Finally got some Sylvania Headlights - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

epinionator89 · 02-05-2006, 01:58 PM

Yep, bought them at Wal*Mart for $38 and they're already installed. Well, the right one anyways. The left one will take a while because the battery's in the way and it looks like a pain to remove.

I got them because I've heard a lot of good things from members on TN, and I'll only buy the best for the Camry. (Though I read a Consumer Report article comparing Silverstars to other brands and they say they actually reduced low-beam visibility on their test cars--one test car being a gen5 Toyota Camry).

If anyone would like to share their experiences with Silverstars, please do so.

DarkMastyr · 02-05-2006, 02:12 PM

Their life expectancy is shit. Not as bad as PIAA's, but still shit. If you drive at nighttime regularly like I used to do when I had silverstars (several hours a week), then expect them to have an average life expectancy of 1 year. Even Sylvania admits this.

CCCP · 02-05-2006, 02:38 PM

^^^ one year of regular use or? 8500 hours?

Mine never gave out, for one year of long night use.

Daffunda · 02-05-2006, 02:47 PM

Installed April 2003, still going strong on Gen5 SE.

I use my headlights 5 days a week, (weekends also, if weather is crap) on my way to work and back during the winter times.

epinionator89 · 02-05-2006, 03:00 PM

Well, the car has DRLs so that'll probably lower life expectancy slightly...

...and I've seemed to come across a problem:

In order to remove the headlights, I have to 1) take off that round rubber thing holding the headlight in and 2) unscrew the screw that holds a small metal piece in (I had to remove it in order to take the light out). Well, I cannot seem to remember how the metal piece goes back on. People who have replaced gen4 headlights should understand what I'm talking about. The headlights are held pretty well without the metal thing anyways, but I'm going to try and be careful on the roads (avoiding potholes and such) until I find out how it goes.

DarkMastyr · 02-05-2006, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CCCP

^^^ one year of regular use or? 8500 hours?

Mine never gave out, for one year of long night use.

8500 hours? lol that'd be incredible. That's like the life expectancy of an oem HID bulb. I'd say closer to a few hundred hours for the average silverstar.

I had 3 pairs of silverstars over 3 years. All blew after approx. 1 year of use and believe me I know all about the grease/oil on fingers thing and the need to clean bulbs before they're put in. Other people have been able to prolong theirs for longer, and others shorter. -shrugs- Anywhos, that's my experience. I did notice that Sylvania changed their silverstars a little while back. They became less bright, probably due to customer complaints about them blowing so often.

***DAMON*** · 02-05-2006, 07:13 PM

Ive had mine forever, over a year atleast and theyre great. I dont think they have a poor expectancy at all

gfryhtsn · 02-05-2006, 09:03 PM

Ive had my silverstars in my camry for around a year...and I always just leave my headlights on, and I do mostly night driving anyway, and have had no problems with them. And my mom has had them in her towncar for at least two years with no problems at all as well...And everytime I unlock my camry, the lights come on for 2 minutes...and everytime she unlocks her car, the lights come on for a minute and a half..so theyre always going on and off..and still great life so far...

DoomCrewInc · 02-05-2006, 09:08 PM

i have had mine in my gen 2 for about six months now and the low beams are shit! the high beams are great though!

camrycoupe95 · 02-06-2006, 11:26 PM

I've had Sliverstars in 3 different cars and they look great, very clean look. There's nothing worse than stock yellowish lights. However rarely in some conditions the low beams on the Sliverstars don't shine as bright like the EOM blubs do. I still have to get around to installing some in my 3.5 coupe.

***DAMON*** · 02-06-2006, 11:35 PM

I did the 9005 conversion on mine and that helped a lot

Hawkeye-SE · 02-07-2006, 12:36 AM

I swear... this board has more posts about light bulbs...

Anyway, I had silverstars in my Supra, and they do look nice. Not much difference, not really worth the money, and sub-average life... For the money I would rather track down some HIR bulbs.

WhiteRabbit · 02-07-2006, 12:46 AM

i think ive had mine for almost 2 years now.

***ModifierMR*** · 02-07-2006, 12:53 AM

I have Silverstars in my Gen5 and compared to my old StreetGlow XEONS and Stock bulbs, these blow them away.

They are very white and very bright. Although from about 4-500 feet they dont reach. Other than that they look beautifull

And as far as longevity, im a night person and im sometimes out 7 hours a nite and it gets dark here early 4PM or so. Ive had mine scince October and they are still just as good......Not to mention I BAKED THEM IN THE OVEN @ 350* for 10 Minutes Twice......because i painted my Headlights and forgot to take them out.

nodrogkam · 02-07-2006, 08:19 AM

Silverstars in my gen 4 have been nice. Not as bright or white as the cheap ebay ones i bought but at least these wont run as hot or damage my wire harness further...hahah OH and these are actually the proper wattage.

Uhm in terms of the whole installation problem...what did you need to take the metal piece off for? You push in, pull up and it it should pop out, along with the bulb. NO need to unscrew anything. The bulb install and removal process (if you know which parts to remove/open up), should take no longer than 2-3 minutes.