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mob (banned)
On the next level..
join:2000-10-07
San Jose, CA

mob (banned) to DSL987

Member

to DSL987

Re: LED headlights

A quick look shows your truck could potentially use these - your truck looks like it takes an H13 style bulb. Your mileage may vary.

south1178
Premium Member
join:2001-12-17
Cleveland, OH

south1178 to DSL987

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to DSL987
said by DSL987:

Would be nice to have a set of these for my 2004 Ford F150 Heritage, but they don't seem to make any for that model

»www.stage3motorsports.co ··· hts.html Can see if these might.
mob (banned)
On the next level..
join:2000-10-07
San Jose, CA

mob (banned)

Member

I don't think you would need to replace the housing assembly, honestly.
Kearnstd
Space Elf
Premium Member
join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ

Kearnstd to mob

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to mob
There is some trade thing with a long name I believe that could kill the DOT rule. Its an effort to normalize standards for cars between the EU and US to allow for more simplistic trade and less need for completely different car standards.
fixrman
From a broken heart to a hole in the sky
Premium Member
join:2003-02-10
Hatboro, PA
·Verizon FiOS

fixrman

Premium Member

Since the DOT doesn't make rules - the Feds do - the "DOT rule" does not apply. DOT certification is self-certification. DOT does not test, nor do they do anything more than sporadic spot checks, hence any manufacturer placing a "DOT approved" label, sticker or marking on a product is certifying that the product meets the Standards as put forth in FMVSS 108. There is no reporting requirement.

So let's say that an individual installs a HID bulb/ballast set in a vehicle that was OEM with a filament bulb. The HID must then conform to the beam pattern and luminosity as set forth in the associative chart, which it will not regardless of aiming. If installing a HID system on a vehicle designed for something else, it must conform to FMVSS 108, S7.7 - Replaceable Light Sources. A replacement housing kit will still not comply.

For clarification, refer to FMVSS-108.

I don't know why this issue keeps coming up in this forum and others Ad nauseam. If the lamp assemblies/replacement bulbs are not stock, they do not conform. Yes, people get away with it. Others pay the fines, have housing melt, have failures or have their vehicle catch fire.

The lighting supplied by the manufacturer has met all applicable regulations for illumination, aiming, and safety. If one cannot see well enough at night, once again: Slow down and/or make an appointment with an eye doctor as soon as possible.

DSL987
join:2000-03-22
Helotes, TX

DSL987 to south1178

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to south1178
Unfortunately those all appear to be for the new model, not the Heritage

Count Zero
Premium Member
join:2007-01-18
Milton, FL

Count Zero to mob

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I have LED headlamps in my new Infiniti Q50S Hybrid AWD. I love them! Their projection and illumination is amazing compared to the projectors in my old Subie... I think they're even better than the Xenons in my wife's Lexus.
fixrman
From a broken heart to a hole in the sky
Premium Member
join:2003-02-10
Hatboro, PA
·Verizon FiOS

1 recommendation

fixrman to MooJohn

Premium Member

to MooJohn
Ask Daniel Stern lighting about that.

»www.danielsternlighting. ··· ons.html

Consumers are responsible for the equipment on their vehicle if they have installed it. Knowingly installing equipment that falls outside allowable parameters of vehicle operation is illegal. Most states currently follow FMVSS but if your state does not, then I suppose anything goes.

If an owner submits the vehicle with non-compliant equipment for state inspection (if applicable) and the inspector unwittingly passes the vehicle, the inspector and shop can be held liable for a faulty inspection. The penalty for this may be a warning or it could be a suspension for the station, inspector, or both. It is disingenuous for an owner to present a vehicle for State Inspection knowing full well they have non-compliant equipment, hoping that the inspector "will not catch it"; it is an unfair situation.

I have heard of these situations and seen it happen to others: The vehicle is newly inspected and the vehicle owner gets pulled over for non-compliant headlamps or other lighting - and the first thing they offer in explanation and defense to the LEO is that the vehicle just passed inspection.

The vehicle owner can get a ticket for the violation but the shop and or inspection technician may not be able to perform inspections for a period of time. The loss of inspection privileges is a serious blow to a shop; why would anyone want to put them in that position? Putting the onus on the shop "for not catching it" is a cop-out.

Please read the section in the Daniel Stern article below the You Tube movie embedding. It explains the bit about beam patterns for you. Cheers!

MooJohn
join:2005-12-18
Milledgeville, GA

MooJohn

Member

I agree 100% that slapping a HID bulb into a halogen reflector is awful. After all, they're called poverty beams for a reason - because the brighter & bluer they are, the bigger the POS is that they're attached to!

Some halogen projectors work well with an HID source while others are awful. In neither case are they disruptive to oncoming traffic but the bad ones will result in less light on the road than the halogen had. I can live with that a lot easier than the prick in a lifted truck with drop-ins in his headlights & fogs.

That's why my car has the other option he mentions in the article: projectors with HID-specific bowls and a solenoid-operated hi/low shield -- just like OEMs are, with better output than many OEM offerings. The overly-broad laws would still try to label this "illegal" since it didn't come from the factory that way. That's the only issue I have with the "all or nothing" approach from people sick of HID drop-ins.

I wish they wouldn't call that a "retrofit" since a real retrofit means installing true HID projectors, either OEM or aftermarket units.

Hiker
Zeus
Premium Member
join:2002-10-27
Pipersville

Hiker to fixrman

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to fixrman
Daniel Stern is the man!
fixrman
From a broken heart to a hole in the sky
Premium Member
join:2003-02-10
Hatboro, PA
·Verizon FiOS

fixrman to MooJohn

Premium Member

to MooJohn
I agree with you on principle, John but it is the old story: A few bad apples ruin it for the whole bunch. There are a lot of jackasses out on the road who, for either monetary or selfish reasons refuse to do things the proper way, preferring to skirt the law. The laws are there for a reason, even though we may not always agree with them.

But actually there is no halogen projector that works well with a HID bulb according to Daniel Stern. I am not a lighting authority and he has solid engineering behind his assertions so I will take his word for it. All I have is what I get blinded by at night.

Our lighting standards are more strict than the European, but there are other things we can have here they currently cannot, for a variety of reasons. It all kinda come out in the wash.

mackey
Premium Member
join:2007-08-20

mackey to Gordo74

Premium Member

to Gordo74
said by Gordo74:

The bulb life claims 30,000 hours... which is about 10 years for me.

The "bulb" life may be 30k hours, but the power supply is probably a few hundred hours (maybe 1k if you're lucky) with those fans in the 10's of hours. Once the fans go the rest will fry in short order.