LED Hi/Lo Beam Question

[AH64Medic]

I ordered some Sealight LED bulbs off Amazon to replace the stock ones (H13). Installation wasn’t too bad. I found some videos on YouTube on how to go from the engine bay instead of taking off the grille, unbolting the headlight housing etc. They look great but one shines low (normal I guess for low beams) and the other high. But when I switch to high beams, the orientation reverses and again one high and one low. After looking at the reflector I’m thinking one side of the LEDs should face straight up and the other set down. So essentially oriented up and down. As it sits the LEDs are at an angle so depending on what setting it either shines out and up or down and in. If you look closely at my pic you can see where the bulb rests inside the housing and the LEDs are oriented at an angle. Hard to see. Just curious if anyone has a set that they could look at and see if there’s sit at an angle or up and down. Also after installing these and a set of fog lights my dash is saying to service the stabilitrak and traction control. Anyone know if these are related? I figure tomorrow I’ll put the stock ones back in and see if it’s from the LED bulbs. Thank you for any advice.

 

[drakon543]

cheaper led bulbs can definitely be oriented incorrectly and it does make a difference. my 00 civic i bought came with led bulbs the high beams are completely useless. my 13 accord has a set out of a subaru(freebies) for the high beams. when i first put them in the highbeams were pointless until i realized they had the ability to be "focused" i geuss. those have a set screw if i loosen i can rotate the led while its in the headlight assembly.

 

[79jasper]

I really recommend watching some of the YouTube videos by headlight revolution.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[kbuskill]

The LED chips should be facing left and right, NOT up and down, and certainly not at an angle.

 

[AH64Medic]

The LED chips should be facing left and right, NOT up and down, and certainly not at an angle.

Sweet. Thanks for that info!

 

[AH64Medic]

cheaper led bulbs can definitely be oriented incorrectly and it does make a difference. my 00 civic i bought came with led bulbs the high beams are completely useless. my 13 accord has a set out of a subaru(freebies) for the high beams. when i first put them in the highbeams were pointless until i realized they had the ability to be "focused" i geuss. those have a set screw if i loosen i can rotate the led while its in the headlight assembly.

I’m gonna pull the bulbs tonight and put the oem ones back in to see if it solves the error message. If so im going to send them back and go with an HID set up. I emailed the manufacturer and haven’t heard back from them. Oh well.

 

[kbuskill]

I’m gonna pull the bulbs tonight and put the oem ones back in to see if it solves the error message. If so im going to send them back and go with an HID set up. I emailed the manufacturer and haven’t heard back from them. Oh well.

The bulbs should have nothing to do with the Stabilitrac and TC.

Could be ABS brake related or, depending on which suspension you have, it could be something with the shocks/struts. Could also be caused by a misfire in the engine. Or about a million other things, except for lights... lol

You would need to check for codes to be sure.

 

[drakon543]

I’m gonna pull the bulbs tonight and put the oem ones back in to see if it solves the error message. If so im going to send them back and go with an HID set up. I emailed the manufacturer and haven’t heard back from them. Oh well.

ya i didn't really notice that part of your message. led bulbs wont have anything to do with the stabiltrac and such. only thing i was referencing was some led bulbs are not adjustable and should be for light output direction. only thing i could think is some vehicles dont like led bulbs and can cause other things to light up for no reason.

 

[AH64Medic]

The bulbs should have nothing to do with the Stabilitrac and TC.

Could be ABS brake related or, depending on which suspension you have, it could be something with the shocks/struts. Could also be caused by a misfire in the engine. Or about a million other things, except for lights... lol

You would need to check for codes to be sure.

Weird thing is my check engine light came on, then the stabilitrak and traction control error went away and then a day later the check engine light went off.

 

[AH64Medic]

ya i didn't really notice that part of your message. led bulbs wont have anything to do with the stabiltrac and such. only thing i was referencing was some led bulbs are not adjustable and should be for light output direction. only thing i could think is some vehicles dont like led bulbs and can cause other things to light up for no reason.

It sure did it on my wife’s 2012 Outback. I changed all the bulbs to LEDs and one day had all kinds of light come on. After digging through a Subaru Outback forum I found other outback owners had the same problem. Went back to stock and never had an issue again.

 

[AH64Medic]

The LED chips should be facing left and right, NOT up and down, and certainly not at an angle.

I was able to take them out and they had two set screws along with premarked screw holes that allowed me to rotate the bulb in 1/8 increments. Lined them up side to side and sure enough it works great. Thanks for the advice!

 

[drakon543]

It sure did it on my wife’s 2012 Outback. I changed all the bulbs to LEDs and one day had all kinds of light come on. After digging through a Subaru Outback forum I found other outback owners had the same problem. Went back to stock and never had an issue again.

far as im aware supposedly a resistor of unknown rating will solve that problem

 

[kbuskill]

Weird thing is my check engine light came on, then the stabilitrak and traction control error went away and then a day later the check engine light went off.

Did you check the code for the check engine light?

The truck will automatically deactivate the TC/Stabilitrac when it detects a misfire to rule out those systems as a possible cause.

 

[AH64Medic]

Did you check the code for the check engine light?

The truck will automatically deactivate the TC/Stabilitrac when it detects a misfire to rule out those systems as a possible cause.

I have not checked it yet. I hope there is not an issue. It’s a 2012 with 49k miles and in like new condition. I’ll look online and finally order me one of those fancy obd readers.

 

[kbuskill]

I have not checked it yet. I hope there is not an issue. It’s a 2012 with 49k miles and in like new condition. I’ll look online and finally order me one of those fancy obd readers.

You can get a Tech2 clone for about $250-$300.

They are a lot more pricey than a simple obd2 reader but there is no comparison in functionality.

 

[AH64Medic]

Did you check the code for the check engine light?

The truck will automatically deactivate the TC/Stabilitrac when it detects a misfire to rule out those systems as a possible cause.

So it turns out when I was putting the air box assembly back in I forgot to plug the sensor that connects to the intake duct. Plugged it back in and cleared the codes. No more problems.

 

[Geotrash]

Did you check the code for the check engine light?

The truck will automatically deactivate the TC/Stabilitrac when it detects a misfire to rule out those systems as a possible cause.

This is a really helpful comment for me. I was having a random misfire code popping up along with the TC/Stabilitrak message on my '07. Replaced the steering position sensor and it didn't fix the problem. I tested the fuel pressure and it was way over spec on the high side, indicating a likely fuel pressure regulator (pump) problem.