3rd Gen HID vs LED vs Halogen H11 projector headlights

Cali_Taco I did similar and swapped my morimotos 2Stroke LEDs for the hikari ultras due to this thread, I have no regrets.

 

They were on Amazon for like half price the other day on a deal but I missed them

 

Perhaps I'll get those for low beams and then put the F16's as high beams..

 

Jeezuscrist, what is this love affair with LEDs? Obviously, you guys didn't/won't read the info contained in the thread.

I guess LEDs in a Taco is the equivalent of a fart can and massive wing on a Civic.

 

I wonder the same thing style>facts. But with as expensive as those PNP LEDs are, you can get far better output with HID (or halogen for that matter) for the same price or less.

 

Well, crash has a thread with almost 2,500 posts on it backed with some of the best science ever published on an owner forum that, from what I comprehend after actually READING the information provided, that an LED installed in a Halogen housing is inferior to the halogen bulb.

I fully understand the superiority of LEDs; I've got them in my Audi. Installing H9s in my Taco low beams vastly improved the performance of my stock housings. Crash has shown over, and over, and over again that the H9s are superior to the LEDs in the stock housing.

I'm going with the science presented here.

 

I completely agree! OEM LED headlights are really good depending on the vehicle, I think many people assume they can get the same performance from a PNP LED. All of my vehicles have a retrofit, my 2015 Tacoma was the last one as it had the best overall output of all the vehicles using Philips Racing Vision H4's.

Edit: I used the Philips H9's in my wifes 2012 ford fusion, which helped a lot. But the optics just aren't very good in that projector. Can't fix poor optics no matter how good the bulb is. I installed Morimoto EVOX-R projectors, XB55 bulbs and Hella Gen 3 ballasts. Best move ever for that car!

 

Sees post about bulb comparisons in our projectors.

LEDs determined to be inferior in our projectors by means of meticulous analysis and comparison.

Buys LEDs anyway?

I mean, you do you, but I think it's valid that your...methods come under question.

 

I've read this thread quite a bit. I've gone from H11 +130 to the Philips H9's. I understand why people are drawn to LED's. Something about the "cooler" color versus the warmer Halogens. For me I don't want to spend the money on an HID kit and have to deal with install or close to a grand on morimoto leds. If there is a drop in option I'm all for it. I'm happy with the H9's. Extremely happy when I get on the dark stretch of highway and the road is lit up. But I'm also interested in how the Hikari "Eyes of Megatron" perform and may just fork out the money to try them.

 

Just for reference. Top picture is the GE+130 H11
Bottom is the Hikari “eyes of megatron” H11
Not a very good comparison photo; but driving, the light output difference is negligible. I could be happy with either option in. I got the Hikari from Amazon for 40% off recently so gave it a try.

 

I see the draw to the color too. But for HID's it really isn't expensive unless you splurge for the XD Philips rebased bulbs plus it is superior output to halogen and LED. If you go with NHK bulbs ($30), Morimoto harness ($30) and used Hella ballasts (local U-Pull-it from an Audi A4 or A6 usually around $10-$15 ea depending on the yard) you are likely right around $100 if you want to put in a little work.

Now if you do a wire harness upgrade to 12awg wire to the Halogen bulb, that will help output as well. I'm curious if with OVTune you can play with alternator output? I noticed an upgrade in output on my 2nd gen when I went from 14.2v to 14.7v with stock wiring. I did that because I have an AGM battery so it would keep a better charge on the AGM battery.

 

Good to know. I would probably splurge. Just me lol.

40% is pretty good. If they go on sale again I will probably pick them up just to try them out myself. Otherwise I'll stick with the H9's.

 

The thing to look for when shopping for HID bulbs is to ensure it has a UV coating. Most cheaper bulbs do not have a UV coating which will start to burn the bowl of the projector as it is essentially giving the bowl a very intense sun burn. The Hella Gen 3 ballasts are amazing! Extremely fast start up, full power in about 3 seconds. I like the Denso ballasts as well but they are not water proof so you would have to find a solution for that. Plus there are far more Audi's in the junk yard than Toyota's. haha

I did forget to mention that an adapter harness would be needed to go from the D2S connector that is used on the ballast to the H11 HID bulb pigtails, thats about $10.

 

I like how people are so butthurt over how they want to customize their own vehicle. @‘19swdclboff-road I missed that sale. I want those also. I am still satisfied with what I have but it does seem like the Hikari is top dog.... for now.

Got my dad a set for his Wrangler and man what a difference on his it made. Can actually see the road now too.

 

I have my opinions about customization. They tend to shy away from dumb things. But more importantly, if I wanna be butt hurt, I'm gonna be butt hurt!

 

At that price I had a hard time passing it up. I like the color better then the halogens but the actual impact on visibility is minimal. If I could get them for the same price again I would. Otherwise the GEs are excellent for me.

 

A good bulb cannot fix a bad headlight, which is a good reason to stay away from aftermarket housings.

I have yet to see an on-board 3rd Gen solution for the AGM charge voltage. I think someone pinged OVTune about it, but I hadn't head any promising result.

The Wrangler takes H4/9003s or H13s depending on the year, the dual filament Hikaris like the H4/H13 are not the same in performance as the H11 Hikaris in a projector. The H4 Hikaris produce excessive glare and output is poor compared to a halogen upgrade, I would not recommend the Hikari H4s.

H4 Hikari left vs 100/90w Osram Superbright H4s.


Osram Superbrights left vs Hikrai H4 right

 

I'm an engineer, have read the thread, and still went with LED's

H9 = short life, higher heat, yellow light

HID = need to piece together a solution to get all of the potential and reliability out of them which costs $120+, UV damage danger, bouncing filament possibility, still a bit yellow

Hikari Ultra LED = drop in, long life, 50% brighter than stock but not too bright or blue, output looks like it could be OEM, $55 on sale, modern white color.

The Hikaris have a fair amount of early failures in the reviews so there's that. And the pattern is not as ideal as a halogen/HID solution. But it is bright enough at a distance and even in the darker zones so in total it feels brighter than stock. Especially with the fogs on. Without the fogs, there is a big dark spot in front but the fogs fill that area nicely.

And if I turn off engineer mode: subjectively, I am a bit annoyed that Toyota sold a $40k+ truck in 2019 with dim yellow headlights. Yes, they fixed this in 2020, but for those without 2020 LEDs, drop-in LED bulbs fix that.

Is it the the very best and brightest solution? No, but from a technical standpoint it's good enough and is subjectively satisfying. YMMV!

 

What kind of engineer are you?

 

Electronic systems. Not lighting - I should have made that clear! When it comes to lighting I'm just a consumer and my opinions are consumer opinions.