LED vs H1/H4 headlight upgrade

[jd350az]

I am currently waiting and working on upgrading the alternator to a 3g and doing the headlight relays and upgrading stock battery cables. After that my main upgrade I want is headlights, I was thinking about LED and the H1/H4 upgrades and wondering if anyone is running the LEDs on the old box? I deliver pizza at night and extra useable light would be really nice for finding addresses lol. Plus driving safety. I've searched but I haven't found anything about the LEDs, but they are the same size as soo many vehicles including big rigs so I figure the kinks should be worked out by now and price is down low enough to get them into consideration.

Thanks!

[GM_Guy]

Nice beam pattern on these; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXysfwpJ6CY

[jd350az]

Dang, those are very nice!

[His Royal Ghostliness]

Nice beam pattern on these; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXysfwpJ6CY

JWs is what we run on the MDT, in the larger 5x7 size tho (cause that's what it takes). Had E-code H4s in ridiculous power outputs before that, those beat the snot outta regular sealed beams for sure in both light output and pattern, but the JWs are even nicer.

Also, keep in mind there are only a few reputable LED manufacturers out there who actually know WTF they're doing. JW, TruckLite/Grote, Nolden, and forgot who the other one was. Much as I love Maxxima's other LED products, I have my doubts regarding their LED headlamps. And the internet is flooded with other relatively inexpensive lights, however one needs to be aware that with them the devil is in the details - a flood beam is NOT a low beam, and a spot beam is NOT a high beam, regardless of how hard ebay sellers and offshore drop-shippers and other such shysters try to convince buyers otherwise.

But yes, 4x6 is a standard headlamp size for commercial vehicles, and yes that market is largely what drove the good manufacturers to come up with what they came up with. The others, well they're just capitalizing on the LEDs=UberCool mindset that seems to be going around these days, light pattern and focusing is not as important with them as the sheer amount of light being put out. Which is obviously not good for headlights, as anyone who's been blinded by lousy HID conversions can attest to.

[sly]

They spendy though... but in this case, you really do get what you pay for. $500 for a pair of JWs is quite a lot though. As much as I would like to have better lights on my beater... It's not worth that much to me.

[Mr Bean]

This is what I am running in mine. They are decent.

https://www.dapperlighting.com/collections/projector-headlights/products/dapper-lighting-4x6-projector-headlight

[longroof87]

LED vs H1/H4 headlight upgrade

I have Hella H4/H1 on my Colony Park. The H1's had stickers on them saying "OFF ROAD USE ONLY." I can see why because they are so bright and shoot really far it's comical when they're on. Totally worth it.

[GM_Guy]

Speaking of spotty led's, same channel has a somewhat decent comparison of various LED's of the h7(or whatever they happen to be);

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQF5ESBHLrw

[His Royal Ghostliness]

They spendy though... but in this case, you really do get what you pay for. $500 for a pair of JWs is quite a lot though. As much as I would like to have better lights on my beater... It's not worth that much to me.

The truck ours got installed on is a special case, to the point that if someone was to hit it and actually cause any real damage, even if it was a fender-bender type of deal, there's a very high chance would not survive that accident. Especially if it's not me behind the wheel, but the other driver on the insurance policy.

I have Hella H4/H1 on my Colony Park. The H1's had stickers on them saying "OFF ROAD USE ONLY." I can see why because they are so bright and shoot really far it's comical when they're on. Totally worth it.

The brightness and far-shooting of any headlamp is greatly dependent on the bulb it's equipped with and how it's aimed. 110W pointed straight ahead and level will reach way out there alright. It's also not exactly DOT-legal. For that matter, any dedicated E-code lamps (so basically any sealed beam conversions) are not DOT-lgeal. Unless it's a motorcycle, then it's totally kosher. WTF?! So the "offoroad use" sticker has exactly nothing to do with how the lamp performs, and everything to do with the governing authorities on the matter being their typical knuckle-dragging selves they always have been.

This is what I am running in mine. They are decent.

https://www.dapperlighting.com/colle...ctor-headlight

What's the pattern of these things? I'm guessing you get a set of four where one pair is the low beams and the other is the highs? Is the different pattern built into the projectors, or do you simply aim the one pair higher than the other and toss brighter bulbs in it?

