PIAA vs. Generic Bright White Headlights

[JimL]

For those who've used both, are the PIAA's worth the extra money?

I have/had a pair of cheap APC brand bright whites and they worked pretty well. However, my battery came in contact with the bulb on the passenger side and the low-beam blew but leaving the high-beam fillament intact. I happened to have kept my old bulbs for spares and am using one. Anyway, why should I spend the extra money on the PIAA's when my battery might come in contact with them as well and making my investment practically worthless?? Are they really that much better???

 

[yob_yeknom]

I'm very impressed with the PIAA bulbs. They are much whiter than the super white xenon filled bulbs I have in my car. Rain visibility is unbelievably better with the PIAAs. Just fix the problem with your battery being able to move and then get the PIAAs.

 

[AgExplorer]

The PIAA's are definitely worth the money. Very bright, white light with excellent beam pattern. You'll really notice the difference in stormy weather.

 

[Joebob]

Originally posted by AgExplorer
The PIAA's are definitely worth the money. Very bright, white light with excellent beam pattern. You'll really notice the difference in stormy weather.

I was thinking of this change too. Question - if you have 2 trucks side by side and one is stock and one is piaa, can you visually tell much difference?

 

['96explorereddiebauer]

I have a pair of PIAA 9007 and they're excellent. So I was thinking of getting a pair of them for my mom's van ('94 Chrysler Town & Country) since the van's lights are very very very poor. And since the PIAA's are pretty expensive so I went to www.autotoys.com and bought a pair of Eurolite 9004 Super Plasma headlight bulbs. They're legal and they're cheap!! They're a lot whiter than the PIAA's. Visibility is a lot better. I'm not trying to diss PIAA, I still love them, but the Eurolites are another alternative to PIAA.

 

[tac0meat]

are the PIAA's actually brighter, or are they just whiter? in my opinion, any kind of coating (light blue in this case) would decrease performance. how about higher wattage bulbs with no kind of tinting to them, i would think they would be the best choice. ive had "superwhites" before and putting in a set of halogens made the superwhites look like candles. i even compared halogens to my freinds over priced solaris bulbs and the holagens performed better. i want more light too, but i am skeptical of anything with a colored tint to it.

 

[Tito_146]

The PIAA are brighter. The light output is rated higher 80/100 Watts low/hi. The power used by the PIAA bulb is the same as the stock, which doesn't stress out your wiring. PIAA is worth the money you would pay for them. You have to be careful with high output bulbs, they may ruin your wiring, relays and switches, because the wiring in the x is not made to handle that kind of power. I used to have some high output bulbs in my x until my lights went out one night for no reason, when my x was checked at the shop, the cabling was melting down. No a good thing at all. If you're going to get high output bulbs get PIAA.

 

[yob_yeknom]

Originally posted by Joebob
Question - if you have 2 trucks side by side and one is stock and one is piaa, can you visually tell much difference?

Answer - yes. I have compared to another Explorer. Looking at the headlight, the mine look brighter. Looking at the light shining on a wall, mine look whiter.

Originally posted by tac0meat
in my opinion, any kind of coating (light blue in this case) would decrease performance. how about higher wattage bulbs with no kind of tinting to them, i would think they would be the best choice.

I don't think the PIAAs are coated with a blue tint. I remember mine as being clear. When looking at the lights, the light looks white, not bluish. Higher wattage bulbs are a BAD idea. They pull more power through the factory wiring, which is not capable of handling it. Wires melt, stuff shorts out, yada yada ya...

 

[Abominous95XLT]

The piaas are much better. Ive noticed they add about ten feet of light you can see on the ground. If you get what im saying.