Projector Headlights

[AH64ID]

https://www.gtrlighting.com/gtr-lighting-csp-mini-led-bulbs-9005?quantity=1


https://www.headlightrevolution.com/9005-gtr-lighting-csps-mini-PF1.9005_2?quantity=1

 

[RammerJam]

https://www.gtrlighting.com/gtr-lighting-csp-mini-led-bulbs-9005?quantity=1


https://www.headlightrevolution.com/9005-gtr-lighting-csps-mini-PF1.9005_2?quantity=1

Since I have the quads (reflector style?) I believe I would want to order the h11's for my low beams.

And should I consider mini's or is that because you have projectors, or.....??????

 

[AH64ID]

Yes your low beam is a H11 w/out projector.

I went with the mini’s to ensure everything fits. The V4’s from HR were supposed to fit but didn’t. They are brighter but also have a fan. I kinda like not having a fan.

If you have AlfaOBD you don’t need the PWM module.

 

[petersonj]

I thought this to be interesting (under description from the post linked by @AH64ID):

The maximum power draw of these bulbs is 16 watts of power and if the LED thermister sensor reaches a temperature of 140 degrees Fahrenheit or hotter the temperature protection kicks in and reduces the light output to a safe level. This smart technology allows the bulbs to never get so hot that they burn out the chips, which is the most common reason for LED bulb failure. Even at a reduced level of 13 watts of power consumption (to prevent over-heating...), the GTR Lighting CSP Mini LED fog light bulbs will still be noticeably brighter than your old halogen bulbs! This function happens 100% automatically and ensures the longest possible lifespan of your fog light bulbs!

This reminds me of the introduction of the 9004 halogen bulb - low beam reduced to 45 watts to increase bulb life - what about seeing down the road?

or...

My 2014 Passat TDI that had poor headlight ouptut from the beginning. Upon investigation it turned out that the headlights had been factory programmed to 12.1 volts to increase the life of the bulb. The actual voltage was 11.2 volts at the bulb. No wonder the headlights worked poorly! After some research on a couple of VW TDI forums, I found that the headlight voltage control could be disabled which bumped the voltage at the bulb to 13.0 volts and now I could see down the road quite well.

@AH64ID, I am kind of where you are with HID's, but with the LED's. I would like to get an LED 9007 bulb that would mimic my halogen 9007 bulbs as far as beam pattern in my Sport Headlight conversion on my '02 truck, but I do not trust what is out there. I have tried a couple (and not the cheap ones) but the beam patterned was compromised, so I put the halogens back in. So far the halogens have been adequate (far better than the original 9004 two bulb system) and I will keep them if I cannot do better with LED's.

It just seems that for as long as automotive lighting has been around, there shouldn't be any vehicle on the road with inadequate headlights by now.

- John

 

[AH64ID]

@petersonj are you clocking your LED’s?

 

[petersonj]

@petersonj are you clocking your LED’s?

Yes. I made sure the ones that I had purchased could be clocked. In one of the purchases, I even had to modify the mechanism that held the clocking position so that it would hold.

In general I think that a filament bulb needs and uses a specific type of reflector. I just can't see how an LED bulb can replicate the light that comes from a filament bulb precisely; therefore, I can't see how the LED bulb can make good use of the same reflector.

Just an opinion based on the experience I am having with my truck's lighting. However, I am glad to read that some people (including yourself) are having positive experiences with LED headlights.

- John

 

[Wiredawg]

Friends,
I know vertical measurements can vary, but on projector lights, I measured horizontal 67 1/4" center to center and center to ground 41 13/16".

The horizontal fogs, center to center measured 65 1/4" and 26 3/4 center to ground.

Y'all can verify the horizontal measurements as they should be the same on trucks with projector lights and horizontal fogs.

More to come.

Christmas Cheers, Ron

 

[Wiredawg]

Friends,

I installed LEDs on the right side, easy install. Interesting Ram has 60W 9005s in both high and low beams. Here's pic of LED lamp and headlight housing. I guessed pretty good the housing would come out far enough to replace bulbs.
LED bulb

and housing

Everything on from the front... LEDs passenger side, HALOGENS driver side.

Projectors low beam on the door

High beams on the door

Fogs on the door

Projectors clock vertically, high beams clock horizontally, and fogs are 4-sided with projector in front.

My impression is LEDs have more vertical coverage and halogens have more horizontal coverage. I'm not bowled over, but will take a quick run after dark to see how they look on the road. I didn't feel like turning the wifes 19 around to show the stark difference of factory LEDs, but it is a stark difference.

Later, Ron

 

[AH64ID]

Projectors clock vertically, high beams clock horizontally, and fogs are 4-sided with projector in front.

I clocked my lows and highs the same with the LED's shining at the 3 and 9. What made you want to clock yours differently?

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/C1UOGGT7yeS.pdf



Are your fogs a different color than your low/high?

I am ok with my OE lights on my LongHorn. Question if I were to trade out the fogs what is a good replacement with a "WHITE" color that would be an improvement.

