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Foglight Bulb Options

Has anyone tried the new cree led kits coming out on the market? They appear to have a balast module similar to a hid setup and incorporate a builtin heatsink and cooling fan. They must be a higher voltage led that runs hotter.
Here's a picture of what i'm talking about:

_3_zps7ef9ae7b.jpg
 



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so after all these tests...... if you want yellow fogs with a lot more oomph than the wimpy OEM fog lights which should I buy????
 






Has anyone tried the new cree led kits coming out on the market? They appear to have a balast module similar to a hid setup and incorporate a builtin heatsink and cooling fan. They must be a higher voltage led that runs hotter.
Here's a picture of what i'm talking about:

_3_zps7ef9ae7b.jpg

I tried a similar kit (9005) but the bulbs do not fit into the headlight housing. Instead of returning them, which is what I should have done, I tried modifying them to fit but did not work.

http://www.vleds.com/9005-hb3-5k-cxa.html

Not sure how they will fit on H11 housing (foglights). To be honest, it's not necessary. I installed these for fogs

http://www.vleds.com/5k-white-10-led-drl-fog-light-bulbs-h11-1-pair.html
 






I tried a similar kit (9005) but the bulbs do not fit into the headlight housing. Instead of returning them, which is what I should have done, I tried modifying them to fit but did not work.

http://www.vleds.com/9005-hb3-5k-cxa.html

Not sure how they will fit on H11 housing (foglights). To be honest, it's not necessary. I installed these for fogs

http://www.vleds.com/5k-white-10-led-drl-fog-light-bulbs-h11-1-pair.html


I decided to go with the Philips DiamondVision for the fogs. I don't hardly use them and decided to not spend the extra money on something not proven. This thread has a post from roamingphantom (first page) that shows the DiamondVision compared to a cree. it appears to give off more light.
 






I decided to go with the Philips DiamondVision for the fogs. I don't hardly use them and decided to not spend the extra money on something not proven. This thread has a post from roamingphantom (first page) that shows the DiamondVision compared to a cree. it appears to give off more light.

I have the Philips DiamondVision (5K temperature) and they will turn into a more blue 6K output (not brighter just more blue) as they settle / burn into place. I wouldn't recommend the Phillips variants.

I will be replacing mine with OSRAM's 5K equivalent that I got online.
 






I have the Philips DiamondVision (5K temperature) and they will turn into a more blue 6K output (not brighter just more blue) as they settle / burn into place. I wouldn't recommend the Phillips variants.

I will be replacing mine with OSRAM's 5K equivalent that I got online.

Installed the 5k DV's last night. Like the color. Wish they were brighter though. Let me know if the OSRAM's are brighter than the DV's.
 






I just ordered these yesterday. http://www.coolbulbs.com/led-fog-lights.asp I will post pics and let y'all know if I run into any snags during the install. I chose the 3k set, as I currently run yellow fogs (as I have in my last three vehicles. the combination of the 3k fogs and 6k headlights is mighty hard to beat for visibility.
 






Anyone use the PIAA Plasma Ion Yellow H11 55W fog light bulbs???
 












anybody have HID foglights? Ever since cold weather came in. i have nothing but problems. each side comes on when they want to or not come on at all. have to keep turning it off then on to try to get both on. no luck most of the time.
 






anybody have HID foglights? Ever since cold weather came in. i have nothing but problems. each side comes on when they want to or not come on at all. have to keep turning it off then on to try to get both on. no luck most of the time.

You probably are not running a dedicated harness to the battery which combined with possible subpar ballasts is a recipe for disaster.
 






Here are 6K coolbulbs and 3K LED coolbulbs.
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You probably are not running a dedicated harness to the battery which combined with possible subpar ballasts is a recipe for disaster.
Just be aware of what the Owner's Guide states;

Electrical accessory installation
To ensure proper operation of the BMS, any electrical devices that are
added to the vehicle should not have their ground connection made
directly at the negative battery post. A connection at the negative
battery post can cause inaccurate measurements of the battery condition
and potential incorrect system operation
.


Peter
 






Just be aware of what the Owner's Guide states;

Electrical accessory installation
To ensure proper operation of the BMS, any electrical devices that are
added to the vehicle should not have their ground connection made
directly at the negative battery post. A connection at the negative
battery post can cause inaccurate measurements of the battery condition
and potential incorrect system operation
.


Peter

Either way anyone puts it is .....aftermarket is aftermarket. However running a direct harness to the battery makes the system more cohesive.

