen bulbs. I upgraded my headlights to Subzero LED kit from Xtralights online and they are super bright, check them out.

 

[01STrunner]

Those are super blue. I like how mine are bright white.

 

[Flash]

I got them from http://dirtydiesels.com. The guy to talk to there is Josh. I've met him on the Powerstroke forums and he's a really good guy. They're a little expensive but since they won't burn out and Silverstar Ultras are $50 a pair I thought it was worth it.

I believe the manufacturing company of the bulbs is Lifetime LED, but I'm just going off memory so don't quote me on that.

How do you think these bulbs go up against the full HID projector retrofit?

I'm talking about light output, penetration.