The ultimate headlight upgrade H4 (not LED or HID)

Make sure to remove all sockets and use distilled water on the last few rinses.
I used a hair dryer and keep moving it from hole to hole. I managed to get a little dirty soapy water inside while water sanding the lenses w/ a little Dawn & water in preparation for painting w/ automotive clear. I had a body shop painter shot them for me. Turned out great but the plastic lenses have very small hair line cracks on the inside. The painter says he sees that a lot with plastic headlights, if the shop has to replace only one headlight the shop will clear the other headlight if it’s cloudy.

 

Not light related, but does anyone have trusted friends/family in Australia? I'm looking to buy/ship some wheels from there, but the Aussie companies will only ship domestically. I could use some help from the international Tacoma community.

 

I wonder if that’s company policy or some governmental restriction post-Covid.

 

There were a couple of guys over in the supercharger thread that were from down under. Maybe post in there?

 

I've got a 2005 Prerunner v6, without reading through all 202 pages has anyone figured out a good light and harness combination for the 2005-2011 2 gens? I'm super interested but I feel like I'm getting lost in the technical stats. Awesome work OP.

 

@australian hilux is a periodic contributor in the TRD/ Magnuson 4.0 Supercharger Tips, Tricks, and Mods thread. You might post there, or PM him directly.

 

The thread author keeps the first post(s) fairly updated.

Headlightservices harness, for a ground-switched harness, OEM sport headlamps, if you are in need of replacement lamp assemblies due to age or damage, Osram Rallye 100/90w H4's for maximum output (requires relay harness due to power draw) or Philips Racing Vision +200 for stock wattage best performing low-beam (with the trade-off being reduced high beam performance due to bulb envelope having some blue-tinting fornglare control of the low beam). Philips +200 does not require a relay harness, however every halogen bulb will see an improvement in performance from a relay harness, as halogen bulbs are voltage-driven.

There are some charging circuit tricks you can use to further boost headlight output (with a lifespan tradeoff, no free lunch) if you have an AGM battery, which requires a higher charging voltage.

 

Read crashes first post. All the info u need is right there.

 

Just saw that ~~GE~~ **Tungsram** Nighthawk Xenon +120 9003 bulbs are marked down to $13/pair on Amazon.

Tungsram 9003NHX/BP2 Nighthawk Xenon Automotive Bulb | Discontinued | Replacement Part 93117860

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08B8X7KRF

 

Did I miss the review or did Morimoto issue a cease-and-desist letter?

 

Thanks OP for such a useful thread, and especially for keeping the main page updated. Thanks to all the contributors too!

It seems all lighting inquiries eventually lead back to this thread on way or another. I recently got an 11 with melted DRL covers and hazy headlights and decided to start down the path of the Ultimate Upgrade.. I got a new(used) set of OEM enclosures, and I'm excited to take the next steps to upgrade the remaining parts.

Apologies if this info is buried somewhere else, but i couldn't find this or any other specific thread (that is recent and informative) on the topic of bulbs and longevity. I realized that the bulbs mentioned in this thread are optimized for output first, then longevity as a lower priority. Given that the OEM bulbs seem to last sometimes 10 years.. is there a thread on great bulb replacements from a the longevity /cost perspective? Personally i would be most happy with OEM to slightly better than OEM output that would be the longest lasting bulb or lowest cost in the long run. Note, nothing against +150 or higher outputs, I just don't want to replace bulbs every 6 months to year like I see on some Amazon reviews..

- Are there any threads of current bulbs from the perspective of optimizing longevity first and output & cost second?
- Seems like the headlights come with lifetime estimates that OP reports here but they all seem low compared to how long OEM seem to last.
- What are the OEM bulbs?

Thanks!

 

Bulb output and lifespan tend to be inverseley related, while output and cost tend to be directly related. If you're looking for longest life and lowest cost, you should probably stick with stock (60/55W) bulbs from one of the reputable manufacturer (e.g., Osram, Phillips, GE, etc).

 

Are there significant differences in terms of output and longevity between the 60/55w reputable brands you listed?

