So i'm getting some new headlights because my halogens suck, and I was wondering which y'all would recommend. I also want to know which is brighter and the pros/cons for each the LED and HID. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have to pay some money for them to put the kit with the conversion in, so i want to make sure that I get the right one. Thanks.
LED or HID
- Thread starter hdowda12
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Slo.Runner
New member
i have some led bulbs i got from amazon and they are just plug and play not skill needed to install them. and i have to say they are much brighter then any hid kit i have had. i love them. only cons i know of are for people that are driving opposite of you. they are going to be super bright at them since the headlights are not made for them. pros super bright you can see everything. cons super bright people driving at you cant see anything because they are blinded by the light.
Tyler James Inc
Senior Member
If you're keeping the stock housings, a nice higher wattage PIAA halogen with a relay harness is your best option.
Example-
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000...ds=h4+piaa&dpPl=1&dpID=41PuGNrLNxL&ref=plSrch
And the harness that will help give maximum current to the lamps-
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00H...ay+harness&dpPl=1&dpID=51V8okJwbuL&ref=plSrch
It's all plug-and-play, and the only mechanical ability needed will be connecting the positive relay harness lead to the battery, and the negative to ground/negative.
Example-
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000...ds=h4+piaa&dpPl=1&dpID=41PuGNrLNxL&ref=plSrch
And the harness that will help give maximum current to the lamps-
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00H...ay+harness&dpPl=1&dpID=51V8okJwbuL&ref=plSrch
It's all plug-and-play, and the only mechanical ability needed will be connecting the positive relay harness lead to the battery, and the negative to ground/negative.
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Slo.Runner
New member
LED > halogen
Tyler James Inc
Senior Member
Thats for sure!
If a retrofit is an option, I'm 100% voting HID projector retrofit. Specifically, the D2S 4.0 [emoji1362]
It's not that simple. LED output is much whiter- and will APPEAR to be much "better" output- but throw distance usually lacks, and glare can be expected. Also, what halogen? Cheap replacements with stock wiring? I've seen some halogens that you can hardly even tell they were on from inside the vehicle- these are NOT properly working and powered halogens.
Here's some halogen vs drop in LED comparison-
See the light scatter?! See how much better hot spot the halogen has? Morimoto has been trying to release their LED projectors for months now, but the output is just not satisfactory, and they are therefore getting delayed.
Another picture-
This is supposed to be promoting an LED drop in! However, if you know much about headlights, you can see how bad the out put actually is.
See how scattered the LED is? See how nice the hot spot is on the halogen? Imagine if that halogen was a brighter lamp with more output! It would blow the LED away.
Example- H4 Extreme White H4 Halogen from PIAA-
Aaaand, another awesome LED output shot- this time from PIAA. Please tell me you see how bad the output is-
For the record- I LOVE LED lighting. I use LED lighting on my whole house, as well as everywhere I can on all my vehicles.
Headlights, however, is where LED technology is currently falling short.
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So i don't need any conversions kits or anything?? Everything is stock.
What's the difference of these ones PIAA | H4 XTreme White Plus Twin Pack Halogen Bulbs #15224. or is it this?? http://www.piaa.com/store/p/170-H4-XTreme-White-Plus-Twin-Pack-Halogen-Bulbs.aspx
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Jungoes
Member
love my projectors, all in for $100 plus $20 for ballasts, and these were cheapos from tmart and fleabay..
will never go back to halogens,
my current HID's are going on 4 years same bulbs and only changed 1 ballast which failed because i didnt attach one of the boot connectors properly, resealed them with dielectric grease and they have been good.
I may do the led's in the PIAA 510 housings i have, i got some cheap ones but they suck so will get some better ones
will never go back to halogens,
my current HID's are going on 4 years same bulbs and only changed 1 ballast which failed because i didnt attach one of the boot connectors properly, resealed them with dielectric grease and they have been good.
I may do the led's in the PIAA 510 housings i have, i got some cheap ones but they suck so will get some better ones
Tyler James Inc
Senior Member
They used the same photo for both bulbs- and I'm not sure what is actually different with them physically- but the 15224 is marketed for cars/trucks, while the #70856 is marketed for motorsports. Both will perform the same, but the #70856 is extra vibration and moisture resistant.
TorqueOfTheDevil
Member
Tyler James Inc speaks sense...
I'm not a fan of LEDs, where they initially "look" brighter, when you are seeing is the colour temperature and "whiteness" of it all, and the associated glare. I find that the depth of beam penetration (fnar) is not as good as decent Halogen (night breaker plus etc) and even the "lit" area although it appears brighter, you can't see as much detail. I'm yet undecided if that is to do with the colour temperature, dazzle, or the fact that LEDs actually strobe.
