Headlight Bulb Brand?
Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,002
From: Chicago
No Aiming Needed.
No LED bulb-replacements are DOT road-legal for headlights. None. That means there's no legal framework, standards, or requirements that guide or limit the construction of such LED units. It's a engineering wild-west that escapes scrutiny by labeling the products as "For Off-road Use Only" or "For Fog Lights Only".
Checking your headlight aim is the least you can do after installing such a product. You don't even need to be precise about it. Find a nice flat parking lot at night, turn your headlights on, low beam. Lay a towel over/in front of the headlight you're not testing to block its light. Find the center of the headlight lens (the reflector portion that does the actual headlight-ing), stand right next to the headlight and find that center spot on your thigh, put your fingers there to mark your leg like a ruler. Walk ~15 feet out in front of the car and use your body as a screen to find that headlight's hot spot - where the headlight beam is brightest. The hot spot should have a well-defined upper edge. Follow the hot-spot-beam out to about 50 feet and compare its upper edge to your leg-ruler. The upper edge of the hot spot should always be at or below your headlight-lens-center measurement. Road surface flatness of your testing area is very important for proper results, so re-position the car and test again if you have any doubt. If the beam is too high (shining in other drivers' eyes) or too low (not shining as far down-road as it should), it can be adjusted with a cross-head (Phillips) screwdriver. Swap your towel over from the other headlight and repeat.
Checking your headlight aim is the least you can do after installing such a product. You don't even need to be precise about it. Find a nice flat parking lot at night, turn your headlights on, low beam. Lay a towel over/in front of the headlight you're not testing to block its light. Find the center of the headlight lens (the reflector portion that does the actual headlight-ing), stand right next to the headlight and find that center spot on your thigh, put your fingers there to mark your leg like a ruler. Walk ~15 feet out in front of the car and use your body as a screen to find that headlight's hot spot - where the headlight beam is brightest. The hot spot should have a well-defined upper edge. Follow the hot-spot-beam out to about 50 feet and compare its upper edge to your leg-ruler. The upper edge of the hot spot should always be at or below your headlight-lens-center measurement. Road surface flatness of your testing area is very important for proper results, so re-position the car and test again if you have any doubt. If the beam is too high (shining in other drivers' eyes) or too low (not shining as far down-road as it should), it can be adjusted with a cross-head (Phillips) screwdriver. Swap your towel over from the other headlight and repeat.
No aiming of the beam pattern needed.
Member
Joined: Nov 2024
Posts: 547
From: Delaware
That's a nice assertion you got there. Have you actually verified it?
Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,002
From: Chicago
Verification Of LED Beam Pattern.
Yes.
When I drive at night I can see the beam pattern and light intensity.
Halogen lights are dull compared to LED lights.
The LED lights I have are non adjustable.
Just install like a Halogen light and drive.
The DRL's are alot brighter and more visible during the day than the Halogen lights.
I'm never going back to Halogen lights.
When I drive at night I can see the beam pattern and light intensity.
Halogen lights are dull compared to LED lights.
The LED lights I have are non adjustable.
Just install like a Halogen light and drive.
The DRL's are alot brighter and more visible during the day than the Halogen lights.
I'm never going back to Halogen lights.
Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 1,374
From: Canada
Dirty Fit with stock halogens.
Stock halogen beam pattern.
Left with LED, right with stock halogen.
Beam pattern with both LEDs installed.
Dirty Fit with LEDs installed.
Following Chitown’s post, I bought some Sealight Scoparc LEDs and installed them in a random alleyway at night.
required tools: flashlight, pliers to remove rubber boot for the first time, clean disposable gloves.
The scatter is very similar and the auto adjusting of my phone camera doesn’t do the new headlamps justice. I didn’t feel like I needed to adjust the headlights down and I agree with Chitown that the scatter pattern is quite similar to stock, only the light is at least 3 times brighter (subjectively). Once the snow clears, and I find a nice flat surface, I’ll do a proper headlight beam adjustment but pretty much drop in and go.
took me about thirty minutes because I took my time installing one bulb at a time and taking pictures plus checked my oil level while I was in there.
Last edited by MTLian; Dec 18, 2025 at 10:29 PM.
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