[gadget73]

I'm perhaps the only person who will tell you to keep the stock sealed beam and just add a relay kit. I can't stand the light pattern of the various replacement options I've been behind the wheel of. Can't see shit. I also tend to hate people who have them in their cars for the same reason. For you people who find it amusing to blind oncoming traffic, eat a dick.

[jaywish]

That is 1 thing I like, besides more light, is the pattern on the euro H4 and H1 housings. There is a notch in the pattern which keeps the light from blinding oncoming traffic. They send the light more straight down the road and to the right.

It is actually more of a right triangle pattern.

[His Royal Ghostliness]

I can't stand the light pattern of the various replacement options I've been behind the wheel of. Can't see shit. I also tend to hate people who have them in their cars for the same reason. For you people who find it amusing to blind oncoming traffic, eat a dick.

And I'm probably the only person you know of who has a dedicated pair of lower-power lower-aim headlamps for use specifically when closely following a passenger car - my headlights sit quite high off the road surface, which typically puts them right at the same level as most passenger cars rearview mirrors, which is hell on the eyes of the person in front of me even if my lights are properly aimed. So I choose to run a dedicated setup that doesn't cause that problem, yea they're not all that good for use as actual low beams, but I don't care, important thing is to not be a dick towards the other person, and I got other low beams for more normal driving conditions anyways.

Seriously tho, not all lights are the same. For example, fuck Sylvania sealed beams in any shape or form - regular cheap ones suck any way you look at them, the XVs have more power but still shit for pattern, and the Silverstars are both stupid bright and IMHO stupidly-patterned. GE sealed beams are from my experience quite a bit better - same amount of light output as the Sylvanias, but much better pattern control, they tend to actually have a good cutoff line like the E-codes do but with a wider spread towards the sides - what that amounts to is better visibility for shit waiting in the ditch to ambush you, yet less glare towards oncoming traffic even if aimed a bit on the high side. Finding fancy GEs on the shelf tho, yeah good luck with that, Sylvania crap is what most stores seem to carry these days. Moving onto the E-codes, even the same brand can have different models that range from good to horrendous. Free-form Hellas, the one with the fancy reflector behind the bulb, IMHO are shit - like Sylvania sealed beams, lots of light but not where you need it. Fluted-lens (look like standard sealed beams) Hellas, much better they are. Actually come to think of it, this is the pattern I've notices with other manufacturers as well - reflector-guide light needs lots more guidance to be useful, lens-guided is usually spot-on where it should be. Of course fluted-lens lamps are not anywhere as cool as the clear ones with the "diamond-cut" reflector, so maybe that's why you've had such bad experience with conversions, people simply go for the cool factor and completely disregard the useful/safe thing.

As for more light off the E-codes like Jay says, unless overwattage bulbs are used it's not really any more light than what a standard low sealed beam provides, 55w is 55w regardless of what housing it's stuck into - it's just less of that light is wasted signaling the extraterrestrial mothership to land, and instead more of it is directed down towards the road where you actually need to see shit. So it still boils down to patterning, and not so much actual power output.

[gadget73]

Very possible. Off the top of my head I don't know what they were, I just recall a distinct wall of black far too close to where I was driving, and absolutely no visibility off to the side. I live in the middle of nowhere, being able to see deer is slightly important. Not sure what is in my car currently but its not anything special. Possibly Sylvania XV. Might not be the brightest, but I can see what I need to.

The blinding by oncoming traffic is a general observation of modern lighting, but aftermarket ones seem to be considerably worse. Don't know how much is light pattern, light color, or aim but in any case, its shit. Increasingly I have problems driving at night because of it.

[His Royal Ghostliness]

Pretty sure you have the XVs, they're alroght in brighness but still wast too much of their light by throwing it up into the nothingness. And I'm pretty sure the E-code conversions you experience the suck with were the freeform Hellas, next time Sexy John stops by your place he's got the better design with the fluted lens, see if you like them better (you probably will).

I agree with the blinding effect of modern headlamps. They're excellent for one's own vehicle, not so much if one's stuck on the receiving end of them. All that worse with newer trucks after they've been treated to a lift kit and big tires, those truly are horrible to drive against (I suspect this is partially because most folks don't realize that they need to re-aim their lights after raising them another foot above the ground).

[jaywish]

This shows an example of the euro "e" patterned bulb. I can't remember if 200mm is a 2 beam or a 4 beam bulb.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Hella-003-42...tXHsEy&vxp=mtr