replacement Headlights

My son has a 2005 Taco and wanted to change headlamps for some LED headlamps he found on the internet. My question for the board does anyone have any recommendations keeping cost in mind first. He's a poor lawn boy with big ideas and a limited budget.

 

Amazon and ebay

You will also see them pop up for sale on here from often.

Depending on what he wants they can be as much as $1k or as low as $200...

 

Thanks for the info. So would he be OK going with the $200.00 dollar set?

 

If you're talking about the bulbs, LED bulbs will be quite expensive for a good set. Even then they don't do a good job for high beams. Better off with a quality set of halogen bulbs that will be way cheaper.

 

Something like this?

 

In all honesty a headlight upgrade is a very poor use of money for somebody on a budget. The factory headlights are very good on these trucks. Budget headlight upgrades are going to look terrible and probably blind everybody else on the road, not a good plan when you have oncoming traffic. Nobody selling cheap headlights has the research and development capability that Toyota has and they will be inferior.

Nothing wrong with the stock replacement Sylvanias they have at the local parts store. Be careful about the "brighter" ones they sell alongside them. Compare the hours on the back of the package - last I checked the "brighter" replacement bulbs had something like 10x shorter life span.

 

Ok, you're talking about the housing. They are a crap shoot. Sometimes they are perfectly fine. Sometimes they leak and get foggy.

 

Got Spyder Halo headlights on my Taco, lighting is OK after I upgraded the bulbs to H1 Osram Nightbreaker.

 

Most of those headlight assemblies have LED halo rings or LED strips, but the bulbs in them are very cheap basic halogen bulbs. You'll want/need to upgrade the bulbs to something better to see an improvement in the light on the road.

 

Yes those are the cheaper ones you can find on Amazon and ebay with projector lenses.

If he is wanting to just upgrade the bulbs in the headlights then he should be fine with the ones he has. However many people that buy the crazy bright LED headlights have projector lenses in their headlight housings.

 

I have a set I bought used from a member here..never got around to installing

 

So I think he is more worried about the cool factor. Frustrating as a parent but I do want to encourage him to explore and do improvements to his truck.

 

If he wants a cooler but better headlight, spend a little more on some of the retrofitting vendors we have on these boards. A basic setup might run $550 or so, but don't quote me, and please vendors, don't hunt me down if that price is too low.

 

I'd consider selling mine..

 

I'm not sure it fulfills the "cool factor" but, when it comes to "FUNCTIONALITY for the buck," I like the ultimate headlight upgrade.

 

Avoid most aftermarket LED bulbs, add driving lights if he needs more light. My '05 is going to need new headlights soon as they are fogging but I'll spend the money and get Toyota again- too many reports on here of the aftermarket assemblies leaking, producing poor patterns, etc.

 

I just ordered these off Amazon last Saturday.



My stock headlights have hair line cracks on the inside and I missed my window for getting them replaced by Toyota under the TSB. These were $127.00 + tax (might not have to pay tax where you're from). The only complaint about them was some people complaining of condensation getting inside but sealing them with a bead of silicone will take care of that. There were a few reviews complaining about aiming the lights but there were more reviews that explained aiming them was not an issue and light output was comparable to OEM. My truck is magnetic grey with black accents so these will add to that styling with the black housings. I'm reusing all my bulbs from my factory lights. Might be worth looking at since your son is on a budget and imho these look better than OEM.

 

i have those same ones, look great, light output is just fine. I upgraded bulbs before the winter and these are great.

Philips 9003 CrystalVision ultra Upgrade Headlight Bulb (Pack of 2)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00480J4QY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Definetly add silicone around the seam for extra insurance. Will definetly hold you over until you decide to retro fit or maybe not even. Ive had them for 2+ years with no issues really.

 

I’m brand new here – even though I’ve been lurking for quite some time. But I have a ton of experience (both good and bad) with factory and aftermarket lighting going all the way back to 1976. Given that, let me offer my thoughts and opinions for your son’s truck.


It sounds to me like your son wants to change the headlights (not just the bulbs) in his 2005 Tacoma. That said, virtually all of the eBay stuff is junk. There are very few aftermarket headlight suppliers that can match the quality (output, pattern quality and durability) of OEM headlights. Generally speaking, you get what you pay for and although Toyota parts may be more expensive, they generally perform much better.


I would ask your son one big question: Do you want to improve the way the headlights look or the way they perform? (There’s a big difference there.) Virtually all of the eBay stuff is simply designed to look better. Performance is all over the map, but generally much worse than OEM units. (And this goes for the units that are marketed as “direct replacement / collision repair parts” too.) If you were to compare (as I have) the pattern / output of most aftermarket units side by side with OEM, you’d be astounded with the differences.


Some have mentioned various “bulb replacement” methods. Beware here too. Your OEM housings were designed for a specific type of bulb. Sure, you can buy “higher output” bulbs from some of the biggest names in the business. As has already been said here, not only is their service life significantly shorter, but the true difference in “light on the ground” is actually very small. (Unless you’re replacing a very old set of bulbs that have dimmed over time anyway.) And as for most of the plug and play HID and LED replacement bulbs out there, all you’re going to do is piss off oncoming drivers with tons of stray light / glare due to the fact that the housings were not designed for them. Of course most of them won’t last 6 months anyway.


If you want my 2 cents, if your son wants new headlights that actually perform better than the (probably oxidized) original Toyota units, either buy new Toyota units or go with a set of (admittedly expensive) HID retrofits. No matter what he does, make sure they’re aimed properly. If he wants something that “looks cool,” just buy the eBay crap. But as his father, what are you willing to let him do?