Explorer's Poor Headlights

[goochman]

We first test drove a Halogen Explorer at night and had to check twice that the headlights were even on - they honestly only projected about 3 feet in front of the vehicle on a cloudless clear night.

We made the HID's a requirement for our purchase after that test drive.

 

[amd2800barton]

You can get a drop in HID kit for around $200 at Diode Dynamics. There are other similar kits as well - all of them are plug and play. Several users have compared these kits to Factory HIDs on the limited model. The upgrade is such a significant improvement over the ****ty halogens, and it is nearly identical to the factory setup.

A few users will complain because it is not perfectly identical the factory setup, but feel free to ignore them. Most of them are just nit-picking / whining because they paid money for the Limited model or a higher end kit with new reflectors and lenses, and you are getting basically the same thing for a fraction of the price. A sizeable number of members are very satisfied with the light output of the kits (just buy from a good vendor). If you try the kit and still want a better cutoff / light pattern - pay for a full HID conversion.

 

[1995E]

You can aim the lights higher and keep the fogs on.

 

[ve6jhg]

Hello there...I had a 2013 edge sport before I traded for my 2015 explorer sport and I had big issues with the stock headlights so I put in an after market hid kit......worked great for about a year and then the drivers side went wonky....weird beam pattern.I found out the the projector lense had warped from the heat.....halogen lights have plastic lenses and hids have glass so if your changing up you had better change your lenses as well......just saying

 

[soulpatch]

Hello there...I had a 2013 edge sport before I traded for my 2015 explorer sport and I had big issues with the stock headlights so I put in an after market hid kit......worked great for about a year and then the drivers side went wonky....weird beam pattern.I found out the the projector lense had warped from the heat.....halogen lights have plastic lenses and hids have glass so if your changing up you had better change your lenses as well......just saying

Not sure what went awry in your instance but HID bulbs are not as hot as Halogen so any housing that is able to hold a Halogen bulb is also able to hold a HID. (Not saying that this is wise due to different light patterns).

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum ve6jhg.:wavey:
Nice to have another 'ham' on board. There have been a few of us that have been saying that you can't just simply convert to HID without changing the internal reflector. The fact that the reflector is designed for the OEM bulb means that although the HID will provide better lighting, the proper focus can never be achieved.

73

Peter

 

[soulpatch]

Welcome to the Forum ve6jhg.:wavey:
Nice to have another 'ham' on board. There have been a few of us that have been saying that you can't just simply convert to HID without changing the internal reflector. The fact that the reflector is designed for the OEM bulb means that although the HID will provide better lighting, the proper focus can never be achieved.

73

Peter

The focus issue is diffrerent entirely from the issue in his post though. The HID would not melt housing as it produces less heat then a Halogen bulb unless it was wired incorrectly or there was something else wrong.

In terms of the lenses and proper light output YES a different housing should be used to gain the proper output THOUGH it is a bit less of an issue with the newer halogen projectors out there. You dont get the same scatter and refraction with the older halogen housings. Still should upgrade for proper light though...

 

[peterk9]

I agree. Don't know why the meltdown occurred. It's the first post concerning that issue and I'm sure there are quite a few members that have been driving a long time with the conversion kits. Because only one of them warped, perhaps there is another cause.
I'm curious to see what the setup will be in the 2016 that is supposed to have LED headlamps. What I'm really wondering about is how the headlamps will remain clear in Winter since LEDs won't have enough heat to melt ice/snow.

Peter

 

[ve6jhg]

Well in my case it may have had something to do with the ballast....the ballast cratered the same time as the bulb so possibly the bulb overheated before it failed.....one thing is for sure the lense was distorted.It happened during during the day so I didn't notice it until night.

 

[boostedE]

Sorry to raise a thread form the dead. But are there any replacement lamps or complete light assemblies that will fix this issue. There are lot's of dips/hills where we are and extremely dark. When we are driving and coming down one side of a hill/dip you can't see what's on the other side. It's impossible to drive with safely. Even if we must get rid of the projectors would prefer that over the safety issue this causes.

 

[peterk9]

Sorry to raise a thread form the dead. But are there any replacement lamps or complete light assemblies that will fix this issue. There are lot's of dips/hills where we are and extremely dark. When we are driving and coming down one side of a hill/dip you can't see what's on the other side. It's impossible to drive with safely. Even if we must get rid of the projectors would prefer that over the safety issue this causes.

Welcome to the Forum. :wavey:
There are several threads on replacing/improving what we have now in the 'Modified' sub forum. Also it would be very helpful if you added the 'trim' level' of your Ex to your profile so it also shows in the margin. Thanks.

Peter

 

[jrgoffin]

Toss the stock bulbs and upgrade to the Phillips 9011: big difference. You have to modify the tabs, but that is a no-brainer.

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3380623&postcount=34

 

[peterk9]

Toss the stock bulbs and upgrade to the Phillips 9011: big difference. You have to modify the tabs, but that is a no-brainer.

