Safe aftermarket LED headlight bulb info, finds and discussion

[alexrex20]

They're here....both sets....now just have to install them!

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is one of them the set from AliExpress that was linked in here earlier?

 

[TyphoonFiST]

is one of them the set from AliExpress that was linked in here earlier?

The maxgtrs....yes....they are from Aliexpress.....they are surprisingly short....I think the will fit underneath the covers!

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[KKaWing]

They more or less do. They will push up the edge an eighth of an inch but the cover still seals.

 

[danbfree]

The maxgtrs....yes....they are from Aliexpress.....they are surprisingly short....I think the will fit underneath the covers!

Didn't you order the covers off Amazon? For $10 it's good piece of mind that they won't overheat...

 

[danbfree]

They more or less do. They will push up the edge an eighth of an inch but the cover still seals.

You guys are crazy to just stuff the stock cover back on, the fan base is designed to be sealed outside of the housing area to keep heat from building up. These things are cheap enough I don't understand why people can't install them properly and treat them like halogens. Don't be surprised if the fans get really loud, they dim and die prematurely. Coming from computers I've seen how computers slow down when overheated from improper airflow, it's not pretty. I'd hate to be driving down the road and have them start failing during a long drive on a hot summer night.

 

[redmoe]

You guys are crazy to just stuff the stock cover back on, the fan base is designed to be sealed outside of the housing area to keep heat from building up. These things are cheap enough I don't understand why people can't install them properly and treat them like halogens. Don't be surprised if the fans get really loud, they dim and die prematurely. Coming from computers I've seen how computers slow down when overheated from improper airflow, it's not pretty. I'd hate to be driving down the road and have them start failing during a long drive on a hot summer night.

It all depends on the design of the bulbs heat mitigation. Diode dynamics has you use the stock cover on some of their systems (when there is clearance). We have no data (empirical or modeled) so show that the closed cavity of the headlight housing will drive the bulb assembly to heat up beyond the steady state temp in the 150+ engine bay environment. Granted the small closed air volume of the headlight assembly will most likely heat up more quickly but we have no idea what steady state temp is inside with the various types of LED bulb systems. Leaving the fan assembly exposed could potentially expose the bearings to more moisture and dust reducing the fans effectiveness and ultimately reducing the life of the LED chip.

If the concern is reliability the factory halogen could fail just as suddenly once it is nearing the end of its life cycle. I am not saying one approach is better than the other I am just simply stating that there in no actual data to show that exposed back vs closed assembly will yield better LED life/reliably. The varying power supply, heat mitigation and overall packaging design makes it impossible to make a blanket statement as to what needs to be done without application specific test data.

 

[danbfree]

It all depends on the design of the bulbs heat mitigation. Diode dynamics has you use the stock cover on some of their systems (when there is clearance). We have no data (empirical or modeled) so show that the closed cavity of the headlight housing will drive the bulb assembly to heat up beyond the steady state temp in the 150+ engine bay environment. Granted the small closed air volume of the headlight assembly will most likely heat up more quickly but we have no idea what steady state temp is inside with the various types of LED bulb systems. Leaving the fan assembly exposed could potentially expose the bearings to more moisture and dust reducing the fans effectiveness and ultimately reducing the life of the LED chip.

If the concern is reliability the factory halogen could fail just as suddenly once it is nearing the end of its life cycle. I am not saying one approach is better than the other I am just simply stating that there in no actual data to show that exposed back vs closed assembly will yield better LED life/reliably. The varying power supply, heat mitigation and overall packaging design makes it impossible to make a blanket statement as to what needs to be done without application specific test data.

OK, fair enough, but there is a reason they build them to be waterproof and for only $10 or less for nice heavy duty covers I think the actual chip will be cooler overall with the heatsink outside of the housing assembly. I'll drop any kind of negative reactions to people's choices on this, I'll just continue to recommend them as the best option.

 

[TyphoonFiST]

OK, fair enough, but there is a reason they build them to be waterproof and for only $10 or less for nice heavy duty covers I think the actual chip will be cooler overall with the heatsink outside of the housing assembly. I'll drop any kind of negative reactions to people's choices on this, I'll just continue to recommend them as the best option.

