Headlight Question

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The relay conversion should be the first thing on your agenda. It makes a dramatic difference even when using OE non-halogen bulbs. The OE wiring was barely up to the task, and now it's all 50 years old. You may not feel like you need upgraded headlamps after doing the relay conversion.

I bought conversion kits from @slantsixdan, which are Koito. I have not yet installed any of 'em since I've had bigger fish to fry. The only dislike I have for them, aesthetically, is that the bulb inserts are colored (tan) on the high-beam housings for my Challenger (obviously not an issue on A-bodies) and the 7" rounds have a largish bulb shield (directly affects A-bodies). All have flatter lenses than OE, too. If the stock look is important, stick with good halogen sealed beams and a relay setup.

Dan is not a fan of the Hella stuff, which also has a flat lens. I bought those prior to consuting with Dan, but ended up buying the Koitos. Dan's main concern isn't necessarily how bright they are, but that the light is dispersed where it needs to be. He's not particularly impressed with the Hellas' pattern. I live in town, but there's a lot of dark 2-lane blacktop, and whitetail deer outnumber humans about 10:1 up here--no joke. I want a lot of light in the distance, so I can see their beady little eyes while I still have time to react.

The best way to get in touch with Dan regarding lighting is to contact him through his website. He'll gladly explain to you why certain lighting options aren't very good (especially LED capsules--the "bulbs" that use existing housings), and why others are excellent. Excellent lighting is really an all-consuming passion of his, and it shows. It's not a sales pitch. He may correct me if he pops in here, but I believe he's address Congress committees regarding it. I may not have used my conversion parts yet, but I'm convinced I bought the best because Dan really, truly believes in what he sells.
 
mopowers said:
Your local Toyota dealer has a great 7" halogen retrofit kit available for around 20-$25 that includes (2) Koito lamps and H4 bulbs. Ask for pn 8111060P70.
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Also if you order through Toyota, buy the parts online and then go pick up at the dealer. If you walk into the dealer and order and pay there, they'll mark everything up by a good 50%.
 
I just ordered the Toyota 81110-60P70 retrofit kit, partly because its hard to believe it's that inexpensive: $27.44 shipped from toyotapartsdeal ($16.49+$10.95 shipping). It includes housings, bulbs, and a wiring kit w/relays.

The door windlace/welt/weathercord for the same car, shipped from RockAuto, was $9.90 more. Sheesh.

This is possibly the no-brainer deal of the decade.
 
Let us know how well packaged etc. I'm in Canuckistan and am contemplating ordering a kit.
Thanks!
NoCar340 said:
I just ordered the Toyota 81110-60P70 retrofit kit, partly because its hard to believe it's that inexpensive: $27.44 shipped from toyotapartsdeal ($16.49+$10.95 shipping). It includes housings, bulbs, and a wiring kit w/relays.

The door windlace/welt/weathercord for the same car, shipped from RockAuto, was $9.90 more. Sheesh.

This is possibly the no-brainer deal of the decade.
Click to expand...
 
4spdragtop said:
Let us know how well packaged etc. I'm in Canuckistan and am contemplating ordering a kit.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
It might do you well to order from within the land of maple groves. There are some online sources in the Great White North; a quick search showed toyotapartsdirect.ca based in London, ON. They show 'em for 22.94 loonies plus bus fare.

When I get mine, though, I'll open 'em with the camera handy so you guys can see exactly what my $27 got me.
 
Well THANK YOU! That's cool, I'll definitely order from them, right now.
:thankyou::thumbsup:
NoCar340 said:
It might do you well to order from within the land of maple groves. There are some online sources in the Great White North; a quick search showed toyotapartsdirect.ca based in London, ON. They show 'em for 22.94 loonies plus bus fare.

When I get mine, though, I'll open 'em with the camera handy so you guys can see exactly what my $27 got me.
Click to expand...
 
NoCar340 said:
It might do you well to order from within the land of maple groves. There are some online sources in the Great White North; a quick search showed toyotapartsdirect.ca based in London, ON. They show 'em for 22.94 loonies plus bus fare.