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3380623&postcount=34

I think that's the only way I would upgrade. That is what I've done in the past with all my vehicles. Just changed the bulb except for those where I had to change the sealed beam headlight.

Peter

 

[gdruss]

Last night I adjusted my headlights down. I rotated the adjusters 10 turns each side and the difference is astounding. I can see the road in front of me and the high beams light up the road in the distance. If you have not adjusted your lights down, give it a try before spending money on new bulbs.

 

[Uaglio]

Last night I adjusted my headlights down. I rotated the adjusters 10 turns each side and the difference is astounding. I can see the road in front of me and the high beams light up the road in the distance. If you have not adjusted your lights down, give it a try before spending money on new bulbs.

Beware of this. Headlights are funny. Engineers make them so that they light up the road fairly far up road, not the road immediately in front of you. That's because their most important function is to light up the road when you're traveling at speed. Most people look at their light pattern sitting in their driveway, looking at a beam pattern on a wall 10 feet away. If the area immediately in front of the car isn't lit up, it looks like the lights are inadequate. Lighting up an area really well that's immediately in front of the car, but leaving the road dim 100' or more ahead is bad because when at highway speed it's too late to do anything when your headlights reveal objects only in the first 10-25'. I've found that the switch to 9011 bulbs is the easiest and cheapest way to upgrade the stock halogen setup.

 

[vp6799]

I had the same issue with my 2014 Limited. Even after an HID install. I found a nice dark side road and raised the lights up a small amount. Think is was somewhere around 3/4 of a turn on each adjuster. The lights now light up down the road much better and on the highway now, I can see fairly far without having to flip on the high beams. I've had it at this setting since last June and haven't been flashed yet by oncoming drivers.

A bulb upgrade will always help out. You might want to try and raise them up a small amount. It doesn't need to come up much. I did 3/4 of a turn on the adjuster.

 

[gdruss]

Beware of this. Headlights are funny. Engineers make them so that they light up the road fairly far up road, not the road immediately in front of you. That's because their most important function is to light up the road when you're traveling at speed. Most people look at their light pattern sitting in their driveway, looking at a beam pattern on a wall 10 feet away. If the area immediately in front of the car isn't lit up, it looks like the lights are inadequate. Lighting up an area really well that's immediately in front of the car, but leaving the road dim 100' or more ahead is bad because when at highway speed it's too late to do anything when your headlights reveal objects only in the first 10-25'. I've found that the switch to 9011 bulbs is the easiest and cheapest way to upgrade the stock halogen setup.

I do a lot of driving at night and on dark roads. There were many nights on dark wet roads that I actually had to check the switch to see if the lights were on. So my lights may have been pointed up too far. I was on the highway last night and could see down the road just fine with low beams. I may try to find a wall on flat ground this weekend and do the measurement 25' out and see what the number are.

 

[Uaglio]

I do a lot of driving at night and on dark roads. There were many nights on dark wet roads that I actually had to check the switch to see if the lights were on. So my lights may have been pointed up too far. I was on the highway last night and could see down the road just fine with low beams. I may try to find a wall on flat ground this weekend and do the measurement 25' out and see what the number are.

that sounds like a good idea - try to see how they illuminate after adjustment, a little further up the road

 

[dergrah]

Does these headlight have to pass any federal standards?

My first week with our new to us 1 year old 2015 sport. My first night HWY drive in the mountain took place Friday night and it was down right unsafe! I called the Ford dealer we bought it at and they all think I'm crazy. Been reading all the forms today and I really don't want to go aftermarket HID. I can't find a single post of anyone doing the parts swap from the Limited factory HID. Boy did we make a big mistake get the 2015 vs. ordering a new 2016.

Now I've read so many posts today but haven't seen anyone approach this problem from regulatory perspective. I'm in Canada and figure Transport Canada must have lighting requirements. So many of these standards are left up to the manufacture to declare vs. actually tested. I would really like to know if these lights actually meet what's required by law?

Derek

 

[Forddealz]

My first week with our new to us 1 year old 2015 sport. My first night HWY drive in the mountain took place Friday night and it was down right unsafe! I called the Ford dealer we bought it at and they all think I'm crazy. Been reading all the forms today and I really don't want to go aftermarket HID. I can't find a single post of anyone doing the parts swap from the Limited factory HID. Boy did we make a big mistake get the 2015 vs. ordering a new 2016.

Now I've read so many posts today but haven't seen anyone approach this problem from regulatory perspective. I'm in Canada and figure Transport Canada must have lighting requirements. So many of these standards are left up to the manufacture to declare vs. actually tested. I would really like to know if these lights actually meet what's required by law?

Derek

Very disappointing to say the least. I am waiting for my 16 Sport but leasing 14 XLT now. I could've have a 16 sport from the lot, but it had yellowish fog lamps, it just brought back bad memories. I did not want to buy the Chinese aftermarket from Amazon. Very disappointed with the headlamps and fog lamps on the 2014. Yellowish and on the dark roads I had to actually step out of the car to make sure that they are on because the light was so limited.