3rd Gen HID vs LED vs Halogen H11 projector headlights

We were referring to the high beams which are 9005s. An easy inexpensive upgrade is to run 9011s. Any quality 9011 will be an upgrade. I was running Wagner 9011s and those were great. I just wanted to find the best I could.
Your stock low beams in a 3rd gen taco would be H11s (if you have halogens). In that case, get Phillips H9s.

 

Agreed. I think the key word here is "attempt" though.

 

I'd go with the Toshiba HIRs, still available under GM's ACDelco. These have long been the go-to 9011 HIR:

$65 ACDelco GM Original Equipment HIR1 (25770739) High Beam Headlight Bulb

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000C9QPKS

LOL, yes. TRS started buying up the competition a few years ago then created a new parent company to put all its companies and brands under.

 

Try looking up mattress reviews.

 

So Wagner H11's for high, and Phillips H9's for lows. Thanks for the tip. I'll look into it.

 

I was just looking at the Tungram H11 Nighthawk H11-55 NHX Xenon's. I think they might be too blue.

 

Methadras, what vehicle do you have? You seem to be conflating 9011 and H11 bulb types.

The H11 bulb is a 55w, 1250 lumen nominal rated bulb, generally intended for low beam use.

The H9 is a suitable upgrade in some applications, because it is optically compatible. The filament is placed in the same location as an H11's filament, the bulb bases are compatible (or close enough with minor trimming), and are only a slight power draw increase, to a 65w nominal rating.

The H9 is intended as a highbeam bulb. Crash's testing shows its an effective bulb to replace the low beam H11.

The 3rd gen tacomas high beams use the H9 as it is. An H11 would be a downgrade in performance.

If you have a 5th gen 4runner, which uses 9005 bulbs for the high beams, then a 9011/HIR1 spec bulb is a suitable replacement/upgrade. The 9011 is rated to draw the same power as a 9005, 65w, but produce a rated 2300 lumens vs the 1700 for a 9005. The Toshiba HIR/9011 has been the go-to standard to measure against, but Osram/Sylvanias latest korean made 9011 is showing to be a higher performing bulb (but new, and relatively difficult to find).

Again, the H11 would not be a suitable replacement for either a 9005 or 9011.

 

@Toy_Runner I have a 2017 TRD Sport 2WD, 3rd gen. My bad, I've been steadily reading all 265 pages and it's been a lot of absorption of data, so I might have misconstrued the H-Type bulb with fittings and applications. It's just a lot of info, so if I said something wrong, please forgive the faux pas on my part. For some reason, I apparently flipped bulb types for low/high beams. Sorry about that and I thank you for the clarification in your post. I also thought that the 3rd gens use H11's as high beams. That was my error.

Also, is there a tutorial on trimming the base that you could refer to me? I can do that without issue, just need to know where to do it.

And based on my revamped understanding with your clarification, it looks like the

$11 Philips 12361B1 H9 Standard Halogen Replacement Headlight Bulb, 1 Pack

Amazon.com: Philips 12361B1 H9 Standard Halogen Replacement Headlight Bulb would be a good candidate for both low/high beams like @crashnburn80 first post suggestion. Am I correct in this?

 

It's all good man. Crash has multiple loghting threads around here. So sometimes people cross-pollinate with questions.

I don't have Crash's photo handy, but if you compare both an H11 and a H9 base, you'll see the differences. One of the outer tabs will need slightly trimmed so that its easy enough to lock into the headlamp, and one of the two tabs inside of the plug base will need removed. Alternatively, you can pop the colored plastic tab out of the wiring harness plug with a small flat bladed screwdriver and it will plug right into an unmodified plug base.

Yep, that Philips Standard H9 is the best bulb crash has tested. There are no +Focus rated H9 bulbs, unlike the plethora of different H11 options. And yes, also a great option for the highbeam.

 

No need to trim for Tacoma. Simply remove the green plastic piece and plug in H9. Rock auto has them for ~$6 each.

Also I can sell you connectors if you want the yellow center plastic and / or want to de-pin (pretty quick and easy)

There is no good reason to trim H9 bulbs for the Tacoma.

 

Correct. However the German Philips H9 is the OEM stock high beam bulb. So you only need to replace the low beam.

 

I replaced the bulbs in my ford transit work van with stock tacoma h9s. Went from the dimmest lighting I've ever (not) seen to the brightest possible because of the info here.

 

Yep, I have an IS300 that came with factory HIDs with reflectors. All of the 1st gen IS300s had these as standard.

There were a few other Lexus that had optional HIDs in reflector housings as well - late 3rd gen ES300s and 1st gen RX300s

 

I'm glad you posted! I was trying to find a photo to show everyone I wasn't crazy.

Do you have a shot at night showing the cutoff? Like against a wall or something?

 

I don’t have one currently, but can try to get one against the garage door tonight.

 

Ok here is one. This is only ~6ft from the garage door but I think shows the beam pattern. Definitely don’t get the sharp cutoff line like projectors give.

 

So what you're saying is... we can thabk Lexus for singlehandedly bringing the ricer/euro fanboi the idea they can just stick a HID burner in any ole headlamp and call it good...

Gahhh/s

Not sure what your camera setting were, but the uplight doesn't look horrible, despite all the reflective surfaces on the lower portions of the reflector bowls. Lenses look a little milky, are they original?

 

Yeah lenses are original. They got pretty oxidized and I’ve tried polishing them (previous picture with the painters tape). They’ve also got clear lamin-x on them now which might be causing them to look a little milky.

 

Personally I’d avoid films and use a UV protectant coating after polishing, even though it is a maintenance solution.