Gy6.35 HIR 921 reverse light upgrade (vs high power LEDs)

I bought a lot of 4, but that lot of 3 was a crazy steal, and at 4000 hour bulb life that is a lot of time to spend in reverse.

 

Another perfect lighting mod Crash. I can not believe how much better/brighter they are. It's like looking at a lit up Football stadium now in my screen. Much better. Like ten times better.

Good work and thanks as always sir.

 

Have you found this on any other website? This link is sold out.

 

The previous version "EcoVantage" Philips HIRs were discontinued a while back and are no longer available. I found that link of someone selling off a lot and posted it for anyone interested.

The new version "EcoBoost" Philips HIRs (seems unlikely to have that name in the USA) are available out of the EU. I ordered mine from the UK. Ordering 2 bulbs will be about $25 from ebay here. Which isn't much different than the cost LEDs but will significantly outperform them, while having a very long bulb life.

 

Thanks, went ahead and ordered mine.

 

Just wanted to post my experience with the upgrade. First off, thanks to crashnburn80 for all his help, second, what a difference!! I haven't used them in an off-road situation or anything where brighter will be a huge advantage but even in my backup cam at night it's much clearer. Not sure if the bulbs I got are slightly different than the ones crash originally listed or not but I needed to use a Dremel (after monkeying with it and getting frustrated after attempting to implement alternative 'solutions') to slightly narrow the shoulders of the bulb to get it to slide in. Used a standard metal file/flat edge cylindrical sanding drum bit with medium speed and light pressure, took about 30 seconds of sanding for each bulb while being very careful. Super easy. After that, install went as easy as possible, plug in, test, reinstall, bolt back up! E-Z P-Z.
Stock:


Results:

 

I busted my tailight and installed a 35w halogen today. These are not the ones recommended in this thread. hopefully the 30w ones that are the subject of this thread will be in stock at the local hardware store soon.

 

My first one went in easy, the 2nd was more of a hassle. I spred the prongs so they barely fit at a 45 degree angle where the prongs are going to opposite corners. Once the prongs were in I rotated the bulbs square and inserted them in.

Not sure when they will be available domestically, though I suspect soon. But they are available for only a few bucks more internationally in the link I posted.

 

Not sure what I'm doing wrong, but I cannot seat the bulbs tightly enough to satisfy me. No matter how far I spread the pins, the bulbs have too much play in the sockets for my taste.

I'm left with 5 (new/unopened) and 1 (opened but unused, handled only with latex glove) bulbs I'll never use. Let me know if you're interested in any of them at $6/ea, shipped within CONUS...

 

Bummer. You could try to Dremel the bulb edge like @TacoTueEveryday did, so the bulb base itself is held in by the metal clips inside the 921 socket instead of just relying on the prongs. He said took 30 seconds per bulb.

If this is the bulb prongs -- and this is the socket [ ] I bent mine so it would not fit inside the socket [-]- and had to be inserted into the socket at an angle like [/] then once in rotated to [--] in order to be secure. It is admittedly not as tight as the stock 921.

 

been rocking standard gy6 35w bulbs for quite some time and love them. SIGNIFICANTLY better than stock. But these HIR bulbs might be just the next lil jump in rear light output i have been looking for.

Are there any new ebay links for these bulbs?

Crash, thanks for the awesome write up, love your style, keep it factory looking and operating, make it better.

 

Thanks! The eBay link in the original post is still good for ordering from the U.K. I haven't seen them domestically yet. But try PMing @Norton as he was selling some of the IR bulbs for less a few posts up in this thread.

 

All bulbs just sold to a TW member hoping fitment is better for him than it was for me. Good luck to all others looking for them!

 

Nice mod, I'll have to try this one

 

Hi all. Just wanted to let you know I've completed this mod. Got the bulbs on

Philips 12v 50w GY6.35 Essential Clear Halogen Capsule Light Bulbs (Pack of 5)

Amazon pack of 5 for 15 bucks. I didn't want to mess with sanding etc..and the base of the bulb it a bit wider than the socket so I just bent the wires out a bit so they made solid contact with the sides of the socket and "cemented" them in with

$10 Permatex 81160 High-Temp Red RTV Silicone Gasket, 3 oz

high temp gasket and it works like a charm. Great thing is if they burn out you just remove them and re-gasket! Sorry I don't have pics but these are like having your low beam on in the back of the truck. Brighter than my LED ditch lights for sure! Many thanks to @crashnburn80 for the mod. Next I'm waiting for my HL282 SMS upgrade!!

 

I bet those are bright as heck 'cause you used 50w halogens rather than the OP recommendation of 30w. This may exceed the amp rating of the circuit, something to consider.

 

Yes. I was concerned with this as well I left them on for 10 minutes outside the enclosure and they get HOT but the wires stayed cool. Didn't see any issues with blown fuses etc.. I would recommend not keeping them burning for more than a few minutes inside the enclosure but I don't do that much backing up so the light output is worth the risk for me.

 

The OG reverse bulbs upgrade (886 mod) https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/886-backup-light-mod.209578/ used 50w bulbs. There were a few reports of melted housings but all in all I believe there are hundreds if not thousands of trucks running a 50w bulb. If I remember correctly there may be an issue if one is towing as combing the 50w with the reverse circuit in the tow plug exceeds the amp rating. Could be wrong about this however. Just wanted to point out the bulbs you used are not the ones that are the subject of this thread.

 

Thanks very much for that!

 

The 30w HIRs are the exact same lumen output as the 50w halogens, just are significantly more efficient. The HIR gy6.35 produces 750 lumens and draws 30w while performing equivalent to the 50w halogen that also producs 750 lumens, making the HIR the clear winning choice. I would not recommend the 50w halogens due to heat and current draw.

As others mentioned there have been cases of melted housings with the 886 50w mod. The backup light circuit is combined with the tow circuit and I believe rated at 10amps. Running 100w through the circuit in reverse will likely cause the circuit to overload if towing as you are already using about 8 of 10 available amps before any other demands from the trailer, when the backup lights are intended to use 3 amps.

Is is less than $30 for 2 HIRs shipped from the link I posted, with a bulb life of 4000 hours (that will last a while for reverse lights). While others have done it, I don't see saving a few dollars on cheaper 50w halogen bulbs worth the risk of damaging the tail lights and effectively disabling the ability to utilize the tow circuit for towing.