Maybe asking in a slightly different question- is there a +30 (or more) bulb made today that would have the same lifetime as the OEM (which were made using ~10-20 year old tech and manufacturing)?

I am guessing that maybe advances in the last 15 years have not been able to improve the output/lifespan relationship and that lighting advances have gone in the direction of improving LEDs?

 

OEM bulbs are intentionally lousy to provide long life at the expense of output. Since most customers consider bulb life to be the superior metric of quality. Most customers are uninformed about the differences between basic lighting and performance lighting. Most customers drive on well lit freeways and side streets.

Performance lighting has a cost in terms of longevity. Changing a bulb in a modern vehicle is perhaps a little awkward the first time, a minor hassle the second time, and easy peasy from there on out. Changing halogen bulbs on an annual basis is well worth the cost of replacement bulbs.

The best option for zero maintenance lighting is LED headlight assemblies. They are becoming the modern standard and some are very well built. I forget where we are with the Morimoto 2nd gen assembly or if it would be compatible with 2011. This option comes with a significantly higher price tag.

Changing halogen bulbs when you change your wiper inserts is a very good best practice. Why not have gear which performs optimally when you need it?

 

Bulbs are cheap, and they're also easy to replace on this vehicle. The Osram 100/90w rallye bulb is going to have a short lifespan. However Philips new Racing Vision +200 bulb is rated at a 400hr lifespan, similar to most stock/low performance 9003 bulbs. Most of the other +Focus rated 9003/H4 performance bulbs are rated for a 250hr lifespan.

Lifespan is related to both the voltage the lamp sees and how often the lamp is used. If you're someone who always turns on the low beams, you're going to get considerably less "useful lifespan" than someone who sticks to using their lights in construction zones, day time weather (rain, fog, snow etc) and at night. But two trucks with the same bulbs and the same pattern of use, the truck with the relay harness will have better headlamp performance (better color temp, better distance and width intensity by some measurable amount,etc), but the relay harness will serve to shorten the lifespan, because the bulb will see higher voltage across the soan of its use. But if that means you're spending $30 once a year vs $30 every year and a half, that seems to be a fair tradeoff.

 

FWIW I was using the Philips Racing Vision (+200) before I did my retrofit. I replaced them at about 2yrs of use with the same bulbs because I was going on a long road trip and wanted matching bulbs. I kept the old ones incase one went bad. I ran those an additional 2 years with the voltage booster mod since I have an AGM battery, which will lower the life of a bulb. After I did the retrofit I gave my old bulbs to a buddy to try on his motorcycle, which is always on, and he's been riding with one of them for a few months now. So the life expectancy on the bulbs are pretty good if you're ok with replacing them every 2-3 years ($30ish). My use is moderate I would say. 50% on during the summer and pretty much 100% on throughout the winter on a daily driver.

Also, while running high voltage my GE (now Tungsram) Megalight Ultra H11 lasted about 3 yrs and my fog lights are on all the time.

I never did an upgraded harness since I had plans to do a retrofit anyways. But there is an boost in output no matter what bulb you use by adding an upgraded harness or if you have a voltage booster for use with an AGM battery. Personally the extra light is worth it for $30ish every 2-3 years. If your want to get the harness as well, that's just an additional bonus and IMO I don't think you'll notice a large enough decrease in bulb life to justify not doing a harness. Unless you ALWAYS have your headlights on, then you may want to rethink the options or only use your headlights when needed. If you have a 2012-2015 the DRL's are pretty noticeable if being seen is a concern.

 

I am curious of long term reliability of the Morimoto housings. I know there have been a small percentage of LED projectors (ones retrofitted) that have had driver failures. There are of course many outside factors that play into that since retrofitted headlights are custom built vs Morimoto being an all in one unit and the 5 year warranty is a plus. But that's my only concern with headlights like the Morimotos. I don't think I could ever recommend Alpharex unless someone is getting the halogen ones with plans of retrofitting a different projector.

 

I got 2yrs out of a set of Osram 100/90 bulbs.

 

Someone local selling these for $100, if only they were for ‘12-‘15 models