2013 Tradesman Express 5.7 Headlight Assembly Upgrade?

[FL Ram Girl]

First off, I’m new here but not new to forums. I searched all over for this question/thread and came up empty. Thanks for having me here too by the way.

I have a 2013 5.7 Tradesman express. Short cab, short bed. I’m in the process of getting it fixed up, repainted and some minor body work.

The headlight assembly that comes with it is terrible IMO. I’d like to find a high quality direct replacement for them. Something more modern (hopefully a direct OEM swap from another model if it’ll work). First off, this is pretty much exactly what my truck looks like…



I’m not looking for a lot of LED bling, I simply want something less dated and more effective that can be easily swapped out. I know aftermarket headlight assemblies can be a roll of the dice. Some work, some are cheap garbage. Price is less of an issue than quality.

I’m hoping for something that looks similar to these….



These were pulled from Walmarts site and seem too inexpensive to be quality. I guess my two big concerns are A) a direct swap/replacement (no special fitting, plug and play) and b) RAM OEM if there’s a model that would work with my truck or at least a high quality aftermarket option.

Can anyone help me find something that’ll work with my truck given all of the above?

Thank you in advance, I very much appreciate any help, I’m stumped!

 

[Socalramfan]

Welcome to the forum.

Your options and choices are unlimited, cost and style will be the the varying factors.

Theres always ads out there on sites like OfferUp etc where others are looking to sell oem & aftermarket lights.

Simply way is to try better and brighter bulbs, and go from there.

 

[FL Ram Girl]

Thank you for the reply. I’d like a more modern looking assembly that’s RAM OEM that would be a direct swap, I just don’t know if such an assembly exists. New bulbs would help, but I’m looking for more than just better light.

I have a seen a ton of aftermarket options, but I’ve known many people who got aftermarket headlight assemblies that were junk, or required more that a simple swap. I’d like a high quality direct swap. Simple replacement, remove the old 2013’s, bolt in a replacement. Done. It’s difficult to sort the good options from the junk options, which is why I was asking for some specific places to start or a RAM OEM option (maybe from a 2014 or different 2013 model) that is a direct plug-n-play swap.

 

[crash68]

I’d like a more modern looking assembly that’s RAM OEM that would be a direct swap, I just don’t know if such an assembly exists.

You could put a set of OEM projector headlights in but you would need a wiring harness adapter: https://retroshop.us/products/4th-gen-projector-adapter-v3-1-pair

Lots of members have Alpharex headlights and their direct offshoots Modifystreet. They make a good quality headlight assembly. Most are plug-n-play.

2009-2018 Ram Truck Headlights Collection | AlphaRex

AlphaRex PRO-Series halogen type headlights and NOVA-Series full LED projector headlights for 2009-2018 Ram Truck headlights.

www.alpharexusa.com

 

[FL Ram Girl]

You could put a set of OEM projector headlights in but you would need a wiring harness adapter: https://retroshop.us/products/4th-gen-projector-adapter-v3-1-pair

Thank you.

So 2 questions.

I’m not sure what OEM projector headlights you’re referring to that would fit my 2013, can you post a link to them please?

The second questions. That wiring harness you linked to is simply swapped with my existing 2013 wiring harness? That sounds simple. It is simply a matter of unplugging the old and replacing it with the new harness you posted?

 

[GRKN]

The picture you posted is an aftermarket knockoff of the OEM projectors crash68 is talking about. OEM ones will look pretty much identical and are available in chrome as well as black. Watch for good condition takeoffs local to you on fb marketplace, might take weeks or months but you can save big bucks if you find the right deal. Just make sure they’re OEM.

 

[Wild one]

Thank you.

So 2 questions.

I’m not sure what OEM projector headlights you’re referring to that would fit my 2013, can you post a link to them please?

The second questions. That wiring harness you linked to is simply swapped with my existing 2013 wiring harness? That sounds simple. It is simply a matter of unplugging the old and replacing it with the new harness you posted?

If you're looking at OEM projectors,they'll have Ram in the back corner of them,the knock offs won't have Ram molded into them. Blow this pic up and you can see the molded in Ram lettering.

 

[crash68]

I’m not sure what OEM projector headlights you’re referring to that would fit my 2013, can you post a link to them please?

The second questions. That wiring harness you linked to is simply swapped with my existing 2013 wiring harness? That sounds simple. It is simply a matter of unplugging the old and replacing it with the new harness you posted?

for the '13 and newer Gen4 Ram trucks there was two headlights available from the factory (OEM). The Quad which you have and the Projector style. Any year projector headlight from a '13 or newer will fit your truck and work if you use the above wiring harness. The Projectors from '16 and newer use H9005 bulbs in both the high and low beams.
As for the wiring harness it makes them pretty much plug-n-play as the projectors use a different style plug then the Quads.
Going with the OEM projectors won't be cheap, even used your probably looking a couple of hundred each headlight plus the adapters. Many members on this forum are happy with Alpharex headlights (me included). If you think you want LEDs, the Luxx and Nova versions from Alpharex are all LEDs where as the Pro versions are Halogen.

 

[Badger 13]

If you want to see what stock projector lights look like, this is my 2013 with them.

 

[FL Ram Girl]

If you want to see what stock projector lights look like, this is my 2013 with them.

That is exactly what I’m looking for. So Ram 2013+ projector headlight assembly with the wiring harness posted above will allow a direct swap with the OEM headlights i currently have, if i have this right.

 

[A_mod_too_far]

I'd go alpharex if on a budget or morimoto if not unless you are getting a sweet deal on some used projectors, really not worth it imo

 

[FL Ram Girl]

If you want to see what stock projector lights look like, this is my 2013 with them.

Any idea what the part number for the MOPAR hood is? I like the look better than the non-vented version my truck came with. I’m looking at the hood below and curious if this is what would work.

 

[crash68]

Any idea what the part number for the MOPAR hood is?

That is the Sport hood, make note the scoops are non-functional. Mopar also sold a Ram-Air conversion kit for that hood but it doesn't do much and was quite $$$
Something of that size your probably better off buying from a local dealership or body shop as it will need to be painted to match your truck. You might get lucky and find one in a local salvage yard possibly in the correct color. www.car-part.com

 

[FL Ram Girl]

That is the Sport hood, make note the scoops are non-functional. Mopar also sold a Ram-Air conversion kit for that hood but it doesn't do much and was quite $$$
Something of that size your probably better off buying from a local dealership or body shop as it will need to be painted to match your truck. You might get lucky and find one in a local salvage yard possibly in the correct color. www.car-part.com

The whole truck is about to get painted, so I was thinking of getting the sport hood from MOPAR (pictured above) ahead of time, which states its primed and paint ready. Fitment shouldn’t be an issue I’m guessing. Just don’t want to spend $1K+ and have that hood shipped only to find it wont fit my 2013 (avatar pic). Or require extra parts. Seems like it should work. Ordering it from a local dealership seems like that might be a smarter move, so I can make sure it hasn’t been dinged up during shipping and can inspect it there.

 

[crash68]

Fitment shouldn’t be an issue I’m guessing. Just don’t want to spend $1K+ and have that hood shipped only to find it wont fit my 2013 (avatar pic).

All the Gen4 (DS body) hoods from 1500s are swappable. Same goes for the sport bumper assembly.