Head lamp suggestions and recommendations.
- Thread starter El Cid
- Start date
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Upgrade wise: HIR or HID. I suggest HID retrofit and you have some options for that depending on how involved you would like to get with the process.
Those are your DRL's.
This is the route I went and probably the most cost effective too. Just be warned it's a lot of work. I still need to properly align my headlights as it was never done correctly, and even after going back in to try to fix it they are still off significantly
The picture shows the daytime running lights (DRLs), which are the highbeam bulbs at half power.
My DRLs and headlights looked like that too: dim and uneven.
Because I am cheap, I just replaced the bulbs with a new set from AutoZone.
The highbeams are 9005 and the lowbeams are 9006.
Both pairs of new bulbs cost about $50 total and my lights work much better now.
There are better and more complicated solutions, but replacing the bulbs is the simplest and least expensive way to get brighter more even output. You could also try re-aligning the lights to get a better beam pattern.
- Thread starter
- #9
That's helpful and good to know as well.
I'm not ruling out HID's yet, but I'm certainly wary of that route..
- Thread starter
- #10
Ok, I've perished the hotly debated threads on HID vs HIR and taken a step back from my decision and here is my general conclusion..
Given the fact I'm strongly considering a front bumper conversion, I'm going to go with the the HIR bulbs on the candlepower website. Part of the reason is just plain expediency and hassle factor.
But my conclusion is that a good HID option exists, but I want to look at it more i depth. I like what 2000 did with his rig and these vehicles have an excellent wiring grid overall, it's just that the older vehicles need a bit ore work in the headlight department.
It would be very nice is someone were to sell a modular HID upgrade kit for LAnd cruisers...
Given the fact I'm strongly considering a front bumper conversion, I'm going to go with the the HIR bulbs on the candlepower website. Part of the reason is just plain expediency and hassle factor.
But my conclusion is that a good HID option exists, but I want to look at it more i depth. I like what 2000 did with his rig and these vehicles have an excellent wiring grid overall, it's just that the older vehicles need a bit ore work in the headlight department.
It would be very nice is someone were to sell a modular HID upgrade kit for LAnd cruisers...
+1 those are DRL's...also know as high beams running at half power.
The LC headlights are weak so looking into an upgrade is a good thing but your photo is not representative.
As mentioned HIR for upgrade. HID projectors for overhaul.
- Thread starter
- #12
That's a good summation, but yeah, the headlights in general suck too, but the DRL's are fairly accurate representation of the situation as a whole. I pulled up to a building at night and turned on my lights and was unimpressed.
The upside to all of this? Though the lights suck, the wiring and overall power to the bulbs is decent. Bottom line, plenty of opportunities for an upgrade.
And here's the other x factor. I threw in some Nokya fog lights and found out that the plastic surrounding my enclosures had rotted and was difficult to remove, it ended up breaking the bulb as it wouldn't stay locked into the enclosure, but moral of the story is I'm planning a front bumper upgrade and the fog light issue is another variable.
I'd like to do the front bumper and light replacement in one fell swoop, so perhaps my real question at this point is how to get IPF lights installed while I do the bumper replacement..
The upside to all of this? Though the lights suck, the wiring and overall power to the bulbs is decent. Bottom line, plenty of opportunities for an upgrade.
And here's the other x factor. I threw in some Nokya fog lights and found out that the plastic surrounding my enclosures had rotted and was difficult to remove, it ended up breaking the bulb as it wouldn't stay locked into the enclosure, but moral of the story is I'm planning a front bumper upgrade and the fog light issue is another variable.
I'd like to do the front bumper and light replacement in one fell swoop, so perhaps my real question at this point is how to get IPF lights installed while I do the bumper replacement..
HID projector retrofit is a messy but simple enough process that really delivers results. Did mine a year ago and after struggling with terrible light from the stock headlights even with good bulbs the projectors still make me smile.