LED Lighting Conversion

I thought I read somewhere, maybe in this thread, it is closer to 3500 lumens. One of these guys knows.

 

I know, I know. I just came to share the new TRS real LED headlight solution, and that I actually bought the right LEDs this time for a 3rd gen.

But then there were more alternative facts again, which cause people to be confused. FWIW, the way a halogen headlight assembly works is smaller more precise light sources equal better focused hot spots for increased distance projection. The differences can be tiny to make a huge impact, compare a standard bulb and a +130 bulb side by side and you will see the +130 filament is slightly smaller and tighter wound, which gives it the ability to project light 130% further. We are talking fractions of millimeters. So putting a light source in that is several millimeters in the wrong direction (LEDs) reduces the ability to throw light and leads to increased foreground light, misleading people’s perception. This is in addition to the projection losses from not lighting the internal projector entirely.

So no, I’m not trying to be a jerk. This is basic science facts of how headligts work and I am just correcting misinformation.

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming of LEDs.

 

The TRD H11 fogs are 1350 lumens per side.

Note that LEDs cite raw lumens, not actual, and they list their lumens as a pair to get a higher value vs individual. Raw to actual will be near half or less.

So a 5000 raw lumen LED set, is really 2500 raw lumens per side, which is about 1250 actual lumens. But that of course depends on if they are giving you real values to begin with, many Chinese LED manufacturers drastically overstate their specs for increased sales, and it works to mislead buyers. Higher quality and reputable brand is going to be more important than higher misleading LED spec.

 

Thanks for the feed back..and ya sorting out specs vs quality and reputation of brand is a task in itself!!

 

Does anyone offer a kit with all the interior LED’s needed?

 

Did you ever get a chance to secure one of the new Hikari LED bulbs (an H11 with the Philips LEDs)? From what everone else is saying, it's noticably better than older Hikari with the CREE LEDs. I ask because when you do your test with the 3rd gen, I don't think your test would be doing much justice if you are only using a mediocre bulb. Also, do you plan to test it with any HIDs too? I know it's probably not the intent of your test (LED vs Halogen in a 3rd gen I'm assuming), but I'm curious how they compare.


Sweet thread you linked to!! I've been curious to see if @mesojdm will ever create his quad bi-xenon headlights idea...maybe if he see's this link, he'll get the bug and decide to pitch in.

 

I'm already building them

 

lol, I just saw page 2 of that thread and saw that you've been sharing in there!

 

So I think this may be the right thread to ask this, I’m considering LED headlights myself and would love to get new headlight casing overall. However, what about the legal aspect of these? I can’t stand the regular bulbs that constantly burn out and throw insufficient light, but I’ve been pulled over for my ditch lights/ deer lights and my fog light bar because they there weren’t covered with an “opaque” shield.

So if I go and spend all this time and money retrofitting a housing and putting in LED bulbs, or whatever, and it ends up looking awesome 1) can I get pulled over and ticketed? And 2) what’s the whole liability/ insurance/ legal situation?

If there’s an accident, does insurance cover you with aftermarket lighting installed with lights like that? (LED bulbs, halos, projectors, etc) Could you get sued? I mean really, these are the types of questions you’ve got to start asking once you want to do these
Mods but have kids and a house and all that...

 

Welcome! I see this is your first post!

Yes there is "LEDPartsNow"...I am assuming you have a 3rd generation if you're posting in here? If not, don't worry, this same company offers 2nd gen kits too.
http://www.ledpartsnow.com/16uptacoma/

They are also on Amazon (same company) for a few bucks less to stay competitive:

LEDpartsNow Interior LED Lights Replacement for 2016-2019 Toyota Tacoma Truck Accessories Package Kit (9 Bulbs), WHITE

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AT5AR1M?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

Yep, that is what I meant earlier, the new Hikari H11 w/ Philips LEDs are on the way.

I'll actually test out, stock vs LED vs 35w HID vs H9 Halogen as a lighting platform comparison.

 

Looking forward to it!

 

Sweet! That's awesome!!

