Club 80-90 Forums

Hello, I wonder if anyone can tell me whether I can just put in the nightbreaker bulbs without upgrading the wiring and relays ...

bus is 1990 diesel non turbo. would appreciate advice for the beginner!

yes you can, if you then do the upgrade at a later date it will be even brighter!

thanks James!

As James has said although you'll never truly see the difference without the relays.

CovKid wrote:As James has said although you'll never truly see the difference without the relays.

The Nighbreaker Plus bulbs are the same wattage as the originals so won't put anymore strain on your switches and wiring.
They are designed to run hotter with a whiter brighter light so although you won't see the full benefit, they will definately be brighter.

For me...there were two definate step up's ....one, the bulbs, two, after the relays and wiring mod.
I guestimate a 40% improvement with just the bulbs (even though they say they are plus 90) and at least the same again, if not more, with the relays and wiring upgrade. 80 - 100% improvement overall.

Martin

Arhhhhh! sorry mate....I see where you are coming from with this.
You have early round lamps (NON HALOGEN) which would have originally had the old style ROUND tungsten bulbs.

Sounds like you have 'HYBRED Halogens' halogen bulbs using the old style 'round' bases.

I'm afraid unless you replace the lamps themselves the best you can hope for is using adapters to fit the H4 Nighbreakers.....not really something I would recommend..but if finances are tight then this maybe the way to go.
However, I know it's extra cost but I would recommend you look out for a good used pair of H4 lamps (marked H4 in the glass) and ditch the old ones, then fit the Osrams.

Martin

martin ... lamps are round, but they are marked H4, so I think the osrams will fit ok.

thanks for your help.

I've obviously got the wrong end of the stick somewhere...thought you mentioned round based bulbs no worries...if it says H4 on the glass then the Nightbreakers will fit.

Martin

I have round based bulbs. Will I need to change the relays and wiring for brighter lights if I get halogen bulbs?

Upgrades in order

1) Change old style round bulb headlights units for newer H4 headlight units. Either 2nd hand with non-rusted reflectors inside or new. Round headlights are extremely common (H4 is written on the glass). H4 lamps have better lenses and give a better spread of light

2) Fit Nightbreaker H4 bulbs to the H4 headlights

3) Fit relays as per diagrams in the wiki in order to get more voltage to the bulbs and brighter lights

4) The final £££££ option (or cheap if you are lucky like me). Fit sqaure headlights as they give a far better spread of light. This is just my opinion from having both types on my van.