Led Car Lights

[Smigo]

Hi all. A question in regards to Led lights for a car. In particular DRL lights which are on all the time. A car I am getting uses Halogen DRLs which they say last on average for between 500 to 1000 hrs. Would see me replace them I think maybe every 8 months if I averaged the life span out. You can get Philips LEDs that fit perfectly for it. I know up front of the LEDs they run cooler, but the trade off is the rear of them run hotter than Halogens, the housing connection end. Has anyone replaced their Halogen with LEDs and had a problem with the DRLs, damaging the housing structure of the light at or near the base end due to the increased heat? I have wondered as LEDs last so long, how many may be out there with now brittle housing ends unawares that may crack or break when time comes for the LED bulb to be replaced a few years down the track in cars that originally ran Halogen. Anyone know if long term they can present a problem to fittings designed for Halogen but upgraded to LEDs? Is or are the fittings or housings for the bulb made different to accomodate the extra base heat? I have seen some LEDs have small fans at the base to dissipate the extra heat, though most dont and the ones for my car dont have that.
Anyone know about any of this?

 

[~Don~]

I switched my Xenon (HID) lighting to LEDs on my 08 535i, it was direct connect with the controllers...

You can do them without controllers, but you run the possibility of popping errors or flickering... no issues though in the past 4 years.

Now the wifes 2015 Honda Accord Sport... has regular halogens, and DRLs... 93k miles and still on the original set... I so dislike driving her car at night... its akin to putting a single candle on the front of the car how dull Halogens are lol... I should get a set of LEDs for her car and install them.

 

[Jinx'd]

i turn off my DRL's, just to save on the bulbs.

 

[Smigo]

I switched my Xenon (HID) lighting to LEDs on my 08 535i, it was direct connect with the controllers...

You can do them without controllers, but you run the possibility of popping errors or flickering... no issues though in the past 4 years.

Now the wifes 2015 Honda Accord Sport... has regular halogens, and DRLs... 93k miles and still on the original set... I so dislike driving her car at night... its akin to putting a single candle on the front of the car how dull Halogens are lol... I should get a set of LEDs for her car and install them.

Hi, thanks. I know the car im getting can run them with no error codes etc as guys on a motoring forum have done it. But the car, Kia Seltos, has not been out long here, December maybe 2019, so dont know how they go long term. Did see a video not long back where a guy with a Mazda or something had them cause heat problems the connection end but dont know if they were cheap rubbish ones that did it or high end brand. I dont drive at night where I am unless I really have to and haven't for nearly a year as we have too many kangaroos. Everytime you drive at night you chance hitting one and will for sure hit the brakes or swerve to miss them every time you drive. The smash repairs here get, they said so, 1/3 of their business from Roo hits.
Its just the DRLs that matter to me.
I think it may be dependent on the structure of the fittings as to wether they affect what its made of.

i turn off my DRL's, just to save on the bulbs.

Hi. Id turn them off too if I had the choice but mine wont have the option im told.
Stupid driving through the bush roads where you see nodody else, with your lights on during the day I reckon.

 

[Jinx'd]

Hi. Id turn them off too if I had the choice but mine wont have the option im told.
Stupid driving through the bush roads where you see nodody else, with your lights on during the day I reckon.

where there is a will, there is a way. you could put a relay in place of the fuse, with a fuse of course, and a switch.

they make it so you can't turn them off. so when they burn out, you hopefully go to the dealer to replace them = $$$ for the dealer.

my truck, i press the dome light button 4 times and it turns them off.

 

[Jinx'd]

or, if they are easy to get to, just unplug them.

 

[Jinx'd]

or better yet, pull the fuse/s

 

[Smigo]

or, if they are easy to get to, just unplug them.

Hi, the trouble is you'd be driven mad by a flashing error light in the intrument panel.
And if a switch was added, I know its really nothing and harms nothing, but id blow a full 7 yrs warranty it has.
They are really easy to get to, no special tool required. Just unscrew a cap. Worst comes to worst I'll get some original halogens for it but either way there is no way im paying $80 on top of the bulb price just for a mech at a dealer to simply unscrew a cap.
That id definitely do myself.
I'll dig a bit deeper on some car forums to see if any heat issues have come up with LEDs.

 

[jakardon]

I've never had LED lights in the headlights of a car as the primary light source. I always thought it was impossible to achieve an excellent direct beam and high-quality lighting with an LED. I inserted LEDs into the car's headlights only as an additional colored flashlight, which slightly decorated the lamp's color. However, when I bought a light for a flagpole on Amazon, I saw that it could illuminate a large area of space. I still remember how surprised I was. I took the lamp on I revised my attitude to LEDs.

 

[Lady Sarah]

I've never had LED lights in the headlights of a car as the primary light source. I always thought it was impossible to achieve an excellent direct beam and high-quality lighting with an LED. I inserted LEDs into the car's headlights only as an additional colored flashlight, which slightly decorated the lamp's color. However, when I bought a light for a flagpole on Amazon, I saw that it could illuminate a large area of space. I still remember how surprised I was. I took the lamp on I revised my attitude to LEDs.

I actually changed over from standard headlight bulbs to LED with lights and CAN BUS set ups from Amazon for my old 2005 Chrysler Town and Country minivan. It made a huge difference for driving at night.

If you do it, be sure to read the instructions. If there aren't any, look it up on the web. The CAN BUS set ups prevent flickering when the vehicle's computer is not set up for LED lighting.