HIR2 (9012) LED & Halogen Bulbs

Does your car headlight use a HIR2 bulb? Then this guide will help you make the right choice among the many bulbs that are on the market.

If you need help choosing a bulb for your car, read our guide to choosing a car lamp, or use the lamp selection for each car model on our website.

HIR2 Bulbs Guide

Types of bulbs
Bulbs Review
Buying Guide

What is a HIR2 bulb?

HIR2 lamps are installed in headlamps and suitable for cars with 9-32V on-board voltage.

HIR2 lamps are currently one of the most popular bulbs on the market due to their design and good sealing.

Variety of HIR2 car bulbs

HIR2 bulbs are most commonly installed in dipped beam and fog lights. Depending on the light source, HIR2 dipped-beam bulbs are available in different versions:

• Halogen bulbs
• LED bulbs

Best Brightest HIR2 Bulb

Types of HIR2 bulbs

1. Halogen Bulbs
2. LED Bulbs

HIR2 Halogen Bulbs

The halogen HIR2 bulb is arranged as follows: the filament is located in a bulb, the material of which is carbide or quartz glass.

Halogen HIR2 bulbs are easy to install, inexpensive, and good performance. Along with these advantages, halogen lamps have a disadvantage. During operation, they heat up to a high temperature.

Halogen HIR2 bulbs have a good price to quality ratio, which is the reason for their frequent use. Currently, among the manufacturers of HIR2 bulbs, there are several leaders in terms of brightness. These brands are OSRAM, Philips, SYLVANIA, the brightness of these lamps is 150% higher than the standard lamp.

Halogen HIR2 bulbs are fully approved for on-road use in all states and are warranted by the manufacturer. We have chosen incandescent bulbs with 150% more light, these HIR2 halogen bulbs are the brightest on the market.

These bulbs are easy to install because you replace halogen with halogen, and you have no problem installing them. The disadvantage of HIR2 halogen bulbs is their lifespan.

The brighter the light, the shorter the life of the HIR2 bulb. This is because there is a filament inside the HIR2 bulb, which burns out quickly. If you want a long life, use LED bulbs.

Best HIR2 Halogen Bulb

Best HIR2 LED Bulbs

LED HIR2 bulbs are usually brighter than halogen bulbs. They last much longer, use less energy, and are easy to install.

The HIR2 LED lights are often the perfect choice for those looking for clean, bright, white light. Today, they are considered one of the best. This fact is due to their following advantages:

• Low power consumption
• Large operating term
• Resistance to mechanical vibrations

The lighting device based on diodes is suitable for both low and high beams. In addition to the positives, LED HIR2 bulbs have a disadvantage – the high cost. LED lamps from halogen lamps differ in that the latter are spotlight sources. LED bulbs consist of a cylinder on which LEDs are installed. The most popular HIR2 LED bulb manufacturers: OSRAM, Philips, BEAMTECH, HIKARI, Fahren, Cougar Motor, NINEO, Aukee, AUTO ONE, CAR ROVER, and others.

Best HIR2 LED Headlight Bulbs

HIR2 Bulbs Review

A review of HIR2 bulbs can boil down to a few parameters

It is the type of HIR2 bulb: halogen bulbs, LED bulbs, or xenon lamps. The next factors are the brightness of the bulbs and the color of the lamps.

Lamps with a HIR2 base are used for cars with high mileage, which means that the optics will not be in the best condition: faded reflector, cloudy diffuser. In this case, the most interesting option for purchase is lamps with increased luminous efficacy. Careful when buying bulbs with increased brightness and need to be to their light distribution – if they will start to blow on the oncoming lane, the drivers there will be much more noticeable.

The normal practice among well-known manufacturers to indicate on the packaging that the lamps are designed exclusively for off-road use only (for off-road use): For example, such lamps can be put in the headlight-seeker or headlamp chandelier raid car, but on the road, they really have nothing to do.

As for the color temperature, of course, you can choose any, except that white, going into a bright blue. However, the saturated yellow glow is still better left for the fog lights with transparent diffusers, the main light to make whiter: each color has its own advantages, and here in this combination they are best revealed.

