coldforge
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Fort Lewis,WA
I just used my high beams last night on my H4 HID's with upgraded ARB wire harness and WOW! its like having offroad lights on the front(which i dont) lol
Upgrading Headlights
- Thread starter ytownxj
- Start date
- Location
- Columbus, In
Uh, I have wheeled the crap out of my Jeep. Dropped it on the rock rails several times. Drove through Creeks, across rocks, and up and down hills. The only time i broke one was when i dropped it on a concrete floor. Mine installed fine on two jeeps and I have a third set waiting to go on my other XJ. You got a bad batch or something. until i see where buying some Hellas is a better investment and that the lenses are any thicker i will run my Autopals.
- Location
- WA state
it really sounds like not all autopals are created equal. You have gotten lucky I guess. Most people I know have had fitament issues with them. Not so much breaking tho. But Hella and IPF housings are much better quality (and QC'd) than Autopals.
lazyxj
NAXJA Member #1310
- Location
- Los Angeles
I guess the rocks and gravel of the Indiana deserts are a lot softer than the ones we have out West.
- Location
- Columbus, In
I guess so. I did bust another one but that was because a Mercedes got in my way. It took out one of my Hella 500 lenses too along with my ARB bumper!
Mr Clean 1
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Baltimore, MD
http://www.cherokeeforum.com/f51/hd-headlight-harness-write-up-11306/
Here’s my list of items purchased and from where:
Heavy-Duty Headlight Harness part # 36-3580 from LMC Truck $29.95 s/h $10.75
http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/cst/full.aspx?Page=67
IPF H4 Lenses Rectangular (pair) from Rocky-Road Outfitters $74.00
IPF Fatboy Bulbs (pair) from Rocky-Road Outfitters $75.00
http://www.rocky-road.com/ipfH4.html
One thing about Rocky-Road Outfitters, they’re not fast when it comes to shipping, not in my case anyway. I placed my order on 2-22, and received it on 3-16, so be patient with them.
That’s it; follow the installation procedure from the link above and your set. The harness is fool-proof, everything is labeled, and it tells you where it goes! If you still need help do a search, search, and search more here on the forum, or any forum, that’s where I found everything I needed to do this project.
- Location
- Columbus, In
My harness was about the same price but Why would you go with a US spec housing when the Euro-code ones are much better? Also, I got an HID kit for the price of those IPF bulbs.
strubby
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- New Smyrna Beach, FL
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1979...ptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories
Has anyone tried these? A projector housing with an HID kit would sure be nice if they are of decent quality. Cheap enough...
Has anyone tried these? A projector housing with an HID kit would sure be nice if they are of decent quality. Cheap enough...
strubby
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- New Smyrna Beach, FL
Ok so 10 mins of searching told me they're not real projector headlamps and just a new H4 housing would be better, such as Autopal, etc. Then use a Silverstar type halogen or possibly retrofit an HID with an adaptor... Something like that.
Gonepostal
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- WY
I have H4 Cibies with a Dan Stearn wiring harness, great lighting...also worth every penny. If you do not choose the headlaights I would definitely recommend the harness. Even stock lights are better after the wiring upgrade.
- Location
- WA state
IPF H4 housings +your choice of bulb. I would recommend xenon or other, if not a low priced hid kit.
Wiring upgrade = awesome.
just curious where people mount their relays when doing the wiring upgrade?
if i do the fog light fix, i can mount one of them in there, but then i have to run the wires pretty far from the relays to the lights. sometimes it's best to limit that run (less voltage drop)
if i do the fog light fix, i can mount one of them in there, but then i have to run the wires pretty far from the relays to the lights. sometimes it's best to limit that run (less voltage drop)
DanMan2k06
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Damascus, MD
I ripped apart a small stock fuse/relay box and used it. I had access to the OEM "click" terminals, so I could wire up the appropriate wires, and plug in my relays just like stock. When all was said and done you couldn't even tell I had been there 
lazyxj
NAXJA Member #1310
- Location
- Los Angeles
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Not knowing what wattage bulbs would be used, I installed tow 40-amp relays and inline fuses and wired the circuits with 10-gauge wire, over kill, yes, but I had the wire and now there is no voltage drop.
