LED Lights

[NeuroBeaker]

I've heard many complaints about LED headlights bulbs but blinding oncoming traffic is not one of them - at least not when used in projector style lamps. Too much foreground light, not enough distance, or simply not enough light are common issues but the design of a projector lamp really prevents any significant blinding output.

 

 

The reason for blinding glare is the incorrect position of the light source within the lamp. On a parabolic reflector lamp, even a slight change in position or orientation of the light source can cause significant misalignment of the output beam. But with the elliptical reflector at the back of a projector lamp, the orientation of the light source makes almost no difference and the position (closer to the reflector or farther away) merely moves the focal point forward or back. Changing the focal point so that it is farther ahead of the shutter will actually reduce the upper level light, eliminating glare for others and increasing foreground light while reducing total light output. This is the common situation with cheap LED bulbs because they have a long center support structure that aids in cooling but moves the light source farther into the lamp than the original halogen filament. It is also the reason that HID capsules in halogen projectors sometimes create more glare - the total length of the capsule is greater than a bulb but the arc itself is positioned closer to the base causing the focal point to be before the shutter and increasing upper light output. Even there, the upper light is diffused and restricted by the front lens. Some light is desirable above the cutoff to illuminate road signs but not enough to cause a problem for oncoming traffic (that's why the graphic shows that light as a gray line).

 

Basically, if you can get an LED bulb (or HID capsule) which has its light source in the same position as it would be in the equivalent halogen bulb then there's no reason why it wouldn't work just as well as or better than the original bulb.

 

Do you know of anyone who has tried these specific LED bulbs, the 9006 bulb from Diode Dynamics?

 

https://www.diodedynamics.com/low-beam-led-headlight-for-2011-2015-ford-edge.html

https://www.diodedynamics.com/led-headlight-for-template-12.html

Their website shows some images of bulbs that seem to have some kind of a box on the wiring and they don't say specifically where this is suppose to be mounted, although their general description seems to suggest that everything is supposed to fit behind the dust caps without any cutting. They also don't give you any photographs of the beam pattern to show the performance of the bulb to a camera - just some graphics of photometric measurements. Comments from anyone with direct experience of that exact kit would be greatly appreciated.

 

I think what I'll do in the short term is order the H11 and 9005 Philips X-treme Vision bulbs, but longer-term I may think about upgrading to LED headlights if there are any that don't require modifications to install and are a genuine performance upgrade without the aforementioned detrimental increases in glare and beam pattern modification. The fact that the Diode Dynamics lists 9006 rather than H11 or 9005 for each set of lights makes me wonder if the LED position won't be an exact match for the filament position of the OEM bulbs.

 

All the best,

Andrew.

[akirby]

You don’t want LED bulbs. They won’t work correctly. The entire headlamp assembly needs to be designed as a LED unit.

[fishx65]

You don’t want LED bulbs. They won’t work correctly. The entire headlamp assembly needs to be designed as a LED unit.

Many said the exact same thing about HIDs in the 11-14 Edge's halogen projectors . I haven't messed with LED headlight bulbs yet but it wouldn't surprise me if one comes along that works well in a halogen projector.

[blockisle9]

I looked for awhile and was also told stay away from LED.

I ended up going with a HID set up swapping out my halogens on my 17 Titanium.

 

https://www.lightwerkz.net/index.php/components/hid-ballasts/35w-2a88-hylux-canbus-ballasts.html

 

https://www.lightwerkz.net/index.php/components/hid-bulbs/h-series/nhk-h11.html

[TheWizard]

 

Do you know of anyone who has tried these specific LED bulbs, the 9006 bulb from Diode Dynamics?

 

https://www.diodedynamics.com/low-beam-led-headlight-for-2011-2015-ford-edge.html

https://www.diodedynamics.com/led-headlight-for-template-12.html

Their website shows some images of bulbs that seem to have some kind of a box on the wiring and they don't say specifically where this is suppose to be mounted, although their general description seems to suggest that everything is supposed to fit behind the dust caps without any cutting. They also don't give you any photographs of the beam pattern to show the performance of the bulb to a camera - just some graphics of photometric measurements. Comments from anyone with direct experience of that exact kit would be greatly appreciated.

 

I think what I'll do in the short term is order the H11 and 9005 Philips X-treme Vision bulbs, but longer-term I may think about upgrading to LED headlights if there are any that don't require modifications to install and are a genuine performance upgrade without the aforementioned detrimental increases in glare and beam pattern modification. The fact that the Diode Dynamics lists 9006 rather than H11 or 9005 for each set of lights makes me wonder if the LED position won't be an exact match for the filament position of the OEM bulbs.

 

All the best,

Andrew.

 

The listing at Diode Dynamics has the wrong bulb type listed for your vehicle. It should be H11 for low beam and 9005 for high beam. The box in the wiring is called the "driver" which is electronics which perform a function similar to that of the ballast used in HID installations. They may be able to fit inside the lamp housing behind the dust cap if there is enough space but the 9006 connector wouldn't match the factory harness.

 

If you are looking for improved lighting performance rather than just appearance (i.e. whiter/bluer light) then your best option is to replace the H11 low beam bulbs with H9 (they fit exactly the same except for needing removal of a small tab on the wiring connector and they produce 50% more light) and leave the high beams alone.