For how much they are....I'd replace them every year if necessary....only time will tell! I think some people are worrying way to much about heat generation....LEDs will always run way...way cooler than halogens. This is about finding the best price...best spread and throw LEDs. Hell I'll keep searching if these don't work up to my expectations or don't last.

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[alexrex20]

Mine should be delivered today [emoji14]

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[danbfree]

For how much they are....I'd replace them every year if necessary....only time will tell! I think some people are worrying way to much about heat generation....LEDs will always run way...way cooler than halogens. This is about finding the best price...best spread and throw LEDs. Hell I'll keep searching if these don't work up to my expectations or don't last.

Sure, although they pull only 40w max compared to 55w for halogen they also seem to be more susceptible to heat degradation in terms of output and chip life... Also, I think it is safe to say that indeed they all DO share a similar design in that the stem transmits the heat and fan base is a heat sink to disperse the heat and keeping that sealed to the outside of the housing is a no-brainer to me, but indeed time will tell! Thanks for your intelligent discussion here, we all stand to gain when we share our thoughts and experiences here!

 

[TyphoonFiST]

Sure, although they pull only 40w max compared to 55w for halogen they also seem to be more susceptible to heat degradation in terms of output and chip life... Also, I think it is safe to say that indeed they all DO share a similar design in that the stem transmits the heat and fan base is a heat sink to disperse the heat and keeping that sealed to the outside of the housing is a no-brainer to me, but indeed time will tell! Thanks for your intelligent discussion here, we all stand to gain when we share our thoughts and experiences here!

You are correct sir!

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[bustervic]

I have head these for a year, seem pretty good, and nice to switch between the 2 colours https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01N7KH1HV/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[TyphoonFiST]

I have head these for a year, seem pretty good, and nice to switch between the 2 colours https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01N7KH1HV/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That's a pretty cool concept! Never seen that before! What's your opinion on them over stockers?

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[danbfree]

I have head these for a year, seem pretty good, and nice to switch between the 2 colours https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01N7KH1HV/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Looks great to use as fogs... with auto headlights going on and off on how our US ones work with no DRL's this wouldn't work for me as headlights... BUT, I did try similar ones to this DVWO where they had 4 different modes but went out of sync between the 2 constantly, these ones look much better!

 

[bustervic]

That's a pretty cool concept! Never seen that before! What's your opinion on them over stockers?

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I can take pics tonight, but they seem a bit brighter than stock for sure (not by a lot though) I liked having them through the rainy NW winter last year and ran the yellow most of the time. It's nice to have the option to run either colour depending on weather or feeling. I've had no issues for the past year and I wasn't expecting them to last that long

 

[TyphoonFiST]

I can take pics tonight, but they seem a bit brighter than stock for sure (not by a lot though) I liked having them through the rainy NW winter last year and ran the yellow most of the time. It's nice to have the option to run either colour depending on weather or feeling. I've had no issues for the past year and I wasn't expecting them to last that long

Good to hear....add this option to the list! We should start compiling a list of good and bad....what fits without modding & what doesnt.

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[danbfree]

That's a pretty cool concept! Never seen that before! What's your opinion on them over stockers?

Remember, those DSVO I tried were 4 way mode selectable but went out of sync between the 2 constantly? While these look like a GREAT option for fog lights, wouldn't work for me as headlights as I strongly believe in auto headlights and they would go from white to yellow going on and off again...

 

[alexrex20]

I installed the MAXGTRS LEDs tonight. Tons of output. Looks pretty pure white. There's a little bit of scatter but not bad for a halogen reflector housing. The cutoff isn't a crisp line but it certainly doesn't spill a lot of light above the "cutoff" line. I have the LEDs facing left and right, or at 9 and 3 o'clock. Coming from Sylvania SilverStar zXe, these LEDs have a ton more output and much whiter.

I've tried 2 other brands of LEDs and the glare was atrocious. These are very acceptable.

I also have no idea why people remove the headlamps to change bulbs. They're very accessible without removing anything. Takes just a few minutes to swap both out.

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[alexrex20]

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[redmoe]

I took some more temp measurements this evening.

Here’s the video: https://youtu.be/EoVnSYR2aSU

Hikari Phillips H11 bulbs
Cover on: ~199 F
Cover off: ~ 181 F

~ 18 F or ~ 8 C difference