HID vs LED Lighting

[2014moparam]

Yes they are projectors and have never been flashed so don't need to adjust them.

Thats why i want projectors, they are super bright, under the cutoff line, but above it, no glare whatosever

 

[2014moparam]

What it really comes down to is we each like what we like. Some will love led's and others hid's. The one problem with led's in projectors is that one must really modify the dust cover for them to fit. Yes, with hid's you have to modify but with hid's the grommet just fits right in and seals the hole made for the wires.
The led's needed to get the output required to really see have huge fans on the rear and with the dust cover will have issues with sealing; again this is with projectors.
If you have quads the led's fit under the dust cover and no issues.
Both led's and hid's give great light and expand on a very small option pool for lighting. Led's are nice as you don't need to run a relay harness and their life cycle is around 30,000 hours.
Hid's are nice because they are smaller and fit easily but require the mounting of ballast, relay harness and resistors.
The technology is changing daily and given the limited market, eventually the realization will come about and the options will explode giving us multiple options for a variety of applications...

My led lights fit, but MAN were they a tight fit.. You really had to try to get those dust caps back on lol

 

[2014moparam]

I think I have made up my mind... I learned that through the parts store I manage, i can get a set of TYC halogen quad lights for about 85 bucks each...

That being said, if i go with those, do the morimoto h1 mini projector, and h1 bulbs, i should have a nice setup..


Just bought a new 50 inch tv this weekend, so maybe a few more weeks till i have some extra spending cash and ill go ahead with the retrofit

 

[JGBimle]

I think I have made up my mind... I learned that through the parts store I manage, i can get a set of TYC halogen quad lights for about 85 bucks each...

That being said, if i go with those, do the morimoto h1 mini projector, and h1 bulbs, i should have a nice setup..


Just bought a new 50 inch tv this weekend, so maybe a few more weeks till i have some extra spending cash and ill go ahead with the retrofit

Dude I want a job at your parts store so I can get TYCs for that price!

 

[2014moparam]

Dude I want a job at your parts store so I can get TYCs for that price!

oh they are not the projectors, just the regular quad headlights lol


i can get the projectors too, but they arent much cheaper than JJ sells them for from retroshop(but i do get them for 10% over cost) lol

 

[firebuff17]

Three words pulse width modulation.

Almost makes me sound clever. Just don't ask me what it means lol

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

PWM equates to rapidly turning a light bulb on and off. So fast the incandescent light doesn't have time to fully cool off. So the naked eye can't see it. Supposed to extend bulb life. Looks like this on a service monitor.

If you took out PWM it would be a straight line. Nice and clean for an LED. But we can't have that in our RAMs. [emoji53]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Limeybastard]

PWM equates to rapidly turning a light bulb on and off. So fast the incandescent light doesn't have time to fully cool off. So the naked eye can't see it. Supposed to extend bulb life. Looks like this on a service monitor.
View attachment 63976
If you took out PWM it would be a straight line. Nice and clean for an LED. But we can't have that in our RAMs. [emoji53]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Oscilloscope should show the signal, probably occurs only when engine running. Isn't that what causes the blinking of hid's and led's on the later Ram's? I read a good article about it on a wrangler or jeep forum.

Clearing Up Misconceptions on the CAN Bus, PWM, and Flickering ...
http://www.wranglerforum.com/f274/c...ring-headlights-1054553.html#/forumsite/20561


Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

 

[danmp]

What year is your truck? I don't have any experience with Rams before 14 but I had them on my 14 and then when I got my 15 it was even worse due to the electrical system. The bulb check system makes it impossible to run HIDs without some kind of special setup designed to trick the bulb check system. That's why you need resistors and harnesses with the 14s and 15s. Without them they simply don't work, it'll trigger a bulb out warning and in my experience just won't light up or they flicker. With the right kit they work no issues, just a lot of extra wires in there.

I have a 2014 and and never got any problem with this h11 kit and like I said I have it since 2011. And I didn't have to add any harness or resistor: PremiumHIDS

 

[firebuff17]

Limey:
You are correct on your last reply. It's the Bain of electrical modifications to our RAMs. I think I read that same article. If not that exact one a very similar one. Cleaned up a few misconceptions.
And as many articles and threads I have read ( this thread and the OPT7 thread to name a few) I can't remember what has been said by who on what thread. So it may have been discussed already. But it is good to post that article up for a refresher or to bring to light for new followers that didn't read all the pages of these threads.
So thanks for posting. It's a good article everyone should read who is attempting any electrical work in their RAM.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Limeybastard]

Limey:
You are correct on your last reply. It's the Bain of electrical modifications to our RAMs. I think I read that same article. If not that exact one a very similar one. Cleaned up a few misconceptions.
And as many articles and threads I have read ( this thread and the OPT7 thread to name a few) I can't remember what has been said by who on what thread. So it may have been discussed already. But it is good to post that article up for a refresher or to bring to light for new followers that didn't read all the pages of these threads.
So thanks for posting. It's a good article everyone should read who is attempting any electrical work in their RAM.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah, I'm going to read it again, as I only read the first page detailing the information given.

