Headlight low beam/high beam recommendations? (1 Viewer)

[GrizzlyClint]

Just bought hi and low beams and it transformed my night driving. Hi beam lights up highway signs during the day... View attachment 2515901

Had those in the 470 and loved them. Bought an Alla 12,000lm set and gave the Fahrens to my buddy for his 2015 F150 and they are even better in his truck.

I just bought these for my 460 and my god they are great and they have no wires or heatsinks which saves me from rednecking a solution with the headlight housing cap.

Amazon product ASIN B07TQLGGBR

 

[trinydex]

I don't think you can get good light output from the stock fog lights unless you remove the bulb shields in the light housings. I installed the diode dynamics fog light HID conversion kit (3000K) and was initially underwhelmed with the results. After removing the bulb covers, the lights look great and are actually useful now. The HID conversion does require you to drill a 1" hole in the light housings, but overall the install is pretty simple. The compartments in the bumper that the fog lights slide into make nice selves to mount the ballasts on.

Search results for: 'catalog product view id 8213'

Automotive LED lighting for cars and trucks, including headlight, fog light, turn signal, backup, tail, interior, halos, demon eyes, boards, strips, and more!

www.diodedynamics.com

Lexus GX470 H3 HID Kit Installation DIY - ClubLexus - Lexus Forum Discussion

GX - 1st Gen (2003-2009) - Lexus GX470 H3 HID Kit Installation DIY - Hey guys, Here is a great DIY for a Lexus GX470, thanks to Club Lexus forum member Achent who sent us the following step by step on how to properly install an HID kit in the GX470's H3 fog lights. Here is an alternate method...

www.clublexus.com

what's the process for removing the bulb shields?

 

[trinydex]

I want to thank everyone in this thread that discussed the pros and cons of HIDs vs. LED bulbs.

I just installed a DDM HID kid for the low beams. I used the 4500k bulbs as recommended. they're a yellower hew, not BMW blue so to speak. the cut off is very precise and I think the HID spherical emission pattern very much mimicks the factory halogen spherical emission pattern. an overall win for HIDs replacing halogen in an OEM projector.

I used the hikari LEDs for the high beams for a few reasons. 1) a bad beam pattern that blinds onlookers doesn't matter because high beams blind onlookers no matter what. 2) HIDs take a while to warm up to full brightness which might not be the right application for signalling with high beams.

I immediately noticed the bidirectional emission pattern in the LED bulbs through the factory halogen projectors lenses. a dark line is projected where the LEDs are not emitting any light. I rotated the hikaris such that the dark line was horizontal as the low beams fill this section in. I'm sure there are some other repercussions from the bidirectional emission pattern, but I didn't bother to study.

next is to install the 3000k fog lights. I am going to use the full 55 watt ballast to drive these. I don't plan on daily using these foglights, they'll be for use when in need of serious lighting. hence the question prior about removing the bulb caps in the fogs.

 

[macready]

You can follow these instructions to open the fog light housings. The bulb shield is held on with a single screw.

GX470 Black Headlight / Foglight Housing DIY

I have a black GX and after blacking out the grill the one thing that bothered me a lot was the chrome/white headlights and fog lights which really stood out. My headlights weren’t in great condition but they were good enough to make me want to try painting before spending $$ on the depos...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[macready]

I forgot to mention that I tried to reuse the old butyl tape and ended up having water leak into the housings. Save yourself the hassle of having to open them again and add a new strip of butyl tape when you seal them back up.

If you don't want to open the housings, another member was able to remove the bulb shields with the covers on.

Best Mod for under $100

You just pry or pull the air switch out, less than a minute.

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[trinydex]

I forgot to mention that I tried to reuse the old butyl tape and ended up having water leak into the housings. Save yourself the hassle of having to open them again and add a new strip of butyl tape when you seal them back up.

If you don't want to open the housings, another member was able to remove the bulb shields with the covers on.

Best Mod for under $100

You just pry or pull the air switch out, less than a minute.

forum.ih8mud.com

this is why this forum is the best. I would have never found that post on my own.

 

[Rednexus]

Had those in the 470 and loved them. Bought an Alla 12,000lm set and gave the Fahrens to my buddy for his 2015 F150 and they are even better in his truck.

I just bought these for my 460 and my god they are great and they have no wires or heatsinks which saves me from rednecking a solution with the headlight housing cap.

Amazon product ASIN B07TQLGGBR

I put the Auxito LEDs in the low and high beams of my GX470. Definitely an improvement over the stock lights (which were, frankly, pathetic), but not as nice as the OEM LED lights on my Mazda3. The beam pattern is a bit odd and the cutoff around the edges is also not quite like that of a real LED projector. They don't seem quite a bright as my Mazda either, but that may be because I'm sitting 2-3' higher in the Lexus and can see farther down the road, towards the end of the lights. But, for $112 all-in (including cheapie LED fog lights too) and an hour of work, the GX is much less sketchy to drive at night.

