kansashogan Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 I was on another XJ/MJ site on Facebook this morning and one of the moderators was really rude and cussing like a moron to a guy about his use of LED headlights. I called him out on it and he of course cussed me and blocked me from further comment. My understanding is if you use DOT approved lights they are OK for street use without being obnoxious to other drivers. Am I correct or are they still way to bright? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 If they are D.O.T. approved they are legal for street use. Brightness is not the issue -- aiming is the issue. Too many people just pop in new headlights of a different type and then don't bother to aim them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krustyballer16 Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 Ya, DOT approved doesnt mean they don't suck and won't blind other drivers... the LED part has nothing to do with it Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minuit Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 Many of these cheap LED headlights have really terrible optics and just throw the light everywhere. Those are worth getting mad over. But there are plenty of LED headlights on the market that have safe and effective beam patterns. DOT approval doesn't automatically make them good, it just means they are approved for road use and probably means they aren't actively unsafe to everyone on the other side of the road if you bother to aim them properly, but far too many people don't. This is a good read if you haven't seen it. https://www.danielsternlighting.com/home.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kansashogan Posted February 24, 2019 Author Share Posted February 24, 2019 I thought about bringing the part about aiming up but I had already posted. I was asking because I recently installed LED headlights but I haven't been brighted once. I will have my wife drive the beater tonight and I will drive another vehicle toward her and see how bright they really are and also check the alignment on them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Driver Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 I don't even want to comment on this subject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dzimm Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 Biggest question is, do you get snow or freezing temps? Then don't even bother with LED because you won't see jack when they don't produce enough heat to melt it. Ask me how I know. High powered light conversions like H4s are brighter than the available LEDs anyway and aren't that expensive. 1 hour ago, kansashogan said: I thought about bringing the part about aiming up but I had already posted. I was asking because I recently installed LED headlights but I haven't been brighted once. I will have my wife drive the beater tonight and I will drive another vehicle toward her and see how bright they really are and also check the alignment on them. Google how to aim headlights. Its extremely easy and takes all of 5 minutes. No need to go driving around. Honestly even if the lights aren't DOT approved, it doesn't matter because no cop will ever check that. Only an inspection center would. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Driver Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 12 minutes ago, Dzimm said: Biggest question is, do you get snow or freezing temps? Then don't even bother with LED because you won't see jack when they don't produce enough heat to melt it. Ask me how I know. https://www.quadratec.com/p/jw-speaker/led-headlight-kit-heated-lenses-jeep-wrangler-yj-cherokee-xj-comanche-mj You get what you pay for, heated, not a problem. Unfortunately you give what you pay for......or rather everyone else gets what you pay for. Yeah, $600........but.............. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 53 minutes ago, Jeep Driver said: Yeah, $600........but.............. Just think how many Sylvania XtraVision bulbs you can buy for $600 ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kansashogan Posted February 24, 2019 Author Share Posted February 24, 2019 Since I only have 2wd, when the weather is crappy I drive my new 4wd pickup. I drive the Comanche nearly everyday. I gotta admit i like the dang thing. I am glad gas is cheap. And yeah I'm not paying 600 bucks for headlights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NHMJXJ Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 JW Speaker is clearly a superior product, but the price point is beyond what the average person would spend on headlights. It might be my old night eyes, but I've found that late model GM/C trucks and a few Nissan models have blinding OEM lighting. I'm sure they're DOT approved and legal, but DAMN. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete M Posted February 24, 2019 Share Posted February 24, 2019 12v relay conversion. no need for LEDs or the problems they bring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted February 25, 2019 Share Posted February 25, 2019 1 hour ago, Pete M said: 12v relay conversion. no need for LEDs or the problems they bring. Plus the Sylvania XtraVision "bulbs" I mentioned above provide more wattage (and thus more light) on low beam than the factory headlamps, as well as a longer rated life. The SilverStars are also claimed to put out more light on low beam, but if you look at the rated lamp life, the SilverStars suck and the XtraVisions knock the SilerStars out of the park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zomeizter Posted February 25, 2019 Share Posted February 25, 2019 1 hour ago, Pete M said: 12v relay conversion. no need for LEDs or the problems they bring. Agreed. At one point I considered a headlight upgrade consisting of the H4 conversion or LED with some added relays. After