When I get mine, though, I'll open 'em with the camera handy so you guys can see exactly what my $27 got me.
Click to expand...
You'll like those headlights a lot. The relay kit that comes with them is pretty chintzy though. It'll work, but in my opinion, you're better off going with a crackedback relay kit. Much better quality. But for $25, the Koito lamps themselves are a crazy good deal. I've found the bulbs themselves are pretty good too. I'm curious to hear your thoughts.
 
The Toyota conversion kit fit right in on my 1965 Barracuda with no modification. they use the H-4 bulbs and a relay harness. Mine were about $24 at my Toyota dealer.
 
I am not into making up one of these harnesses through a kit, sounds to much like the painful, 'Painless' wiring kit to me. I have 3 of the Crackedback harnesses, they are pretty much plug and play. He is also a good guy to deal with, does what he says. His harnesses also do what they are supposed to do. No need for all of that led fancy stuff. How did we ever find our way around in the dark with good old regulator incandescent headlights? Then the now blinding led's headlights, now I can't see where the hell I'm going because of the blinding oncoming or following blinding light. Drove truck for 37 years, I have watched the transition, give me the old days back , I pretty much hate led's! Sorry for the rant, but it's true.
 
70SwingerGuy said:
@NoCar340 Do you know what wattage the toyota H4 bulbs are rated at? I couldnt find the spec, but I may have overlooked it
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I'm assuming they're the same ones that came in the housings I bought from slantsixdan. I think they're what Koito ships in the housings. If that's the case, they're 55W/60W, which will be pretty effective with a relay upgrade and the better beam dispersion of the Koito housings.

Tracking says I'll have 'em tomorrow. I'll report back when I've got 'em.
 
Well, the USPS decided the package needed to pass through Detroit, which is a guaranteed delay. No exception with this one; looks like it'll be tomorrow.
 
@70SwingerGuy @4spdragtop

As promised, photos of exactly what I received for my $27.44. It's like an unboxing video for guys who went to school when optical slideshows were a thing. You'll have to imagine the tone that told the teacher to advance the slide.

This is how Koito/Toyota packed it. Ballsy move putting the lenses against the side of the box:

100_1423.JPG



Behind the housings you can see a bag. That's the harness, along with a bag containing a tube of dielectric grease and about 35 zip ties:

100_1424.JPG



A close-up of the harness, showing the Japan-made Koito relays. The blue-capped connectors are actually fuse holders, both 20A. I assume one each is for high and low circuit. The bulb connectors are rubber that will seal nicely to a boot on the back of the bulb, while the connectors to the old headlamp plugs look to be good quality, if nothing to write home about design-wise.

100_1434.JPG



The back of the bulb shows the excellent OE-style rubber boot over the bulb retainer to keep moisture out of the housing. This is quality stuff, kids:

100_1427.JPG



Removing the boot and bulb retainer and flipping the bulb reveals the provided capsules are also Koito brand, 60/55W halogen:

100_1428.JPG



The bulb housings are glass and very high quality. These are identical those I purchased from a different vendor at greater cost--a non-concern to me, because that vendor spent a lot of time with me on headlamps. Besides, I have three A-bodies at the moment anyhow.

100_1431.JPG



The only concern some may have is the appearance--I'll admit, I don't love it personally. These have "raised" lenses that are flat as a pancake across the front. They won't pass for OE, but 'tis a small price to pay for the increased performance.

100_1433.JPG



They even include instruction sheets in like 87 different languages. I can only read the one, but it's crystal clear.

100_1436.JPG



I'm officially calling it: This setup is all that and a bag of chips.

100_1437.JPG


______________________


A word about the wiring harness. I've little doubt that crackedback's conversion harness is the bee's knees for such items, but I wouldn't call this one cheap or subpar. These are all OE-quality parts and wire sold by Toyota. Toyota's known for many things, but neither crappy wiring nor electrical gremlins are one of them. I plan to use this harness as-is, with the exception of connecting the positive "battery" terminal to the alternator's power stud, which is a common recommendation for any vehicle with an ammeter.

This is unequivocally the lighting deal of the century at under $30US to your door. Scroll back through for the vendor I used, and an in-country Canuck vendor as well (no customs or border nonsense).

