Headlight upgrade questions

How are LED bulbs like THESE ?

Been thinking about them for my Dakota (after I install new lenses).

I agree, LED's are advancing quickly, but like you say, so much out there is junk. I'd like to see a side by side comparison of quality LED low beams at 50 yards next to HID low beams at 50 yards.

Some Acuras and Cadillacs use LEDs for headlights in stock form now, there may be others.

Like all things, quality is all over the board with LED lights.

For specifics on the Trucklite/JW Speaker/etc. 7" LED headlights I'd spend some time on the Wrangler and Harley forums.

Last I read the LED headlights put out about 2,000 lumens. Halogens run about 1,100 and quality HIDs are about 3,300.

Although this doesn't exactly apply to 7" rounds, the info may be helpful. I've spent a lot of time and money trying to get the best possible lighting on my '99 Grand Cherokee.
1)New aftermarket assemblies with halogen bulbs($100)...poor light output but very good beam cutoff and acceptable pattern.
2)Replaced halogen bulbs with Sylvania Silverstar Ultras($50)...good output and cutoff, poor pattern.
3) Replaced Silverstars with LED bulbs in a 9006 configuration GTR Lighting($180)...great output, fuzzy cutoff, scattered pattern.
4) Gutted low-beam side of housing for projector retrofit ( not Ebay projector replacements) with 35 watt 5k HIDs The Retrofit Source ($270)... Amazing output, razor sharp cutoff, ridiculous amount of light that is evenly distributed from directly in front of the vehicle all the way out to the cutoff and wider than any other light tested. The kit was expensive. It took me 2 days and lots of cursing to install but the results are better than I could have imagined. I just wish I'd done it first and saved all the other money to upgrade another rig.

While you have the housings apart (clear lens removed) you install the projector assembly, install the whole housing back in the car and rotate the projector until it is level. Remove the housings, seal the clear outer lens back on and then re-install the complete housing and adjust as normal for height. Time consuming but worth the effort.

Once you have the projector level, how are you fixing it in place in the old halogen light housing? And making it air tight? Lots of silicone?

I used the 7" round LMC Halogen lights on a brand F PU. Also the relay kit. Big improvement. As mentioned above I did have to cut a bigger hole in the back of the headlight bucket.

I fed the relays through a 30 amp breaker (parts store) and 10 gauge wire. I had to lengthen some of the individual headlight leads with 12 gauge wire to get wire routing I liked.