LED Head lights

What a guy Don,
Can't tell you how much I appreciate your help here. After the "Rise and fall of Photobucket" I'm in a learning curve of how to post pics again, after all these years.
Scott

"FIRE UP" photos:

if you haven't drunk too much of the LED purple Kool Ade, just get the silverstars, a quick and not haphazard improvement.
bumpy

DSDP Don wrote:
There is a very simple reason why LED's don't work well. They're designed to work with headlights designed to use LED's! If you look at a lot of new cars, you'll see a round lens about 2" in diameter that looks like a magnifying lens. Those are projection lenses and are designed to use LED's.

When you stick an LED inside a standard lens, it throws light in all directions, giving you a bright look, but lousy lighting. The same goes with HID. You just can't install them in any headlight.

If you want LED or HID, you have to change your lens to fit those bulbs, which is not an option on most motorhomes. Brighter Silverstar and Phillips halogen bulbs will give you some improvement in a standard lens.

If you have the 9006 style low beam bulbs (like picture below) I found a trick that helped. In the photo, you can see the coating on the tip. That tells you, it's a low beam bulb and is 35 watts. A high beam doesn't have that coating and is 55 watts. The difference between the two, is how they're "clocked". If you look at the base of the bulb below, there are three tabs. Two of the tabs are the same size and one is different. On the low beam bulb that different tab is in a different position than the high beam bulb. Consequently, the high beam won't fit in the low beam socket. I took a dremel and cut down the one of the larger tabs on the high beam bulb so that it matched the low beam configuration. I was then able to put the more powerful high beam in the low beam socket. On my Monaco, where I made this change, they also put a suspended tip in front of the low beam bulb, built into the lens, to prevent blinding oncoming traffic.

Very good point Don,
Over in a Jeep forum, there's miles and miles of headlight discussion on how bad the Jeep JK headlights are and, what folks are attempting to do about them. As I stated before, anybody with a couple of bucks can get into marketing "LED" headlights. About 98% of them are junk. A very, VERY few aftermarket versions, actually do quite well. But, per your statement about headlight housings, reflectors, and bezels being designed for LEDs, is quite true. The pictures below show the headlights that Jeep is installing, from the factory, in the 2017 and above, Rubicon, Sahara and Hardrock editions.

If you're ordering anything other than those three models, you can opt for the LED headlight option. Anyway, as you see in the pictures, there are specific projection points for the LED components.

Now, because there are so many different and older design of headlights in motor homes, including all those that were "stolen" from existing vehicles in auto/truck manufacturing, it would be impossible to re-design a headlight/housing/bezel etc. for each and every one of the older motorhomes or, even the newer ones that would accept an LED bulb. Things like Sylvania Silver Stars are only mildly brighter, if that. So much of it depends on how well a headlight is aimed and, what kind of voltage is actually AT the headlight connections.
Scott

P.S. Sorry for the dumb-a$$ picture "addresses" below but, since I cannot use Photobucket anymore, I'm linking them the only way I know how, at present.
Scott

http://www.irv2.com/photopost/uploads/42418/IMG_1548.JPG

http://www.irv2.com/photopost/uploads/42418/IMG_1549.JPG

http://www.irv2.com/photopost/uploads/42418/IMG_1550.JPG

There is a very simple reason why LED's don't work well. They're designed to work with headlights designed to use LED's! If you look at a lot of new cars, you'll see a round lens about 2" in diameter that looks like a magnifying lens. Those are projection lenses and are designed to use LED's.

When you stick an LED inside a standard lens, it throws light in all directions, giving you a bright look, but lousy lighting. The same goes with HID. You just can't install them in any headlight.

If you want LED or HID, you have to change your lens to fit those bulbs, which is not an option on most motorhomes. Brighter Silverstar and Phillips halogen bulbs will give you some improvement in a standard lens.

If you have the 9006 style low beam bulbs (like picture below) I found a trick that helped. In the photo, you can see the coating on the tip. That tells you, it's a low beam bulb and is 35 watts. A high beam doesn't have that coating and is 55 watts. The difference between the two, is how they're "clocked". If you look at the base of the bulb below, there are three tabs. Two of the tabs are the same size and one is different. On the low beam bulb that different tab is in a different position than the high beam bulb. Consequently, the high beam won't fit in the low beam socket. I took a dremel and cut down the one of the larger tabs on the high beam bulb so that it matched the low beam configuration. I was then able to put the more powerful high beam in the low beam socket. On my Monaco, where I made this change, they also put a suspended tip in front of the low beam bulb, built into the lens, to prevent blinding oncoming traffic.

The ones I mentioned above are DOT certified, which many of the cheaper ones are not. As to the cut off and even illumination, I consider them fairly good, but not great, certainly good for the price.

