Safe aftermarket LED headlight bulb info, finds and discussion

[Prolific NaSTy]

Decided to splurge after Christmas and upgrade some lighting. (Avoiding installing ethanol content kit)

Bulb facts gave the $130 Hikari future/ titanova 2023 a solid rating and I liked the brightness and beam pattern enough so I jumped on them. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CMXHNXHT?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

I went with a recommendation from another member $20.00 Alla lighting for the fogs. https://a.co/d/9PtoEJP

I just finished installing them all and it took me about an hour to fiddle with them.

Edit* added some night time shots of the beam, these are very bright headlamps and as you can see there is some slight scatter but not too bad IMO. Will have to follow my lady/ drive past her a few times to get some real life feedback.

 

[Intuit]

Back in 2019, I gave up and went with the Euro housings. Much tighter control.

Before then, I was compensating by aiming the headlamps downward. (still do that with the fogs)

But the ultra clean and clear reflector housing is still a very dense and large concentration of light, even with the lower lumen output LEDs. Even when you "adequately" control the output, it still resembles looking at the sun. (obviously a gross exaggeration, but it communicates the point)

.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

I had one of my headlights go out last week. I had a replacement techmax bulb ready to go. I ended up swapping to an aftermarket dust cover to make it fit.



How do you aim these headlights? Shops keep telling me that they can’t be adjusted but it seems like they should be. One of mine is pointing at the ground lol.

 

[XR650R]

If one is pointing at the ground, you didn't install it right. Try again.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

If one is pointing at the ground, you didn't install it right. Try again.

The bulb or the housing itself? The side that’s pointing at the ground was the same side that I hit a deer with so that might have something to do with it

 

[Intuit]

I had one of my headlights go out last week. I had a replacement techmax bulb ready to go. I ended up swapping to an aftermarket dust cover to make it fit.
How do you aim these headlights? Shops keep telling me that they can’t be adjusted but it seems like they should be. One of mine is pointing at the ground lol.

As far as I'm aware, all lights have an adjustment.
US or EU housing? EU has a stepper motor for secondary, dynamic adjustments done by computer.

 

[Intuit]

 

[XanRules]

Throwing this in here too, copied and pasted from my other thread:

"As anticipated, there have been great strides in LED bulb technology over the last few years.

If I am reading the documentation correctly, it appears that the Osram Night Breaker LED H7, when paired with adapter 64210DA02, in left-hand-drive Euro projector headlights, meets ECE R112 regulations, which are far more stringent than DOT regulations regarding lighting performance and safety.

https://www.osram.com/am/night-breaker-led.jsp

These are Osram's own design, and as far as I am aware these are the only LED bulbs that have been tested to be safe and legal in our specific headlights. You still run into issues with the color rendering index, and there's a really interesting discussion about it here if you're into that sort of thing like I am: https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/osram-street-legal-led-headlight-bulbs.482116/

I wish I'd gotten the "good at math and science" autism instead of whatever this is, but there you go. If I ever get around to installing my euro headlights I may try these out."

"The Nightbreaker "Street-Legal" LEDs are not available stateside officially as they are for ECE lights rather than DOT and technically aren't street legal in the US, not like that stops anyone from selling them, but Osram is a reputable company and they likely won't want to step on any toes from a regulatory standpoint, if that makes sense. [However, in this case 'not street legal' does not mean 'unsafe,']

I believe the bulb you want for these is the 64210DWNB-G2, and adapter 64210DA02. I have been able to find both on Amazon and eBay, for what that's worth.

Again, as far as I am concerned, the regulating bodies of the European Union [and United Nations] probably know their stuff and if they are willing to approve those bulbs for use in the projector headlights that this car comes with on that side of the pond, I defer to them. I am still a proponent of good halogens in the factory reflectors, and good halogens are probably as good as (or better than) the LEDs [in the projectors], but, if you want LEDs, that's how you should do it."

I have just received a set of the Osram Street Legals mentioned above, though I am still waiting on the adapter to ship to me from, uhhhh [checking tracking number] Latvia.

The Osrams are around $200, I managed to snag an open box unused pair for $76 on eBay and have confirmed that they are genuine with Osram's customer service. The adapters set me back around $40. It remains to be seen whether they are better than the H9 bulbs I've retrofitted into my stock reflectors, or at least better enough to justify the expense, but, if you want to do it right, that's your option.

 

[Intuit]

First I've read/heard of anyone else (besides myself) point this out...


Anything that wasn't "original equipment" has been outlawed in our state. So this naturally leaves a wide leeway for interpretation. They replaced the selectively enforce front license plate law with that.

Third, be aware, LEDs that defeat CANBUS burnout warnings may create electrical gremlins if that circuit begins to malfunction.
https://www.fiestastforum.com/threa...l-flash-wiper-stop-resolved.29473/post-497022

 

[XanRules]

If you're addressing me, that's true - I draw a distinction between "illegal" and "unsafe." The bulbs I mentioned above are the only ones that have been tested and certified as safe in Euro projectors by ECE authorities. They are still not technically street legal in the US due to not being original equipment on this side of the Atlantic, but they have been rigorously tested by governing bodies and would pass inspection in the European Union, which has far more stringent requirements than we do, so I personally feel comfortable saying they're safe.

Re the third point, there are cars, mostly European ones, where, if you replace the bulbs with LEDs, you'll throw a code for a bulb being out because of the way the lights are wired into the CANBUS module, but to my knowledge the US FiST does not have such a module.

 

[Cneu]

First I've read/heard of anyone else (besides myself) point this out...
View attachment 62236

Specifically about this, in snow it can really matter. On my '85 4wd tercel I've specifically not upgraded the old halogen sealed glass lights because I spend a lot of time in the snow in that vehicle and the newer LEDs quickly get filled with snow. In good storms it can only take a few minutes before your lights are useless.

It's the same reason I haven't upgraded the high beams on my FiST. Although i imagine it wouldn't be nearly as much of an issue in the FiST cuz the headlights aren't buckets like 80s toyotas.