I have been running the skinny pedal setup for about 6 months or maybe a bit longer and it is by far the best thing i have done to my jeep. yes i needed to reaim my headlights, but once i did that (so i wouldnt blind the rest of the world) they have been perfect. Just this past weekend was driving through upper NY on unlit roads where there is the threat of deer jumping in front of your vehicle and having all that light at my disposal was a large step in safety.
HID replacement headlights for Jeep Wrangler?
- Thread starter nwoods
- Start date
I have been running the skinny pedal setup for about 6 months or maybe a bit longer and it is by far the best thing i have done to my jeep. yes i needed to reaim my headlights, but once i did that (so i wouldnt blind the rest of the world) they have been perfect. Just this past weekend was driving through upper NY on unlit roads where there is the threat of deer jumping in front of your vehicle and having all that light at my disposal was a large step in safety.
Same here. I ordered the skinny pedal kit, $150 total with the 5000k bulb and housings, last week. FedEX says it will be bere Wednesday... I called and talked to Josh, he was very helpful, as electricity is not my strong point.
Antichrist
Expedition Leader
Just keep in mind that there is absolutely no way to legally retrofit HID bulbs in to a housing designed for Halogen lights.
Gear
Explorer, Overland Certified OC0020
Here is a link to a shop in San Diego that has HID kits for most vehicles. There prices are very cheap. Kits starting at $35.00.
http://www.ddmtuning.com/
I contacted them for a replacement HID bulb about a year ago. I thought I was going to have to pay some were around $150.00. The man behind the desk said it was going to be $20 for the bulbs. That's right I got 2 for that price.
http://www.ddmtuning.com/
I contacted them for a replacement HID bulb about a year ago. I thought I was going to have to pay some were around $150.00. The man behind the desk said it was going to be $20 for the bulbs. That's right I got 2 for that price.
Jeff H
Adventurer
I have the DDM Tuning HIDs and they have been working very well! Paired with a set of retrofitted projectors and Im sure they'd be much better than using the stock housings. I haven't experienced a larger amount of glare in the stock housings like some, either.
TOTJ
Adventurer
Im saving for these
http://www.oman4x4.com/hidlights.htm
http://www.oman4x4.com/hidlights.htm
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
I'm sorry I didn't notice this much earlier.
IPF has never submitted their housings for testing for compliance with DOT regulations; they've also skirted ECE certification but boast a bootleg and misleading "E" in a circle to look like an ECE stamp.
The Fatboy bulbs are also illegal.
The Sylvania/Valeo HIDs have been around for a few years and can be fitted legally; you can find them for around $900/set sometimes.
Daniel Stern and Rallylights make legal kits.
I've put lots of info on this thread.
I read thru this thread, very good info and it sounds like you are really trying to educate.
If you find a moment, could you take a look at the skinny pedal setup I ordered? It's the Jeep HID Conversion $110.00 for the TJ with the 5000k bulb and their housings (which I couldn't find info on and am still nervous about, however they said it was the same pattern as Hella housings.)
http://skinnypedal.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=24_26&products_id=22
I want to be legal and the scenario you lay out is something I've thought about before... I don't want to be liable just because I wanted to change my lights.
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
Those are rebased HID capsules and are completely illegal.
It's difficult to retrofit HIDs properly. Possible, yes. Lots of work, donor parts, patience. HIDplanet.com can help you with that.
For a TJ, the best/easiest headlight solution is a set of Cibie or Marchal H4 housings (Daniel Stern) with Phillips Xtreme Power bulbs. The Rallye 70/65 bulbs are sorta legal and put out more light (not a whole lot more), but they don't last long.
Rallylights.com has 7" Hella reflectors and great harnesses; the Cibie and Marchal reflectors are oodles better though. I have the Hella reflectors; they're best suited for slower than highway speed.
Mr Stern or Rallylights.com can build you a harness for the housings too. You'd use your stock wiring to trip a set of relays and wire the lights straight to your battery so they'd have almost zero voltage drop.
The Truck-Lite LED lights are worthless too if you were thinking of them...
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
No; thank you for caring.crap.
oh, and thanks for looking.
Most people don't care if their headlights are legal, blind others, or cause any number of potential electrical problems to their vehicles.
I've heard so many rationalizing comments:
as long as I can see, that's what matters to me...
the cops don't care...
the vendor says they're legal...
I like the way they look...
but look at the cut-off; they're close enough...
Then there was a kid in Florida that said he had to install illegal HIDs to compensate for the spraypaint tint he sprayed over his stock headlights. :Wow1:
Ok, I did a little more research, and I went back to their site to look for more details and found a nice little blurb I wish I would have seen before I ordered. Right above the shipping weight and manufactured by info:
"Off-Road Use Only"
I don't want to bash a company that actually TELLS you that they should not be used on the street. Kudos to Skinny Pedal. (Even though it's not super obvious)
Eric06Rubi
Observer
quasi legal or not, IMO this is one of the best mods you can do to any vehicle.
the anemic headlights my Jeep came with were terrible. couldnt see 50 feet at night, now with these I have mine adj. to about 200feet
the anemic headlights my Jeep came with were terrible. couldnt see 50 feet at night, now with these I have mine adj. to about 200feet
I'm one of the first owners of the SkinnyPedal kit from the Rubicon Forum (ROF).
I love it. It makes my KC lights seem like they aren't even on.
I'm running the IPF housings.
I love it. It makes my KC lights seem like they aren't even on.
I'm running the IPF housings.
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
I tried very hard to get a big vendor to pressure IPF into submitting their 7" housings for tests for DOT compliance. The vendor replied that the product sells, his customers are happy, and that he didn't believe that it mattered much if they were legal.
I found that a bit irresponsible considering the litigious nature of our country.
It's very easy to legally upgrade the lighting on a TJ or JK. Hella makes a couple of housings, Cibie makes a few, and you can still find Marchal. In fact, there were a few sealed beam units made years ago that danced circles around what we've got ---- you really have to track them down though and they're expensive.
Legal matters to me and I hope it does to the greater ExPo community at large. It should certainly matter to vendors who might be open to subrogation in possible lawsuits.
It's a real issue and there are real cases of vendors being issued $10,000 fines for selling non-compliant products without specifying "for offroad use only."
I found that a bit irresponsible considering the litigious nature of our country.
It's very easy to legally upgrade the lighting on a TJ or JK. Hella makes a couple of housings, Cibie makes a few, and you can still find Marchal. In fact, there were a few sealed beam units made years ago that danced circles around what we've got ---- you really have to track them down though and they're expensive.
Legal matters to me and I hope it does to the greater ExPo community at large. It should certainly matter to vendors who might be open to subrogation in possible lawsuits.
It's a real issue and there are real cases of vendors being issued $10,000 fines for selling non-compliant products without specifying "for offroad use only."