95.5-2004 Tacomas & 96-2002 4Runners 4th gen pickups and 3rd gen 4Runners
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 11:01 AM
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From: Spencer, Iowa
Replacement Headlight Bulbs

Ok...I've had enough with the cheap ebay 9000k replacement bulbs. They only seem to last about 6 months. After doing some research, I stumbled on the GE Nighthawk bulbs. People seem to love them compared to Silver Stars and such and I found them at Walmart for $25.00 for the pair. Anyone else use these? What do you think? I'll be putting them in tonight and post what my thoughts are tomorrow!
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 11:27 AM
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My mom has 'em in her '99 and she says they were a solid improvement over OEM and I compared them to my Silverstars and they cast the same amount of light but they aren't as white but no big deal. When my Silverstars go (14 months on e'm now) I'll probably go with the Nighthawks.
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 11:31 AM
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I've been using them in my 01 for about 8-9 months, much better than the 4 year old original ones. Never tried Silverstars so I don't know how they compare. So far I'm happy with them.
Wish I could have got them for $25 a pair though, they're almost $25 each up here.
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 12:34 PM
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I ran Silverstars for 3 yrs B4 I needed to replace em. When I did I couldn't see $36 for Silverstars so I went with the Nighhawks.

Gotta tell ya I'm impressed. Less money spent and no noticable difference btween the two. I like em!
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 01:58 PM
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I switched from my silverstars as well since I drive alot in the dark and they seemed to blow out quick. I then tried highthawks and I'm impressed as everyone else said.
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 02:15 PM
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Thanks for the input. I'll put 'em on tonight and let everyone know how they do. Since my 4Runner has daytime running lights, I go through bulbs a lot! And yeah, I didn't think $25 a pair was too bad either!
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 02:27 PM
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From: Norcal
Why not disable your DRL
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 02:43 PM
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Originally Posted by emptypockets
Ok...I've had enough with the cheap ebay 9000k replacement bulbs. They only seem to last about 6 months. After doing some research, I stumbled on the GE Nighthawk bulbs. People seem to love them compared to Silver Stars and such and I found them at Walmart for $25.00 for the pair. Anyone else use these? What do you think? I'll be putting them in tonight and post what my thoughts are tomorrow!

6 months for them ebay lights sounds like a very long time to me. People are replacing after market bulbs every 12 months or less. I got my silver star about 2 months ago and they're still going strong, lol. I wouldn't mind getting a bunch of 9k ebay cheapies, if they do last that long. I've read that they're much brighter than silver stars. I'm not impressed with the brightness of silver stars.
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 02:46 PM
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I'm running the Philips Vison Plus and they provide much more light coverage and brightness than stock. Before I had OSRAM Silverstars and they were just as good except not as bright.
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Old Mar 6, 2006 | 07:26 PM
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Love my Nighthawks! Just did my fiance's honda and my fathers Dodge Dakota..Love em! Can't go wrong with the $25 price tag...
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Old Mar 7, 2006 | 07:26 AM
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They're on and here's my thoughts. First, if you're one of the people who likes the "blue" light effect, look elsewhere. The Nighthawks are probably about 3500-3800k. With that said, they're wayyyyy brighter than stock and the cheap "9000K" ebay bulbs. After reading on some other forums after I bought these new bulbs, I understand why.

Bulbs with the blue light filter on them are dimmer than clear capsules. That's because the blue filter actually removes blue hues from the color spectrum and thus, some of the light. The light seems brighter because it's whiter. It's kind of an optical illusion. In addition, the yellow spectrum of the color wheel are also filtered out, which decreases the output further. Again, the blue or super white bulbs just give the impression they're brighter because of the blue/white light they emit. They're actually filtering out more light than they're allowing. This isn't my thinking, it's from bulb sites and other forums.

With the Nighthawks, I can see further down the road and objects are more visible. And for $25 a pair...it was a no brainer!
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Old Mar 14, 2006 | 04:50 PM
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Glad ta hear ya like em EP!
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Old Mar 27, 2006 | 08:24 AM
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Anyone know "IF" or "WHERE" I can buy the GE Nighthawks on line for my 01 Tacoma ? The closest Wal-mart to me is 120 miles round trip. With the price of gas at about $2.70 a gal. having them shipped to me is much cheaper in most cases.Thanks for any info you may have, Mike
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Old Mar 27, 2006 | 02:58 PM
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Has anyone checked out the GE Megalight Plus +60% from autolamps-online.com? They look to be the Euro version of the GE Nighthawks.

Heres a link http://www.autolamps-online.com/halo...ange/index.htm
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Old Mar 27, 2006 | 04:22 PM
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Does anyone have nighthawks in their fogs? They are useless stock...
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Old Mar 30, 2006 | 02:16 PM
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Do I need any special numbers off my stock 01 Tacoma bulbs to match the GE Nighthawks at Wal-Mart? Going to pick up a set this weekend if they have them in stock. Mike
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Old Mar 30, 2006 | 02:23 PM
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Per the GE online guide you use a 9003 size of Nighthawk.
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Old Mar 30, 2006 | 04:06 PM
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Thanks David, that really helps.I can call them first and make sure they have it. It's a 120 miles round trip for me to my closest Wal-Mart,Lol. Mike
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Old Mar 31, 2006 | 09:55 AM
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Just finished installing my Nighthawks and I'll try them out tonight and let you know what I think. $27.00 plus tax here at Wal-Mart. Mike
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Old Mar 31, 2006 | 09:57 AM
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like the other 10 threads i have posted about this, the Nighthakws + RB upgraded harness(get the upgraded version) = teh win
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