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Old 13th Jun 2019, 10:18 am   #63
GMB
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Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: near Reading (and sometimes Torquay)
Posts: 3,086
Default Re: The lightbulb conspiracy

There is a factor that affects life that doesn't directly impact on the light output. That is the inert gas used in the bulb.

This is something that car manufacturers are very well aware of. Decades ago your brake lights often needed replacing, but not these days. I can't remember the last time I had a car bulb fail.

So what changed? The answer is warranty length. When manufacturers competed to offer long warranties - when manufacturing had improved enough to make this feasible - the life of the lights started to become the main reason for warranty claims. The main dealers charged a huge lot to change a bulb, billing the manufacturer, so they changed from cheap argon to more expensive krypton and xenon.
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