Adding real LED or HID projectors into the housing would be a better solution, but it seems quite cost and time prohibitive.

 

[trinydex]

I put the Auxito LEDs in the low and high beams of my GX470. Definitely an improvement over the stock lights (which were, frankly, pathetic), but not as nice as the OEM LED lights on my Mazda3. The beam pattern is a bit odd and the cutoff around the edges is also not quite like that of a real LED projector. They don't seem quite a bright as my Mazda either, but that may be because I'm sitting 2-3' higher in the Lexus and can see farther down the road, towards the end of the lights. But, for $112 all-in (including cheapie LED fog lights too) and an hour of work, the GX is much less sketchy to drive at night.

Adding real LED or HID projectors into the housing would be a better solution, but it seems quite cost and time prohibitive.

I'm definitely trying to communicate that you don't need HID specific projectors to run HIDs. the halogen projectors seem to work just fine to me. there's a cut off, maybe it's not as bright, but I have nothing to compare that to. it is a solid and clean win over factory halogens, no questions.

 

[se7enine]

I'm definitely trying to communicate that you don't need HID specific projectors to run HIDs. the halogen projectors seem to work just fine to me. there's a cut off, maybe it's not as bright, but I have nothing to compare that to. it is a solid and clean win over factory halogens, no questions.

They can also be tuned to work better with HID. Just spacing the lens will improve the output and clarity. I have a new set of OEM headlights on the way and plan to tune them up to see how well these stock Koito projectors can perform. The DEPO headlights I purchased less than a year ago are already starting to crack in the lens.

 

[jsclimbs]

I put the Auxito LEDs in the low and high beams of my GX470. Definitely an improvement over the stock lights (which were, frankly, pathetic), but not as nice as the OEM LED lights on my Mazda3. The beam pattern is a bit odd and the cutoff around the edges is also not quite like that of a real LED projector. They don't seem quite a bright as my Mazda either, but that may be because I'm sitting 2-3' higher in the Lexus and can see farther down the road, towards the end of the lights. But, for $112 all-in (including cheapie LED fog lights too) and an hour of work, the GX is much less sketchy to drive at night.

Adding real LED or HID projectors into the housing would be a better solution, but it seems quite cost and time prohibitive.

How long did Auxito bulbs take to ship? Leaving for Colorado in 2 weeks and I would like to have better lights at night.
Thanks

 

[Rednexus]

How long did Auxito bulbs take to ship? Leaving for Colorado in 2 weeks and I would like to have better lights at night.
Thanks

Around 3 days via Amazon Prime. But shipping still seems to be messed up, so hopefully they don't get delayed in the mail.

 

[GrizzlyClint]

How long did Auxito bulbs take to ship? Leaving for Colorado in 2 weeks and I would like to have better lights at night.
Thanks

Too bad you aren’t local, I bought an extra set for emergencies. Going to replace the Allas in the 470 with them here shortly though. I like the idea of no wires or heatsink LOL

 

[jsclimbs]

I try not use Amazon...when possible. I ordered directly from the website, got a confirmation, ETA 3-7 days.
IF they don't get here in time, I'll just have to drive slower at night ( hard to do in the powerful GX ) and avoid the elk around Craig Co.
Thanks

 

[m1lktrcGX]

I forgot to mention that I tried to reuse the old butyl tape and ended up having water leak into the housings. Save yourself the hassle of having to open them again and add a new strip of butyl tape when you seal them back up.

If you don't want to open the housings, another member was able to remove the bulb shields with the covers on.

Best Mod for under $100

You just pry or pull the air switch out, less than a minute.

forum.ih8mud.com

What kind of butyl tape? So many options on Amazon.

 

[iamacrestkid]

I just finished my low beams with the xenon depot hid kit and didn't want to go through the hassle of changing out the projectors. I've previously retrofitted the morimoto kits with hid projectors in my 4runner and the only difference IMO is the cutoff line. I mean its cool and all but sometimes I want to see a little higher than above the line so actually prefer the hid kit with the halogen projectors. Just my 2 cents for those that are on the fence.

Also, had led lights in my 4runner before the hid retrofit and that was actually worse than stock. I had to actually go back to stock since it started getting harder for me to see at night.

 

[amongmany]

Ok folks, bouncing this thread back to the top. I have a set of headlights currently torn apart to do a clean-up and repaint on. I want to upgrade the lighting while I'm at it, but I honestly don't want to pay for the $500-600 kit to retrofit the projectors, etc.

With that in mind, I've been researching bulb upgrades and the amount of (conflicting) info is downright overwhelming. Could someone offer some recent insight on my questions...?

