Truck-lite's new LED headlight for XJ's

[Glyphic]

Damn that's a lot, but it's cheaper than HIDs isn't it?

 

[Hilldweller]

these things look awesome, anyone found them for a good price yet? the best I've found is 239 ea from a local truck/trailer shop

That's a good price if it's real. I think retail is close to $600 each...

See you tonight, Stump. The lights look different than the ones pictured; I told them you weren't a "chrome guy" and they sent a subdued pair. Looks more like an evil android from Star Wars or something.
Think of it this way; it will triple the value of what you paid for the XJ...

:looser:

 

[Ben824]

Damn that's a lot, but it's cheaper than HIDs isn't it?

My Morimoto setup from TRS I got for my Jeep costs about $270 for the whole setup. So after shipping and some H4 housings to modify, the whole setup will cost roughly the same as what it would cost for ONE of the LED headlamps. The LEDs put out great lighting and are literally drop-in but you pay for that quality and ease of install. For less money and some more work you can have what I did. Which I love! I really really like the LED headlights and would have definitely bought them had I had the money. I actually passed a Wrangler running the round version of the Truck-Lites and they looked great!

Here are what mine turned out like! Some may not like the look but I like some things that are a little different and unique. I get a good amount of compliments on them. But for me the light output is hands down the best part of this and is 20 times what the stock setup is.

I told Stump that we need to get together and get some comparison shots!

 

[Hilldweller]

It needs to be pointed out that the Morimoto set-up that you have is also illegal to use on the street ----- not trying to piss on your Cherios, just want to keep the info factual.

That JKUR that you passed in Roswell with the LEDs is Chris, who'll be with us tonight.
If you'd like to come out too, we could measure the light from those flame-throwers of yours. We could see if any is getting thrown askew too.

 

[Ben824]

It needs to be pointed out that the Morimoto set-up that you have is also illegal to use on the street ----- not trying to piss on your Cherios, just want to keep the info factual.

That JKUR that you passed in Roswell with the LEDs is Chris, who'll be with us tonight.
If you'd like to come out too, we could measure the light from those flame-throwers of yours. We could see if any is getting thrown askew too.

You are correct sir they are not officially DOT approved, however I bet you and I would agree that they are far better than the drop in HID cheapo kits in Halogen housings. Where are yall meeting? If I can I would love to come by and let yall take a look and run a few tests. Maybe even help me get the aiming dialed in spot on. I have them close to what the DOT requirements are just need to fine tune a little more as I think they are a bit too low, but I figured better to be too low than too high to blind everyone coming at me.

Honestly I could have sworn the red wrangler I saw was a TJ but it was getting dark and I wasn't paying close attention until he was pretty much passing me.

 

[spitfyre]

That's a good price if it's real. I think retail is close to $600 each...

See you tonight, Stump. The lights look different than the ones pictured; I told them you weren't a "chrome guy" and they sent a subdued pair. Looks more like an evil android from Star Wars or something.
Think of it this way; it will triple the value of what you paid for the XJ...

:looser:

it's real, i was on the phone with the parts desk at a local semi trailer dealer, truck-lites dealer list shows mostly bus and truck dealers, but yea the cheapest i found online has been about 260 each, plus shipping to canada.... still not sure about pulling the trigger on the sale tho... very tempting, would love to see some output shots of those morimotos tho, I'm halfway through a projector retro on the gf's exploder

 

[Hilldweller]

Ben --- I didn't see your post 'til this morning; sorry. It would've been great for you to be out there too.

We had a good time dialing-in the lights. As it turns out, they did send chrome units for Stumpy! It looks and works great though. The TB already looks like a troll hunting vehicle and the JW Speaker LED projectors just make it look that much more serious.

The round Speaker lights we put in Jeff's 2000 TJ worked even better than Stump's 5x7 pair. That Jeep had really really bad lights and the difference was amazing.

We had a stock XJ there too, owned by Charles. He has a very old pair of Cibie H4 reflectors and old bulbs but they put out the cleanest spread of lights all night. He's going to swap to Philips Xtreme Power H4s and put in a 12gauge relayed harness and I bet his numbers come up by a good 20%.

I'll post the pictures and data when I get around to it. Suffice it to say that we had a ball with these lights. We did the tests on the straight-away at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the nicest private track I've ever seen. I definitely want to come back to it and do some hot laps in my stupid little car.

http://www.atlantamotorsportspark.net/

 

[Talyn]

Can you clarify what you saw between the leds and the cibies?

 

[Ben824]

Ben --- I didn't see your post 'til this morning; sorry. It would've been great for you to be out there too.

We had a good time dialing-in the lights. As it turns out, they did send chrome units for Stumpy! It looks and works great though. The TB already looks like a troll hunting vehicle and the JW Speaker LED projectors just make it look that much more serious.

The round Speaker lights we put in Jeff's 2000 TJ worked even better than Stump's 5x7 pair. That Jeep had really really bad lights and the difference was amazing.

We had a stock XJ there too, owned by Charles. He has a very old pair of Cibie H4 reflectors and old bulbs but they put out the cleanest spread of lights all night. He's going to swap to Philips Xtreme Power H4s and put in a 12gauge relayed harness and I bet his numbers come up by a good 20%.

I'll post the pictures and data when I get around to it. Suffice it to say that we had a ball with these lights. We did the tests on the straight-away at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the nicest private track I've ever seen. I definitely want to come back to it and do some hot laps in my stupid little car.

http://www.atlantamotorsportspark.net/

Let me know if y'all ever get together again to do some lighting testing and I will be there! My cousin also has the same setup but running 35 watt ballasts with 35 watt bulbs compared to my 55 watt ballasts with 35 watt bulbs. Would be interesting to see the difference in those as well.

