BEST 2nd Gen Headlights?

So thought I would throw my opinion on retrofits. I have purchased two sets in the last 4 years. Each one lasting approx. two years. The first set was OEM housing with Morimoto projectors. One projector went at the 2 year mark along with the switchback halo. The second set was a cheaper plastic housing that ended partially melting with the heat of the OEM signal bulb. Might work better if it was an LED bulb but I was never told it was a third party housing. Very soft plastic compared to OEM. That set is on the truck now and projector is gone, switchback halos on the Panamera shrouds don't work anymore on both sides.
In all fairness I off road quite a bit with a bit of rock crawling. My advice is if you go off road, save your money. Others I have spoken with that have retrofits have gone through the same thing. I'm going back to stock and try upgrading the bulbs. Retrofits don't work for me and it's a waste of money. If you're on pavement it might be better for you.
They don't stand up to the abuse of off road, very short life.

 

Where can one find a quality build with good parts for purchase? Don't really have the time to do it myself. myself.

 

Im going to be building a set within a few weeks. Bi-LED projector, black bezel and black shrouds. 2012-2015 headlights. If you’re interested.

 

^^^Wisdom.

Frankly, headlights are for illuminating the road, SAFELY. Headlights are not gee-wiz jewelry me so blingy. They affect other drivers' ability to see/not be blinded and their night vision ruined.

crashnburn80 has already performed technical analysis for the benefit of us all. Thank you, sir.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/the-ultimate-headlight-upgrade-h4-not-led-or-hid.398066/

Stop annoying everyone while wasting your money. Just put some Osram H4 Nightbreakers in your OEM housings. They are great. Don't buy blue bulbs, which are simply the wrong spectrum.

OSRAM NIGHT BREAKER 200, H4, +200% more brightness, halogen headlight lamp, 64193NB200-HCB, 12V, Duo Box (2 lamps), bianco

https://www.amazon.com/OSRAM-BREAKE...9&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY

 

Just out of curiosity, what kind of projectors were they? Was it the actual projector that failed? What made it fail?

 

The whole kit is Morimoto. Projectors are HID mini DS2. I should clear up that the bulb stopped working and not the projector itself. I swapped the ballast and igniter harness from the working side and still nothing so I'm assuming the main harness doesn't send power to the passenger side. The system, as cool as it looks, has too many variables that can malfunction. The more options you add, the more things can fail. If halos stop working then you have to remove and open up the entire headlight lens to access them. I have two sets and both are faulty in some way now. Wish I would have spent that money elsewhere on the truck now.

 

I just replaced my units with OEM - Hendricks Toyota of Apex are great for online purchases; discounts and free shipping make it my go-to parts stop.

 

There is no promised good source, it is a hack job performed by some that are more skilled than others. Done well with OEM grade components they can be an excellent option. Done poorly, event with the best components, they can be complete garbage. No guarantees. It's one of the reasons I like plug and play OEM grade upgrades that will be unbeatable in quality and reliability with outstanding performance.

 

Love my Morimoto XB Hybrid LED Headlights & Morimoto Fog Lights, 4-banger LED NCS LED Pods!

 

Yup, I just wish someone would make a decent projector system for the 2G trucks.

 

If these are plug and go that’s what I’ll go with.
Lots more I would rather spend money on!

 

Looking good. Hoping to see some good deals on these Morimoto headlights on Black Friday

 

If you wanted to downgrade from OEM performance options, sure. Wouldn’t really call that a deal though, paying more to get less performance. For 2nd gen the best plug and play option is still the ultimate headlight upgrade. Beats the Morimotos at a fraction of the price with OEM reliability and performance.

Review thread:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/the-morimoto-xb-hybrid-12-15-led-headlight-review.735867/

 

I almost went for the Morimoto headlights, decided to build my own set of lights for about 1/3 of the price!

Lights were aimed a little low here.

 

I'm aware of the "ultimate headlight upgrade" and am not interested. Yes, it's might be the brightest halogen option, but I'm not interested in the brightest upgrade available. I'm not convinced by Morimotos claims of "500% brighter", but I don't need it to be 500% brighter. I have had my truck for 9 years and OEM brightness has always been sufficient. I have seen the Morimotos in person and compared to my OEM headlamps, they're definitely brighter, just would not be ably to quantify it. Both of my headlights are hazed from the inside (only reason I'm replacing) so I would have to buy new lamps to attempt the "ultimate headlight upgrade"; I would not be satisfied in upgrading the output on hazed lamps. If there's any decent deals on the Morimotos, the cost would be similar to the halogen upgrade with new lamps.

 

Get yours buffed out and cleared by a body shop.

 

I had my lights restored by a detail shop, that's where I learned the haze/fogginess is on the inside of the lamp

 

All the quantifications are in the thread that was linked. 500% brighter is false. Color temp is poor for a Morimoto product at a very high 7000k. The Ultimate upgrade puts down superior peak intensity numbers. By every metric the best off the shelf 2nd Gen headlights are OEM plus the Ultimate upgrade. If you want a custom retro build, that is a different story, cost to do it right will be substantially more. Use OEM projectors, like Lexus RX350 D2S units, with performance Osram or Philips capsules and an OEM ballast. If you’re buying cheapo aftermarket Chinese projectors like those from Morimoto, it will not be an upgrade.

 

Then why don't you just replace your current headlight housings with new OEM units and stock bulbs? Not as bright as OEM housings with the Ultimate Headlight Upgrade, but less expensive than the Morimotos. And you even said you were happy with the output of your original headlights before they oxidized.

 

The main reason I'm replacing is because my original headlights are hazy on the inside. Optically, I'm fine with the lumens/lux put out by the OEM headlights. The change is primarily cosmetic. I dislike how much hazy headlights age an otherwise good-looking truck. Cosmetically, I prefer the look of the Morimotos. If I can get a good deal on a set of Morimotos, I'm going to go for a set. If not, I'll be replacing with OEM lamps.

If anyone has recommendations on other aftermarket headlights I'm all ears.