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LED Headlamps?

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headlight led
14K views 29 replies 11 participants last post by  BIG-H65 
#1 ·
After 4 years of owning my 2006 Trailblazer my passenger side head light went out. On a rainy night of all things... after weeks of none.

Any ways now I've spent the past few hours looking up how to change them, read several threads on 'the best' ones and read up on HID and problem with upgrading the stop/turn's with LEDs. Found some good info on 'the retrofit source' but all about HID really.

After all that I couldn't find a thing with true LEDs for the head lights.
Some have converted to all LED but metal halide for the mains...

About the closest I've seen is a aftermarket housing with the projector lens with LED in the description but only for the 'Halo rings'

I've always been a big fan of LEDs and decided if I had to replace any lights on my car it would be LED, too bad the first to go was the one I can't find.

Anyone have any ideas? or know of a source for them?
Thanks
 
#2 ·
#3 ·
Also as a side note, I would stay away from the HIDs. They look cool and all but come with multiple problems. I have personally had a lot of issues with the HIDs I had which in turn cost me lots of $$$. I also hear about problems with them all the time and see others problems on the road. Technology needs to progress before I put HIDs back in my TB.:nono:
 
#4 ·
I've seen those types and they only seam to be for the fog lights. Tho that one says High/Low beams in the description I don't think it has enough light output. It says it has 3 LEDs on the sides (1.5w each) and one on the end (5w) for a total of ~11watts/650Lumens... (1.5x3 + 5=11watt???) :weird:
 
#5 ·
yea that is one thing I would be worried about. Well I will say I have the Sylvania Silverstar (the most expensive ones they had a Walmart) and I love them. Great visibility, but of course not that of HID. I just looked on their website and they claim they have a light that mimics that of an HID...you could try that out..:undecided

http://www.sylvania.com/en-us/products/automotive/Pages/silverstar-zxe.aspx
 

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#6 ·
Thanks for the suggestion, but for now I guess I'll just find something cheap so I don't get a ticket...

I'm still wanting the LEDs tho. I'm not a big fan of HIDs, I don't mind the daytime running problem (a simple CL filter would fix that) but they still use heat to actually light up... SO a decent amount of waste of energy.
Not that that's a big deal now but I have plans what may make a little difference.
But the big killer for me is the warm up time. I don't want it to take 10 to 15 seconds for the light to turn on.

I do like there better life time tho years instead of months of the higher end standard halogen bulbs

Oh and I'm not looking for that 'Blue' look, more of a truer white. Even tho light should be 6500k from my DIY projector project I like just a bit warmer maybe 5500k
 
#7 ·
There are LED 9005 and 9006 bulbs available, and people here, or I guess I should say "people formerly here" have tried them. They are pretty much for looks only. They do not produce nearly enough light to project on the road. They have about the same effect as putting a candle on your dash and driving with that.

As for the problems with HID, I have mine in my TB for 4 years, never had a bulb go out and never had a problem, and I've had them for 2 years in my Taurus, and those work great too. If you truly don't want HID, you're pretty much stuck with normal incandescent. Just don't get any of the bulbs that are clearly incandescent bulbs but claim to have HID output or are over the standard 55w. You will fry the wiring in the headlight eventually, and you'll be disappointed anyways.
 
#8 ·
That's what I meant, I like that HIDs last longer then the higher brightness halogen type that last 6 months to a year and the HIDs last on the order of years.

How long does it take for your lights to warm up and be usable? And how long is the restrike time? say if your going down the road and bump the switch and turn them off and turn them back on quickly.
 
#9 ·
I really think HID is the way to go for lows and maybe fogs. There is a reason that super high end cars come with HID's. however dont know what is good and what is a waste of money. Im sure a $40 set on ebay isnt worth it but sometimes that stuff is surprisingly good. So any suggestions would be good. :undecided
 
#10 ·
Faded Headlights

I have a 2002 Trailblazer I bought used in 2003. I've made a note to myself to never buy a 1st year model of any car again. To replace a burnt out headlight, the grill has to be removed..so unless you have the ability or know someone that can do this for you, it's $99 plus the cost of the bulb! Over the past 3 years the headlights look like they have this very noticable film over them. Is there any solution other than replacing them...which would mean removing the grill!:bonk:
 
#16 ·
I have a 2002 Trailblazer I bought used in 2003. I've made a note to myself to never buy a 1st year model of any car again. To replace a burnt out headlight, the grill has to be removed..so unless you have the ability or know someone that can do this for you, it's $99 plus the cost of the bulb! Over the past 3 years the headlights look like they have this very noticable film over them. Is there any solution other than replacing them...which would mean removing the grill!:bonk:
From what I found your suppose to remove the grill and take the headlight assembly out to replace the light bulb, But... I did it this way last night...:D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UW67TwffV0M

