3rd Gen HID vs LED vs Halogen H11 projector headlights

Thanks for all your work @crashnburn80. This is by far one of the best threads on here.

 

@crashnburn80 still loving the functionality of the GF +130 that I have in from this forum.

Question: What are your thoughts pros vs cons on the Lightwerkz RX350 retrofits that people are doing? Seems more comprehensive than other HID swaps which I would venture to guess is a better finished product and longevity of use? Or is is just the same issues that someone would have with an HID application?

https://www.lightwerkz.net/index.php/bi-xenon-lexus-rx350-sti-r-projectors.html

 

RX350 projectors are regarded as some of the best projectors out there and they are an OEM Toyota product. Unlike using HIDs in halogen projectors, those are actually correctly designed to run HIDs, control the uplight and utilize proper OEM grade D2S bulbs like factory HIDs. Meaning you can get a 100% German made bulb by high quality brands like Osram and Philips, the same that would go into an OEM equipped HID vehicle. None of this rebasing an HID capsule to a halogen bulb base, which no reputable brands do. Pair the setup with quality Toyota Denso 35w ballasts and you have some pretty solid components. Having quality components is important but of course the quality of work by the retrofitter matters to. Did they use a quality OEM assembly, how accurate the projectors are placed, are they level, and how well the unit is sealed. Lower quality assemblies often have adjustment issues, can have play in the lenses, and can have early lens hazing. Retrofits like drop in LEDs are not legal. But it is certainly a better way to go about running HIDs than using a rebased HID bulb in a halogen projector assembly.

 

I've never taken apart a projector assembly before, but what are the chances swapping the projector portion is easy?

 

Thats great information, the kit itself seems relatively cheap Im curious what the cost would be to install. I guess follow up question would be

1. If they are street legal for the RX350 does that automatically make them legal when paired with a Toyota or is the street legal aspect tied to a specific vehicle?
2. Why would someone buy this lightwerkz setup as opposed to dropping into a Lexus parts dept. (appears to be OEM)? Assumption is that it's hard to find based on age?
3. This would only solve the low beams and it would still would be a more visual transition from cooler to warmer if you were going back and forth with the highs and the lows? Think thats how it was on the RX's t00.

 

Meso and others have taken it on with posting of detailed steps.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/3rd-gen-bhlm-retrofit-projector.429820/

https://thetrailhunters.com/diy/toyota-tacoma-hid-projector-retrofit-and-bhlm-diy/

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/hid-projector-retrofit-and-bhlm-diy.589360/

 

You left out a major factor, but I got your back.

I'm very happy to see the Hikari's performed as well as they did in your testing so far. Otherwise I'd have been really sad about ordering them before I saw the results. Lol. They should be on my doorstep any moment now.

Thanks for the reassurance that I didn't make too terrible a mistake. Now it's just a matter of whether or not they last as long as an LED should.

 

So you argued the fact that not all LED's were created equal having us thinking you already had some sweet LED's installed but really you were just waiting for crash to test some that meet your standard. LOL i see what you did there.

 

Reflection of my Nokya Hyper yellow H9s and Amber Morimoto fogs.

 

After reading some of this info... I’m thinking of taking the LED’s out in the winter in favor of the stock bulbs.

My cheap LED’s are fine in the summer and I live in the city so there is plenty of illumination at night. I just don’t have enough confidence in the winter that they can penetrate through moderate snow fall and would light up the snow flakes instead of the road.

 

1. No. The Rx350 headlight assembly as a whole factory unit is street legal. Individual components are not.
2. If you go to the dealer you'll likely have to buy the entire headlight assembly which will be very expensive. Recall these are not intended to be serviceable. Yes, people bake them and pry them apart and then reseal them, but that was never any OEMs intention or approved procedure.
3. B-Xenon means the low beam projector light shield is dropable, so the single HID projector functions as both low and high. Installed in a 3rd Gen with a separate high beam, you could then have dual high beams.

 

Well, I have some on my mustang that are the same brand, and I believe have similar array dimensions. Those are the cheap versions, though. I was planning to wait to see the results on the Ultra version, but my impulses got the better of me. I had a hunch they were gonna do well from everything else I've seen on them.

 

The cheap version is terrible. I’ve tried those too, the emitter distance is much larger by comparison. The Ultra version is light years better.

 

Has anybody tried these?

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B07RTSR691/?coliid=I358RPR55SC3R4&colid=3H3GMA442WF4X&psc=1

 

That is a very dated old design that doesn’t work and produces awful glare. Remember the key to making LEDs work correctly is to make them as small as possible to get the optical geometry and focus as close to correct as possible. That design is very large and while the ‘360’ concept seems reasonable at first, the light origination point is off center in many many directions leading to no focus. The opposing LEDs on a blade design that has become the standard is a much better design.

 

They're a huge improvement over the stock bulbs, and will (theoretically) last a lot longer than a high performance halogen. That's all I was looking for in the Mustang (9004 bulb) that I drive only a few times a month. That said, I would not recommend them in any higher end application. They're merely adequate, even with my low performance demands in the Mustang. They aren't nearly as bright as other options with 9600 claimed lumens between 24 emitters (assuming the ad makers count both high/low, which I'm sure they do). That's 400 max lumens each emitter, which is tragically low for an LED. As we all know by now, actual usable output isn't calculated simply by adding each emitter's max output. That combined with the emitter distance is why I opted for the better bulbs in the Taco.

 

Good to know thanks

 

Good information as always, thanks @crashnburn80

 

No but these work great https://www.amazon.com/BEAMTECH-Hea...ds=h11+led&qid=1570718596&s=automotive&sr=1-4

 

Are those plug and play on a 3rd gen Taco?