Headlight upgrades for older vehicles

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Nov 29, 2009
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So what is the latest type of headlight these days? It's my understanding that as long as you have clear lenses, you can add upgraded bulbs. Honestly I can't believe they don't have a limit to hpw bright headlights can be and I'm not sure if I'm just being blinded all the time by other vehicles or if it's my outdated oem headlights that make it hard to see. Probably both
 
Are we talking upgrades for old sealed beam headlights, or LED retrofit kits for stuff made in the last 30+ years, or...?
I guess retrofit kits. I have one vehicle that's an 07 and a 99 both dodge rams with oem headlight assemblies
 
It's not just the lens getting cloudy that weakens old headlights. The reflective coating in the back is also vital. If the reflector is degraded, you can put the brightest bulb you can find in and have it light up, but the assembly won't throw the light down the road effectively.

There are a lot of rules about headlights.
 
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I think nowadays I’d rather buy a cheap Chinese Amazon/eBay aftermarket assembly with actual projectors in it vs doing anything with a reflector beam headlight - like installing LED headlamp bulbs.

Make sure you aim them down sufficiently.
 
I think nowadays I’d rather buy a cheap Chinese Amazon/eBay aftermarket assembly with actual projectors in it vs doing anything with a reflector beam headlight - like installing LED headlamp bulbs.

Make sure you aim them down sufficiently.
That's what I did, bought a whole new assembly and it's still just as bad as the cloudy lenses. I just roll around with my brights on to compete with everyone else blinding me
 
Beamtech makes some very good LED replacement bulbs. The ones they offer with adjustable "clocking" will not blind oncoming drivers. The LED placement is exact, and correct. And the clock position can be adjusted for the unique properties of left and right reflectors.

Also of note, there are a few LED "HID" replacement kits. In other words, the HID is removed and a more stable LED is installed. Performance is identical.

 
I have cheap hyper white halogens from eBay motors both hi and low beams in my rogue and wife’s Sentra. I’ve tried LED however the housings are not designed and have a sporadic beam pattern which just blinds oncoming drivers and doesn’t put much light down the roadway the hyper white halogens work much better. I stuck with oe wattage to prevent any wiring from overheating.
 
I have cheap hyper white halogens from eBay motors both hi and low beams in my rogue and wife’s Sentra. I’ve tried LED however the housings are not designed and have a sporadic beam pattern which just blinds oncoming drivers and doesn’t put much light down the roadway the hyper white halogens work much better. I stuck with oe wattage to prevent any wiring from overheating.
That's probably what all these people do, hence why every headlight looks like a bright star in the sky
 
I have no solutions to add here, but i do agree that it seems as though there‘s a new car race to have the the “brightest, most annoying headlights”. It’s not just you, OP. Also experiencing that more and more people are riding around with high beams on all the time and/or not dimming for oncoming traffic. More folks driving trucks/CUVs/SUVs with higher headlight placememt exacerbates the issue.

On the other hand, i used to work in an auto parts store in the 80’s. At that time halogen sealed beams were becoming more common vs. plain old incandescent sealed beams (which were just a bit better than a candle). I recall a lot of customers complaining about how bright the halogen sealed beams were and how blinding they were. :LOL: . It was all relative, i guess.
 
I have no solutions to add here, but i do agree that it seems as though there‘s a new car race to have the the “brightest, most annoying headlights”. It’s not just you, OP. Also experiencing that more and more people are riding around with high beams on all the time and/or not dimming for oncoming traffic. More folks driving trucks/CUVs/SUVs with higher headlight placememt exacerbates the issue.

On the other hand, i used to work in an auto parts store in the 80’s. At that time halogen sealed beams were becoming more common vs. plain old incandescent sealed beams (which were just a bit better than a candle). I recall a lot of customers complaining about how bright the halogen sealed beams were and how blinding they were. :LOL: . It was all relative, i guess.
Well I don't think anything is sealed. On my dodge you just twist the bulb from the backside like 90 degrees and pull it out.
 
I ran 100w high beams in my wife's car for years. There was a spot light bulb that was the same as her cars high beam bulb. So a little rewiring and we had 100w each high beams being powered straight off the alternator through a relay.
The low beams had their own bulb plus separate housings and remained completely stock.
 
Well I don't think anything is sealed. On my dodge you just twist the bulb from the backside like 90 degrees and pull it out.
On our dodge Dakota the headlights were bad so I got new stock style light assembies, tossed the original 24 year old fogged/frosted head lights. I aimed them so the headlights do not light up reflectors on the neighbors mail box from 200ft away. We can see perfect at night even with the cheap no name bulbs that came with the light assembies.
 
I guess retrofit kits. I have one vehicle that's an 07 and a 99 both dodge rams with oem headlight assemblies
Hidplanet There are a few people on there that will retrofit your halogen headlamp assemblies with oem hid components. They may do that with led as well.
 
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