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I want to replace my low beam headlights with LED's, we have no streetlights here and lots of deer. What is the brightest LED I can get? Also is there a way to tell how many lumens it has, since alot of headlights I have seen for sale don't list it.
LEDs in low beams even in projectors don't work too well. The beam pattern just isn't right. For now anyway you are still better off with an HID retrofit.
FYI - The sellers of LED lowbeams are awash in false lumen ratings too.
I went through:
1. Phillips HID like halogens from Autozone, $55, best they had
2. 2 different HIDS
3. 3 different LEDs
for my 07 Camry. I have tinted windshield, so .... commuting in complete darkness on wavy backroads required good lighting
This is best set I am happy with: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
As in - I am happy.
But I do have projectors in that car.
LED headlamps are still a fledgling technology. Most manufacturers dabbling in them are sticking them in higher end models, and the assemblies are pricey.
Also, LED lights are designed to be direct projected, and not reflected. You'll notice all LED head and taillamps are not using a reflector, but using multiple LEDs to direct project, so sticking an LED bulb in a housing is not going to work the same.
Finally, most aftermarket headlamp setups are cheap Chinese crap.
I went through:
1. Phillips HID like halogens from Autozone, $55, best they had
2. 2 different HIDS
3. 3 different LEDs
for my 07 Camry. I have tinted windshield, so .... commuting in complete darkness on wavy backroads required good lighting
This is best set I am happy with: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
As in - I am happy.
But I do have projectors in that car.
Have you tried the OPT7 LED's? How does it compare?
LED headlamps are still a fledgling technology. Most manufacturers dabbling in them are sticking them in higher end models, and the assemblies are pricey.
Also, LED lights are designed to be direct projected, and not reflected. You'll notice all LED head and taillamps are not using a reflector, but using multiple LEDs to direct project, so sticking an LED bulb in a housing is not going to work the same.
Finally, most aftermarket headlamp setups are cheap Chinese crap.
Caveat: I'm not an expert on lighting for cars, it is an interesting subject. But this reminds me of doing it "right" vs. some garage hack-job for $150. I've done enough of the latter in my younger days to know the difference.
I went through a similar thought process about a year ago for my '07 Tacoma (PU). The stock units are OK, old-school halogen, but I tired of going through bulbs and the housings were looking a bit tired. The brighter, whiter halogen bulbs work great awhile, then self-destruct. To be expected, no one promised they'd last longer. Quite the opposite, actually, and BTW I'm not knocking those Philips bulbs since they're performing as-advertised.
I then looked at eBay whole lighting and housing units. They do *not* have the best reputation for water tightness and general durability, to say the least. More than a few guys on the Tacoma forums make money by tearing down and sealing up such units properly. I find it ridiculous that such a market even exists to seal an existing, new product. Some of the installs end up with dissatisfied owners after a short while; the rest go silent on the subject either from embarrassment or...hey, maybe they're happy.
This brought me to well-built retrofits. There are guys in Seattle (shops) who do this for a living, with solid reviews on forums, Yelp, and etc. I thoroughly researched one such shop, then brought the situation to them with some concepts.
End of the day, it was Bi-Xenon (aka HID) retrofits, with LED halos, after all using known-quality parts (Morimoto projectors, Morimoto LED Halos (aka angel eyes)). I had additional work done for aesthetics purposes, to the turn signals, running lights, and fogs. They built all of to my spec, with some tweaks that are rather interesting, if you like angel eyes plus your own bespoke look on the retrofitted stock housings. My housings are now black, for example.
You really can't use stock housings for HIDs, as others indicate, nor for LED projectors/bulbs. Not properly, anyway.
Like the quoted person indicates, LED for the projector/bulb is pretty new tech and was a bit more expensive and exploratory than I wanted to go. Today, I'd think it over if the prices are comparable. For retrofits, I don't really know if anyone would want to do that with today's tech vs. bi-xenon.
So end of the day, I did retrofits *correctly designed* for long-term durability and usefulness. I've had that Tacoma 10 years, bought with zero miles, and assume I'll have it another 10 since it's so useful and bulletproof. Some vehicles are worth the investment. I have carefully-adjusted, squared off blueish HIDS that look great and project well. I went with hotter color temp (6K) for white-blue light, though frankly as I understand it the 4.3K HIDs project a more-visible cone of illumination for the human eye. I knew that going in, and went with the 6K for style vs. substance.
If you're DIY, there are entire retrofit stores online that will help you spec out exactly what is needed, down to the last part. That would have halved the cost of my project, or more, frankly, and there are online installation sources for many vehicles. If I had more time than money, that would be the way to go IMHO.
There are LED bulbs you can buy, to replace an h series bulb, but they don't have great spread, which is why you see new cars with multiple LED setups for better spread, like GM and Acura. https://www.google.com/search?q=led+...btnG=&safe=off
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