LR4 Halogen Bulb Upgrading - Highly Recommended

[Surfrider77]

The one thing I was reading in reviews about the Phillips LEDs that you linked is there is no built-in CANBUS resistor and you will most likely get an error stating the bulbs are out. The LEDs I used did have this and wasn't an issue.

Also interested to hear your results.

 

[bullmrkt]

The one thing I was reading in reviews about the Phillips LEDs that you linked is there is no built-in CANBUS resistor and you will most likely get an error stating the bulbs are out. The LEDs I used did have this and wasn't an issue.

Also interested to hear your results.

Hm, great. I was hoping that's what was in the ballast-looking box on the harness.

No one mentions any issues here, so fingers crossed. http://www.xenondepot.com/h11-h8-h16-philips-Ultinon-LED-Bulb-p/12834unix2-h11.htm

 

[ycharlie]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NSS35I0/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_44UlwbSBT7D6R

I've been running these since last year. No problems at all. Nowhere near HID or hologen hologen brightness. Definitely more of an DRL instead of an actual driving light for nights.

 

[catman]

Just a buyer beware about internet bulbs. When I just replaced my Xenon bulbs in my LR3 I became confounded by all the sellers and the huge price differential for basically the same thing.

I found this link and decided to just go to a local Advance Auto who had the genuine Phillps in stock (at least I hope they were genuine!)

 

[bullmrkt]

Just a buyer beware about internet bulbs. When I just replaced my Xenon bulbs in my LR3 I became confounded by all the sellers and the huge price differential for basically the same thing.

I found this link and decided to just go to a local Advance Auto who had the genuine Phillps in stock (at least I hope they were genuine!)

I received the yellow Philips LED H11's and they're genuine Philips but Japanese market—my guess is they aren't DOT approved here yet. Anyway there wasn't any price differential, they were $152 for the pair. No LR4 yet though, it's still on its way from LA to me in Ohio.

Does anyone know what kind of bulbs the rear backup lights are? I'd like to replace those with something brighter too.

 

[bullmrkt]

Well I installed the yellow Philips LED H11's fog lights over the weekend with no issues at all. They plug right in and I didn't get any error messages. I don't have a light meter, but they're really bright, with a very similar throw compared to the original halogen H11's. Recommended.

Here are some photos to give you an idea of what they look like installed. The color temperature contrasts with the xenons so much that its obvious you're not trying to match them–it looks good IMO. They catch peoples attention more so than whiter bulbs when using them as DRLs, and they work better as fog lights when you're driving in precipitation. Win/win.

 

[Finlayforprez]

Well I installed the yellow Philips LED H11's fog lights over the weekend with no issues at all. They plug right in and I didn't get any error messages. I don't have a light meter, but they're really bright, with a very similar throw compared to the original halogen H11's. Recommended.

Here are some photos to give you an idea of what they look like installed. The color temperature contrasts with the xenons so much that its obvious you're not trying to match them–it looks good IMO. They catch peoples attention more so than whiter bulbs when using them as DRLs, and they work better as fog lights when you're driving in precipitation. Win/win.

This looks great! I am thinking of switching over to the yellow, more for function. I also just ordered a DDM HID kit for my fogs, but may go the yellow route instead.

 

[Surfrider77]

Definitely look nice. Let me know how if it throws any canbus errors. Though, I doubt I could justify $150 pair of fogs when it is foggy only a couple months of the year here!

 

[Bama4door]

This looks great! I am thinking of switching over to the yellow, more for function. I also just ordered a DDM HID kit for my fogs, but may go the yellow route instead.

What kelvin did you get your HIDs in? 3k should give you a similar yellow for your fogs.

 

[ryanjl]

With every vehicle I have owned, I have searched for ways of optimizing the headlight performance. I just picked up my LR4 today, and, although I believe the halogen headlights in it are already pretty good, I know there is probably more performance to be eeked out.

After reading all 24 pages of this thread, however, I'm wondering if there isn't some confusion here between color temperature (measured in Kelvin) and light output (measured in lumens).

Lumens are easy. More is almost always better.

Color temperature is where things can get confusing and misleading, however. Contrary to popular belief, a warmer color temperature (closer to 3000K) is generally more revealing than a colder color temperature (closer to 6000K), no matter the weather.

Which is why this thread perplexes me. For example, the first post in this thread recommended Phillips Crystalvision H11 bulbs, and many more subsequent posters have done so too. Everyone who tries them reports back with rave results.

These bulbs appear to be just blue-tinted standard halogen bulbs, however. A bulb that is nothing more than a blue-tinted version of a standard bulb has degraded performance. Picture wearing the old-style 3D glasses, with one red lens and one blue lens.

Looking at Phillips' website, their "vision" line of bulbs state that they produce 30% greater light than a standard halogen bulb. The "vision" line specify that their output is 1350 lumens. If their marketing is to be believed, this means a standard Philips halogen bulb (which I cannot find on their website) is around 1038 lumens.

The Philips Crystalvision bulbs recommended in this thread output 900 lumens. This tells me that there is no technology in the bulbs other than a blue tint, which actually degrades the performance of the bulb.

So, without saying what I'm saying, I wonder if people who love these bulbs aren't just swayed by they HID-like colder color-temperature? Because, looking at the numbers, they appear to actually perform significantly worse than standard bulbs.

Please let me know if I am missing something here.

So what is an upgrade? H9 bulbs can be modified to fit in H11 housings and to use H11 connections. Most H9 bulbs have light output of over 2,000 lumens at a cost of a 65watt bulb instead of a 55 watt bulb. This small increase shouldn't tax the wiring too much to be prohibitive.

Has anyone tried an H9 bulb in their LR4? I will order some and see how well they work.