LED Headlight Bulb Upgrade

my.offroad.z71

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May 10, 2018
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Hello ALL!!

I have a 2004 Chevy Z71 Tahoe and
I would like to upgrade my low and high beam bulbs to LED without having to change my OEM headlight capsules or wiring?!?!
My neighbor has some LED headlights that look like (and as bright) the ones you see at a football game!!
That’s what I’m looking for without going into the poor house!!!!
Also when searching for LED bulbs what KEY points should I be looking for?

Thanks
 

DeanH1290

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Jan 20, 2014
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If sticking with stock housings, make sure the leds are oriented so that they point side to side, not up and down. thats the big key to having them not glare as bad
 
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Huck

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What Dean said. LEDs in my stock '04 Yukon fluted housings were awesome. In my denali projectors, no so much. Converting to HID soon
 

my.offroad.z71

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If sticking with stock housings, make sure the leds are oriented so that they point side to side, not up and down. thats the big key to having them not glare as bad

I’m using my OEM capsules and wiring....

So should I get LED headlight bulbs that have LED’s all the way around including the end or.....

IMG_0350.JPG
 

DeanH1290

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No, something with led chips on two sides, not 4. Here's the bulbs i'm talking about
LED-Headlight.jpg
 
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my.offroad.z71

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May 10, 2018
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sure can, just gotta know what bulb size you need

I need 9005(HB3), 9006(HB4) and 880 for the fog/driving lights!

Are they expensive? I’m a disabled Navy Vet and on a fixed income!!

How bright are they? (as in how many lumens and what color temp are they)

Is there an 880 bulb that is MUCH MUCH brighter than the typical 880 bulb? Since I always drive with the fog lights on even when I’m driving during the day with the daytime running lamps on!!!

I’m a retired Paramedic and in the ambulance we ALWAYS put our headlights on for safety reasons and now it’s just a habit!!! Lol
 

my.offroad.z71

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they are about 90 per set, but i think they just released a more budget friendly line thats around 60 per ser

Could you send me a link?
Do I need to buy a separate canbus to regulate the power flow for them so I don’t get the “HYPERFLASH” issue


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

my.offroad.z71

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headlight you dont need to worry about it.

I had issues even with resistors, if i ran LED in the parking, and the tail lights, it would cause shit to go a little weird.

I found that out!!! My cruise control didn’t work either.... Until I replaced my turn signal relay with a larger one to cure my “hyper flash” and wired a power resistor on the tail lights which cured my issue with the cruise control!!
I’ve seen some people put LED headlights in and they had a pulsating type of a flicker! If I want lights to flicker I’ll light a candle!!! Lol
 

Keagan7777

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Hi y’all, I own a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado and was wondering if anyone has good recommendations for led headlight assemblies. I recently learned the hard way that the headlights I bought weren’t the best and need to replace them and wondering if anyone had any good brands or recommendations. I was told to stay away from Spyder headlights becuase I was told they are cheaply made and have bad resisters that cause things to go out, like whole led rings in my case. Thanks! :)
 

Huck

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Jan 27, 2011
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Hi y’all, I own a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado and was wondering if anyone has good recommendations for led headlight assemblies. I recently learned the hard way that the headlights I bought weren’t the best and need to replace them and wondering if anyone had any good brands or recommendations. I was told to stay away from Spyder headlights becuase I was told they are cheaply made and have bad resisters that cause things to go out, like whole led rings in my case. Thanks! :)

Don’t bother with any of the headlights that have halos and little led lights and whatnot in them. They’re all junk. Just get some TYC or Depo brand OE style replacement housings. That’s your best bet. They make them with the black surround, chrome surround, orange reflector, clear reflector or smoked. Then just run some HIDs for the lows and regular halogens for the highs.

LEDs don’t work the best in a halogen housing because of the way they’re designed and the way the housing is designed. Basically, halogens give off light in a 360* area. Most LEDs have the boards on either side, facing 180* from each other so you have a dead spot in between. HIDs give off light like a halogen, so they work better. You just have to aim the lights down some to help with glare to other drivers.

Here’s a fantastic write up to help understand


I tried LEDs in my ‘05 Silverado and I hate them. Can’t see shit, they don’t throw very far, they’re only very bright looking at them. They don’t actually give off much light at all. I’ll be going back to HIDs soon.


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