LED Headlight Swap

[JBDive]

Has anyone done an LED swap of the headlights and come up with something that is actually brighter and has a good beam pattern with the stock reflector?

I was looking at some videos of the AuxBeam A2 9007 and it would seem to fit the bill.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xV10qauaeU

https://www.amazon.com/Auxbeam-Head...ight-conversion/dp/B06XKM8R4D#customerReviews

 

[tommudd]

Has anyone done an LED swap of the headlights and come up with something that is actually brighter and has a good beam pattern with the stock reflector?

I was looking at some videos of the AuxBeam A2 9007 and it would seem to fit the bill.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xV10qauaeU

https://www.amazon.com/Auxbeam-Head...ight-conversion/dp/B06XKM8R4D#customerReviews

No no no, the headlight reflectors are not designed for any LED bulbs
Some have done it and say it works but it will scatter more light than you get where you want and tick off everyone on the road
No amount of youtube/ videos/ facebook posts change any of that at all

 

[GitEmSteveDave]

So is there no true "plug and play" LED bulbs for headlights/foglights/lightbars?

Does the color temp matter? Like, does 1,000 lumen Bright White beat the natural slightly yellow tint of stock bulbs?

Do people think they are better b/c of LED traits, like totally lighting up reflectors?

 

[JBDive]

No no no, the headlight reflectors are not designed for any LED bulbs
Some have done it and say it works but it will scatter more light than you get where you want and tick off everyone on the road
No amount of youtube/ videos/ facebook posts change any of that at all

Generally I agree however these do in fact appear to do what they say. The beam pattern nearly matches 9007 stock bulbs. LEDS have come a long way in just a few years when it comes headlight bulbs vs. the basically useless things with giant heatsinks or fans from five years ago. If you look at some of the full headlight replacements like the AnzoUSA 881036 they really do "shine" with a great beam pattern and brightness. That said though, they don't fit the Liberty and $300 for a set of headlights is a bit nuts.

 

[jeeplib05]

Well I can tell you from personal experience that no HID, LED or halogen works good on a KJ.
I’ve had all three and currently running LEDs and light is still scattered like HIDs without the glare, but even expensive halogens suck
Also, you have to angle them down so far to be of any use and not blind everyone else that they then become useless
Halogen reflectors are not designed for any bulb but halogens and WILL scatter light no matter how far they’ve come or evolved over the last few years
The only way to properly run any other bulb is to have projector headlights and they are uglier than **** on these
And no, there is no 7” projector/LED JK headlight housing that will work for a KJ

Good example: my Q50S is completely LED and the headlight has ONE small LED (in a proper housing) for the high beams and is brighter, without scattered light, than any of these “plug and play” bulbs you can buy with 2+ LEDs

My .02

 

[tommudd]

Generally I agree however these do in fact appear to do what they say. The beam pattern nearly matches 9007 stock bulbs. LEDS have come a long way in just a few years when it comes headlight bulbs vs. the basically useless things with giant heatsinks or fans from five years ago. If you look at some of the full headlight replacements like the AnzoUSA 881036 they really do "shine" with a great beam pattern and brightness. That said though, they don't fit the Liberty and $300 for a set of headlights is a bit nuts.

No matter how far " they have come"
You are still dealing with a housing that was NOT designed for any other kind of bulb except the ones it cam stock with

Hate coming at any of the butt holes that run them anyways , but generally my Vision X Light Cannons pretty much let them know that they are blinding everyone else on the road .

 

[Aceofspades]

The chips in the more expensive bulbs are placed in the same locations as the filament in the oem bulbs. No issues
HIDs have hot spots and scatter. Those cheaper eBay brand ballasts flicker.
Jdm astar has a good line up for led

 

[wycowboy]

I'm running the Auxbeam A2 9007 LED bulbs in my 2000 Durango and they were a big improvement over the Sylvania Xtravision bulbs that they replaced. I realize it isn't the same vehicle and I would have the same ones in my wifes 06 Liberty but she doesn't want them. I love them however and will be putting them in other vehicles as I can.

 

[JasonJ]

Seems some of the posters here have all the answers, even if they're ones asking questions.

It's a miracle anyone posts anything at all anymore, since they are answering their own questions and debating those whom they've asked for an opinion.

 

[Aceofspades]

Well best you can do is post your “educated” opinion. Can’t change the world tho

 

[mrlavalamp]

for what its worth, I just got new LED bulbs for the headlights, and they have detailed instructions about which direction to mount them and how to orient them so they perform "better" than other leds.