There's also vague reference to a quad-round kit in the instructions. I'm going to dig into that when I've got more time. I have Challengers too, y'know.
 
Beautiful writeup! Thanks for that and the Canuck lead. :thumbsup:
NoCar340 said:
@70SwingerGuy @4spdragtop

As promised, photos of exactly what I received for my $27.44. It's like an unboxing video for guys who went to school when optical slideshows were a thing. You'll have to imagine the tone that told the teacher to advance the slide.

This is how Koito/Toyota packed it. Ballsy move putting the lenses against the side of the box:

View attachment 1716321139


Behind the housings you can see a bag. That's the harness, along with a bag containing a tube of dielectric grease and about 35 zip ties:

View attachment 1716321140


A close-up of the harness, showing the Japan-made Koito relays. The blue-capped connectors are actually fuse holders, both 20A. I assume one each is for high and low circuit. The bulb connectors are rubber that will seal nicely to a boot on the back of the bulb, while the connectors to the old headlamp plugs look to be good quality, if nothing to write home about design-wise.

View attachment 1716321146


The back of the bulb shows the excellent OE-style rubber boot over the bulb retainer to keep moisture out of the housing. This is quality stuff, kids:

View attachment 1716321141


Removing the boot and bulb retainer and flipping the bulb reveals the provided capsules are also Koito brand, 60/55W halogen:

View attachment 1716321143


The bulb housings are glass and very high quality. These are identical those I purchased from a different vendor at greater cost--a non-concern to me, because that vendor spent a lot of time with me on headlamps. Besides, I have three A-bodies at the moment anyhow.

View attachment 1716321148


The only concern some may have is the appearance--I'll admit, I don't love it personally. These have "raised" lenses that are flat as a pancake across the front. They won't pass for OE, but 'tis a small price to pay for the increased performance.

View attachment 1716321159


They even include instruction sheets in like 87 different languages. I can only read the one, but it's crystal clear.

View attachment 1716321160


I'm officially calling it: This setup is all that and a bag of chips.

View attachment 1716321162

______________________


A word about the wiring harness. I've little doubt that crackedback's conversion harness is the bee's knees for such items, but I wouldn't call this one cheap or subpar. These are all OE-quality parts and wire sold by Toyota. Toyota's known for many things, but neither crappy wiring nor electrical gremlins are one of them. I plan to use this harness as-is, with the exception of connecting the positive "battery" terminal to the alternator's power stud, which is a common recommendation for any vehicle with an ammeter.

This is unequivocally the lighting deal of the century at under $30US to your door. Scroll back through for the vendor I used, and an in-country Canuck vendor as well (no customs or border nonsense).

There's also vague reference to a quad-round kit in the instructions. I'm going to dig into that when I've got more time. I have Challengers too, y'know.
Click to expand...
 
Lemme know if the Canuck site works for you. It won't accept my phone number. It comes up "invalid format" I've tried it numerous ways and nada. I also emailed them a couple days ago...no reply. I just emailed them again. I'll try phoning them tomorrow.
70SwingerGuy said:
@NoCar340 , @4spdragtop beat me to it, but thanks for the great review!! You have me sold, Im gonna order a set pronto :thumbsup:
Click to expand...
 
RustyRatRod said:
That's a really nice headlight set for the money.
Click to expand...
It would be a really nice headlight set for four times the money, to be honest. Of the $27.44 I spent, $10.95 was shipping. The kit itself was only $16.49. One of my good friends just swung by to check out the kit; he had serious doubts when I told him about it. He asked me for the info on where I got 'em. He wants a set for his old-school '31 Ford hot rod and another for his '76 F150.
 
4spdragtop said:
Lemme know if the Canuck site works for you. It won't accept my phone number. It comes up "invalid format" I've tried it numerous ways and nada. I also emailed them a couple days ago...no reply. I just emailed them again. I'll try phoning them tomorrow.
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I just ordered with no problems, I entered my phone number like this xxxxxxxxx , no spaces or 1+ at the beginning. Let me know if you get it working
 
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