OSRAM 65w Rallye AND Upping Voltage?

VeeDubTDI

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put in the Osrams from Candlepower at $76 for 4 and thought it was a pretty good upgrade for the money, much better light but still lacking a little, I was coming from a 2010 accord that I retrofitted with s2k projectors but that cost me over $700 and the output is unreal, makes my other car with stock xenons really seem dim by comparison but after turning off the bulb saving feature via vcds i now have pretty respectable output and am happy with it plus my sister-in-law just bought a 14', I told her i'll do the upgrade for her, found this

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10X-OSRAM-S...ogen-lamp-64217-Made-in-Germany-/171264843521

on ebay and figured what the heck, they appear to be the real deal and i cannot tell the difference when comparing them side to side, now i can change out low beams every year for $10!
That's a pretty nice price if they're the real deal! Probably parts store shrinkage, though... I can't think of any other reason to sell that cheap.
 

DieselRacer

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That's a pretty nice price if they're the real deal! Probably parts store shrinkage, though... I can't think of any other reason to sell that cheap.
They are always that price on there from what I remember, how long do these bulbs last compared to OEM bulbs...
 

dcullen

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rated Life

They are always that price on there from what I remember, how long do these bulbs last compared to OEM bulbs...

Standard 55w H7 are rate 450 hours, Osram 65w Rallyes are rated 400 hours

50% greater lumen output.


Sylvania Silverstars (US) rated at 200 hours
 

VeeDubTDI

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Silverstar's rating of 200 hours is ridiculous. I'd be changing lamps frequently at that life span...
 

macoombi

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The lights will run at 65 watts regardless of the voltage supplied. They will just pull more current (more amps).
This is incorrect. A simple light bulb acts like a simple resistor. V=IR applies. The higher the voltage, the higher the current flow for a given resistance. And since power is voltage time current, when the voltage and current go up, so does the power. More power = more light output.

Ever notice the headlights getting brighter when you increase the rpms from idle? That's proof.
 

macoombi

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False! Incandescent lamps are a variable resistive load, and also have a reverse temp to resistance relationship (resistance goes *down* as it heats) and will draw more power at higher voltage, being limited by failure. Wattage ratings are at the design voltage, and only that voltage. Think about what you said - if it were true, you could get the same output with 6 volts as 12, and we all know that to be false as well.

So yes, while P=IV, P is also V^2/R or I^2*R (using ohms law, V=IR to solve for I or V).
Note P=V^2/R . . . power not only goes up, but goes up at the square of the voltage!

- Tim
You're also partially incorrect. Tungsten bulbs don't have an inverse temperature coefficient. The resistance goes up with heat. Perhaps you're thinking of the early carbon filament bulbs from the late 1800s.

But the rest of what you posted is good.
 

JM Popaleetus

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Well, one of the low beam bulbs went out on the Passat today, so I decided that now is a good time as ever to buy the Rallye 65W bulbs (and get the recall done).

Bumping this thread because I came across an interesting link: http://www.danielsternlighting.com/products/products.html

The Flösser and Osram bulbs are electrically, optically, functionally, and qualitatively identical, but they are labelled differently. They are both built in Germany to exactly the same specification: an H9 burner on an H7 base, 65w at 12.0v, 2100 lumens at 13.2v. Flösser's box says "80w" while Osram's says "65w". This is not an actual power difference, it is a test voltage difference. Flösser power-rates their bulb at 13.5v rather than 12.0v. For any/all filament bulbs, the wattage rises exponentially to the power 1.6 with voltage increase. So a bulb rated 65w at 12.0v will be rated 78.5w (printed as 80w) at 13.5v. It's not two different bulbs, just two different test protocols. On the test bench, the Osram "65w" bulbs and the Flösser "80w" bulbs all test out at between 63.8 and 65.4 watts at a constant 13.2 volts.
It also appears that the maximum life expectancy of ~500 hours is measured at 13.2V as well.

Luckily for me, I also finally ordered a VCDS, so 13.2V is now what I plan to set the voltage at.
 

Lincoln

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Just reread through this whole thread and can't find anyone who installed 65W bulbs in place of 55W bulbs WITHOUT adjusting voltage who noticed any significant difference... Is that correct? I rented a Mustang yesterday and its lights were so much brighter than my stock lights that it made me look this back up. Now that we're back to morning-and-evening-commuting-in-the-dark in Seattle, it's a pressing issue. However, I don't have VCDS, so don't want to shell out for new bulbs if it won't make any difference at all...
 

TheGrove

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I would guess, and this is true for me, that most of us that installed the 65W bulbs want the lights to be as bright as possible so we upped the voltage to make sure they are opperating at full power. You might want to check out the VAG-COM locator in this thread there appear to be several in the Seattle area that could help you.
 

tdiatlast

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...and there should be sticky telling everyone to adjust their headlights before they jump to the conclusion that they're completely worthless...
 

VeeDubTDI

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...and there should be sticky telling everyone to adjust their headlights before they jump to the conclusion that they're completely worthless...
It should be added to the FAQ thread. We don't need more stickies. ;)
 

tc1uscg

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Just wondering if anyone running the 65w bulbs have noticed in discoloration inside the headlight assembly? What I mean by discoloration is like a blue/grey tint on areas inside on the clear plastic? Kinda like that gas on water effect (sheen). Maybe it's just the design and has nothing to do with the extra heat build up inside the housing and maybe it's just the way (angle) I'm looking at it.
 