I began to gather the wiring and readying it for some hacking, I discovered a harness connector badly corroded as well as the connectors at the headlamps. I eliminated the harness connector by soldering all the wires and I cleaned up and tightened the headlamp connectors. Turned the lights on after the task was done and the lights were so bright I did not want/need LEDs anymore, bought some steaks and beer with the savings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kansashogan Posted February 25, 2019 Author Share Posted February 25, 2019 I already had the wiring upgrade with relays. Maybe I should have tried the ExtraVision bulbs but it's to late now. And yes, the new Gm pickups have blinding lights. I have a new Colorado and I get brighted all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete M Posted February 25, 2019 Share Posted February 25, 2019 2 minutes ago, kansashogan said: I already had the wiring upgrade with relays. Maybe I should have tried the ExtraVision bulbs but it's to late now. And yes, the new Gm pickups have blinding lights. I have a new Colorado and I get brighted all the time. try aiming them just a bit lower. My uncle's Lincoln needed his lights tweaked juuust a bit down and he was no longer blinding people. Certain years of Rangers seem prone to that too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gogmorgo Posted February 25, 2019 Share Posted February 25, 2019 There's a lot of cheap junk out there with "DOT-approved" on it, which doesn't actually meet any sort of standard. The proper US DOT indication is "DOT-compliant" (not "approved") and will always fall back on a FMVSS108, SAE, or ECE standard. That's not to say the retailer is going to display that info, but it will be available from the manufacturer, and some retailers genuinely use "dot-approved" by mistake instead of "compliant". I myself do take issue with LED headlights. Many vehicles use the highbeams at reduced voltage as DRLs, but a lot of aftermarket lights don't address that, meaning if the driver hasn't switched on headlights they'll be running highbeams and blinding traffic around dawn and dusk when the it's darker but you don't really need headlights. It's also not uncommon to install levelling kits on trucks, but no one seems to consider the need to aim the headlights back down again after that. I also find the light spectrum LEDs put out incredibly harsh even when aimed properly, destroying my night vision. I've also seen problems with some of them projecting, pretty much they'll create a big bright spot of light in front of you, but the contrast of bright light makes it tough to see things that don't fall directly in the bright spot. The solution to that is making big bright spots everywhere, but then you'll run into not being dot-compliant and blinding other drivers, so then they get sharper cutoffs which just exacerbates not being able to see outside the beams. I also suspect some LED lights will switch to low by using pulse-width modulation which I find incredibly straining on my eyes. Plus the white is nasty reflecting off snow. The "dim" factory lights on the other hand produce a more yellow wash that's easier on the eyes, less destructive to night vision, and fades out rather than having sharp cutoffs, meaning there's more illumination outside the direct beam, and you can see better. I would hope the higher-end LEDs are better, but you never know. I also have experienced people struggling to see out of vehicles and ask about getting brighter headlights, and point out that their big beautiful stereo with pretty shiny lights is blinding them, or their bright led dash lights, backlit LED screens etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dzimm Posted February 25, 2019 Share Posted February 25, 2019 14 minutes ago, gogmorgo said: I also have experienced people struggling to see out of vehicles and ask about getting brighter headlights, and point out that their big beautiful stereo with pretty shiny lights is blinding them, or their bright led dash lights, backlit LED screens etc. Yeah I made this mistake in my 97+ MJ. I like the way the instrument panel and gauges look with LED lights but it is extremely bright at night and the dimmer doesn't do much at all. I try not to drive it at night. Honestly OP, do the headlight harness upgrade for sure, it's a no brainer. If it's still not as bright as you like, upgrade the bulbs to the Sylvania ExtraVision, buy the super (wayyy overpriced) expensive LEDs with the heater, or get H4 conversions for a little more output. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted February 25, 2019 Share Posted February 25, 2019 I have the Trucklites. They have a very sharp cutoff and produce a great light pattern. Not cheap still about $300 a pair. But very high quality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Driver Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 Tonight- Typical JK A-hole, not brights but cheap LEDs. All the time round here, super annoyance, peeve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZJeff Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 I am a fan of Hella E-code lamps with their separate bulbs and the focused lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knucklehead97 Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 I loved my H4 housings and bulbs. But my Truck Lite knock-offs please me WAY more than they did. I'm a sucker for LED's, and the dark look of the Truck Lite design. I got brightlighted quite a few times when I first got them but then had my brother drive towards me with me in my Civic... And I understood. Since I hit the deer I never adjusted the aim on the headlights, the driver side was shining straight towards oncoming traffic. Fixed it and now my lights are better and less of a nuisance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now