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Headlamp upgrade, what brand should I go with?

D

dieselenthusiast

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Zuni Mountains, New Mexico
There are so many different options. I see that IPF makes a headlamp with replacement bulbs. Is this the best headlamp upgrade?
 
Hm. First thing I would do is install an upgraded headlight harness--just doing that might give you enough improvement over the wimpy harness that you wouldn't feel you need much improved lamps.

Check GoJeep's DIY harness: http://go.jeep-xj.info/HowtoHeadlightLoom.htm

I was scrounging in a salvage yard and happened to look in the engine bay of a wrecked F150--to my surprise there was a Painless headlight harness! Cost me $20 bucks at the counter, I still get tingly about it.
 
i swear these threads are like mushrooms, 1 spouts up, then the next thing you know, theres 5....


IPF housings, HID bulbs and ballasts, and the go-jeep harness. done and done
 
xcm said:
i swear these threads are like mushrooms, 1 spouts up, then the next thing you know, theres 5....


IPF housings, HID bulbs and ballasts, and the go-jeep harness. done and done
Click to expand...

LOL, and your still kind enough to answer the question. Thank you! :guitar:
 
The cheap route would be some Silverstars, I just replaced the sealed beams on my 96 for the first time with a pair and wow what a difference! they have to be twice as bright as the 14 year old originals were.
 
Hope NM is treating you and the wife good. How is that XJ coming?

I stuck a harness from Dan Stern and a set Cibies I scored at a local wrecking yard in the 98 ....huge improvment.
 
Gonepostal said:
Hope NM is treating you and the wife good. How is that XJ coming?
Click to expand...

We love it here……….. You need to make a trip down here sometime soon. The XJ is coming along just fine. I’m slowly building this thing from the ground up. I had to take a part-time job just to help pay for it all.
 
xjtrailrider said:
The cheap route would be some Silverstars, I just replaced the sealed beams on my 96 for the first time with a pair and wow what a difference! they have to be twice as bright as the 14 year old originals were.
Click to expand...

Yeah, the SilverStar’s are fairly cheap for the ‘84 - ‘01 models. Why hasn’t anybody recommend the IPF Fatboys? I thought they were the cat’s meow. :dunno:
 
dieselenthusiast said:
Thanks for the link. Are there kits already made or is this a do it yourself harness only? Not that I mind, but I wanted to explore my options.
Click to expand...

There are some super cheap harness upgrades on eBay, but the relays are crap and will need to be replaced, and occasionally they are wired up wrong.

A number of dealers in Hella and other upgrade lights sell upgrade harnesses.
 
That is what I run, and am happy with the results. One of these days I will do the harness... it is on the list of projects.

xjtrailrider said:
The cheap route would be some Silverstars, I just replaced the sealed beams on my 96 for the first time with a pair and wow what a difference! they have to be twice as bright as the 14 year old originals were.
Click to expand...
 
Go to Google, and type in "+IPF +H4 site:naxja.org" and do some reading. The more often a (non-critical repair) topic comes up, the less often people tend to respond.
 
I will PM you with with our spring plans. Send some pics of the XJ when you have time.
 
I stuck a harness from Dan Stern and a set Cibies I scored at a local wrecking yard in the 98 ....huge improvment.
Click to expand...

Cibies E-codes are top of the line along with anything from Daniel Stern.
Hella's are a close 2nd
then IPF
Autopals in that order
Silverstar bulbs are prone to burning out prematurely and don't offer much of an upgrade
EDIT to add
as joe peters mentioned adding a quality headlight harness should be the first thing you do
Quality! not ebay


GoJeep/Howto/BiXenonProjectors
 
Last edited:
Harness first. Don't do anything else until the harness is upgraded.

Best bang for the buck on housings is probably the Autopal on Ebay. There are a few discussions about these over in Modified and Street forums. Less than $30 for a pair with good bulbs and they have an excellent pattern.
 
Would someone please school me on a question I have. I really want to put HID's in my XJ and I was under the impression that the kits would draw less power. The Hi/Lo HID kits I've seen pull 35 watts, whereas our stock lights pull 55 correct? Why would I upgrade the harness to handle more power if I'm putting in a system that draws less power?

Thanks. I've wondered this for a long time.
 
I agree that a harness is the first thing that should be done. That probably increased my light output by nearly double even with the probably original Wagner sealed beams that came on the car. I was seeing around 11.5v or so at the headlight plugs with the factory harness, back to 14v once i put in a new harness. ~2v at the plug is a huge reduction in light output. I had those paired with SilverStar sealed beams and they worked very well.

I recently bought a set of Hella E-Codes through RallyLights (you can find them through Amazon). I have a set of 7" round Cibie E-Codes on another car and i think with the right wiring, bulbs and beam pattern it rivals some HID setups. I decided to go with E-Codes on the Jeep also but went with the Hella's due to them being much cheaper. The Hella E-Codes were $110 for two with bulbs installed (shipped). The Cibie's are $75 each just for the lenses.
 
98NWCherokee said:
Would someone please school me on a question I have. I really want to put HID's in my XJ and I was under the impression that the kits would draw less power. The Hi/Lo HID kits I've seen pull 35 watts, whereas our stock lights pull 55 correct? Why would I upgrade the harness to handle more power if I'm putting in a system that draws less power?

Thanks. I've wondered this for a long time.
Click to expand...
Because, the ballasts draw an initial 25k volts to power up the bulbs and is more than stock wiring can handle without problems.
The bulbs then draw only 35w.
 
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