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2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission '96 headlights: clear vs. projector vs. stock

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2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Rear Hub Bearing Q's

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My '96 Ram has the poorest excuse for headlights of any vehicle I have ever seen or driven. That would include my old bicycle with the tire-driven generator light!



Seriously, they are so dim that you cannot even tell if they are on unless you are alone in a completely dark rural area and then can only barely see a few yards in front of you. The lenses (junk plastic) are very chalky and I have tried all sorts of supposedly "high output" bulbs with no improvement and usually worse results.



I see on ebay there are new "projector" lights available for my pickup. They look cool, but I am mainly concerned with maximum light output. There are also some stock-type, crystal clear-lensed, non-projector lights (not fluted lenses like stock) that use the same bulb as the stock lights.



Either type looks much better than the stock design. I could care less about the "l. e. d. halo lighting" the projector types have unless it improves light output, but I wonder if the projectors, with their 2-bulb system and clear lenses, might be just the ticket?



Neither of these types of lights is cheap, but I have to do something soon. It is just plain dangerous to drive my truck at night. Has anyone tried these different lights and/or found a good solution and replacement for the stock ones?



At night, I really miss my old Chevy with its plain old halogen sealed beams which worked great and were cheap to replace... These new plastic "designer" headlights are for the birds (or bats?). Thanks for any input!
 
I had a '96 and currently have a '00 - the standard headlights are pathetic on both. I replaced my '00 headlights with the aftermarket "Sport" headlights - clear, no fluting - with 2 bulbs per headlight and a Britebox (see Geno's garage) that runs all four bulbs on hi-beam. Huge improvement. Search on "sport headlights" and you'll be reading for days.



Brian
 
No argument here! On my 95 to say they were pathetic would be praising them.

I replaced mine with the 'Sport' version and added relays. IMO, if you are going to keep the truck for any period of time I would go with the "Sport" ones and relays. You could wire the relays so all the lights work on bright.



crabman :)
 
crabman said:
No argument here! On my 95 to say they were pathetic would be praising them.

I replaced mine with the 'Sport' version and added relays. IMO, if you are going to keep the truck for any period of time I would go with the "Sport" ones and relays. You could wire the relays so all the lights work on bright.



crabman :)

The sport lites are great with relays. I don't think I'd run all 4 bulbs on bright though. I've read that they can melt or discolor the reflectors when you do that for long periods of time. Jim <><
 
I got to see some of the Ebay jobs with a single projector andd a conventional high beam. The owner says the patterin is better than the sports and uses less power. I believe they are 35 watt Xenon. I could be incorrect on the light type, so take it with a grain of salt.



I have thje sport headlights and find that they are vastly superior on the low beam even compared to the stockers high beams with high output bulbs.



Dave
 
i polished the fur off of my 314k mile lights and relayed them, now i am not breaking my neck to spend money on sport lights, i didn't even remove the lights from the truck, i used the same rotary buffer with a wool bonnet and the same mild compound i use to buff paint, took about a minute a side and now i can actually see the beam definition on the back of cars and the guard rails to the side
 
Does anybody have any address Where a guy could order these sport model head lights? Also I have melted the switch in my truck twice and just recently here they have been flickering on and off every couple miles. What would be the causee of that, is the switch gone again?
 
This has been a tremendous help. I never even considered the stock headlights were able to be renewed or polished. All of this info and links have given me alot of options.



I, too, am on my second headlight switch and have occassionally experienced flickering. I suspect it is going out again. The plug-in harness for the dash switch will not take another meltdown... It barely survived the first one in useable shape. The first thing I did after getting my truck and having my first meltdown almost immediately just from hooking up a small 6x12 motocross trailer was to fabricate a piggyback harness with relays for the taillights and trailer and auxilary backup lights, etc. I can't believe how Dodge uses such undersize wiring for every circuit and then sends all of the juice through the switch, too. I even met a guy who's Dodge burned to the ground from a dash fire started by the headlight switch.



My headlight problem is also being exacerbated by my BOSS snowplow wiring harness, I believe. It has a toggle switch that routes the juice to either the stock headlights or the snowplow lights. That toggle has been getting very hot lately when I drive with my stock headlights on for any length of time. I have been planning to do a homemade relay system for the headlights, but would be interested in a plug-and-play setup if I could find one. One of the replies showed a relay/black box system that apparently does that.



Reading all of these responses and links has given some good impetus to getting this headlight/wiring/relay system taken care of asap. My Cummins has to last me a long time, so I need to keep the Dodge wrapped around it just as long as possible. That means identifying and fixing all of the Dodge wiring and lighting problems before my truck has a fatal meltdown, too.



Following the lead of those of you who have "been there and done that" is going be a huge help. Thank you all very much!
 
HID's

I replaced the stock headlight assemby with the sport lights, then bought some a HID kit from e-bay and use them, very very bight, and the color is a very white compared to the yellow from the stockers. I do a ot of night time driving where the massive amount of light is both needed and not that much of a bother to on coming drivers... ... . about 600 bucks total but well worth it.
 
SRath said:
This has been a tremendous help. I never even considered the stock headlights were able to be renewed or polished. All of this info and links have given me alot of options.



I, too, am on my second headlight switch and have occassionally experienced flickering. I suspect it is going out again. The plug-in harness for the dash switch will not take another meltdown... It barely survived the first one in useable shape. The first thing I did after getting my truck and having my first meltdown almost immediately just from hooking up a small 6x12 motocross trailer was to fabricate a piggyback harness with relays for the taillights and trailer and auxilary backup lights, etc. I can't believe how Dodge uses such undersize wiring for every circuit and then sends all of the juice through the switch, too. I even met a guy who's Dodge burned to the ground from a dash fire started by the headlight switch.



My headlight problem is also being exacerbated by my BOSS snowplow wiring harness, I believe. It has a toggle switch that routes the juice to either the stock headlights or the snowplow lights. That toggle has been getting very hot lately when I drive with my stock headlights on for any length of time. I have been planning to do a homemade relay system for the headlights, but would be interested in a plug-and-play setup if I could find one. One of the replies showed a relay/black box system that apparently does that.



Reading all of these responses and links has given some good impetus to getting this headlight/wiring/relay system taken care of asap. My Cummins has to last me a long time, so I need to keep the Dodge wrapped around it just as long as possible. That means identifying and fixing all of the Dodge wiring and lighting problems before my truck has a fatal meltdown, too.



Following the lead of those of you who have "been there and done that" is going be a huge help. Thank you all very much!





If you haven't put in the summit wiring harness you might want to consider that. I will help protect your dimmer switch and associated wiring by taking some of the load off it. My lights were noticably brighter after putting in the wiring harness also. Associated thread
 
I run the clear sport lights on my 97. I have high watage bulbs in all 4 spots. They are wired with relays so all 4 are on at the same time 4 highs and when dimmed 4 lows. They are great. Huge change. :D
 
Did the Brite Box with Conversion Harness from Geno's and got my lamp assemblies from Ebay. Have about $360 in mine and worth every penny. I'm still running the bulbs they sent with the head lamps.



The only part that's not a drop in mod is the fact that the fender will need to be trimmed on both sides to accept the "Extra" bulb and harness connector. Other than that, simple hand tools. If I were to do it again, I would use an air jigsaw to cut the fenders. I tried using a hole saw with marginal results.



The brite box moves the load away from the switch but my switch bit the dust anyway after 200,000 miles of service and many night miles. (no fault of the modification and lots of dimming the dash in and out)
 
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