Headlight Assembly

Well, it seems like the repair work continues.

The headlights are hazed on the top half of the lens and beginning to yellow. Looking like a replacement of the assembly is in order. I guess its expected on 15 yo headlights.

I've seen several brands like Dorman, Replace, TYC and others. Which is a quality part? Who is a good source? I have poked around on RockAuto and CarID, but I'm not familiar with the brands. Prices range from $68 to over $300. There must be something in between for a good value related to quality and cost.

Not looking to upgrade to HID or anything, just remain stock.

In the past, I have "restored" hazed headlights with several hours of armstrong power using very fine wet sandpaper (2500 grit) and headlight restore compounds. Sure they work, for a while, then need to repeat.

I will poke my financial bear for the $$, so I need to keep cost in mind. Definitely, don't want a cheap POS. Willing to pay for good quality parts. They are less expensive in the long haul.

My Dad had a saying, "If you don't have time to do the job right the 1st time, then when will you have time to do the job right the 2nd time?"

 

We mostly use TYC ones where I work, never had any issues with them. I would not reccomend Dorman, we have nothing but issues with most Dorman parts. Don't really know much about other brands.

 

I ordered new ones from Rock auto and they have been great for 3-4 years now. They weren’t very much money either. Maybe $40 per side.

 

If you do some digging into @crashnburn80 threads, you'll see that he's covered this subject many times. The bottom line is that OEM is the only way to guarantee both high quality optics and resistance to moisture intrusion. With virtually all of the aftermarket housings, although you save some cash up front, unless you goober the heck out of the housings, moisture intrusion is pretty certain. As for the optics - which relate directly to where the light ends up in front of you - OEM is clearly superior.

The other way of looking at it would be to answer the question "How long did your OEM housings last?" I highly doubt any aftermarket housing will last that long.

 

This ^^^^.

 

I have had good luck with TYC light fixtures. Never experrienced any moisture or optics issues. Don't know if they will last another 15 yrs though.....LOL

 

^^^^All true^^^^ you get what you pay for. Bite the bullet and go with OEM...

 

I agree on the cheap side of things, not worth it, OEM will run 704 plus tax where I am. Alpha Rex makes an amazing headlight for about the same coin, much better optics then stock.

 

The OEM option has been considered, but it is beyond the budget.

TYC seems to be a well regarded brand. So, I'll be taking a serious look at TYC.

Not too concerned about the truck lasting another 15 years. I'll likely be nothing but ashes by then.

Thanks guys.

 

Thank you for the cautionary thoughts.

Although, not to be critical, your experience is a bit hollow. You don't recall the brand you used. Nothing about any bulb changes to different wattage. Recall on aftermarket items are pretty rare.

Also my statement of "....I'll be taking a serious look at TYC.", implies more investigation will occur before purchase.

Wish you a great day.

 

No, they rebadge garbage
they may look cool, but they in no way meet DOT requirements

 

Deleted hollow post.

 

I have a 09 Tacoma that's all stock. Im getting ready to replace the aftermarket headlight assembly with OEM headlights. I wanted the smoked lenses that came on the truck and the aftermarket headlight were not smoked. The headlights are in great shape and I would be willing to sell them to you if you are interested. Send me a message and we can talk about it.

 

I got the $38.00 headlights from RockAuto. One year later and they are still perfect.

 

No.

 

Not sure which one you received, but the ones I have bought in the past are an excellent product. And yes, they meet D.O.T requirements

 

My $38 Rockauto headlights. Passenger side one year old, drives side one week old.

 

Congratulations. They look good. Personally though, I'm more concerned with how they perform. You should have seen the light pattern difference of a set of cheap Chinese headlights a friend of mine installed in his Tacoma. (They too came from RockAuto.) Absolutely whacked out pattern compared to what was left of his OEM lights. He quickly coughed up for a set of OEM. As long as you're happy though.

BTW, Why is one older than the other?

 

One of the main reasons I replaced my headlights was the hazing of the plastic. I had noticed that the usable light on the road was diminished.

After I replaced them with the $38 rock auto assemblies, the difference was incredible. I also use the bright bulbs from Napa. Occasionally someone will flash their high beams at me but it’s not very often at all. So I believe that the patterns are pretty good but not obnoxious.