Quote from TheRetrofitSource:

A wire harness is installed so that your factory headlight circuit can control your new HID system properly. Generally speaking you can't just plug the ballasts into the sockets that powered the halogen bulbs and expect them to work reliably or even at all. A harness not only ensures that the outputs from your car will be converted for compatibility with your ballasts (and projector solenoids if applicable) but also does double duty to provide the right amount of power to these components.

Furthermore using "aftermarket ballasts" is like playing Russian roulette with your lighting and electrical system. The ballast is the catalyst for the HID light bulb and it should be a stable component.

More information regarding ballasts here: Ballasts Explained

Disclaimer: I'm not associated with TRS
 






idk, just gonna get regular white h11 bulbs. not going to put up with this HID fogs anymore
 






anybody have HID foglights? Ever since cold weather came in. i have nothing but problems. each side comes on when they want to or not come on at all. have to keep turning it off then on to try to get both on. no luck most of the time.

I have hid's and no issues. I got mine from TRS and it came with the dedicated harness.
 






Thought I'd add a couple of H9 vs OEM H11 pics into the mix. All photos were taken with identical camera settings. Colors might be a bit off but this is mainly for comparing light output.

First shot is low beam only (9005 6000K 35W HID kit from coolbulbs.com)
slzg7QT.jpg


Low beam and fogs, H9 is on the left, OEM H11 is on the right. It was raining so a lot of light was bouncing back off the wet surface.
YbHuHxT.jpg


Fogs only, H9 is on the left, OEM H11 is on the right. The fogs weren't adjusted very well so the left hand fog is pointing higher than the right.
miJVubT.jpg


OEM H11 only, ~1250 lumens.
5U2auEn.jpg


H9 only, ~2100 lumens.
AHI2aou.jpg


There's a noticeable difference in output and intensity between the H9 and the H11 but the misalignment of the fogs that's visible in the pictures is a bit misleading. I'm planning on taking some more comparative shots when it's not raining and now the lights are aligned evenly.
 






Thought I'd add a couple of H9 vs OEM H11 pics into the mix. All photos were taken with identical camera settings. Colors might be a bit off but this is mainly for comparing light output.
There's a noticeable difference in output and intensity between the H9 and the H11 but the misalignment of the fogs that's visible in the pictures is a bit misleading. I'm planning on taking some more comparative shots when it's not raining and now the lights are aligned evenly.
I think the OEM H11 is the intended pattern for the fog lights. The H9 is acting more like driving lights, throwing too much light and too high to be of any use as a fog lamp IMO.

Peter
 






I think the OEM H11 is the intended pattern for the fog lights. The H9 is acting more like driving lights, throwing too much light and too high to be of any use as a fog lamp IMO.

Peter

They have the same pattern as they're the same reflector, one is just a higher output bulb. Like I said, they were misaligned. Once I got home I could see on the garage door (from ~6' back) that the cutoff of the left foglight was about 4" higher that the right. There's a small vertical adjustment wheel on each unit so I've now adjusted them so they match, at the same time adjusting them to be the correct height. I'll post another set of comparison pics when I can.

[science]
The point of fog lights is to throw light low and wide, beneath the fog/rain/snow to aid in illuminating the sides of the road and immediately in front of the vehicle. Low beams are designed to cast light down the road so you can see further when you're traveling at a higher (normal) speeds. In the case of the Explorer in particular, low beam often lacks illumination directly in front of the vehicle, partially because you're eyes should be focused further down the road anyway, and partly to avoid your eyes adjusting to expose the well lit foreground at the detriment of distance vision. Fog lights are there to help to fill in this 'light void' but are only of use in inclement weather conditions when you should be traveling slower anyway and would be focused on the road closer to your vehicle. In this situation having more light will NOT be detrimental to visibility.
[/science]

If the weather is bad I want as much light in front of me as possible to light where I'm going. I've driven in conditions where without foglights I would not have been able to see the side of the road or my lane markings above walking speed. I'm not looking to cast light higher or further down the road, nor in conditions such as those am I looking to be suddenly able to drive at 60mph, but I want my lights to penetrate deeper/wider and a higher output bulb will facilitate that.
 



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I have hid's and no issues. I got mine from TRS and it came with the dedicated harness.

Just wondering what happened to the DV 5000k fogs that you liked so much last summer? Did you have issues with them?

From your pics, they looked like they gave a good wide pattern. Wanting to replace my LED's that I'm not to happy with.

Pro's and cons of the DV's. Thanks, tinner
 






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