HIR2 Lamp socket

Make sure you buy the right type of bulb for your car. HIR2 bulbs are bulbs for a car headlight or for fog light. You can determine what type of bulb you need for your car by checking this information in your owner’s manual. You can also find out what type of bulb you need by using the bulb selection by make and model of your car using our website. On the car bulbs finder page you will find information on what type of bulbs you need to use.

HIR2 Bulbs Buying Guide

Once you’ve determined that HIR2 bulbs are what you need, you can start searching for the brightest HIR2 bulbs. When choosing an HIR2 bulb, you need to consider the following factors:

• Light distribution on the road
• Power consumption
• Luminous flux
• Compliance with light distribution with established standards

Power of HIR2 bulbs diode

The power of the LED depends on the brightness of the light it emits, and the higher the quality of the diode, the higher its efficiency will be. We do not recommend that you choose the most powerful and brightest models for your vehicle.

Dependence of power from the cooling system HIR2 bulbs

An LED generates a lot of heat when it emits light, and the higher the wattage of the lamp, the more heat the lamp produces. Poor cooling or poor quality results in the LED not being able to operate at full power.

The noisiness of the HIR2 bulbs cooler

If your choice fell on a powerful HIR2 lamp with active cooling, then note that the cooler’s poor quality lamps are not only more likely to fail but also create a certain noise and vibration, which can be heard in the cabin. Constant monotonous barely audible hum sooner or later will drive even the most sedate driver crazy.

The brightness of HIR2 bulbs

It is customary to measure the brightness of a lamp in lumens, this value indicates how much light you get from the lamp. Lumens indicate the amount of light distributed by any light source. The more lumens, the brighter the light from the lamp. At the same time, fewer lumens give less light.

Color temperature HIR2 bulbs

The most popular HIR2 LED bulbs have a color temperature of 5000-6000K, such a bulb is suitable for most cars. If you prefer the yellow color of the headlights, it is better to choose a HIR2 lamp with a temperature of 4000K, such a lamp will be less bright, but more natural for the eyes. Brighter light sources with a temperature of 5000-6000K provide better visibility in rainy weather when the lamp is properly focused than similar light sources with a yellow spectrum. Do not raise the color temperature of the lamp too much and choose HIR2 bulbs with 7000-8000 K, regardless of optics and focus, they will not provide the same quality illumination. Modern HIR2 LED lamps are capable of producing light with different color temperatures:

1. Warm white (up to 3500 K)
2. Neutral white (4200 to 5000 K)
3. Cold white (temperature 6000 to 10000 K)

How do I install a HIR2 bulb?

To facilitate installation in cramped conditions, the ring of the base on all the bulbs is made removable. First, the ring of the base is installed, clamped by a locking device, then the HIR2 diode bulb itself is placed. Sometimes there are problems when installing the light bulb in the headlight, the headlight cover does not close when the cooling system is placed.

Best 9012 (HIR2) LED Bulbs under $30

Gooauti 9012 (HIR2) LED Headlight Bulbs are reliable and inexpensive, have a color temperature of 6500K, luminous flux of 12,000 LM, lifespan up to 50,000 hours.

Best 9012 (HIR2) LED Bulbs under $50

Fahren 9012 (HIR2) LED Headlight Bulbs are high quality and inexpensive, have a color temperature of 6500K, luminous flux of 10,000 LM, lifespan up to 50,000 hours.

Best 9012 (HIR2) LED Bulbs under $100

Hikari HyperStar 9012 (HIR2) LED Headlight Bulbs are high quality, have a color temperature of 6000K, luminous flux of 20,000 LM, lifespan up to 50,000 hours.

Always remember that the choice of automobile lamps HIR2 for dipped beam – a responsible thing, because they determine the safety of the road.

Read more:

How to choose H1 bulb
How to choose H4 bulb
How to choose H7 bulb
How to choose H11 bulb
How to choose D1S bulb
How to choose D2S bulb
How to choose HB1 9004 bulb
How to choose HB3 9005 bulb
How to choose HB4 9006 bulb
How to choose HB5 9007 bulb
How to choose H13 9008 bulb