Shinning at my garage door, they don't seem to throw any more light "up" than the standard bulbs did, but anything short of a true projector headlight is going to have those issues as brightness increases.

The ones I chose were by Hikari and I have used them on a few vehicles over the years and they have done well for me.

 

[JasonJ]

for what its worth, I just got new LED bulbs for the headlights, and they have detailed instructions about which direction to mount them and how to orient them so they perform "better" than other leds.

Shinning at my garage door, they don't seem to throw any more light "up" than the standard bulbs did, but anything short of a true projector headlight is going to have those issues as brightness increases.

The ones I chose were by Hikari and I have used them on a few vehicles over the years and they have done well for me.

Yeah.. the thing with LED's is that they are directional output. The hot filament in an incandescent bulb (like halogen headlights) is that they output light very nearly in a 360 degree arc, in a blob like sphereoid shape... an LED is going to output straight out from the emitter, and a bit to the sides.

So until they can make an diode emitter in anything but a flat rectangular shape, something more 3 dimensional, they will never shine right in a reflector headlight such as ours. Simply not designed for it.

NOW... there are a few bulbs out there, if you do hours and hours of research, that do output a light pattern that is very close, perhaps 85-90% of the way there, to the original halogen bulb. I would say that those do the best damn job an LED can in replicating the original beam patterns without causing glare and scattering to oncoming traffic.

But, you also pay a much higher retail price for those bulbs. And it's not a guarantee that it will be as close to the original pattern in every vehicle either.

 

[Aceofspades]

Those that i have found are called the 8th generation from the site I posted earlier. A buddy uses them in his truck.

 

[JasonJ]

Those that i have found are called the 8th generation from the site I posted earlier. A buddy uses them in his truck.

That is what I found as well. Big leap forward from their previous gen products too.

 

[GitEmSteveDave]

Yeah.. the thing with LED's is that they are directional output. The hot filament in an incandescent bulb (like halogen headlights) is that they output light very nearly in a 360 degree arc, in a blob like sphereoid shape... an LED is going to output straight out from the emitter, and a bit to the sides.

Last time I looked at incan bulbs, the tips are specifically coated with either silver or black, so they don't project forward.

Some of the LED's are the same way, Dioides on the side of the stalk, so they shine like incans.

I grew up with incan everything, and I admit I like both CFL and LED flashlights where the color is "white" instead of that dull yellar.

 

[JasonJ]

Last time I looked at incan bulbs, the tips are specifically coated with either silver or black, so they don't project forward.

Some of the LED's are the same way, Dioides on the side of the stalk, so they shine like incans.

I grew up with incan everything, and I admit I like both CFL and LED flashlights where the color is "white" instead of that dull yellar.

Right, the coated tip does create a bit of a "blindspot" I guess you'd call it.. LED's don't emit light exactly like the hotwire incans do, but the newer gen LED headlight bulbs do come damn close. Some of them, close enough.

The "white" color in LED's is kinda... I dont know how to say it.. a visual perception illusion in a way. The cool white is often blue tinted, and technically outputs less actual light then a neutral white (I prefer neutral white, roughly 5000-5200k). They appear brighter to the human eye though, since we are sensitive to those wavelengths.

It's kind of a bell curve of sorts in terms of actual light output, assuming all else is equal, such as driver current, LED bin, and the reflector design.

 

[Droptop986]

Running auxbeams I got on amazon. Nice and bright a little scatter but maybe because they are brighter than stock. The only problem is that bulbs have a fan assembly that the plastic piece that screws on to secure the bulb doesnt fit over. I wrapped a little electrical tape on the bulb to secure it better.

 

[mrlavalamp]

under the oring on the bulb base there should be a pair of little screws.

Take those out, and the oring piece will slide off and you can slide the lock ring on first and then put the plastic ring with oring back on.

This is how my old ones were at least and the auxbeam pics on amazon look EXACTLY like them. My new ones just twist 180 degrees and pop off once you get to the right spot.

The fan fit inside the lock ring just fine, both old and new, though it is a snug fit with no room to spare.

 

[jeeplib05]

I cut the plastic locking ring so it’d open up and go around the fan and then once locked it’s pressed tightly back together
No issues after about a year

 

[Droptop986]

Will try this weekend. Thank you