1. Stock headlights are Halogen, correct?
2. There's a ton of conflicting info on LED's in the projector housings. Have we gotten to the point where LED's are worth using, or is it never going to work correctly in our housings?
3. If not LED's, I've seen some folks (like @iamacrestkid above) mention they've put an HID kit in. I understand this requires both bulbs and ballasts, correct? If so, it looks like that's a $200+/bulb proposition. Am I missing something?
4. Last option looks like upgraded Halogen bulbs. I've seen good reviews for the Sylvania ZXE's, but the lifespan is abysmal. Any other reccos for a simple bulb upgrade? Is it worth trying out this upgrade on the stock halogens?

Appreciate any help sorting through the noise and the reasonable info.

 

[justcasey]

I cheaped out on my set, but I saw someone with a GX on IG that used Auxito LED high and low beams so decided to give it a go.
Auxito’s website was about 180 for both, I believe, but I decided to check Amazon and they were on there…for $92 total. One had a $10 dollar coupon and the other was $6.

I’ve had them on for a few days now so let’s see how they do, but they’re super bright and light up really well, especially compared to stock lights that did jack s***. I had to adjust them since they were pointing way too high up and I would’ve been blinding people.

AUXITO Upgraded H11 LED Headlight Bulbs, 100W 20000lm Per Set, 600% Brighter, 6000K Cool White, Wireless H8 H9 Headlight LED Bulb, Plug and Play, Pack of 2
Amazon product ASIN B09KPL6XMP
AUXITO 9005 LED Headlight Bulbs 12000LM Per Set 6500K Xenon White Mini Size HB3 Wireless Headlight Bulb, Pack of 2
Amazon product ASIN B07WMG43QJ
For $92 bucks, I think it’s worth it to try…but I’ll update if they go out for whatever reason. lol otherwise Morimoto it’ll be.

Edit-
Just saw @Rednexus also used them. How are they holding up?
Also, Prime got them to me in 2 days!

 

[Rednexus]

Edit-
Just saw @Rednexus also used them. How are they holding up?
Also, Prime got them to me in 2 days!

I've had them since late 2020/early 2021 and they are still doing great! No issues at all and I'd get them again.

 

[rommelrommel]

Ok folks, bouncing this thread back to the top. I have a set of headlights currently torn apart to do a clean-up and repaint on. I want to upgrade the lighting while I'm at it, but I honestly don't want to pay for the $500-600 kit to retrofit the projectors, etc.

With that in mind, I've been researching bulb upgrades and the amount of (conflicting) info is downright overwhelming. Could someone offer some recent insight on my questions...?

1. Stock headlights are Halogen, correct?
2. There's a ton of conflicting info on LED's in the projector housings. Have we gotten to the point where LED's are worth using, or is it never going to work correctly in our housings?
3. If not LED's, I've seen some folks (like @iamacrestkid above) mention they've put an HID kit in. I understand this requires both bulbs and ballasts, correct? If so, it looks like that's a $200+/bulb proposition. Am I missing something?
4. Last option looks like upgraded Halogen bulbs. I've seen good reviews for the Sylvania ZXE's, but the lifespan is abysmal. Any other reccos for a simple bulb upgrade? Is it worth trying out this upgrade on the stock halogens?

Appreciate any help sorting through the noise and the reasonable info.

Yes stock are halogen H11 and 9005.

LED light bulbs will never, ever work in halogen housings. People can say it looks fine (and maybe they do) till they are blue in the face but any time you put LED (or HID) bulbs in a halogen projector or housing on a light meter they suck ass. You'll get less usable light in the spots you're supposed to have light.

The best upgrade bulbs are 9011 HIR2 bulbs in the 9005 High Beam spot - They don't draw extra wattage and the filament is still in the right spot. They're significantly brighter than 9005's due to better HIR tech.
In the low beam spot the only real option is to run a good quality H9 in the H11 spot. It does draw 10 extra watts and will run a bit hotter but not enough to damage the housings. The filament is still in the right spot. Lifespan is shorter, and overwattage H9 lifespan is very poor.

The 9011 HIR2 and H9's only require minor base trimming that you can do in a few minutes a bulb.

The 9011 Toyota bulbs are known to be Toshiba which are one of the better options, or if you have a dealer locally you may get a good price:

Amazon product ASIN B00E4SEHD0
But any 9011 HIR2 bulb should be about twice as bright in pure lumens, some of the best performers are going on triple.

 

[drowzyGX]

Seconding what @rommelrommel says. While there is a lot of conflicting info about this online…one side is objectively wrong. The projectors matter, and bulb type should be matched to the projector.

If you’re taking the time to rebuild your headlights and already have them apart, don’t waste all that good work by dropping in LED bulbs. Snag some led projectors and a bracket. You’ll be much happier with the output, and other drivers won’t be blinded by your lights.