Tacoma Headlight Bulb Replacement Tutorial?

The master has spoken. Any questions? I didn't think so.

 

Oh there will be even if the info was up to date in his thread 20 minutes ago something will still have something to say.

 

That’s funny shit there , I lol’d

 

Yeah honestly that post shouldn't be linked anymore. The fact is the LED bulb used in the testing has no shield under it like the halogen one does, which cuts off the light. Of course it's not going to be the same. When wanting to add LEDs to my light I did a lot of research. I used bulbfacts.com a lot, which is where I really learned about the shield in the first place. When I added my LEDs in I pointed my truck at a wall and taped off the cut off lines using the stock bulb. Guess what? No glare, cut off was exactly the same. I've even parked my truck and drove next to it, still no glare.

 

Clearly you failed to follow the thread. See the linked post which you obviously did not read:

I realize some cannot be troubled to follow links and read content, so I'll repost pictures from the links for those that need them:

Philips Gen1 H4 LED


Philips Gen2 H4 LED


Stock standard OEM Osram H4 (yes this is one headlight)


The LED patterns do not maintain the crisp cut off, there is excessive light above the horizon and the cut off pattern is awful, the pattern is blotchy and inconsistent and looks nothing the OEM halogen output. (All the reasons why were explained in the previously quoted content). And that is just comparing to a stock used halogen bulb, comparing to an upgraded halogen bulb puts the LEDs to further shame. And this is from one of the most respected and credible lighting manufactures in the world. Anything less will be even worse.

I do agree I have not maintained the LEDs in halogen reflectors thread, as frankly there is so much total BS garbage on the market which are obviously flawed to anyone that understands the subject matter. Yet people are constantly drawn to idiotic statements that this special cheap Amazon/ebay/china LED must be different when it is clearly more of the same garbage from yesteryear, and people are often fooled by the foreground light, convinced that science must be wrong. I could spend a lifetime demonstrating why all those products don't work. Instead of focusing my limited time on proving products that don't work, I've invested my time in finding products that do work and report on them in the threads corresponding to their platform. This isn't done in a vacuum. If you fail to see the products you are considering in the thread, there is likely a very good reason why.

 

Worthy of note.... Awhile back, I installed some Philips LED fog bulbs in my factory halogen fog housings. When i first installed them, I noticed a VERY distinct cut off line. I thought “all good”.

But then i realized that even though the cut off was distinct and pronounced, there was “glare” (uplight) that was lighting up the trees overhead and the second floors of houses when I parked in driveways. It’s this glare that is very annoying to oncoming drivers. On a dark two lane in the country it’s beyond annoying.

So even though you see a pronounced cutoff, it doesn’t mean they’re working properly. Same applies to headlights.

 

With all due respect.....I have great admiration for folks that set out to validate claims of performance and share their results with those with like interests. But, light output, beam patterns, and height of headlamps are governed by parameters set forth by the federal government. Even factory installed LED's and halogen lamps can have different visual appearance when viewed from the drivers seat and from the front, and be totally compliant with FMVSS-108. Unless you have access to and are using a photometrics testing laboratory, and taking your light readings using SAE test protocols, then, comparing your results to current SAE test parameters, your results are little more than "shade tree" observations. As a "vehicle design engineer", I'm sure you intimately understand and adhere to the 7 step "scientific method" in your research and testing. There fore, after you collect your data, it necessarily needs to be compared against existing lighting standards as set forth by SAE. Yep, there is good stuff and bad stuff for sale in retrofit headlighting, and they all "work", some just better than others. It's apparent by the number references to your posts, that many appreciate your endeavors.

 

A lot of good information from fellow owners. I did not have a problem with blinding other drivers and the cutoff point is where it should be. I had just replaced the headlight assemblies just two weeks ago. I will admit that I am dissappointed in the BeamTech bulbs. While the light is "whiter" in hue, it is not brighter than my previous bulbs, and there appears to be some "scatter" of light. As one said, "a learning experience". Thanks to all for your responses on this subject.

 

Let us know when you get that lighting lab set up.

 

yes all the made in China H4 LEDs take all the FMVSS-108 and SAE test parameters into consideration when manufacturing their LED bulbs.

 

If you're in the position of installing LED bulbs in your vehicle, then how do you know that your particular bulb and housing combination is compliant, short of bringing it to a lab?

 

It's posts like this that will chase folks like @crashnburn80 away from TW - and I wouldn't blame him a bit if he packed up and left. I challenge you to find me one TW member who's contributed even half as much unbiased scientific analysis and data on any subject. If you do some digging, you'll find out just how much money he's got tied up in testing equipment and lighting products to test and it's a staggering amount. Does anybody else (here or anywhere else) do anything even close? Nope. Do you?

 

Staying at a Holiday Inn Express has to count for something.

 

Thanks, I needed that

 

trust me, no one here is going to chase him away, this ain't his first rodeo and his following on TW is like having his own you-tube channel. intoxicating ain't it.

 

A buddy of mine put yellow LED bulbs in the fog lights of his 4Runner. Some cheap shit from Amazon. They were crazy bright.....like uncomfortable to look at. Whether that was the nature of that particular buld or the result of the wrong type of bulb in a halogen reflector....I can't say. I'm not an expert on such things. But within 2 weeks one had burned out.