Missed this earlier.. 6000K is what I run and a nice white. I wouldn't change just the fogs thou, as you will want all 3 pairs to have the same color.

 

[Wiredawg]

John,

Great observations, thanks for the help. Upon closer look, both projector and high beams were several degrees off. I saw where the projectors could be reclocked at the housing via removing three star screws, but not sure if it would be mostly vertical at full lock. The high beams housing had a plastic ring that looked like it could be pryed out, but I need to remove the housing completely from the truck, involving removing the grill/brush guard. So, I lack the desire to go through all that and as the wall reflected (humor), the halogen pattern is pretty good.

Thanks for all the help, but I got 'er all back to stock and going to return the LEDs.

Heading out for Houston in the morning to spend with SIL and her husband for Christmas. She's a critical care nurse in COVID, and really needs a little chill time.

EDIT: The LED fogs are supposed to be the same color white.

Christmas Cheers, Ron

 

[Wiredawg]

John,

Did you remove, rotate, and reinstall the guide (groove) rings to get them to clock vertically? Both the projectors and the hi's were a few degrees short of being horizontal. Still might be done with this project, but curious. There was a similar problem on my Wrangler, so not locked all the way on them.

Thanks, Ron

 

[dieselshadow]

All of the LEDs I’ve installed had the locking ring adjustable. That way you can clock the light easily within the socket. Install the light, twist as needed. Easy peasy. No disassembly required.

 

[Wiredawg]

All of the LEDs I’ve installed had the locking ring adjustable. That way you can clock the light easily within the socket. Install the light, twist as needed. Easy peasy. No disassembly required.

Maybe I didn't twist hard enough? I did twist pretty firmly. I may try again next week.

Thanks!

 

[dieselshadow]

Maybe I didn't twist hard enough? I did twist pretty firmly. I may try again next week.

Thanks!

Maybe yours are different?

 

[AH64ID]

My LED’s have set screws for the adjustable collars. I installed the light, drew a vertical pencil line on the back of the housing and pulled them out to adjust. One and done.

I didn’t have to do anything to the housings.

 

[Wiredawg]

My LED’s have set screws for the adjustable collars. I installed the light, drew a vertical pencil line on the back of the housing and pulled them out to adjust. One and done.

I didn’t have to do anything to the housings.

All the LED headlamps I installed have fixed tabs that can't be adjusted. I'm intriqued now, so next week I may post more pics, at least details inside the housings and see if this cat can be skint.

EDIT: Thought I would talk more about the factory halogens... don't know if you paid attention to what you took out, but the hi and low beams are 60W Sylvania halogens, at least in mine. They are BRIGHT, as you can see. LEDs are white and halogens are yellow, as you can see in pics above.

Thanks, Ron

 

[AH64ID]

All the LED headlamps I installed have fixed tabs that can't be adjusted. I'm intriqued now, so next week I may post more pics, at least details inside the housings and see if this cat can be skint.

Thanks, Ron

Interesting. Both the ones I have now, and the ones I had to return have an adjustable collar.

But that's inside the tabs, the tabs are fixed. The instructions for those bulbs are not very clear, it may not have an adjustable light and may want you to simply clock the tabs until you get the LED at 3 and 9. It could be part of the reason they can produce them cheaper.

You will want them at 3 and 9 over 6 and 12, as that will really effect the light output. Even the 30° I had to clock mine made a huge impact.

EDIT: Thought I would talk more about the factory halogens... don't know if you paid attention to what you took out, but the hi and low beams are 60W Sylvania halogens, at least in mine. They are BRIGHT, as you can see. LEDs are white and halogens are yellow, as you can see in pics above.

Thanks, Ron

Mine also came with 60w bulbs, and they did work great. Relative to the LED's they now look like 30w bulbs.

 

[AH64ID]

Took some pics tonight. As most of you know headlight pics are hard to take, and often don’t do the same justice your eye does. That being said, here they are. They look better than I anticipated.

I am a fat 1/4 mile from the yellow turn sign, and 1/2 mile from the bridge markers. The road isn’t completely flat, but I can see the road perfectly approaching the 1/4’mile dip. That’s at least 12 seconds ahead of me at 70mph. Needless to say, I’m not out running these lights at legal speeds on roads where legal speeds are permitted by weather and the road.

I’ll also add that I intentionally aimed my lights a little lower than stock so than in ALT Ride height they are still low enough for high speed driving. Another benefit of the auto-level, as my truck angle doesn’t change with load..just norm or alt.

DRL’s


Fogs only


Low Beams


Low/High Beams


Fog/Low Beams


Fog/Low/High

 

[petersonj]

@AH64ID, thanks for taking the time to take those photos and to post them in a manner that is informative. Judging by what I see, it does seem that the light is projected uniformly down the road and to the sides of the road, and the headlamps are lighting the roadway as they should.

Thanks for the photos.

- John

 

[MRoberts]

Well I'll be! Your light output is awesome! Much better than the LED's I tried a few years ago. I'm just going to shut my mouth about HID's being superior in the low beam projectors.....Merry Christmas!