Originally Posted By: SubLGT
From
this very informative thread on the Philips HIR2:
"The luminance of the Philips HIR2 is superior to that of the Toshiba bulb -- 30 Mcd/m2 vs. 24 Mcd/m2 -- and the filament ghosts are more consistently and conventionally located."
^^^^ That's talking about the Philips HIR2/9012 low beam bulbs.
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Just an FYI, it seems that the "new" HIR bulbs are not using the reflecting technology, or not properly. The 9011 actually has less output than the original Toshiba HIR bulbs. From what I read, the new "replacement" versions are simply bright halogens. There is no reflective coating. The extra brightness comes from the gas mixture, the filament placement and the cylindrical glass and, of course, from power consumption.
The new 9011 version is down about 400-500 lumens, and really is not that much brighter than "halogen" spec.
HIR original was 2500 lumens (9011)
HIR Phillips is 2100 Lumens (or less)
Halogen is 1800 Lumens
Here are the originals:
http://hirheadlights.com/Bulbs Images/2bulbs338x330.png
^^^ This is referring to the HIR1/9011 high beam bulbs.
The Philips 9012's are the real-deal HIR bulbs, with the IR-reflective coating. Their 9011's are "tarted-up" 9005 filaments that are over-driven, according to one article I read on them.
Summary:
Philips 9012/HIR2 bulbs = real deal HIR, buy.
Philips 9011/HIR1 bulbs = fakers, run away.
Kinda OT, but I've been nothing but impressed with the Philips 9012's in my Buick's low beams.