LED Headlights

Has anyone installed LED Headlights in their AV? In particular a 2002?

I still have my 2002 and I have installed HIDs. I love the brighter lights but I find the higher color temps and lack of projectors to be a problem so I do not really like them and thought I would give LEDs a try.
I'm on my 3rd set of HID bulbs (I think they do not like being turned on/off too much)

There seems to be a huge choice of LED bulbs some have cooling fans that look pretty bulky and might not fit plus the fan might not last...? Still others have large braided wire heat sinks that seem like they might be more reliable than a fan but still may be a problem to fit.

Before ordering anything I thought I'd ask.

I did, and you are right in the 6,000 color temp range the light does not seem visible.

Before you buy make sure you have room for the back of them, the 2500s have a hole in the radiator support so that is how a got mine to fit.


http://www.chevyavalanchefanclub.com/cafcna/index.php/topic,148738.0.html

Thanks for the link to that thread
I somehow missed it searching.
Randy

Just a FYI, if you don't want to use a projector lens make sure the led bulb are made specifically to use a stock lens.

HID's don't care to be used as high beams or fog lights... Or if your low beams tend to come on and off a lot.

They also pull more power at initial start up than the rated wattage so you generally want to run with a harness to give them enough power. And you MUST run them with projectors or your blinding people if in your low beams...

LED's are coming along but may not always be the best choice. Because their light pattern generally comes from 1 or 2 small square led as its light source the light output can be drastically different than what your used to, normally only broadcast a short distance and has lots of dark areas in their beam. As already mentioned some are designed to have a cut off. Those generally only light up half of the light source which you want on the bottom. You still have to adjust the beam pattern to not blind oncoming vehicles.

Personally I don't care for the idea of a cooling fan. They eventually fail and take out your light not to mention are hard to fit in some vehicles due to depth. The passive cooling is a much better option and may fit easier into tighter places.

I have been running VLEDS in my fogs and one is currently not working. In the next month I will be pulling the non working one out and see if it is the unit or my wiring.  Since they are 25 watt units they SHOULD be running fine...

I also have some LED projectors to install into my headlights but haven't had the time to do so. (Working full time and going to school does that to you.)

As far as LED's go. Try em and see if you like them. Don't believe the hype that you read on them though. Some online ads can show the SAME bulb as 2000 lumen, 4000 lumen all the way up to 10,000 lumen.

Be aware that MOST areas recognize HID or LED, if not original equipment, as "for off road use only" and can draw attention from police. The more you do to prevent blinding on coming drivers or getting a color that is out of normal the less likely you are to have issues. Some areas will fail you for a safety test if your lighting is not OEM or at least appear OEM.

Having the same discussion over on the Malibu forums. On my 2016, the car came with projector housings but halogen lamps. Many have expressed issues with putting HID lights in because of the housing and others have had issues with the LED lights. I personally got silverstars on my Malibu and Avalanche. (Notice the nice midsize Avalanche next to my compact Malibu.)

I'm with you I ran silverstar for the last 20 years, but they seem to have changed in the last 8 or so years. Cladded AV have terrible shape housing that I had to do something and don't regret it.

Two biggest things with aftermarket lighting is make sure your not blinding anyone, and insure that the light pattern is decent.  With my fog lights they have full 360 degree lighting and I definitely see the fog lighting as spotty but it is WAY better than stock fog lights that barely light up anything. They work fantastic to see the deer on either side of me up to about 100' up the road but if I turn off the low beams and try to run with just fogs you can really tell where the hot spots because of the square LEDs are and that there are lots of dim areas. But with the low beams on they still are way better than without them on. It really is about the optics of your lights and how they match up. Where MS03 2500 might love his someone else may hate them because of the normally short throw of the light and the sporadic patterns in their light housing.

There is a cool new light that when it becomes available will likely take over the market and make most of these issues moot although the light pattern may be an issue without projector. Under development are laser bulbs. These bulbs use an LED laser to light up particles in a tube which presents a light source very bright and diffused like an HID but as dependable as an LED when being cycled a lot. They will have the durability of an LED but the light characteristics of an HID. THOSE will be very cool.

Probably could produce the similar cutoff as what Byron enjoys by leaving half the capsule opaque.