on my 2008RL the bulb started flickering last night from all my searches and reading in this forum it's about time to replace the bulb.
I searched all over to see where and what to buy:
1) Many are in agreement not to buy on Ebay, the bulbs do not last long
2) 4300K or 5000K are the preferred colors
3) Osram, Philips, Sylvania are the preferred brands.
4) I was reading on other forums that Kensun are good quality - what do you think?

Looking to replace them and not to worry for the next few years.
Looking for advice.

very well done sir.
thank you for taking the time to research a bit!!

Osram is the OEM bulb.
I've never heard of the Kensun brand, but I am looking it up now

*edit.
Kensun seems to be an aftermarket company that produces mediocre products.
I would definitely do a Phillips or Osram or even the Morimotos over the Kensun brand.

Osram or Philips for OEM quality, Morimoto for your best bet on aftermarket. 4300K for optimal lighting, if you want it just a little whiter without going blue 5000K is fine, I have Osram CBI 5000K bulbs, arguably the best on the market now with 3500 lumens and pure white output but cost almost $200. I would say Morimoto's give you 90% of the performance at $50 and Philips will give you essentially the same performance but not the color at about $100. Theretrofitsource.com is definitely your best option. I don't work for them, I swear, just been playing with lighting for a while and tried the rest.

The Morimotos burn hotter and will likely die faster than Phillips or OSRAM who have the quality systems in place to build the best bulbs on the market.

What about Ebay Vs. Amazon?
I see many selling Philips on Ebay but if you look closely they ship from China and might be counterfit.

I ran morimoto for over a year and they were pretty good. Best bet on aftermarket like 350 said. As for oem quality, Osram CBI seems to be the best out there. I ordered a pair of them last night with express shipping option and it still hasn't been shipped out, not good of The Retrofit Source.

we want to try to get away from cheap bulbs. like you said, they might be counterfeit.
if amazon sells osram or phillips, I would think they were legit.


is price an issue? is that why you're brushing off our suggestions?
we've mentioned Morimoto a few times.
I've been running a morimoto 5000 Kelvin bulb for my '12 kia sportage for about a year now, trouble free.

you can find them for $50 on www.theretrofitsource.com
great bulb at the fraction of the higher end bulbs

Price is not an issue, I'm just looking for advice.
I do not want to purchase bulbs that I will need to replace a year from now.
I think I will go with the nightbreaker from theretrofitsource.

^They say its the brightest bulb in the market but in a warmer color than the CBI.
Speaking of HIDs, would a new oem ballast on one side and the original ballast on the other side would produce different color temperature with a set of new bulbs ?

price is definitely not an issue if you chose those!

assuming you went OEM for the ballast and assuming ballast dont degrade over time.
if you went aftermarket ballast, all bets are off.

Yes its oem ballast, insurance paid for it. 2 new shells, but only one new ballast and igniter and bulb but I ordered 2 CBI. I hope the old ballast wont render a different color, I'd hate that.

The RL lighting systems way too expensive, they cost more than Mercedes AMG headlights.

The color is going to depend the most on the age of the salts inside the bulb. The ballasts only have to maintain a 120V supply after ignition, so it shouldn't be hard to match if both work properly.

I had an 05 RL with a flickering bulb. Replaced both to match. I picked up a pair of Phillips 6000 K at a local Napa auto. I loved the bluish tint and def had no complaints about the brightness compared to the stock. I initially had sticker shock but planned to install myself. Never had another flicker and ran the Phillips for 2 1/2 years.

Does anyone knows how to remove these clips.
I opened everything I have an access to the bulb but can't figure out how to release the clips in order to take the bulb out

Figured it out, nasty clips.

the new morimoto xb35 bulbs are amazing quality far better than the past morimoto bulbs. i will be doing some bulb testing in the next few weeks once we get some good weather to show the differences between several bulbs on the market.