tc1uscg

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Just reread through this whole thread and can't find anyone who installed 65W bulbs in place of 55W bulbs WITHOUT adjusting voltage who noticed any significant difference... Is that correct? I rented a Mustang yesterday and its lights were so much brighter than my stock lights that it made me look this back up. Now that we're back to morning-and-evening-commuting-in-the-dark in Seattle, it's a pressing issue. However, I don't have VCDS, so don't want to shell out for new bulbs if it won't make any difference at all...
I installed them w/o changing my voltage (then again, I couldn't find justification to drop $250 to just make my headlamps a tad bit brighter when they were an improvement out of the box). I also raised the beam a turn or two so it throws the light out better (and spreads it around better too). So now, the driving lights fill in between the front of the car to where the headlamps start shining on the ground. So, bottom line, without changing the voltage, i seen a very noticeable difference. ;)
 
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Lincoln

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Thanks TC1. I've got the bulbs on order, and will definitely look into raising the beams this weekend. I've been paying close attention on my commute and they seem WAY too low AND dim. The only other car I've seen that was comparable was a Kia. Often the road ahead of me is in a shadow from the lights of the car behind--no reason the light from the car behind should be brighter than my own headlights. I'm just glad there's a relatively simple and inexpensive way to fix the problem. At some point I'll track down someone with VAGCOM to adjust the voltage too.
 

tc1uscg

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Adjustments

Thanks TC1. I've got the bulbs on order, and will definitely look into raising the beams this weekend. I've been paying close attention on my commute and they seem WAY too low AND dim. The only other car I've seen that was comparable was a Kia. Often the road ahead of me is in a shadow from the lights of the car behind--no reason the light from the car behind should be brighter than my own headlights. I'm just glad there's a relatively simple and inexpensive way to fix the problem. At some point I'll track down someone with VAGCOM to adjust the voltage too.

YW.. Just pay attention to how high you raise them. I did the old school method. Just parked the car about 6 ft from the garage door, put some blue frog masking tap on the door right where the top of the beam was. Turned the adjustment screw (thanks vw for making this simple) to where the top of the beam was above the top of the tape (1 inche tape). Then did this for the passenger side. This provides usable light on rainy nights allows for the driving lights to do their job. The ONLY issue you might notice if you raise them too high (I tried higher just to see what worked best), is your HIGH beams will scanning the tree's for racoons. ie, they will be too high. (no pun intended) :D
 

Lincoln

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Adjusted the headlights up (a lot!) this weekend and I'm amazed at the difference. I'm actually pretty embarrassed that it took me a year of living with "weak" headlights before checking the aim. Took about 30 seconds per headlight to adjust thanks to the super-easy access point. Now I can see worlds better (without blinding other drivers--the top of the beam is still below the rear window of cars I'm following or windshield of oncoming cars). Hopefully this will save somebody else from spending so much time in the dark. Now I'll just hang on to the Osram 65W bulbs until the OEMs die, and still look into adjusting voltage via VAGCOM when I have the chance. Thanks everyone for the great advice.
 

Lincoln

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The Candlepower site says to beware the cheap ones on Ebay as they are not legit. That said, Candlepower is competing with the Chinese sellers, so take it with a grain of salt. I bought mine from Candlepower since $80 for a set of 4 (which I hopefully won't have to replace all that often) seems like a reasonable enough price, and headlights are a safety concern. But on the other hand, it looks like the Chinese sellers on Ebay have many satisfied customers...
 

rustycat

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So I'm thinking of buying these bulbs from CandlePower - http://store.candlepower.com/osraulhiouh7.html

My parents have a 2011 Jetta TDI. Can I just swap the bulbs and not have to touch Vagcom in terms of voltage? I rather not mess with that stuff on my parents car. Will it still work properly and be bright enough?

Thanks
I'm probably older than your parents, and I have found just substituting the blub, and not increasing the voltage to it has been very satisfying and a major step up from factory.
 

bryanviper

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Thats good to know. As long the bulbs are the same or better for brightness. & also the reliability is the same or better then they should be happy with the bulbs.

From what I read about them this is exactly what they are?



I'm probably older than your parents, and I have found just substituting the blub, and not increasing the voltage to it has been very satisfying and a major step up from factory.
 

sohccammer427

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Bring this one back to the top.

Great thread! I thinking about jumping on the Osram Rallye H7+ for my 15' Passat. My question is the additional current draw. Going from 1400 to 2100 lumens is great, but if my wiring harness or lamp sockets are trashed in a few years then it won't be so good.
.
watts/volts = amp draw
So would increasing the voltage (with vcds) while upping the wattage (65 watt) reduce the amperage draw?
.
55w/12v=4.6 amp
65w/13v=5.0 amp
.
Any reason to be concerned?
 

Mark SF

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"So would increasing the voltage (with vcds) while upping the wattage (65 watt) reduce the amperage draw?"

No, it would increase it twice.

Increasing the voltage increases the current into a resistive load.

Increasing the rated wattage means it draws more current at the rated voltage.

So a 55w bulb draws 4.6A at 12V.

A 65W bulb draws 5.4A at 12V.

If you increase the voltage to 13V, it draws 5.85A (assuming R remains constant), and power increases to 13*5.85 = 76W.


.
 
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Fixmy59bug

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I got really happy, then really freaked out for a second there...

I saw Vw Norm's postings and I thought this was a recent thread and thought the news of him passing was a hoax or maybe just a coincidence.
 

TheGrove

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Bring this one back to the top.

Great thread! I thinking about jumping on the Osram Rallye H7+ for my 15' Passat. My question is the additional current draw. Going from 1400 to 2100 lumens is great, but if my wiring harness or lamp sockets are trashed in a few years then it won't be so good.
.
watts/volts = amp draw
So would increasing the voltage (with vcds) while upping the wattage (65 watt) reduce the amperage draw?
.
55w/12v=4.6 amp
65w/13v=5.0 amp
.
Any reason to be concerned?
I've been running them since I purchased my car in 2011 with no problems. Until January I commuted 4 hours each day (2 in the am 2 in the pm) with much of that time in the dark.
 
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