Safe aftermarket LED headlight bulb info, finds and discussion

[KenST]

x2 post

 

[alexrex20]

This is fantastic! Very clean cutoff with great brightness and white color!

For those who want to buy, here is THE LINK again, sadly have not found them available from US seller, it appears but these look amazing and worth the wait from China...

Thanks. I just ordered a pair.

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[danbfree]

Nice I think I will order a set of these up. $100 is worth not messing with getting a cover on and more importantly not blinding other drivers lol.

I have some serious led envy my new explorers headlights look so cool.

I'd get those pass-through covers that will seal the headlight but let the ribbons hang out the back for proper cooling, LED's are prone to dimming with heat... I've noticed the fans aren't very loud on my oEdRo's, even with no rear cover I have to stick my head down right to them to hear them.

 

[KKaWing]

Just saw on FB the Morimoto 2-stroke 2.0 will be out soon. It is basically the "blade / bullet6" pcb board with Philips ZES chips and a cooler package that is no wider than the base. The "driver" is also pretty small from the really pixelated vid. Oh and it's gold /shrugs. Wonder what the price would be.

https://www.facebook.com/TheRetrofitSource/videos/2286651521563727/

 

[danbfree]

[MENTION=3563]TyphoonFiST[/MENTION] did the xenondepot bulbs fit under the stock covers? Any pics of the install? Thanks

Nice I think I will order a set of these up. $100 is worth not messing with getting a cover on and more importantly not blinding other drivers lol.

I have some serious led envy my new explorers headlights look so cool.

So my phone is shit and the camera is shit with it so here are pictures that measure up to that:

And then

However, the amount of light coming out to the side is rather considerable. The stock halogens bleed a fair bit out of light out to the side, more than any other car I've had before, but with the intensity of the light produced by these it's a bit much.

Here's a shot at about 25ft:

And the not unexpected hotspots:

I kind of wanted to try these out regardless of the results just to familiarize myself with LEDs. I purchased a pair of rubber dust caps designed for LEDs and they simply wouldn't fit due to the off-center orientation of the bulb mount. I don't see how you'd fit anything larger than this in there as far as the length is concerned without modifying the housing and the stock dust cap doesn't fit back on snug due to the fan.

I didn't drive on the road with them. I may adjust the lights downward 3-4" and try them tomorrow night but I'm also leaning towards just putting the stock halogens back in and going for other halogens. In that regard I'm interested in suggestions.

The hotspots are from the reflector housing itself, not the LED, and they will all bleed out the side accordingly too... Now maybe they are just too bright for you with how the reflector housing is, and that's fine, but as far as caps, did you try the "accordion style" passthrough, or the flat ones? The accordion style ones should have enough flex to accommodate the off-center position of the bulb to opening. This performance actually looks good to me, perhaps just a bit TOO bright... Again as far as the rear caps, when you don't use them at all there is indeed a very small opening but would take very significant flood-like water situation to get anything in there, loose tiny debris will work it's way out the back from what I've seen so I simply don't run the rear covers at all.

 

[danbfree]

Here are some that look like may be worth trying from AliExpress... Problem is that if they suck you can't return them very easily so I am being VERY selective in including them here. If anyone knows if the same thing is available through any US vendor let me know. It's becoming more clear that the very thin tip is what helps with placement of light source in the right area to use with reflector housings: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/CNS...-HB4-H3-61W-9000Lm-Mini-Auto/32796090581.html

Take a look at the photos: Actual easily adjustable beam, good detail on how filament mimics halogen. Not very cheap, comparatively for AliExpress anyway, could be good indicator of quality. Does have excellent reviews, going on sale for under $30 soon, plus coupons, plus cash back plug-ins.