I got these from K-Mart last night and they are pretty nice for $27.xx after tax.
At least I won't get a ticket


I went ahead and put a meter on the lights before I put them in and the stock one took 4.09A and the new Philips draw 4.59A. So 56.5w old and 63.4w for the new.

led headlamps would not be possible for our TB because the optics would have to be designed to make give the leds the proper output
you also have to take in consideration the heat produced from the individual leds

as for the plug and play led headlight bulbs, they dont have any usable output to drive at night with
like someone else said it would be like driving with a candle, they only way you can use the plug and play led bulbs on the exterior of the car is if your actually looking at it like the brake lights, turning lamps, or parking lamp or reverse, also there is one led bulb that you can use in the reverse, the led bulb has been designed with a mini projector

if you are going to go with the route of hids i will always recommed using the 35 watt kit with a relay harness and using bulbs with the color rating of 4300k to 6000k
4300K has the color of halogen bulbs
5000K has the color of sylvania silverstar or silverstar ultra
6000K has a hint of blue

if you dont want to use hids you can always get the catz zeta ballast which boost the power on the bulbs but decrease life

another option is the get HIR bulbs (these fit with a little bit of trimming on the tabs)
Yeah that's the point they have LEDs for every thing BUT the head lights.
As for the mini projector, already thinking of that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuNgkhGOWFs

I'll have to look up the info again but the LED in there can handle 100watts but it more efficient around 70 to 80. And is crazy bright. I got it off ebay from china I think. I also got a fancy 90watt LED from Mouser for the 2nd iteration of the projector.
 
#13 ·
led headlamps would not be possible for our TB because the optics would have to be designed to make give the leds the proper output
you also have to take in consideration the heat produced from the individual leds

as for the plug and play led headlight bulbs, they dont have any usable output to drive at night with
like someone else said it would be like driving with a candle, they only way you can use the plug and play led bulbs on the exterior of the car is if your actually looking at it like the brake lights, turning lamps, or parking lamp or reverse, also there is one led bulb that you can use in the reverse, the led bulb has been designed with a mini projector

if you are going to go with the route of hids i will always recommed using the 35 watt kit with a relay harness and using bulbs with the color rating of 4300k to 6000k
4300K has the color of halogen bulbs
5000K has the color of sylvania silverstar or silverstar ultra
6000K has a hint of blue

if you dont want to use hids you can always get the catz zeta ballast which boost the power on the bulbs but decrease life

another option is the get HIR bulbs (these fit with a little bit of trimming on the tabs)
 
#17 ·
I have a 04 TB and yes its a pain to take the grill off...However you dont need to take the grill off to change light bulbs..only if you want to take the headlight out.
I have a hairlinie crack on my grill from taking it off so many times...thanks to HIDs....
I agree you cant get a brighter light than the HIDs, but you must, MUST, do the necessary requirements (like removing DRL) in order for them to work properly and last a while (I did not do this...too lazy..:worried:)

Also I had Luminics bulbs and as stated above..(even though not LED) was like driving with a candlestick...Do not get!:suicide:...
 
#23 ·
Thank You!

Hello again,

Thank you so much for the helpful information, this helps a ton! I do still have the factory DRL, I haven't done a single thing to this car yet. Everything is stock. So that kit will shut off the unlock low beam thing? I didn't even notice the car did that. So, a friend mentioned something called a Brite Box? Do I need that in conjunction with theDRL Modifier kit?

Regards,

Al
 
#24 ·
Hello again,

Thank you so much for the helpful information, this helps a ton! I do still have the factory DRL, I haven't done a single thing to this car yet. Everything is stock. So that kit will shut off the unlock low beam thing? I didn't even notice the car did that. So, a friend mentioned something called a Brite Box? Do I need that in conjunction with theDRL Modifier kit?

Regards,

Al
If you have the DIC (Driver Information Center) with the buttons on the steering wheel, I think you can turn them off somehow in there, not sure how though, i don't have it. Like I mentioned, my DRL modifier from Jettt took care of all that for me. If you can get ahold of him, its only like $35 on his site, and you could hook that up and be all set when you're ready to put HID in.
 
#27 ·
880 4300K HIDs in the fog lights make a huge difference when driving on dark roads at night. Not only do they light up the road in front of you, but also projects light out to the side without causing much glare to on coming traffic. 9006 HIDs are great as long as you aim your headlights properly since the lumen produced is 3x as much as a halogen. I would also recommend going with theretrofitsource.com for HID kits. Their ballasts are solid and waterproof. Their HID kits come with a 5yr warranty as well. You definitely get what you pay for when it comes to HID kits.
 
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