LED headlights for 2012 Prius C

Many DRL systems use pulsed power to produce the dimmer light during the daytime, then constant power for the actual high beam. LEDs don’t like pulsed power because they need constant minimum voltage to light up. What you’d likely need is a capacitor harness to plug inline with your lamps.... so the pulsed power would charge the capacitor, and the capacitor would power the lamps.

When I bought my LED lamps from the retrofit source it gave an option of their anti-flicker harness when I added the lamps. I was just swapping the low beams so I didn’t worry about it. They sell their anti-flicker harnesses separate, $30/pair.

 

For the sake of those of us who are being blinded quite often these days even by OEM LED headlights, please make sure they installed and aimed correctly. .

 

What is wattage of high beam nulbs in stock

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

Honestly that’s true across the board regardless of what’s making the light.

 

I will say sitting in a "c" ....now it seems like everything will blind, but
for sure all those newer SUV get me all the time.

Used to only be the old school jeeps and some pickups.

 

I think these comments are falling on deaf ears but .........................

All but the most expensive replacement LED headlights often do not produce the right dispersal pattern and may not even produce as much raw illumination as stock.

Unless you replace the entire headlight assembly, you can't be sure of a good result.
And even then they might not actually produce more light.

Newer isn't always better.

So IF you drive a lot in rural areas where there is little traffic at night, a set of aux. driving lights would be much easier and likely much better, without sacrificing the stock headlights for urban use.

 

Thinking of doing this project as well

 

It’s good to bring up, and true of many headlight kits which swap from a halogen lamp. We swapped out to the LED low beams not for brighter, or whiter, improved beam, etc. We swapped because it’s my wife’s commuter car (100 miles/day) and we’ve had a low beam lamp blow every 1-2 months for the last year. These were just standard H11 halogens, no “fancy” upped wattage lamps that burn themselves to death.

The beam pattern and light output are similar to halogens, if a bit whiter.

If I wanted brighter lights or a better beam pattern I’d be swapping out the projector for something much improved. Not planning on dropping that money into this car though.

 

This is odd. Because my family is on our 4th C now over about 6 years and have never had a single bulb go out.
Does the car get driven at night much ? Because the DRL function uses the high beams at reduced power, I believe.

You might want to have the charging voltage for the 12 V battery checked.
It might be a bit too high.

 

No doubt it’s odd. Battery checked out fine, alternator not overcharging. I’ve never had an issue with headlights like this on any other car. DRL is used daily, and yes it uses the high beam lamps with a pulsed power feed. During the winter the car was almost only driven in the dark because her commute was all before sunrise and after sunset. During the summer it almost always driven during the day.

 

The Prius C seems to burn the H11 ''low beams'' halogen light bulbs a lot.

 

I have done changing all my front lights to LEDs. Headlight H11, highbeam 9005, foglight h11 and front side marker t10. Rear all are leds too. Except for the signal light as that will get hyper flash. So far, loving it and I made sure it's not blinding to the oncoming traffic.

 

Where did you get your lights? I'd love to make all of these conversions as well.

 

Ebay or amazon. the DRL will flicker, unless you install an anti-flicker harness. I didn't see the point, since the DRL is supposed to get you noticed. Had them in the car for 5 years, no issues - until an uninsured motorist totaled it out.
PS. you need to watch the polarity on LED's; incandescence lamps don't care which wire is positive or negative, but LED's do. If your replacing your fog lamp bulbs; get the 3000K bulbs - they're yellow, a great contrast in the fog, rather than the blinding full white light spectrum.

Good luck....

 

What did you used for the high beams on the front? did you changed the housing? otherwise the halogen housing will project the LED headlight light in an inefficient pattern, not shining the front at all, scattering the light too high, blinding anyone in the front.

 

LEDs are a bad choice of light. Unless you can get below 4000kelvins from memory. The light is too white. It makes you tired on long drives, gives no depth of vision so everything is like looking at a photo instead of being able to gauge distances in 3d. The light bounces of smoke, fog, dust and street signs. It looks bright, but in actual fact testing agains HID, Halogen etc, you cannot see as far. This is what I have found from research and experience with years of four wheel driving. There's a reason you don't see them on most trucks here in Australia accept for maybe short distance wide spread light bars for the close range and edge of road. I would get a number plate light mount bracket and some small spot lights if you want better lighting. But you will find new stock bulbs will also be much brighter than ten year old ones. I believe even the auto makers have gone away for LEDs now, at least high beam, not sure on low, probably LED for fog and maybe indicators and stops.

 

On the Prius C you can get better low beam illumination without replacing the entire headlight assembly. I replaced the low beam H11 halogen bulb on a Prius C, for a Sylvania H11 LED bulb, and now the low beam illumination is better than before, and it does not blinds those who are coming the opposite direction. My high beams are still halogen, i can't put LED bulbs in there because it is not a projector like the low beams, so the light will go all directions blinding everyone in front.