New 2019 Tahoe Owner - Crappy halogen help

[Sublimize23]

Happy new owner of a 2019 LT with luxury package! Love everything about it except one thing - the horrible headlights.

I bought some Lasfit H11 LEDs off amazon and while the color looked great, they were even dimmer than the halogens.

What are my options? I know there is a (very) active vendor on this site but I am not sure how one Chinese made LED differs from another Chinese made LED, they all sort of seem cut from the same cloth to me. I don't want to end up with another dim set, these were in no way safe for use on the road. They looked great up against a wall or in photos but as soon as I went out for a test drive around the dark neighborhood, it would definitely not work in the real world.

Is it possible to go OEM? How would I even begin converting? I used to have HIDs in my old WRX and they were easy to convert, but I'd want to use a relay with the Tahoe and I'm not sure yet if I want to go down that road. Any experience with the options out there would be appreciated!

 

[extremetint]

They are $$$ but definitely worth it I put them in mine



https://headlightrevolution.com/led-headlight-bulbs/putco-led-headlight-bulbs/putco-nitro-lux/

 

[Sublimize23]

They are $$$ but definitely worth it I put them in mine



https://headlightrevolution.com/led-headlight-bulbs/putco-led-headlight-bulbs/putco-nitro-lux/

How was the output in comparison to the stock halos?

 

[Doubeleive]

How was the output in comparison to the stock halos?

those must be a old bulb, only 5k lumens, this technology it still changing the newer LED cob bulbs are now 4 sided and put out way more light
but to me HID is a more trusted technology dependability wise, it is very easy to wire up a couple relays and put in a HID kit and you wouldn't have to make any changes to the factory wiring.

 

[Sublimize23]

My only concern about that is the warranty, I didn't want to start drilling the dust caps either.

 

[zkutilek]

We have a 2017 Yukon. I bought 6K HID low beam kit, 6K LED High Beam Kit, and 6K LED fog kit from Vanquish Auto and have been happy with all of it. All super bright, no flickering, and plug and play.

Was happy enough with them that I bought the same setup for my 06 F250, but all LED. No HIDs in a reflector housing.

Here are a few comparison pics with stock halogens in pass side, and HID in driver side.

 

[fozzi58]

Call Diaode Dynamics. https://www.diodedynamics.com

 

[K2 Kaiju]

If you dont want to modify anything, an H9 bulb will fit (after you shave off the top tab), and give you quite a bit more output. Did it on wifes Traverse, and recently on my Avalanche (its in the 2007-2014 ext mods). Best thing is amazon has them for less than $20 a pair delivered...

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

[CMoore711]

LED's can be bright, even some of the newer ones. However, LED's just don't have the throw that HID's are going to have. What I mean is they aren't going to project the light as far in front of the vehicle as HID's will. This is also why aftermarket LED's are not recommended for low beams, Highs and Fogs Only.

Some newer cars are coming with LED low beams, but they are in LED specific headlight housings that maximize the light projection from the LED's. Which do exist in the aftermarket; click here (https://www.theretrofitsource.com/projector-kits/hid-led-projectors.html) to see how much more expensive they are over HID projectors.

 

[Sublimize23]

Thanks all. I did some more research and ordered the Diode Dynamics SL1 set. I figure this one is at least designed to be optically similar to the halogens. It can't be worse than the stock lights. If that's still not up to expectations, I'll return them and have a shop do an HID install for me.

 

[Sublimize23]

Update: diode dynamics SL1's arrived and installed.

The good: definitely somewhat brighter than halogen, good beam pattern with no dark spots or glare. This will hold me over until I can HID swap

The bad: the mounting tabs (H11) are crap. One tab on each bulb broke as I was installing it. I did not use too much force and they were keyed up correctly in the projector housing. Very hard, brittle plastic that's too thin. Needs metal tabs IMO. They still hold in there fine with no bouncing, so I'll run them for the time being.

The little ballast it comes with does fit into the headlight housing with no problem, no flickering of the lights, no errors, no problems with the backup camera either. No plans to use the CANBUS adapter. Hope this helps someone.

 

[Sublimize23]

After running these for a day and driving my commute (1.25 hours) in the dark on the way home, these are definitely adequate. I think HID would fill out the beam pattern a little more and throw the light slightly further, but the Diode Dynamics SL1 are a huge upgrade.

 

[Sublimize23]

edit - double post by accident

 

[Howard_the_Dog]

Update: diode dynamics SL1's arrived and installed.

The good: definitely somewhat brighter than halogen, good beam pattern with no dark spots or glare. This will hold me over until I can HID swap

The bad: the mounting tabs (H11) are crap. One tab on each bulb broke as I was installing it. I did not use too much force and they were keyed up correctly in the projector housing. Very hard, brittle plastic that's too thin. Needs metal tabs IMO. They still hold in there fine with no bouncing, so I'll run them for the time being.

The little ballast it comes with does fit into the headlight housing with no problem, no flickering of the lights, no errors, no problems with the backup camera either. No plans to use the CANBUS adapter. Hope this helps someone.

I have been looking at the SL1s myself. I am guessing the bulb driver and wiring all fit in the dust cover without any modification? Also how is the fan noise? I have heard the SL1s can be loud.

Anyone had any experience with other LED bulbs? I was also looking at the Putco ProLux Zero and wanted to know if anyone had used those.

 

[Sublimize23]

I have been looking at the SL1s myself. I am guessing the bulb driver and wiring all fit in the dust cover without any modification? Also how is the fan noise? I have heard the SL1s can be loud.

Anyone had any experience with other LED bulbs? I was also looking at the Putco ProLux Zero and wanted to know if anyone had used those.

Yeah, everything fits snugly with no modifications needed. You will need to remove the airbox and use a push rivet removal tool for the passenger side though.
You'll never notice it, it's hardly noticeable with the engine off and the dust cover open while I was testing it.

 

[cmatt]

I have a Yukon and felt the same about the halogens.

I think LED is great, but they don’t seem to perform as well unless in a LED specific projector. I feel the same way about HID bulbs in halogen projectors.

I swapped in OEM HID assemblies with a set of D3S Osram 6340 CBI bulbs and have been very happy with them. I created a relay harness that uses OEM connectors to address the PWM (pulse width modulated) low beam signal so the HID ballasts wouldn’t continually turn off & on causing the HID bulbs to flicker rapidly.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Sublimize23]

Looks great! That's obviously the preferred way, but I didn't want to get too involved with my brand new vehicle. I think the SL1 is a nice compromise.

View media item 27551View media item 27550

 

[sncourtesy]

Are those pics above with the SL1's installed? Are those pics of with just the headlights on? If so then the output looks to be pretty decent for a LED bulb in a Projector housing... I have 6k LED in my Fogs and have been very pleased with how they light up the road...Im thinking my fogs paired with these would give me enough light output at night..

 

[cmatt]

Are those pics above with the SL1's installed? Are those pics of with just the headlights on? If so then the output looks to be pretty decent for a LED bulb in a Projector housing... I have 6k LED in my Fogs and have been very pleased with how they light up the road...Im thinking my fogs paired with these would give me enough light output at night..

Are you referencing my photo? If so, those are HID bulbs in the OEM HID headlight assemblies.

 

[sncourtesy]

I was referencing Sublimize23 photos posted above....