headlight bulb recommendations

This. I bought driving lights back in the day for mine because I was driving to and from my in-laws' house at all hours of the night which isn't very well lit plus deer are abound there

 

what’s your lawyers name? I need them for my divorce

 

Just read that post. That’s legit. Thanks for doing that leg work.

edit: looks like at 2x the life it’s also 2 times the price so all you save is the 30 seconds per side to swap them

 

If you want an upgrade, buy once and cry once for a set of hid retrofits.

Did it myself, and there isn’t really anything better that’s legal or uses the same factory parameters (ie - bulb type and wattage).
Half my driving is done at night on back country roads and there really isn’t much better than you can do, than a set of hids.
If there were better options from the factory for $20 or $30, don’t you think the oem would’ve gone that way to begin with?
Absolutely they would’ve. But a REAL upgrade is above $300, that’s why they never changed over until recently.
I’m a true believer in diy, and this upgrade is within 90% or people’s grasp.

 

It was a class action lawsuit, meaning just by buying the bulbs you are eligible for compensation if you send in a proof of purchase to be included in the settlement.

 

What brand and model did you go with?

 

Don’t remember the exact kit, but it’s the one that’s recommended at TRS and Lightwerkz. (I can dig a bit if someone needs absolute confirmation)
Morimoto bulbs and ignitors, all the necessary wiring, projectors etc for a bit less than $300 shipped when they run sales.
Zero experience doing this and unfortunately my driver side unit leaked when I went through the car wash the first time, ran a bead of silicone and it’s held tight ever since.
I’ll never go back to halogen on any car I ever own from here going forward.
By far the most practical upgrade I’ve made on this truck.

 

Here again, I would disagree. Manufacturers typically look to cut production costs, high end vehicles less so. Another issue would be service life. Most of the buying public would not be happy with one year service life, but then they might not give headlight performance a second thought. For those who are concerned about it, a bulb and harness upgrade gives the best bang for the buck. Is the additional cost of an HID conversion worth the extra cost relative to the performance increase? I don't know, but the additional cost would put it out of reach for many.....

 

hey I can agree with that, $300 is a lot more than $30.

I’m just offering my experience.

I could’ve saved myself the cost of ditch lights for the back roads had I just gone hid the first time.

 

Umm... I think I have found that Sylvania SilverStar Ultra halogen H11 are MUCH brighter than stock. And throw a greater distance.

Thank you for your opinion.

 

just a joke because y'all actually won and received money from a class action lawsuit

 

The Silverstar line in general has failed to show that in court. Turns out those marketing statements of brighter than stock were comparing new Silverstars to simulating old worn out stock bulbs to make that statement valid, as all bulbs fade in output by as much as 30% by end of life. So they might look impressive when you first put them in compared to old bulbs. But you can be assured Sylvania didn't pay out $30 million cash to settle a class action lawsuit because they were actually correct in advertising the bulbs were brighter than stock. Sylvania Silverstar products produce less light than stock, due to the heavy blue filters to create whiter light which reduce output. Whiter light can seem brighter due to the color, but the actual output is less. This is very well documented, do some independent research, which is why any credible lighting sites advise avoiding Silverstar products.

 

That lawsuit was in 2011 and Sylvania agreed to change the packaging on the product. The SilverStar Ultras are much brighter and have much greater throw than the OEM halogen H11s that came with my 2020 TRD OR. I still have the old halogens and they are dim by comparison.

From BulbFacts, the SilverStar Ultras do pretty well.

 

They are going on 10 months.

 

Valid point on the date of the lawsuit. Note that sites testing is pretty flawed, though less-so for halogen. It is also worth noting that those results also do not appear to be from a projector, which favors different performance characteristics than a reflector. There is no doubt that the stock bulbs leave a lot of room for improvement but the human eye is easily tricked with whiter light appearing brighter even though that is not always the case.

 

I live somewhat in the country. No street lights on my street nor on the surrounding roads. It’s dark at night.

I can’t say the SilverStar Ultras are better than the regular Sylvania halogens because I have no experience with the regular Sylvania. That may have been the lawsuit.

But the Ultras are indeed not just brighter than the OEMs in my Tacoma the throw both forward and sideways is much superior to the OEMs.

With that said, if you are saying these other halogens are superior then I am very interested in trying them. I believe you discussed Mega-something +150?

I have read your posts about LEDs in halogen projectors and I will take your advice and stay away from such folly. It makes sense that they aren’t made for each other in terms of accurate reflection projection.

So I am gonna give my brother my Ultras and go buy some halogens that you recommend. But not the H9s. I don’t want to mod.

What’s the best H11 halogen for my Tacoma?

 

Best H11s are the Tungsram Nighthawk Xenon +120.

 

I’ll get them. Let you know something in a week or two. Thank you. I am definitely sticking with halogens on my truck. LEDs seem like a nightmare.

 

Are these bulbs for the standard harness or for the upgraded one