[NeuroBeaker]

 

The listing at Diode Dynamics has the wrong bulb type listed for your vehicle. It should be H11 for low beam and 9005 for high beam. The box in the wiring is called the "driver" which is electronics which perform a function similar to that of the ballast used in HID installations. They may be able to fit inside the lamp housing behind the dust cap if there is enough space but the 9006 connector wouldn't match the factory harness.

 

If you are looking for improved lighting performance rather than just appearance (i.e. whiter/bluer light) then your best option is to replace the H11 low beam bulbs with H9 (they fit exactly the same except for needing removal of a small tab on the wiring connector and they produce 50% more light) and leave the high beams alone.

 

Thanks very much. I ended up ordering sets of the Philips X-tremeVision bulbs in H11 and 9005, to make both low and high beams a bit brighter. I'll get 100% more life at the expenses of life expectancy and higher cost.

 

If the H9 modification would be a brighter solution still, then that might be an option. However, if the only benefit over the above solution is lower cost then I'll stick with the out-the-box solution from Philips.

 

All the best,

Andrew.

Edited March 20, 2018 by NeuroBeaker

[akirby]

Many said the exact same thing about HIDs in the 11-14 Edge's halogen projectors . I haven't messed with LED headlight bulbs yet but it wouldn't surprise me if one comes along that works well in a halogen projector.

 

LEDs don’t produce light like a bulb does and you need multiple elements working together. It’s just a completely different type of light.

[TheWizard]

 

Thanks very much. I ended up ordering sets of the Philips X-tremeVision bulbs in H11 and 9005, to make both low and high beams a bit brighter. I'll get 100% more life at the expenses of life expectancy and higher cost.

 

If the H9 modification would be a brighter solution still, then that might be an option. However, if the only benefit over the above solution is lower cost then I'll stick with the out-the-box solution from Philips.

 

All the best,

Andrew.

 

A standard H11 halogen bulb produces about 1350 lumens. A Philips Extreme Vision H11 produces 1650 lumens. A standard H9 bulb produces 2100 lumens. The H9 produces 50% more light than a standard H11 and 25% more than the Philips H11 yet costs under $10.

[blockisle9]

A standard H11 halogen bulb produces about 1350 lumens. A Philips Extreme Vision H11 produces 1650 lumens. A standard H9 bulb produces 2100 lumens. The H9 produces 50% more light than a standard H11 and 25% more than the Philips H11 yet costs under $10.

The H9’s are 10 watts higher than the H11’s. Wouldn’t the extra heat damage the projectors? Those projectors are pretty pricey!

[lildisco]

I think that i have a regular H9 bulb (no extreme or silver stars) for nearly 2 years in my '16 SEL. My only regret is why didn't i do it sooner? Benefits are more usable light. I've had H9's installed for several road trips where the bulb was on for hours & never noticed any bad effects.

Edited March 21, 2018 by lildisco

[NeuroBeaker]

A standard H11 halogen bulb produces about 1350 lumens. A Philips Extreme Vision H11 produces 1650 lumens. A standard H9 bulb produces 2100 lumens. The H9 produces 50% more light than a standard H11 and 25% more than the Philips H11 yet costs under $10.

Great information, thank you very much.

 

All the best,

Andrew.

[NeuroBeaker]

 

I ended up ordering sets of the Philips X-tremeVision bulbs in H11 and 9005, to make both low and high beams a bit brighter.

 

Just to follow up on this, these bulbs arrived and I got them installed. Driving around with them in last night, I noticed a big difference in available light. A good, simple upgrade that fixed the problem. I recommend these bulbs as an acceptable solution to insufficient light from your headlights.

 

I may try the H9 mod on the next set when these low beams eventually wear out (CPO warranty will have probably expired by then too), but these are good for now.

 

All the best,

Andrew.

[TheWizard]

No need to worry about warranty issues. Warranty repairs can't be denied unless they determine that the cause of the problem was the replacement part you installed so replacing the bulb would only be an issue if something happened to the headlight or its wiring. There's a good chance that wouldn't be covered anyway as the Ford CPO warranty only covers electrical for the first 12 months / 12,000 miles - the rest is powertrain coverage.

 

Besides, the difference between the 55W H11 and the 65W H9 is only 0.7 amps (4.3 amps for 55W at rated 12.8 volts and 5.0 amps for 65W). That is a very safe margin for the circuits which are protected by 10 amp fuses on each side. There is a difference in heat produced but it is not enough to cause damage. The H9 sockets would get warm enough to be uncomfortable to hold but not burning hot (don't ever touch the glass of the bulb - even when cold). I've run H9 bulbs in the H11 fog lights of my Mustang for over seven years now and there is no damage to the sockets or lamps. So when your new bulbs burn out in a couple of years, you should consider using H9 although by that time there may be even better alternatives... development of LED replacements is continually coming up with better designs.

Edited March 26, 2018 by TheWizard

[Kate2013]

15 Watt Tri-CCT COB Module Light

Item No.: CB5080SR / CB5080SL

Material:Die-casting aluminum

 

● 3000K/4000K/5000K, 2700K/4000K/6000K or other customized TRI-CCT switchable;

● 15°/24°/36°/60°with reflector/lens/honeycomb for options;

● Die-casting aluminum housing and COB Light Source;

● Triac/0-10V/DALI dimming are optional. LED Driver are compatible with multiple dimmers, easy to use.

● IP44——suitable for downlights for residential buildings, office, living rooms, hotels, etc.https://www.anova-lighting.com/product/138.html