They are more suited to low beam where a sharp beam cut off is a bonus (I'm talking about proper LED housings), and longer range less important.
I still maintain you cannot beat a proper bi projected HID for sheer beam control, range of light, and lack of hotspots.
My reference point for LEDs is my other car, 2017 BMW 1 series M sport, which has factory fitted LED headlights, not some aftermarket bulb jammed in a H4 halogen reflector. Those should be banned (they are infact not legal in the UK, as they blind everyone, as mentioned above!)
The 2003 M3 with the Bi Xenons was MUCH better at night.
I actually run DEPO headlights, (basically like the Factory facelift ones) with "PHILIPS XTREME VISION" halogen bulbs, as I didn't want the additional mess/fuss of ballast kits and controllers. They are pretty good, I'd even say better than the factory BMW LEDS.
I'm not a fan of LEDs, where they initially "look" brighter, when you are seeing is the colour temperature and "whiteness" of it all, and the associated glare. I find that the depth of beam penetration (fnar) is not as good as decent Halogen (night breaker plus etc) and even the "lit" area although it appears brighter, you can't see as much detail. I'm yet undecided if that is to do with the colour temperature, dazzle, or the fact that LEDs actually strobe.
They are more suited to low beam where a sharp beam cut off is a bonus (I'm talking about proper LED housings), and longer range less important.
I still maintain you cannot beat a proper bi projected HID for sheer beam control, range of light, and lack of hotspots.
My reference point for LEDs is my other car, 2017 BMW 1 series M sport, which has factory fitted LED headlights, not some aftermarket bulb jammed in a H4 halogen reflector. Those should be banned (they are infact not legal in the UK, as they blind everyone, as mentioned above!)
The 2003 M3 with the Bi Xenons was MUCH better at night.
I actually run DEPO headlights, (basically like the Factory facelift ones) with "PHILIPS XTREME VISION" halogen bulbs, as I didn't want the additional mess/fuss of ballast kits and controllers. They are pretty good, I'd even say better than the factory BMW LEDS.
They are illegal in North America too. For what it's worth aftermarket projectors installed in a factory housing or even higher power halogen bulbs would be illegal as well.
I don't have a problem with well done projector retrofits, but it pisses me off getting blinded by all the yahoos that don't realize they're not the only ones on the road.
Okay so what exactly are projectors?
Thats for sure!
If a retrofit is an option, I'm 100% voting HID projector retrofit. Specifically, the D2S 4.0 [emoji1362]
It's not that simple. LED output is much whiter- and will APPEAR to be much "better" output- but throw distance usually lacks, and glare can be expected. Also, what halogen? Cheap replacements with stock wiring? I've seen some halogens that you can hardly even tell they were on from inside the vehicle- these are NOT properly working and powered halogens.
Here's some halogen vs drop in LED comparison-
See the light scatter?! See how much better hot spot the halogen has? Morimoto has been trying to release their LED projectors for months now, but the output is just not satisfactory, and they are therefore getting delayed.
Another picture-
This is supposed to be promoting an LED drop in! However, if you know much about headlights, you can see how bad the out put actually is.
See how scattered the LED is? See how nice the hot spot is on the halogen? Imagine if that halogen was a brighter lamp with more output! It would blow the LED away.
Example- H4 Extreme White H4 Halogen from PIAA-
Aaaand, another awesome LED output shot- this time from PIAA. Please tell me you see how bad the output is-
For the record- I LOVE LED lighting. I use LED lighting on my whole house, as well as everywhere I can on all my vehicles.
Headlights, however, is where LED technology is currently falling short.
I'm running the same PIAA halogens as you list, but they are not as bright as the ones in your picture, is that because you are running that harness as well ?
Tyler James Inc
Senior Member
These-
https://www.theretrofitsource.com/complete-retrofit-kits/bixenon-morimoto-mini-d2s-stage-3.html
And these are my headlights, retrofitted with the projectors in the link above-
This is a shot of the crazy output of an HID projector retrofit on a member here's rig. In this picture, he only has ONE headlight working! Just a note, it is aimed too high in this picture, but you can still see the amazing output-
That picture isn't mine, and also isn't on a 3rd gen 4Runner. Do you have the 99+ clear-lens headlights? They help throw more light out. That said, a relay harness makes a surprising increase in light with halogen lamps- on most vehicles.
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What gauge is the wiring in that harness? The ad only says it's good for 80A, which is a load of bullshit. No way that's good for 80A. Fortunately 110W bulbs will draw far less than that. Not sure what the factory wiring is, but you should use at least 14 AWG for the 110W bulbs. I suspect the factory wiring is 16, which might be OK for a while but definitely pressing your luck.
tjaguilar
New member
I might have to look into getting one of these harnesses to see if it will brighten up my stock halogens.
