Osram Night Breaker Headlight Bulbs

[goldstar]

I had been using Osram Silverstar H4 headlight bulbs until Osram's new top-of-the-line Night Breaker became available. Where the Silverstar gave 50% more light on the road (I know, more than what?), the Night Breaker gives 90% more light on the road than whatever the Silverstar gave 50% more light than. Additionally, the new Night Breaker has a 10% whiter light (I know, as compared with what?).

The Night Breaker is available in H1, H3, H4, and H7 styles.

Osram is a German company that now owns Sylvania. Technically, the H4 bulb is no longer approved for automotive use in the US because it does not meet DOT specs. The DOT approved US equivalent is the 9003/HB2, also a dual filament 60/55W bulb. For those unsure of the their vehicle's bulb requirements, go to Osram/Sylvania's bulb replacement guide at:

http://www.sylvania.com/ConsumerProducts/AutomotiveLighting/LampReplacementGuide

Prior to switching to the Night Breakers, the Osram Silverstars had been the best headlight bulbs I'd used in the Protege in terms of light output and longevity. In comparing the domestic Sylvania Silverstars with the European Osram version, something should be said about the longevity of the two types. Most people on the forums report a severely reduced service life for the Sylvanias, much less than can be expected from OEM. Remember that the 60/55W rating of the Osram H4 and the equivalent Sylvania 9003 Silverstars, at 12V, is a nominal rating, as is the case with all headlight bulbs. For example, at the typical alternator output of 14.5V, the wattage output is higher by Ohm's law. What's more, wattage output can deviate by around 5% and still remain within legal limits.

The Sylvania bulb has a blue coating while the Osram is clear. The blue tint cuts down on light output so, in order to compensate, the Sylvania filament is designed to draw more current (remember, we're talking about nominal ratings). More current draw means more light output but also shorter filament life. More information can be found at:

http://danielsternlighting.com

This is a superb source for comprehensive lighting information. Daniel Stern states that blue-tinted bulbs should never be used for headlights as they will always be inferior to clear bulbs in terms of light output.

How long did the Osram Silverstars last? I originally installed them June 17th, 2003 and they remained in place, as bright as ever, until I removed them on December 28th, 2007 in order to fit the Night Breakers. Thus, they were in place for 4 years, 6 months and 11 days, and only removed for the upgrade.

Based on my experience with the Osram Silverstars, I expected a satisfactorally long life from the Osram Night Breakers, as well.

I ordered a pair of H4 Night Breakers from my usual source Powerbulbs, in the UK, the same place from which I'd previously ordered the Osram Silverstars. The current price is Great Britain Pounds (GBP) L17.49 which works out to US $27.86 according to an online currency converter. This is a sale price, and a good one, as I originally paid US $48.40 at the time of my purchase. For more information, go to:

http://www.powerbulbs.co.uk

I have placed several orders with this totally reliable company and shipping is always free, anywhere in the world. It takes about a week for their shipments to arrive here. Express service is available for a price. I highly recommend this vendor.

Let there be light!

Happy Motoring!

[SgtRauksauff]

Good tip, and a good deal, less than 20 bucks for the pair!!!

Do you have the Osram part number for those bulbs?

They sound VERY similar to the Osram bulbs that I use (CP64205)

Granted, the ones I use are "Not legal for highway use" because they're 70/65W instead of the 60/55W mandated maximum. Mine are also 19.xx each, instead of the pair.

--sarge

[goldstar]

Driving Impressions

Upon opening the sealed shipping container, an inspection of the bulbs reveals two separate blue bands located near the base and near the top, or front, part of the bulb. These are not an overall tint or coating as in the case of the Silverstars but rather what Osram calls dichroic filters designed to whiten the light output from the bulb. Additionally, the front part of the bulb has a silver cap.