 

{sorry for the delay, I'm doing this at work and have had to come back to it a couple times}

I'm just busting your balls. I mean, this is a free country and free forum and no one encourages freedom of speech more than me. And trust me, if I thought you were a jerk, I would not hide behind anything, I would just say it. Now, with that said, I understand your willingness to participate here because this is a great thread. You are obviously into this subject as much as any of us so there's no reason for anyone to discourage you from posting, myself included. Who knows, we may just learn something new. If you thought you couldn't help us you wouldn't be here.

Buuuut, and this is just my opinion, I think the overwhelming evidence gathered and presented here is more than favorable, and completely acceptable for the money we've invested. If we were spending in the $200 dollar range then I would be all ears. So please don't confuse our (mine especially) enthusiasm for anything but enthusiasm. It's natural for anyone, myself included, to get excited after spending so much time in this thread, looking at the before and after photos, trying to determine if it's the best option for them, and then, finally, and this really hits home for me, making the commitment to spend as much money as we are on these bulbs. Or as in my and others case's, entirely new housings, with bulbs. And I'll say this again, coming along and telling someone that they are "confused" or that "your information is correcting theirs", after all that work they have put in is a little disheartening to say the least. Of course some people are gonna not be pleasant and not accept that. Again, it's their choice, they are adults. It honestly doesn't bug me.

Want to change our minds though? Seriously? Buy me or anyone other Doubting Thomas in the thread what you think are the best LEDs and if we feel they are great we'll say so. Simple as that. Otherwise I think we are all good. All the discrepancies you are point out about the leds we are choosing are your opinion and could bee 100% based on your knowledge of what you were taught. For us, it's more of a we know what it used to look like and we know what it looks like now and now looks better. Essentially, if it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, chances are, it's a duck.

But hey, you can most certainly present more data, we have said we welcome that from you. And you may even get some people to say "ahhh, yea, you were right". I would too. I am not a jerk either. Proof is proof. No one will deny it. But at this point you will have to buy what everyone else is buying and use that as the comparison to what you say is better, at least to prove it to me. Unless you do that, and can prove that your new leds are visibly better when compared to the oem halogens to what others are installing now, myself included, I doubt very much anyone is going to just says "Ahh, F it, let's buy all new bulbs" just because you say so.

And yes, I can doctor up any photo result and increase the ISO, even on my phone, and take pictures that make a candle look brighter than the LEDs I and others have bought but I won't and I doubt very much, no, I'd be willing to bet, none of the other guys are doing that either. I don't think you would either but you obviously know it's possible.

I honestly look forward to you trying to prove us wrong. It's sorta like one of my favorite tv programs, Mythbusters. Do it, bust our myth.

Rob

 

Unfortunately, a lot of that will come down to the state law where you live...which means it will be a different answer for all of us.

Insurance will have to cover you as long as your are not violating any codes or laws. So if the headlights meet or exceed the codes/standards for automotive lighting AND they don't violate any of the state laws, then you're insurance would have to cover you (or risk being sued by you).

 

Well put Rob.

 

I won't say anything if you don't Drew...I mean when was the last time someone even thought to go after light's (unless they were off and you hit someone or something and there is a witness or proof to say they were off)...not often. You're right, but this scenario is far and few in between, very rare I would say.

 

Thank you Jay. I just don't want anyone to think I am narrow minded and not willing to be educated. I could have easily said F Off, or who cares what you think/say, but neither would have been constructive or contributed to the well being of the thread/forum. I enjoy this place a lot and take a lot away from it. I try to give back when I can.

 

You've been of great help to me, I'll tell you that much. There is a lot of mutual respect in this forum which I attribute to a more mature crowd, as opposed to say a Honda Civic forum in the early 2000s...that was a circus-$hit-show-act...worthy of putting Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey out of business...oh wait, scratch that. I think it did.

 

Regardless of anyone elses' opinion, expert or not, I can say that, with night vision issues, I can absolutely see better at night with my Hikari bulbs. Others can perform any testing they want but the lights passed the only test that matters to me. The night driving test. You can be assured that, if these bulbs did not improve my night vision, they would have been removed immediately.