I posted earlier about breaking Autopal bulbs on gravel roads.
I recently bought a set of IPF housings and bulbs and immediately noticed how much heavier the housing are. After installation, there was a huge improvement in the light pattern compared to the Autopals.
http://www.polyperformance.com/shop/IPF-H4-Rectangular-Headlight-Insert-p-17408.html
I experimented comparing the 90/100-watt Autopal bulbs and an inexpensive set of Hella 90/100-watt bulbs to the 80/110-watt IPF bulbs.
The IPF bulbs were whiter and had a much more defined cutoff, meaning less glare. A good example of you get what you pay for.
http://www.polyperformance.com/shop/IPF-Performance-H4-Bulbs-p-17407.html[/FONT]
An upgraded harness is the first thing that anyone looking for better lights should do. My stock headlights were getting a 1.5 volts less than what was available at the battery.
Not knowing what wattage bulbs would be used, I installed tow 40-amp relays and inline fuses and wired the circuits with 10-gauge wire, over kill, yes, but I had the wire and now there is no voltage drop.
I posted earlier about breaking Autopal bulbs on gravel roads.
I recently bought a set of IPF housings and bulbs and immediately noticed how much heavier the housing are. After installation, there was a huge improvement in the light pattern compared to the Autopals.
http://www.polyperformance.com/shop/IPF-H4-Rectangular-Headlight-Insert-p-17408.html
I experimented comparing the 90/100-watt Autopal bulbs and an inexpensive set of Hella 90/100-watt bulbs to the 80/110-watt IPF bulbs.
The IPF bulbs were whiter and had a much more defined cutoff, meaning less glare. A good example of you get what you pay for.
http://www.polyperformance.com/shop/IPF-Performance-H4-Bulbs-p-17407.html[/FONT]
I ripped apart a small stock fuse/relay box and used it. I had access to the OEM "click" terminals, so I could wire up the appropriate wires, and plug in my relays just like stock. When all was said and done you couldn't even tell I had been there
thanks! so, did you mount that "part" of the relay box next to the stock one? did you have a cover for it?
maybe i'll try to grab one of these from a pick n' pull with relays and wiring stubs
- Location
- WA state
RIght now I am just running the low-priced Delta Xenon bulbs that I picked up with my IPF housings from Quadratec. They are nice and white, and the pattern is good too.
DanMan2k06
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Damascus, MD
No, unfortunately it didn't have a cover. I never had it to begin with though so you could always pick a box from the yard with the appropriate cover still around.
You could still un-crimp and re-crimp the facroty terminals on your own homemade harness, but some of the terminals are only rated for 16-18awg wire. Hard to fit those little ears around some 10awg wire... If you search around online I'm sure you could find the right terminals.
soulslngr
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Northern NJ
Harness, Cibie headlights, and any bulbs you want = amazing cutoff and throw on the roads!
Ummm correct me if I am wrong, but arent HID bulbs longer than standard halogens of the same type? Which is why they tend to scatter light in housings not specifically made for HIDs?
DanMan2k06
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Damascus, MD
You got it. Not only are they longer, but if you look at H4 bulbs they have a little shroud inside on half on the bulb. This keeps glare down. No such thing on HID's, as they go into a projector.
There's already a ton of HID debate threads floating around though so I won't trash this one with it. But I will agree a diesel harness, cibie housings, and some super high wattage halogen bulbs are worth every penny spent.
There's already a ton of HID debate threads floating around though so I won't trash this one with it. But I will agree a diesel harness, cibie housings, and some super high wattage halogen bulbs are worth every penny spent.
