Sylvania Silverstar Ultra - Review

[dexter]

So I'm sure like most I felt like the OEM fog lights leave quite a bit to be desired. Not ready to commit to converting to HID's and being more concerned with the colour than the output at the moment I decided to try to get as close to the colour of the OEM xenon's with a simple bulb replacement.

I looked a bit online and it seemed like the Sylvania Silverstar Ultra's were about as white as I was going to get (4100k) out of a halogen at CT so I got a pair. The install was simple and the job was done in about 15 minutes.

Now to the review of sorts.

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k263/gbskim/lights.jpg

The left fog in the picture is the OEM bulb and the right is the Sylvania Silverstar Ultra. As you can see, they basically look the same. So much for that $60. :bang

By eye the new bulbs do look slightly more "white" but not worth the expense so far in my opinion. But not so fast, I backed the car out of the shop and closed the door and seemingly for the first time I could actually see a defined line on the door where the beam of the fogs met the headlights beam. In terms of output, they seemed to be a big improvement over the OEM bulbs.

So overall, the colour isn't really going to get you into the colour range of the OEM xenons but the output did seem quite a bit brighter than the OEM fogs. Worth the $60? Well, I guess that depends what you're looking for. If you've got the cash and you're looking for a generally brighter fog light bulb and a quick and easy switch, sure. If you're trying to match your xenons colour wise, save the cash and buy some xenons.

Hopefully this helps someone somewhere along the lines.

[yearoftherat]

I was running these bulbs as my lows b4 I switched over to an aftermarket HID kit. I agree that they are not worth the money if you have to replace them every 2 - 3 yrs. You might as well get HIDS.

[n00bMeiSter]

You said not ready to invest in an HID kit... But you've already paid a good portion of the cost of an HID kit, just to buy marginally better bulbs.
You can get an HID kit for anywhere between $80-$120.

[aris]

I was running these bulbs as my lows b4 I switched over to an aftermarket HID kit. I agree that they are not worth the money if you have to replace them every 2 - 3 yrs. You might as well get HIDS.

Replace them every 2 to 3 years.. I put those bulbs in mine and within 3 to 4 months they both burned on me

[ottoyu34]

I swapped out my OEM halogen fog bulbs to Hoen Xenonmatch bulbs. Yes they almost match my OEM Bi-xenon's colour. But the colour temp. is a bit off, maybe around 4100k or so.

Another alternative would be get something like Corksport LED bulbs for fogs.

[dexter]

You said not ready to invest in an HID kit... But you've already paid a good portion of the cost of an HID kit, just to buy marginally better bulbs.
You can get an HID kit for anywhere between $80-$120.

For some reason I thought they'd be a lot more than that. Guess I need to research more... :bang

[Default User]

First off - Great Review OP. You should put this in RFD or something so that others can see how useless Silverstars are.

IMHO - for fogs - neither Silverstars or HIDs are worth it. They look great and I have 'nuff respect for those that do it. But our fog lights were never really intended to have a high light output to begin with.

that being said - (IIRC) G16 has a special on their HIDs for about $60

[wildcard50]

you are better off getting the after market HID kits,The silverstar bulbs are really expensive and you are lucky if you can get 1 year use out of them.THe HID kit was easy to install on my 2010. and there is a dramatic difference with using real HID bulbs and the silverstar.

[n00bMeiSter]

For some reason I thought they'd be a lot more than that. Guess I need to research more... :bang

As a general rule of thumb, I wouldn't buy any of the expensive stuff from places like Canadian Tire or Part Soruce. 'Cause you know you can find the same thing for cheaper elsewhere, or better for the same price at a mod store.
If they were headlights they'd probably be about halfway between stock and HID's. I bought a set of the EuroLite bulbs from NextMod for like $25 or something, and they made a world of difference over the stock bulbs.

[Default User]

Those Eurolites are the same wattage as OEM Making them supposedly just as bright

The colour tone (usually hyper white for headlights) often give out less usable light output. Just like HID 6000k vs 10000k. That being said, the whiter light only gives an illusion that they are brighter. When truly - they just look better and clearer

[n00bMeiSter]

Those Eurolites are the same wattage as OEM Making them supposedly just as bright

The colour tone (usually hyper white for headlights) often give out less usable light output. Just like HID 6000k vs 10000k. That being said, the whiter light only gives an illusion that they are brighter. When truly - they just look better and clearer

Well, either way, I can see more on the road/side of road now. I also angled mine up slightly as well.
And it was hella cheaper than buying crap from CT or PS.

[Default User]

Well, either way, I can see more on the road/side of road now. I also angled mine up slightly as well.
And it was hella cheaper than buying crap from CT or PS.

oh yeah, man - for sure. The whiter light makes things stand out more.
and hella cheaper than Crappy Tire and Fart Source

[dexter]

First off - Great Review OP. You should put this in RFD or something so that others can see how useless Silverstars are.

IMHO - for fogs - neither Silverstars or HIDs are worth it. They look great and I have 'nuff respect for those that do it. But our fog lights were never really intended to have a high light output to begin with.

that being said - (IIRC) G16 has a special on their HIDs for about $60

Thanks, never really written a review but after mediocre results I figured I'd try to help someone make a more informed decisions about them. What's RFD?


As a general rule of thumb, I wouldn't buy any of the expensive stuff from places like Canadian Tire or Part Soruce. 'Cause you know you can find the same thing for cheaper elsewhere, or better for the same price at a mod store.
If they were headlights they'd probably be about halfway between stock and HID's. I bought a set of the EuroLite bulbs from NextMod for like $25 or something, and they made a world of difference over the stock bulbs.

Yeah, avoiding CT for stuff like this makes sense. Still waiting to get to NextMod for some stuff though. From work its about an hour drive one way and about an hour and 45 minutes from my house. That half tank of gas for the round trip boosts the price of anything there so it's a bit of a trade off. I would rather pay more for something that will actually do what I want though. Thanks for the advice!

[n00bMeiSter]

RFD = Red Flag Deals. It's a large Canadian bargain hunting and coupon website.

Ouch, yeah that's a tad far.

You're welcome :)

[dexter]

So I've had these bulbs for about 5 months now and last week the left one burnt out. I knew they would likely have a shorter life span but under 5 months is really short in my opinion. I wouldn't recommend these bulbs at all. Go with HID's or LED's if you want a nice bright white fog light replacement.

[n00bMeiSter]

Wow, that sucks. Are you going to go HID then?

[Bosshammy]

So I've had these bulbs for about 5 months now and last week the left one burnt out. I knew they would likely have a shorter life span but under 5 months is really short in my opinion. I wouldn't recommend these bulbs at all. Go with HID's or LED's if you want a nice bright white fog light replacement.


I had these for my first car a zx3 focus and my right bulb burnt out just after 6 months... HID all the way!

[kenghk]

I had these for my first car a zx3 focus and my right bulb burnt out just after 6 months... HID all the way!

The bulbs have a 1 year warrenty so go get another set. As for HIDs, putting them in the fogs won't help you see better as the more you increase foreground lighting the more your distance suffers. Look at a car with HIDs from the factory, the light on the ground starts several feet from the car. The HID projectors have foreground light limiting shields and most factory foglights don't do that much but fill the foreground with a little light.

[dexter]

Wow, that sucks. Are you going to go HID then?

Not too sure yet. I may just put the OEM ones back in for now as I have vinyl overlays anyway so colour isn't an issue for me any more. Probably just save the money and get a motor mount instead.