I have upgraded every vehicle I owned to Silverstar headlights and they are worth it is have thought about upgrading to LED's but with my current truck being a 2004 I'm not going to as the Silverstar headlights and fog lights work for me. Leds are good if properly aimed however there's a lot of people who drive with high beans on and won't turn them off almost as bad as the semi drivers running those led light bars (12+ inches) and are blinding

FIRE UP wrote:

rhagfo wrote:
I very much dislike LED headlights as they don't aim well, and tend to blind on coming drivers.
Best head lights I ever had was a set of Lucas driving lights, would work in conjunction with high beams, would light a 1/4 mile down the road, but just the road, no spread to other lanes,

I very much dislike LED headlights as they don't aim well, and tend to blind on coming drivers.

That's because you're looking at either JUNK LED headlights and, that coupled with the fact that they're not aimed correctly. There are lots of junk LED headlights out on the market. Anybody and their brother have gotten into manufacturing LED headlights in the last couple of years. A very large percentage of them are cheaply manufactured and, do not have the technology built into them that creates a well thought out LED headlight.

Jeep, as in the Wrangler version, came out with them from the factory for the year 2017. Those are some seriously bright and, well engineered headlights. They have the correct CUT OFF that is engineered into Halogens, HIDs, and others.

That "Cut-off" is what's vitally important when you have a BRIGHT headlight and, it's AIMED PROPERLY. When the headlight is aimed properly, it can be ultra bright (within legal limits) yet, not one oncoming driver will be offended.

I have a set of those '17 OEM LED headlights installed in our '15 Jeep JKUR. Those simply DESTROY the original Halogens yet, I've not been "Flashed" by any oncoming drivers, not even once, since I did the install of them, several months ago.

Anyway, to the OP or, anyone else looking for a potential LED headlight upgrade, do your due-diligence in investigation before making your choice. This is by far, one of the times that, the more you pay, the WAY HIGHER quality you'll get. The $100 or even most $200 sets of LED headlights are for the most part, pure JUNK. They're not bright, have what's called "Dead spots" in the projection of light in that, there's spots that are not covered by light and, in many cases, have little to no actual cutoff so, yes, with those you can offend oncoming drivers, just because you think you need to aim them higher, just to get light on the road. But, you're in fact, too high in the aim.

So, if you want good LED light, you're gonna have to pay.
Scott

Well you just validated my point most are not willing to spend the $$$$ to get a quality set, they buy the cheap set and blind on coming drivers.

rhagfo wrote:
I very much dislike LED headlights as they don't aim well, and tend to blind on coming drivers.
Best head lights I ever had was a set of Lucas driving lights, would work in conjunction with high beams, would light a 1/4 mile down the road, but just the road, no spread to other lanes,

I very much dislike LED headlights as they don't aim well, and tend to blind on coming drivers.

That's because you're looking at either JUNK LED headlights and, that coupled with the fact that they're not aimed correctly. There are lots of junk LED headlights out on the market. Anybody and their brother have gotten into manufacturing LED headlights in the last couple of years. A very large percentage of them are cheaply manufactured and, do not have the technology built into them that creates a well thought out LED headlight.

Jeep, as in the Wrangler version, came out with them from the factory for the year 2017. Those are some seriously bright and, well engineered headlights. They have the correct CUT OFF that is engineered into Halogens, HIDs, and others.

That "Cut-off" is what's vitally important when you have a BRIGHT headlight and, it's AIMED PROPERLY. When the headlight is aimed properly, it can be ultra bright (within legal limits) yet, not one oncoming driver will be offended.

I have a set of those '17 OEM LED headlights installed in our '15 Jeep JKUR. Those simply DESTROY the original Halogens yet, I've not been "Flashed" by any oncoming drivers, not even once, since I did the install of them, several months ago.

Anyway, to the OP or, anyone else looking for a potential LED headlight upgrade, do your due-diligence in investigation before making your choice. This is by far, one of the times that, the more you pay, the WAY HIGHER quality you'll get. The $100 or even most $200 sets of LED headlights are for the most part, pure JUNK. They're not bright, have what's called "Dead spots" in the projection of light in that, there's spots that are not covered by light and, in many cases, have little to no actual cutoff so, yes, with those you can offend oncoming drivers, just because you think you need to aim them higher, just to get light on the road. But, you're in fact, too high in the aim.

So, if you want good LED light, you're gonna have to pay.
Scott

Check and see where the headlights came from for your coach. That will help with your decision. On my Monaco coach the headlights came from a BMW 700 series automobile. These were made by Hella and are a known high quality brand of headlights. If at any time I would not be happy with the brightness, I would first look to make sure they are properly aimed, then I would insure that they are getting full voltage, and lastly I would change the bulb. I cannot imagine ever needing brighter headlights than were designed for a highway cruiser on the Autobahn.
It is usually not too difficult to find out where your specific headlight assembly is from. Find that and it may tell you what you need to do to improve your night time vision.