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Do NOT put overwattage bulbs in US/Canada DOT headlamps! Not only does it not fix the problem (bad beam pattern) but it also causes extreme glare for oncoming traffic and can and will damage (melt) headlamp parts and put your electrical wiring and headlamp switchgear at extreme fire risk.
Using overwattage bulbs with stock wiring causes problems.
Just such a problem got dragged in to the local auto salvage place last
week. '92 Saab 900s Turbo. Charcoal where the front fascia wiring and
much of the front half of the engine wiring used to be, pools and rivers
of melted plastic where the left half of the dash used to be. The owner
thought it would be nifty to use overwattage bulbs in the headlamps and
fog lamps (I pulled the bulbs out of the car and looked...100W and 80W
headlamp bulbs, 110W fog lamp bulb remains in the melted plastic fog
lamps). The wrong fuse rating had also been used, presumably after the
overwattage bulbs kept burning out regular fuses.
You tell people again and again that wiring meant for 27 to 60 Watts is
not up to the task of handling 85 to 130 Watts, and they *STILL* just have
to try it themselves and find out the expensive way. It could have
something to do with all the fast-buck artists selling 3rd-world,
low-quality overwattage bulbs and dismissing any concerns about lamp
damage or wire fires, 'cause to acknowledge such concerns might cost them
a sale.
No reputable bulb companies make overwattage DOT-type bulbs. They're all made in 3rd-world factories and are true junk with regard to base geometry, filament placement, and bulb strength. I remember the guy with the '87 Mercedes (9004 headlamp bulbs) who wanted to know why he couldn't remove the 100/80W 9004 bulb he'd installed the week before which had exploded/shattered inside his headlamp. The extra heat had melt-welded the plastic bulb base to the plastic reflector, and he was out several hundred dollars for a replacement headlamp assembly.
JUST DON'T DO IT.
--Daniel
Automotive Lighting and Signalling Consultation and Sales
NBCS b5f+wg+rp
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