Edit: They look almost identical to the ones posted early looks like these two are the best bet at the $30 mark:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/MAX...012-62W-9000Lm-Mini-Auto-Fog/32826298580.html

 

[TyphoonFiST]

The hotspots are from the reflector housing itself, not the LED, and they will all bleed out the side accordingly too... Now maybe they are just too bright for you with how the reflector housing is, and that's fine, but as far as caps, did you try the "accordion style" passthrough, or the flat ones? The accordion style ones should have enough flex to accommodate the off-center position of the bulb to opening. This performance actually looks good to me, perhaps just a bit TOO bright... Again as far as the rear caps, when you don't use them at all there is indeed a very small opening but would take very significant flood-like water situation to get anything in there, loose tiny debris will work it's way out the back from what I've seen so I simply don't run the rear covers at all.

What bulbs did you go with?

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[Woods247]

If anyone finds a deeper cap that will accommodate the fans/heatsink ribbons, PLEASE post a pic and link.

 

[ajw85]

Does anyone know off hand the dimensions for the hole around the low beam housing? Looks like most of these LED units are around 1.5" in diameter and I'm wondering how much space there is between the headlight and the housing.

 

[Business6]

The hotspots are from the reflector housing itself, not the LED, and they will all bleed out the side accordingly too... Now maybe they are just too bright for you with how the reflector housing is, and that's fine, but as far as caps, did you try the "accordion style" passthrough, or the flat ones? The accordion style ones should have enough flex to accommodate the off-center position of the bulb to opening. This performance actually looks good to me, perhaps just a bit TOO bright... Again as far as the rear caps, when you don't use them at all there is indeed a very small opening but would take very significant flood-like water situation to get anything in there, loose tiny debris will work it's way out the back from what I've seen so I simply don't run the rear covers at all.

I simply couldn't get the accordion-style ones to work. I may tear apart the headlights again this weekend and fiddle with things a bit more. There was also no instruction as to whether the bulbs needed to be oriented one way or another so I'm not sure if the position I currently have them in makes any difference at all.

And it seems to me the area that actually goes into the reflector housing needs to be a quarter to a third of an inch longer to prevent such an amount of light from pouring out of the sides. The stock halogens produce a lot of "side light" or whatever as it is, certainly more than I've ever noticed on a car I've had, but obviously an LED or anything else will simply amplify that.

 

[danbfree]

And now, LED's that are NOT cheap, ones that have the US made CREE XHP-70 chips... yes, they can be found on AliExpress and other Chinese sites, but this is where the chips is actually exported from the US to China and assembled. They range in price from $70-140 and MANY of them offer either narrow base fan or fanless braided tail passive cooling that will fit our housing easily. For the passive braided ones, the prices on AliExpress aren't much better, at ALL, than Amazon in this case so I'll link you to those here:
https://smile.amazon.com/TINSINCE-Headlight-Conversion-Flexible-Headlamp/dp/B01N7HHZDU - Nice passive braided tail cooled ~$80

And for mini-base active fan model, can't find on Amazon ~$70:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1-S...CR-EE-XHP70-Chip-Super-White/32885473754.html

Don't worry about marketing claims of 55-60w, they are actual 40w, which is very bright for LED. Some cheaper XHP-70 ones are available on AliExpress, but they look like cheaper clones/counterfeits of these 2 posted that have the most established reviews, not ultra-cheap, etc. and are the perfect way to go in the ~$75 range. i'm going to edit the first post with a running recommendation list soon!

 

[danbfree]

What bulbs did you go with?

I have the oEdRo for now, but always looking for cleaner cutoffs and clarity...

 

[danbfree]

If anyone finds a deeper cap that will accommodate the fans/heatsink ribbons, PLEASE post a pic and link.

You don't want "deeper" to trap the heat, you want pass-through, and these ones will flex to fit the odd centering: https://smile.amazon.com/TOMALL-Dustproof-Headlight-Conversion-Waterproof/dp/B073D612F2/

I do't bother with them at all and have no issues, but that's the best option.