Before installing the bulbs, I coated the 3-terminals (hi, lo, and gnd) with dielectric grease, applied with a toothpick. This helps prevent contact corrosion and makes it easier to unplug the sockets for bulb changes. It goes without saying not to touch the glass envelope of the bulb with your fingers but to grasp it only by the metal flange at its base. After installation was complete, that evening I went for a short test drive. Compared with the Osram Silverstars:

Low Beams
There was noticeably more light on the road and it was noticeably brighter and whiter. Consequently, the beam spread and distance were greater. The beam projected farther outward making distant objects visible earlier, with an increase in brightness of the total illuminated area. The beam spreads farther to the right, and higher at the extreme, illuminating the shoulder and signage more intensely, a definite aid to cornering. The beam spread to the left was also wider and brighter, although lower of course due to the sharp, well-defined cutoff. The alignment was essentially as before, so despite the greater brightness, oncoming drivers seem not to be negatively affected.

High Beams
That first night, I didn't get a chance to fuly test this mode as I wasn't yet able to run on a two-lane rural highway at speed. However, more limited use indicates a notable increase in both beam distance, brightness and whiteness as was the case in the low-beam mode.

Additional Testing
Subsequently, I had a chance to further test the Night Breakers on a more extended drive at higher speeds compared with my initial evaluation. I left my friend's house at 11pm and drove 51 miles to my home. Most of the run consisted of driving on the Garden State Parkway (GSP) and then onto I-280, with ~ 7 miles of suburban driving. As traffic was very light, I was able to maintain a virtually constant 70 mph on both the GSP and the interstate. The suburban part of the trip was on mostly unlit roads so overall the conditions were right for an adequate test of the low beams.

The beam distance was more than adequate for 70 mph cruise and the illuminated area was bright and white out to the limits of the beam throw - far superior to what the Silverstars were capable of achieving. As already mentioned the beam spread to the right, with its enhanced brightness and whiteness, allows excellent visibility at the side of the road permitting easy reading of roadway signs even at speed.

Again I wasn't able to fully test the high beam performance because of the nature of the roads upon which I was driving, but on occasion with no opposing traffic, I'd switch to the highs just to note both the throw and brightness of the beam - clearly superior in both respects to the Silverstars.

The Night Breakers are clearly superior to the Osram Silverstars in every category. They make for more comfortable, easier and safer driving and are worth the cost increase. Highly recommended.

Night Breakers in the 3
I liked the Night Breakers so much in my car that I bought a pair of H7 (55W) low beam bulbs for my wife's 3. Again, we saw a noticeable improvement but not as substantial as that obtained with the protege since the 3's 4-bulb headlight design (H7 Lo/9005 Hi) seems inherently superior to that of Proteges that use the dual filament H4 bulbs. Nonetheless, we felt that the more limited improvement was still worth the cost increase involved. The current cost for the H7s at Powerbulbs is GBP L19.19 which converts to US $30.57.

Night Breakers in the Protege 5 (P5)
Since, unlike the sedan, the P5 (2002-'03) uses the same 4-bulb system as the 3, the H7 Lo beam bulbs can also be replaced with Night Breakers for what I imagine would be a comparable improvement.

There is no Night Breaker version of the 9005 (65W) bulb.

My advice to those of you who own older Proteges that don't use the H4 bulbs is to sell off that obsolete design, buy a 3rd Gen, and install Night Breakers. You'll be glad you did.

Proud to be a 2-mazda family.

Let there be light.

Happy Motoring!

[808]

Excellent write up. I'll have to check those out when I convert the GTX to H4's.

[goldstar]

Do you have the Osram part number for those bulbs?

They sound VERY similar to the Osram bulbs that I use (CP64205)

--sarge

Sarge, it just so happens that I have a spare set of H4 Night Breakers in an unopened Osram package from Powerbulbs in front of me. The numbers most prominently displayed on the package and that are the closest to yours is as follows:

BILUX H4
NIGHT BREAKER
12V 60/55W P43t
64193NBR
472NBR

Happy Motoring!