 | Home > Puma (Tdci) > LED front headlamps - overwhelming choice |
 
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| custom90 Member Since: 21 Jan 2010 Location: South West, England. Posts: 20339  
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You can get really good performance from Crystals with the loom.
I did do a side by side comparison a one time with crystals when I had them, and one was via the LR factory loom one via the Land Reiziger and there was a marked performance increase. With LED they are regulated anyway, but all the same you do get peak voltage delivered to them which is good and you have the bonus of a small current going through the LR switch with a headlight loom fitted whatever option you do chose with both LED’s or Crystals. I used to have Philips H4 upgrade performance bulbs, quite a few had nightbreakers instead and probably still do. If the Land Reiziger loom isn’t available then you can make your own, even a slight upgrade as you can perhaps upgrade the thinwall wire dia, use a waterproof relay holder etc which would be upgrade on the Labd Reiziger or Boomslang type looms. Just make sure it is fused appropriately inline, close to the Alternator. As this is a safety critical must. There is a lot of personal choice here too, if anything went wrong with the Noldens I have which touch wood never has, I’d quite happily go back to Crystals especially as temporary anyway as they are good value and performing. I do think JW and Nolden are over priced, but LR’s own are around £1k each!  $W33T $0U7H3RN $UG4R
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12th Sep 2024 3:13pm |
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| Chicken Drumstick Member Since: 17 Aug 2020 Location: Near MK Posts: 717
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Haven't read the rest of the thread yet. But likelihood is almost all of these LED headlights are illegal for use in the UK, unless you are going to fit headlamp washers and some kind of self levelling ability. Along with an approved lamp/housing. In reality, most are nasty, cheap or expensive, price is no guarantee or indicator of quality. With horrid Cool White beams and very low CRI (colour rendition index). Which can induce lots of eye strain for long distance driving. Many also have terrible beam profiles and cutoffs, which just dazzle oncoming traffic, making YOU that "  " on the road that annoys everyone. I'd also question the styling of many too, as they don't fit in with look of a utility based vehicle like a Defender.
On the flip side, if you don't mind the illegalities of LED headlamps, these look interesting solving the styling issues and the horrid cool white tint. https://www.banginheadlights.com/products/...3072834755 I haven't however tried them personally. |
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13th Sep 2024 9:01am |
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| Chicken Drumstick Member Since: 17 Aug 2020 Location: Near MK Posts: 717
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Basically your last statement confirms your first point is utter useless advice....  |
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13th Sep 2024 9:02am |
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| Chicken Drumstick Member Since: 17 Aug 2020 Location: Near MK Posts: 717
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Some modern headlights are bright I agree, but not all cars on the roads are modern and not all modern cars have LED or HID lights, plenty still have halogen. Which puts them on par with other halogen lights. A good halogen setup is more than capable of lighting up the road well. To call it a safety issues is utter BS and completely stupid. And your last sentence makes no sense at all. A Land Rover doesn't stop as well as smaller lighter vehicles and doesn't have the roll over protection of other vehicles. Are you going to bin your Defender and buy a modern hatchback just to match other road vehicles in these areas? If no, then again don't say such silly things. |
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13th Sep 2024 9:25am |
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| custom90 Member Since: 21 Jan 2010 Location: South West, England. Posts: 20339
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This is untrue when it comes to type approved units such as Nolden, JW Speaker, Trucklite etc that are E marked and aligned as per MOT spec just the same as Halogen. There are units that aren’t legal (and fakes), and retrofitting LED clusters into halogen units isn’t allowed either. Sadly, even though they may well perform really well. There is a lot of testing and type approvals that are applicable, which is similar with DOT regs in the USA. I think we should have Kitemark U.K spec.. No lights Halogen or LED should dazzle others, if they do they aren’t aligned properly to spec often caused by DIY fit, and as that is often LED, it’s suggested it’s LED at fault. Halogen will dazzle if not aligned to spec too, and often 100w halogen bulbs are fitted also which should be 55w, AND people drive around with main beam on too and don’t care, they just leave it on deliberately. Manufacturers have gone LED for good reasons, but that doesn’t mean to say Halogen is obsolete or that you cannot get good performance from them also. As always, personal choice and preference, I prefer not to project my own likes and dislikes on others it’s a choice to chose based on the owners own preference. Halogen suits some LR’s more than others based on owners preference, I like LED as mine is all LED. That’s just me, when I did have Halogen I had good performance from them, LED has a few other advantages such as lower current draw, less heat produced, better waterproofing characteristics etc. Halogen is better in sub zero temps, but LED’s can now have heater systems fitted, but they don’t look that great. etc etc The saga goes on.  $W33T $0U7H3RN $UG4R
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13th Sep 2024 12:06pm |
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| jbcollier Member Since: 29 Apr 2024 Location: Edmonton AB Posts: 81  
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I run Hella 90mm HID projector headlights. They look a little goofy in a 7" bucket but they work very well. They are paired with HID rally lights which punch a big hole (high only).
I used to run halogens but I can get the same light as 540w halogen set up with just 120w HID and the bulbs last and last and last. |
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14th Sep 2024 2:20am |
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| custom90 Member Since: 21 Jan 2010 Location: South West, England. Posts: 20339
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I am not sure where things stand with HID here in the U.K., I think they are generally only allowed as additional high beam auxiliary lighting.
That being said, this is based on assumption, it’s mainly documented precisely in regs and most of it is to prevent dazzle to other road users. Does Canada’s road laws and the USA bear pretty much the same resemblance? I’d imagine so, but with some differences perhaps quite a few. $W33T $0U7H3RN $UG4R 🇬🇧🏴🏴🏴🇮🇪🇺🇸⛽️🛢️⚙️🧰💪 Last edited by custom90 on 14th Sep 2024 10:02am. Edited 1 time in total |
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14th Sep 2024 8:34am |
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| BaronDefenders Member Since: 28 Jun 2019 Location: London/Cotswolds Posts: 896 
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Not really. It’s more down to just the height and level of them, rather than a poor beam pattern. The headlights are at head-height for most other motorists. Charlie 1949 Series 1 80 (SOLD) 2002 Td5 90 (SOLD) 2008 Freelander 2 (SOLD) 1958 Series 2 88 Pastel Green (2019 LR Legends Best Restored) 1983 V8 110 Limestone (Previously owned by Tom Sheppard MBE) 2004 Td5 90 Santorini Black (Td5INSIDE Powered & Rebuilt by CSK) 2012 Puma 110 Zermatt Silver (Overlanding Build) Instagram: @BaronDefenders |
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14th Sep 2024 9:56am |
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| jbcollier Member Since: 29 Apr 2024 Location: Edmonton AB Posts: 81
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Regulations, testing and enforcement vary greatly by jurisdiction and whether it is OEM or aftermarket. Where I'm in Canada, and most places here, as long as you don't blind any police, you're fine. However I'm much more careful than that olympian standard. Auxiliary lighting is never on a separate switch but tied to the appropriate headlight setting: fog on low beam, driving on high and only off-road for any lights above the stock headlights. I also only use headlights with a sharp cut-off pattern on low. My other car is a Lotus Seven so I am also quite particular about headlight aiming. Even though I can light a stadium on high, I get no complaints on low.
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14th Sep 2024 1:51pm |
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