My led light pods attached to my fog harness slightly flicker, very faint but enough to probably greatly reduce its lifespan. I bought an OPT7 capacitor flicker free harness hopefully that'll fix it. Or should I say band aid it. Lol.

I'm wondering if there is way via a programmer to disable this function on our trucks. , I'm sure there is a way but not available currently or feasible.



Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

 

[firebuff17]

Limey:
The capacitor harness should fix your flicker problem. And honestly all of our fixes are band aids.
Would be awesome if there was a way to reprogram but somehow I don't see that happening. I would only imagine it requiring a major computer program revamp. Certainly above my pay scale. Probably along lines of Chrysler computer programers.
But... One can hope.

None of this would change my mind about buying a RAM but if I knew then what I know now I would have changed some things from the start or ordered from the factory everything I wanted.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Limeybastard]

Limey:
The capacitor harness should fix your flicker problem. And honestly all of our fixes are band aids.
Would be awesome if there was a way to reprogram but somehow I don't see that happening. I would only imagine it requiring a major computer program revamp. Certainly above my pay scale. Probably along lines of Chrysler computer programers.
But... One can hope.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks for the response, appreciate it. There was mention about DRL and not being compatible with PWM, on a thread I was reading on candle forums .

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?263719-PWM-d-voltages-for-Automotive-lighting

Longshot guess, is that person in the thread saying that DRL headlight enabled vehicles perhaps may not have PWM enabled due to the two being incompatible? Since if so, then there was a person I believe on the diesel forums having his or her dealer enable the DRL functionality on their Ram 1500. Now, I'm not sure if it disabled their PWM since that wasn't their objective.

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

 

[bigolayne]

All I know is that I'm tired of the craziness with our electrical system. Even the interior lights have issues on my truck.
RAM just wants us to have to bring our trucks back to them for everything so they can get $$$$.
Don't get me wrong, I love my truck but I hate how difficult it is just to change a light...

 

[SitKneelBend]

Now that I've figured out what I'm doing with this stuff, it's really not too difficult to rectify these flickering issues with your own power ran to the battery, inline fuse, relay, and a tap of the factory wire to retain a factory switch. You'll probably still receive bulb out messages though.

If DRL turns off PWM. That would be a nice easy fix. They really should create a user interface to let the truck know what type of lighting is installed.

Do any Rams come with factory LEDs in the front?

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

 

[iam_canadian22]

Now that I've figured out what I'm doing with this stuff, it's really not too difficult to rectify these flickering issues with your own power ran to the battery, inline fuse, relay, and a tap of the factory wire to retain a factory switch. You'll probably still receive bulb out messages though.

If DRL turns off PWM. That would be a nice easy fix. They really should create a user interface to let the truck know what type of lighting is installed.

Do any Rams come with factory LEDs in the front?

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

Just the led signals in the projector housings

 

[Limeybastard]

Just the led signals in the projector housings

Still can't get it round my head that a vehicle introduced as a 2009 MY never had the option of factory HIDs, not even their beloved Laramie models .

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

 

[2014moparam]

Well I did some research, found a set of projectors to do a retrofit online and ordered them this morning... I'm going to have to order in the extra set of headlight housings, but I'm hoping to do this whole retrofit for under $250 or so... We shall see haha

 

[bigolayne]

Let us know how it goes. Where did you order from? I know there are a couple of us getting ready to tackle this as well.
I'm going to bake and then use a heat gun for the fun part of taking them apart...

 

[2014moparam]

Let us know how it goes. Where did you order from? I know there are a couple of us getting ready to tackle this as well.
I'm going to bake and then use a heat gun for the fun part of taking them apart...

I am actually going to give the Nilight projectors a shot. Once I get them, I want to look them over and see if they will be good enough to use, but they were $40 shipped on Amazon.


https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9WW5tpOWMxw


That is a comparison between the morimoto, some "jdm" branded projector, and these nilight projectors. Long video, but it helped me make up my mind(or to at least give them a shot)

Now my only problem is, it looks like the tyc replacement headlights I was planning to order are on a decent sized back order from tyc..


I definitely am going to use a set of replica replacements, as they will be easier to crack open vs factory. Should only have to bake them in the oven for about 3-5 minutes at 200F to get the sealant to let loose, vs the insanity of the glue they use from the factory...

 

[2014moparam]

Either way, I'm probably going to have to wait a week or so to be able to get the headlight housings... I decided to buy a new tv over the weekend(my wife noticed that haha)