New RAM owner. Lighting questions.

Hey there fellas. Just traded my fully built 2013 JK Rubicon for a new Sport CC fully loaded without Alpine. One of the first things I did on my JK was swap the headlights for JW Speaker LED headlights and fog lights. I live in Alaska so it gets very dark during the colder months. One of the first things I noticed about the RAM is that the headlights suck. Im so used to lighting up the road in my Jeep so the move is tough.

My question is, what is the best option available to upgrade the headlights and fog lights on the new RAM with factory projector headlights? Ive been searching online all day with no help. I figure I should be able to drop in some HID's and ballasts since the factory headlights are projectors.

Also, I cant seem to locate a bracket for the fog lights so I can add some LED lights there.

MOPAR for life!

If you move to HIDs, keep it to the under 6K color so they have the least amount of wasted light output (due to color).
A local friend bought a set of factory projector heads with a good quality 35W HID setup, and we could barely tell the difference in output to my reflectors with 55W PIAA bulbs. We were both surprised he didn't wipe the floor with me.

If it were my money I would go to at least a 55W HID setup, or if money permits (sounds like you like modding), I would talk to JJ about a better quality projector retrofit.
My $02. Hope the truck treats you well, and welcome aboard!

Yeah I had a ton of mods on my Jeep. I found one HID kit that claims to work with the CANBUS on the '15's, Enlight. They offer 35W and 55W kits. I cant imagine I would need to get a retrofit as these factory projectors seem to be the real deal. They note that with the 55W kit, the output is in the 5000k range with the 6000K lights. Hopefully someone on here has some input on these lights. Its darker than Satans hole here.

Thanks for the input! Been awhile since Ive had a truck, needed a tow rig for my project trail buggy Jeep.

See JJ at Retroshop. I'm not far from you in Northern Alberta. The days are getting shorter and shorter.

There isn't anything that JJ can't help you with.

Don't bother with Halo's. The weather kills them up here. I also put the JW Speakers in my wife 2014 JK. The HID's will act the same way as the LED's... not a lot of heat. The larger housing will sometimes condensate.
More so on my older quad housing than your newer projector because I don't have any vents. Your newer style does.

Even running 2 projectors per housing, there still isn't enough heat to clear them totally.

You'll see it over your LED signal lights in the front when the humidity gets going... or you wash your truck in the cold. A stripping heat gun or hairdryer on the lens will clear it up.

Get the right projectors and aim them properly. JJ will walk you through it if need be. Maybe you'll get luckey and be able to run HID's in the stock projectors? I'd never get that lucky.

With the amount of animals on the road up here... it was probably the best investment/mod I've done.

mrsundays said:

Yeah I had a ton of mods on my Jeep. I found one HID kit that claims to work with the CANBUS on the '15's, Enlight. They offer 35W and 55W kits. I cant imagine I would need to get a retrofit as these factory projectors seem to be the real deal. They note that with the 55W kit, the output is in the 5000k range with the 6000K lights. Hopefully someone on here has some input on these lights. Its darker than Satans hole here.

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I've got Enlight's 55W kit in my 2015 w/ factory projectors, have been running them in Northern Minnesota. I couldn't be happier with them!

Here's a great thread with some options for lighting from another Alaskan member.

http://www.ramforum.com/f41/led_light_bar_pods_install_behind_grill_bumper-63186/

ohengineering said:

I've got Enlight's 55W kit in my 2015 w/ factory projectors, have been running them in Northern Minnesota. I couldn't be happier with them!

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Maybe im missing something on their site but, it looks like they only sell 35W 6000k kits.. I cant figure out how to mix and match ballast power and light temp. Id love to get a 55w 5000k kit but, i don't see it.

Sorry for jumping in here, but maybe this will help the OP too.

With the help of JJ im building a set of OEM projector headlights retro'd with FXR projectors, 55W HID's, Switchback RGBWA boards and halo/strip Switchbacks. I ran stock projectors and the output was eh compared to a friends with a full retro headlight setup.

CuylerTech said:

With the help of JJ im building a set of OEM projector headlights retro'd with FXR projectors, 55W HID's, Switchback RGBWA boards and halo/strip Switchbacks. I ran stock projectors and the output was eh compared to a friends with a full retro headlight setup.

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Yeah I dont need all those fancy things, just want good and safe light ouput. Does he also do fog light setups? I wish they would just make LED lamps, they are so much better.

ohengineering said:

I've got Enlight's 55W kit in my 2015 w/ factory projectors, have been running them in Northern Minnesota. I couldn't be happier with them!

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Are they safe for oncoming drivers? Want to keep it as legal as possible. Also, what does the color come out to with those? Bluish or more of a white light?

Well if you can't choose 55 watt ballast, and all they offer is 6000k then the light is going to be very blueish, I don't care what they market their products as, 6000k on the kelvin scale is blue. If you overpower it with a 55w ballast then it should wash out some and look more like a 5000-5500k. I'd recommend 55w 5000k, or 35w 4500k if you want real OEM looking HID's.

as for legal, short answer - no. But you should not blind people as much as the normal reflector housings (quads, or dules). Common misconception here is that ANY projector has a cut off and HIDs will work, while this is true it is so only for a specific bulb shape/size/power. Meaning if you stick an HID bulb in there that has completely different dimensions, and power the light is going to scatter. Additionally halogen projector housings are designed to throw some light upward above the cut off, this is not very noticeable with OE bulbs, but if you throw an HID in there it will cause some glare. I don't think you will blind people or fail inspection, but you're not going to get the perfect light output and cut off like you would with a retro fit.

Jmhm17 said:

Maybe im missing something on their site but, it looks like they only sell 35W 6000k kits.. I cant figure out how to mix and match ballast power and light temp. Id love to get a 55w 5000k kit but, i don't see it.

Sorry for jumping in here, but maybe this will help the OP too.

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Sorry, they're 50W 6000, I mistyped. Check the dropdown list under "Choose your ballasts", it's listed there. They are 6000k, but the light output washes them out a bit, bringing it to ~5200K. Perfect, in my opinion.

Jmhm17 said:

Well if you can't choose 55 watt ballast, and all they offer is 6000k then the light is going to be very blueish, I don't care what they market their products as, 6000k on the kelvin scale is blue. If you overpower it with a 55w ballast then it should wash out some and look more like a 5000-5500k. I'd recommend 55w 5000k, or 35w 4500k if you want real OEM looking HID's.

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Color is ~5200K on Enlight's 50W kit. Perfect spot, in my opinion.

Not trying to hijack the thread, but I am assuming you'd need the relays kit and resistors with the Enlight 50w kit to make it work without bulb-out warnings?

I decided against the Enlight kit and have talked with Jeremy and will be ordering the '15 kit he offers at Retroshop. Seems like the best option. Ill just make sure the aiming is appropriate to avoid unwanted attention from the police. Im still trying to find LED light brackets for the fog light locations. I want to run dual Rigids there if I can, the Fog lights and a spot. Anyone know if someone makes a bracket yet for the '15?