Can I substitute the 60w globes currently in my high beam for 100w globes? I have done this on many cars (not Volvos)before and never had a problem but Volvos are kinda different if you know what I mean.

Andrew

 

Globes? Please elaborate. I think you mean bulbs, but I may be wrong.

Personally why don't you just go to HID's. Halogen bulbs are Halogen bulbs and to be honest I doubt you will see much of a difference with 100w bulbs, but with HID's you will see a big difference and you can buy them for under $200 and they are easy to install. 30 minutes a side to install.

 

Yep, your right. Globes in Australia, Bulbs in the US. I was concerned about the fine tolerances to voltages in Volvos and whether the extra watts would upset the circuits and /or discolour the plastic. I haven't thought of HIDs to be honest. I have three pairs of spotlights in my shed but I don't want to put them on because of the voltage thing.

 

Once by mistake I put a lower wattage globe/bulb in. It glowed brighter(couldn't work it out) and lasted for a couple of weeks. Didn't cause any damage to the electronics.

 

The ultimate goal is to get more lumens than what you've got, so talking wattage is the wrong metric to use. Wattage is energy used, not light produced, which is lumens. The wiring the Volvo engineers spec out is rated of course to handle the load, heat, amperage, etc of 60W bulbs. Personally, I wouldn't use anything but. I've just bought my V70 so I'm not sure which bulb type it takes (H7?), but typically all standard bulbs have standard wattages and lumens output. What kind of bulb are you thinking of that'll fit your Volvo yet have a 100W rating? Is it one of the aftermarket bulbs like PIAA, who claim their bulbs have higher wattage output (e.g., for my motorcycle which uses an H4 bulb, they claim their H4 super white puts out the equivalent of 85W from 55W consumption). Complete hogwash. It's physically impossible to get 85W out of 55W. Plus, like I said, lumens is the unit of measure for output. Just try to find any specs on their site concerning lumens output. You won't. I've tried.

I corresponded with the gentleman who runs this site, who's savvy about all things lighting:

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/t...good/good.html

I ended up buying a bulb from the company he represents (Candlepower) because he gave me good, reliable, scientifically-based advice. The only bulbs that actually produce more light for a given output are the Osram/Narva ones. Not too sure about the typical Sylvania "upgrades" you can buy down at your local car parts store. I think the science they use is more of the smoke and mirrors type used by PIAA and others.

Here's Candlepower's website. They represent Narva and Osram here in the U.S:

http://candlepowerinc.com/

http://store.candlepower.com/

 

Thanks vtwin_pilot. Where I live in Australia at night all the creatures come out to play, including Kangaroos. Sadly I will hit 3 or 4 a year with bad results. To help limit this esp' in the Volvo (my other car has two big "Bull lights" by Narva and a 'roo bar) I need more light coverage and penetration into the dark.

Usually I put on some aftermarket spotlights on the front the acheive this but sometimes I upgrade to a higher wattage in the headlights. Most new cars have some type of plastic headlight which I believe can lead to fogging up after some time or even burning in front of the high beam globe/bulb. I was wondering if it's safe to use higher watt globes/bulbs (I'll use H7 Narvas) or is there a better alternative?

Cheers,
Andrew

 

I'd say to go with the H7 "Plus" bulb from Narva or Osram. See the link I sent in my last post. They're proven to put out more lumens. The sacrifice of course is bulb life. If you have any questions, email Candlepower. I know you're Down Under and would't order from them, but they can help with any technical questions. The H7 is rated at 55W, as are the "Plus" bulbs, so no issues there.

 

yea, watt / lumen, kcal / joule, HP / kW, there's a lot of mess out there because people stick to old habits and don't understand the scientifically correct metrics. Did I say metric? Sorry, Brits, Imperials for you...
(they did officially adopt the metric system some time in the 70s though ;-)