1. I've read in a couple of different places about the Phillips Vision Plus replacement bulbs - has anyone used these on their MINI? Any feedback whether it is worth the money? Are they really that much brighter?

2. Has anyone installed any of the headlight protective films? I think 3M offers one, and I thought I stumbled across another kind, but I don't remember. Any thoughts or feedback on these?

 

Answer 1) I tried the vision plus bulbs in my MINI and while there is an improvement, I still took them out. Here's my problem. I have xenons, so the vision plus bulbs are high beam and fog only, and the xenons stay on when either of those are on. The coloration of the vision plus, doesn't really match with the color hues of the xenons.

If I were buying bulbs again I'd get the Phillips Blue Vision (they aren't blue, and they aren't fake xenon, just whiter light). I ran both the blue vison and the vision plus on my Jetta and after seeing the vision plus on the MINI, I really believe the Blue Visions are the better choice for blending with the light from the xenons.

THAT SAID, if you have halogens for low and high beams, I would get the vision plus for both, since with halogens the low beam turns off when the high beam turns on.

Answer 2) I have 3M stonegard installed on me headlights. I had that done at the same time as the hood, the bumpercover, the grille slats, and the mirror caps. It is visually clear and I have had people standing next to the car that were surprized to hear I had the headlights covered too, because it really isn't visible.

Plus its good insurance for those expensive lights.

 

Dave, thanks that was helpful - but now I have a few more questions...

I do have the halogens (long story... see MINI Talk :: I can't believe it...it's here!!! post for details) so what is the advantage of the Vision Pluses over the Blue Vision if I'm getting all four bulbs? Asked differently, is there a reason you still recommend the Vision Pluses over the Blue Visions for the halogen replacements?

Also, the 3M stoneguard you mention sounds custom. The protective films I've seen you get "custom cut" DIY sheets that you stick on. Any thoughts on these items?

 

1) My experience has been that the Vision Plus bulbs are generally superior to the Blue Vision in terms of the light output. That said, when matched with xenons I found the Vision Plus color difference distracting. So if you have halogens you won't have that problem, and thus my recommendation for the vision plus.

2) My headlights film was custom cut. I did install a pre-cut kit on my Mother's New Beetle, and it turned out just fine. If you do it yourself, be sure to do it on a warm day (not many of those left around here) to allow the adhesive to flow. I would recommend turning on your headlights for about 5 minutes prior to the install to allow the lense to warm up a little bit. That will help the adhesive spread evenly (it's already on the film once you peal off the backing).

 

One last thing. The MINI uses H7 bulbs. You can get both the Vision Plus and the Blue Vision from Powerbulbs.com which is located in the U.K. They have a currency converter to let you see what the pricing is in USD. Shipping is included in the cost. The bulbs arrive via the USPS and generally take 10 days - 2 weeks to arrive. I have ordered bulbs from them a few times without problems.

 

Thanks Dave!!

I especially appreciate the bonus tip about warming up the lenses a bit first! - We're getting colder over in PA too.

 

>>Answer 1) I tried the vision plus bulbs in my MINI and while there is an improvement, I still took them out. Here's my problem. I have xenons, so the vision plus bulbs are high beam and fog only, and the xenons stay on when either of those are on. The coloration of the vision plus, doesn't really match with the color hues of the xenons.
>>
>>If I were buying bulbs again I'd get the Phillips Blue Vision (they aren't blue, and they aren't fake xenon, just whiter light). I ran both the blue vison and the vision plus on my Jetta and after seeing the vision plus on the MINI, I really believe the Blue Visions are the better choice for blending with the light from the xenons.
>>
>>THAT SAID, if you have halogens for low and high beams, I would get the vision plus for both, since with halogens the low beam turns off when the high beam turns on.
>>

>>Answer 2) I have 3M stonegard installed on me headlights. I had that done at the same time as the hood, the bumpercover, the grille slats, and the mirror caps. It is visually clear and I have had people standing next to the car that were surprized to hear I had the headlights covered too, because it really isn't visible.
>>
>>Plus its good insurance for those expensive lights.

Dave: Can you say what kind of price range it might cost for stonegaurd to be installed? And, who/where does installation?

 

I had 3M stonegard applied to the front 24" of the hood, the air scoop, the grill slats, the headlights, the bumpercover, and the mirror caps. Grand total $450.

Just the hood is usually $200-$250.
Just the headlights would generally be about $50

In Colorado, a lot of window tint installers do Clearbra/stonegard too. So you might try calling around. It's a similar system (wet application) to tinting.

For anyone from Denver, I had mine done at

I.D.S.
(less commonly known as Integrity Dealer Systems)
8071-B South Broadway, Littleton
(303) 734-4500

 

Dave-
Hope this isn't a dumb question, but the film that you mentioned: (1) is it the same on both the headlights and the rest of the car, and (2) how well does this "adhesive" stick?

I've thought about the system you described, but what happens when/if you want to take it OFF? Does the installer have to remove it? Can you do it yourself? Does it leave a residue?

Thanks!

 

David G:

1) In my case yes, the headlights are covered with the same film as the rest of the car. That doesn't necessarily have to be the case. Since I had mine custom cut, and not from a kit, they are made from the same film.

2) I have actually removed the film from my Mirror Caps, as it started to wrinkle (the mirror curvature was just too great for the film). All that's required to get the film off cleanly without much adhesive residue, is to heat the film up with a hair dryer and then lift an edge. The film will peal off and if you go slowly, there won't be much adhesive left behind.

NOTE:: on my Jetta I also installed 4 patches of 3M stonegard on my ROOF. One patch went under the foot of each tower on my roof rack, to prevent abrasion of the paint from the rack. I had those patches in place for 2 years and then removed them. After a waxing, there is no way to tell those four patches from the rest of the roof. There is no difference in the fading or hazing.

One last thing: while I did install the film on my roof, each patch was smaller than a postal envelope. Even then it was hard to do. So, the lesson is to have a professional do any large stonegard/clearbra install (hood, bumpercover, etc). It just doesn't make sense to spend hundreds of dollars on materials and then cheap out on the installation. In the case of the headlights, if you have a pre-cut kit, *that* is totally manageable on your own.

If you have any other questions, let me know.