 

[danbfree]

Does anyone know off hand the dimensions for the hole around the low beam housing? Looks like most of these LED units are around 1.5" in diameter and I'm wondering how much space there is between the headlight and the housing.

Sorry the thread got so scattered, the widest fan base you can go with is 1.25"/32mm... just look for the "mini" ones where the fan base is no wider than metal housing, the ones posted in here should all fit.

 

[danbfree]

I simply couldn't get the accordion-style ones to work. I may tear apart the headlights again this weekend and fiddle with things a bit more. There was also no instruction as to whether the bulbs needed to be oriented one way or another so I'm not sure if the position I currently have them in makes any difference at all.

And it seems to me the area that actually goes into the reflector housing needs to be a quarter to a third of an inch longer to prevent such an amount of light from pouring out of the sides. The stock halogens produce a lot of "side light" or whatever as it is, certainly more than I've ever noticed on a car I've had, but obviously an LED or anything else will simply amplify that.

They should only fit one way, inserted at about the 2:00 position and turned counterclockwise and lock in at the 12:00 position... And yes, they all put light out the side, you can add eyebrows to the outer headlight, but the Euro's have the light come out the side too, just not the same way... seems like unless you replace the entire housing with $800 Ford Euro projectors you just live with it or try the eyebrow things with any decent bulb in this housing... But also, it really isn't life or death to get the rear caps on, REALLY, there is very little area for water really to get in, not a perfect seal, but still... I had accidentally got debris inside from trying to force bulbs that were too wide in and the particles simply fell out the back ledge, I don't think water really can get up in there and stain anything, to me it's worth the risk to both see better and also not have to buy $800 replacements. Another way you could go is to very carefully line up the stock ones with the bulb and cut a slit through and use some RV sealant or something if you really want to seal them.

 

[danbfree]

(deleted pics for size concerns)
I kind of wanted to try these out regardless of the results just to familiarize myself with LEDs. I purchased a pair of rubber dust caps designed for LEDs and they simply wouldn't fit due to the off-center orientation of the bulb mount. I don't see how you'd fit anything larger than this in there as far as the length is concerned without modifying the housing and the stock dust cap doesn't fit back on snug due to the fan.

I didn't drive on the road with them. I may adjust the lights downward 3-4" and try them tomorrow night but I'm also leaning towards just putting the stock halogens back in and going for other halogens. In that regard I'm interested in suggestions.

Did you get THESE or exact size dust caps? They match the exact width of your bulb base, another important tip I added to the first post, we're all learning on the fly here.

 

[ROCKYFiestta]

I got the HIKARI ONES ON AMAZON. SO FAR not one person has flashed me that i am blinding them. i am not on a level surface btw it is a uphill sloping driveway/rocks if can call it that lol. very pleased so far i have spotted several pronghorn and mule deer very easily with these lights.

 

[danbfree]

I got the HIKARI ONES ON AMAZON. SO FAR not one person has flashed me that i am blinding them. i am not on a level surface btw it is a uphill sloping driveway/rocks if can call it that lol. very pleased so far i have spotted several pronghorn and mule deer very easily with these lights.

Just to confirm these are the $90 ones and not the $70 ones? I just don't see how they would fit, they look to be at least 35mm wide... I'm also thinking earlier years may have a different cutoff, but these look impressive!

 

[TyphoonFiST]

My lights from alixpress shipped...so no its just a game of waiting! I would have posted a picture of the Xenon depot LEDs but my car is completely apart awaiting its clamp for the Turbo to finish the install..so no lights in it currently. Soon though I will! This is a just starting pic also...now shit is just everywhere!

 

[ROCKYFiestta]

Just to confirm these are the $90 ones and not the $70 ones? I just don't see how they would fit, they look to be at least 35mm wide... I'm also thinking earlier years may have a different cutoff, but these look impressive!

yes the 90 dollar ones the width was no problem at all stock dust caps will fit. i did pull the headlight off a little to get them in easily.