LED headlight retrofit

Modified and aftermarket systems, lights, wiring, etc.

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plantone
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Location: Oakland County, MI

LED headlight retrofit

Post by plantone »

so i ordered a set of these off amazon the other day and got them installed

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B01L0KN6PO


color is amazing, and they're awesome to drive on.

obviously i cant guarantee the longevity, but with a 2yr warranty - well thats pretty much the price of a set of silverstars.


they fit inside the housing - its a big tight, but they go.


they had 9005's the other day when i ordered but they dont seem to list them anymore so i'm gonna have to check another brand to get the highbeams done. was hesitant to order both at the same time since i wasn't sure on fitment with the way the headlight housing works, and i'm kind of regretting it now.


also put a bunch of the new Sylvania ZEVO 194's on the interior courtesy lights and map lights on the overhead. Too bad zevo doesnt have a 212-2 for the dome, but i used another off brand to fill that spot. WOuld have rather went ZEVO since they're lifetime warranty through sylvania, but you gotta give a little sometime i guess :/ $70 of bulbs later at least i don't have to worry about my battery dying if i leave the interior lights on overnight!

just wanted to shart that there IS a working LED retro for the low beams at least that work and fit!

'03 LS Crew Cab
"Politics: The art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible." - Frank Herbert

"Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries" - The French Fellows
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'03 LS Crew Cab
Built2Bend
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Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by Built2Bend »

We need some pictures of these. I'm actually looking for led to do my interior lights now.
plantone
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Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2016 10:11 pm
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Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by plantone »

if you want LED's for your interior lights... Sylvania ZEVO has a 194 LED replacement that will do the map lights and courtesy lights under the dash..

they come in white, blue and i think even red.



heres what the headlights look like against the garage door for color and brightness comparison before i got them dialed in and adjusted to level

https://youtu.be/77a341VEZwQ


the 9005's are back in stock, or were the other day anyway. i'll have them installed tonight.
"Politics: The art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible." - Frank Herbert

"Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries" - The French Fellows
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'03 LS Crew Cab
plantone
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Location: Oakland County, MI

Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by plantone »

some pics as promised - this is post lighting adjustment, although they're still a bit off after tapping a buck a couple weeks back. havent been into the body shop to get the bumper fixed and the plastic repaired yet. Also both headlights are damaged enough to let some moisture in, so there's a bit of hazing from the condensation on the front of the inside of the lenses. however the quality of the light speaks for itself. its fairly dramatic.

high beams
Image
Image

low beams
Image
Image



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YPTn3_fphU
"Politics: The art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible." - Frank Herbert

"Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries" - The French Fellows
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'03 LS Crew Cab
plantone
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Location: Oakland County, MI

Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by plantone »

one thing to note. with the LED's in the high beam position, the DRL do not turn on.

i'm guessing this means that the power supplied by that circuit does not meet the minimum quantity as needed on the voltage regulator on the LED's. Looks like its time to do the DRL delete mod and throw a switch under the dash for now.


i'm considering ordering a set of projector style headlight housings since they need to be replaced anyway and then i'd hook the DRL output to the halo's instead of where they go now.
"Politics: The art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible." - Frank Herbert

"Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries" - The French Fellows
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'03 LS Crew Cab
ApproachMedium
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Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by ApproachMedium »

plantone wrote:one thing to note. with the LED's in the high beam position, the DRL do not turn on.

i'm guessing this means that the power supplied by that circuit does not meet the minimum quantity as needed on the voltage regulator on the LED's. Looks like its time to do the DRL delete mod and throw a switch under the dash for now.


i'm considering ordering a set of projector style headlight housings since they need to be replaced anyway and then i'd hook the DRL output to the halo's instead of where they go now.
The reason the DRLs do not work is because they reverse the polarity across the two headlights wired in series instead of parallel so it will NOT work with an LED.

I had originally bought a set of $100 9006 low beams for my truck two years ago and they died a few months ago because they need those stupid fans to stay cool and the fans are just tiny PC fans. So the bearings got dirty, fan failed and when it got warm out the lights started to fail. I replaced them with fanless units from super bright LEDs.com and they do work, they dont look bad but they are a lower wattage than my other ones. Not as bright. The fanned units were as good as my factory philps HIDs on my volkswagen.
Knowledge has no value unless its shared with others.
Exploration Machine- 02' CC V8 swap. 300K+
Portable Roller Coaster- 07' MKV VW GTI
Its another Jeep- 98 TJ
plantone
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Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by plantone »

i was nervous about buying fan cooled units too, but these come with a 2yr warranty - better than what sylvania puts on its lamps. so if they die, meh. i'll just warrant replace with a new set.
"Politics: The art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible." - Frank Herbert

"Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries" - The French Fellows
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'03 LS Crew Cab
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Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by ApproachMedium »

2 years is about all they will last after that they will crap out if they follow what mine did. And seeing you live in michigan that may be certain with the salt from the roads lol
Knowledge has no value unless its shared with others.
Exploration Machine- 02' CC V8 swap. 300K+
Portable Roller Coaster- 07' MKV VW GTI
Its another Jeep- 98 TJ
plantone
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Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2016 10:11 pm
Location: Oakland County, MI

Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by plantone »

with my other car, as much as i drive i was getting about 6-8 months out of a set of sylvania's. not uncommon to replace 2, or sometimes even 3 sets in a year.

if i have to replace them at 2 years - i'll happily do so and not complain one bit!
"Politics: The art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible." - Frank Herbert

"Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries" - The French Fellows
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'03 LS Crew Cab
ApproachMedium
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Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by ApproachMedium »

I took my fanless units out for the first road trip this week. Drove from NJ to cleveland at night and they worked very well. I had to align the headlights which is why they were not making the right brightness. Now they look pretty good. Still needs some minor adjustments.
Knowledge has no value unless its shared with others.
Exploration Machine- 02' CC V8 swap. 300K+
Portable Roller Coaster- 07' MKV VW GTI
Its another Jeep- 98 TJ
plantone
Crew
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Posts: 68
Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2016 10:11 pm
Location: Oakland County, MI

Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by plantone »

my dad loves them so much he was actually asking if i could get him some. which shocked me, usually he's not much into "that new fancy s### you guys are playing around with". they were on backorder for a few weeks so hello easy x-mas present. Hopefully they'll be installed when i go up to visit next and i can get some pics of them in a trailblazer headlight housing. it was pretty chilly x-mas day so he said he'd put them in at a friends heated garage soon instead of us freezing our fingers off swapping them out that afternoon.


i will say this.......the more i drive behind these lights, the more i like them!!! :rock:
"Politics: The art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible." - Frank Herbert

"Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries" - The French Fellows
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'03 LS Crew Cab
plantone
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Posts: 68
Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2016 10:11 pm
Location: Oakland County, MI

Re: LED headlight retrofit

Post by plantone »

so as an update

still going strong with these lights. no problems, no failures. likewise for the set i got for my mom for her trailblazer.

i put over 40k miles on my truck in 2017 alone, and 13k in the last two months and they're still rocking.


if anyone needs a vote of confidence for the quality of these lights - heres your proof!
"Politics: The art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible." - Frank Herbert

"Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries" - The French Fellows
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'03 LS Crew Cab