 

[Hilldweller]

Can you clarify what you saw between the leds and the cibies?

The Cibies gave the most even and unblemished spread of light.

Stump's Trucklites gave a BIG wash of light with lots of foreground lighting on lowbeam and killer highbeams.
Too much foreground lighting like that is great for wheeling but can cause your pupils to constrict too much for ideal highway running at speed.

The JW Speaker LEDs had less foreground lighting, good for highway, but also less light off to the sides.

When you're evaluating lights like this, it's hard to clearly pick a "winner" because one size does not fit all.

What had the best light pattern?
Easy ---- the Cibie H4. No peaks or valleys. Perfect spread. Decent reach and that will improve with a new harness and bulbs.
But, there's the rub --- bulbs. Bulbs blow. Gotta change them, sometimes (usually) in the rain, often in the mud. If you have a prerunner or stinger, changing them is often like doing yoga. In the rain...

Which one is the best for the trail?
I'd pick the Trucklite.

Which one for a DD?
I think I'd lean toward the JW Speaker if I were going to run over 45 mph often at night.

More later. Some of the photos suck, some are good. We didn't wait long enough for night to fall for Jeff's "before" pics and they look too flattering...

 

[O-Gauge Steamer]

This is a good thread and I can personally attest to the quality of Cibie' lights as I used them on my Triumphs, both the MC and the car. They have been in the aftermarket providing lighting for the Rally crowd for multiple decades. Ever see a Cibie' Oscar?

I like the idea of the LEDs for several reasons current load being one of them With a dramatically reduced current load on the alternator, engine load is reduced and we all understand the multiple benefits of reduce engine loading.

Just wish they were not so bloody pricey. I'd have me a set of them, you betcha.

 

[Talyn]

I have the Cibies and love their output, but I am always interested in new/better ideas.

 

[Redsnake]

I have the Cibies and love their output, but I am always interested in new/better ideas.

^ Agreed... I have the Cibies but always nice to see what others have done and get those results as well.

 

[N8N_99xj]

yeah, if the LEDs come down a little in price they will be worth it as no HD wiring harness required to make 'em walk and talk due to lower current draw. Am really liking this concept. Had these been out a year ago I might be using them now but couldn't wait needed Cibies stat for winter.

 

[Hilldweller]

Speaking of amperage, Jeff's TJ is a little on the "built" side of the fence and spends much of its time in phases of readiness. When he got to the racetrack, his driver's side light was only burning at about 10% intensity. He climbed under the bonnet and fixed a faulty ground.

We started to test his headlight-shaped-toys and his lumen count began to drop instantly. I had to get him in the Jeep to rev the engine (high) to pull any recordable data.

When we swapped-out those filament lights for the JW Speaker 8700 Evolutions, there was no revving necessary. They attain full brightness at 9v, no matter how stinky that 9v is.

Jeff won the raw lumen test at 109 yards by a good measure. He beat my previous high count that was held by a pair of Hella buckets with Xtreme Power bulbs on a relayed circuit in a JKUR.

Very impressive. My motto: Function is beauty; beauty is function.

 

[CobraMarty]

What was Jeff's lighting?

 

[Hilldweller]

What was Jeff's lighting?

He had these things that he bought because he liked the integrated turn signals.

The overall performance of them was an atrocity. Light went everywhere and not much of it at that. You can't see the turn signals when the headlights are on either...

 

[dieselenthusiast]

I’m in a unique situation. I tried to order the cibies back in January/February but they were on backorder. Daniel Stern never got back to me saying they came in, so I’m still in the market for new headlights. In my case, I’m all about function. I live at 7,000 feet in the mountains and have to deal with all kinds of mule deer, elk, and unimproved roads, so good lighting is worth the cost to me.

I read every page in this thread and have learned a lot. Something that I didn’t realize is that vibrations can shorten the life of H4 bulbs. Daniel told me that the longest lasting bulb was the Narva 100/90w bulbs, Part# 48901. I live on an unimproved recreational road that I have to drive 10 miles before hitting a paved road. So here’s my question, does the lights have to be turned on in order for the vibration to shorten the life of a H4 bulb, or does the vibration impact the bulb regardless if the lights are turned on or not?

Besides vibrations, I also live in an area where temps can drop pretty low. I’ve seen -30* and a total ground accumulation of 4’ feet of snow. I really don’t want to be changing bulbs in those types of conditions when the LED’s would be more reliable.

So I’m seeing several benefits with the LED’s
1) Long lasting (long term investment)
2) Low amps (easier on the alternator, battery and engine)
3) Reliability (No need to replace the bulbs)
4) Legal
5) Sufficient light without needing to sacrifice amps, reliability, and safety.

 

[Redsnake]

^ Another thought would be if you see such cold temps and snow, would the LED's produce any (or enough) heat to keep the lights from freezing over when driving? Seems there could be trade-offs no matte which route one takes.

I truly love the idea of not having to change H4 bulbs, especially in bad weather... but I sure hate to spend that much $$ on another set of headlights since I'm currently rocking Cibies and we all know they aint cheap either.

 

[O-Gauge Steamer]

^^To that point, my Silverstars ice up. Part of Life In The High Country... Come to think of it, headlights iced over when I lived in Ohio too.

IMO, LEDs will produce very little heat. Which to my limited way of thinking, is a good thing indeed. Low heat = low current consumption = long life. Only negative I see is the bloody price.