ANYONE actually install LED headlights in Gen1?

I've raised my beloved 2003 Prius from a pup, and still only have 68k miles on it. (Toyota replaced the battery years ago under warranty.)

The only thing that's ever been less than a pleasure is the headlights, which are the worst I've ever used. (It feels like I'd be better off strapping two flashlights to the hood.)

I've resurfaced/polished the headlights four times over the years, but even when they're perfectly clear, it's still dim on the road ahead. I tried Philips XtremeVison 9300 bulbs years ago, with barely any improvement.

I'd really like to try LEDs and have been googling on and off for years, but I have yet to find an actual success story. Would love to hear from someone who's done it and is happy.

There seem to be so many potential gotchas about them: picking the rights bulb, aiming correctly, blinding oncoming drivers, overheating, and just being tricky to install.

Plus there's the fact that installing ANY bulb on the passenger side in my 2003 is apparently no day at the beach, and can sometimes require open heart surgery (removing the bottom of the fender panel, and going in from below).

I have a mechanic who would be wiling to try, but I'd like to learn anything I can before a) choosing from the many bulbs out there, and b) getting any tips they can use about installation.

I did read something that sounded very promising about the MicroEvolution H4 9300 bulb from the vleds site, but I can't find the post again.

Anyone? Buehler?

Thanks!

 

UPDATING....

Since I can't stop googling, I came across the most promising product I've seen: H4-HLV7 from superbrightleds. (I don't have enough posts yet to include a URL.)

It has over 200 legit-sounding reviews, almost all very positive. Most are from motorcycles, but there's at least one Gen2 Prius in there. Sounds much more plug-and-play than the others, with good pattern and brightness. If I don't hear from anyone about another option, I may just try it (after calling their support line). Only $50 a pair; probably worth a try.

 

Yes, I bought the ones I mentioned (H4-HLV7 from superbrightleds) and had my garage install them. (Unfortunately, installing lights in our particular Prius is a little tricky. It is possible to do yourself following instructions in YouTube videos but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it.)

The result is pretty good. I'd say they're about twice as bright as the original headlights, although that still leaves them very far short of what you'd find in a new car. Overall, I'm really glad I did it because driving at night is much more reasonable now.

The only thing to look out for is that it's possible to install the headlights upside down. As I recall, the trick is that the printed labeling on both headlights (on the transformer that sticks out from the back) should be facing toward the driver's side. I had to switch one of them around after they were done, and I managed to do it myself.

I tested them several times, and they're not shining in the eyes of oncoming drivers.

If you have more questions please feel free to post them here and I'll be happy to try to get back to you.

 

I'm not too sure about that. I tried halogen bulbs a year ago , and the results were really disappointing: very little improvement. The LEDs have made them almost twice as good as the originals.

And the cheapest replacement housings I've seen ran about $250 each, and those were just the same as the originals. Since they never offered LED or HID for the Gen 1 (mine's a 2003), I have to wonder if the housings from Gen2 or later would even fit. And mostly, it's just not worth putting a lot of money into a 18 year old Prius (as much as I love mine).

 

Thanks. When I tried them a few years ago, Sylvania only had the Silverstar Ultra, not the gold, and the results were much less than satisfying. I just ordered a pair (SYLVANIA 9003 SilverStar zXe Gold Halogen) and I'll give them a shot. Anything for better lighting.

 

BTW, for anybody who finds this thread because you're considering putting LED bulbs in, you might want to watch "The Truth about LED bulbs"

Its starts with a really good explanation of why LED bulbs often don't produce a good light pattern when used in an old housing. (The ones I tried actually did that pretty well in my Prius.)

 

I think you'll find that you get some improvement by polishing. (I've done it three times over the years on my Prius, and it always seems to help, though not dramatically.) Just be sure that you put some coating on afterwards to fight off the UV light, which can yellow them again pretty quickly. In the past, I've used Blue Magic 730-6 Headlight Lens Sealer - 8 oz. which works reasonably well, but I just bought something called Meguiar's G17804 Keep Clear Headlight Coating and am going to try it, because I read that it's much more effective. Both are less than $10 for what is probably a lifetime (of the car) supply. With any of the coatings, just be aware that you have to reapply it (maybe twice a year) to get reliable protection.

 

That's a new one on me. (Just googled it.) Sounds like it will do the trick, though.

 

As mentioned above, I bought LEDs (H4-HLV7: Cool White) from superbrightleds.com for $49.95 a pair. Pretty happy with them; certainly an improvement.

Based on someone else's recommendation (above), I bought bright halogen bulbs (SYLVANIA 9003 SilverStar zXe Gold Halogen) for $74.99 a pair from http://www.sylvania-automotive.com. Haven't tried them yet.

 

Glad it worked out for you, Jakob. I've got about 4 months on them now, and still doing fine.

I ended up putting the grommet in place on one of them, but haven't gotten around to the other yet.

Your comment about the flickering reminds me of the one peculiarity I've noticed with my 2003 (is that Gen 1, or Gen 0? I can never seem to remember) is that regardless of what setting the headlight switch is on, they stay on. In other words, I can't turn them off by rotating the control to OFF. Hasn't bothered me enough to check into it, and they obviously go off when I turn the key and leave the car.

I haven't gotten around to trying the Sylvania halogens discussed above (they're sitting on my desk), and now that the cold weather is here in New England, it'll probably be another few months before I do. But I'll definitely come back and post once I know something.