# Headlight - please help, I cannot see the road!



## alanl11 (Apr 8, 2018)

AdamzCruze said:


> Hello cruzers! I have an issue, maybe I'm getting old or there is some other issues,but! I think my projectors are working weird as ****! Been driving for a while with LEDs and was ok, until I started to drive a lot at night. I noticed that my LEDs are doing great job on side of the beam pattern, but in the middle are horrible.. I've put back my OEM sylvania bulbs and they do have a nice hotspot in the middle just not bright enough. Later I took my LEDs and put them into my friends KIA niro, and woah they do shine like a star, just perfect. What's wrong with cruze's projectors? Does anyone found a good solution for headlights?! What to do?! Maybe to HID? I've added 2 pics, LEDs and halogen(please not that they look a lot better in the pics)


I have LED's in my projectors and their perfect. Most LED's will not work well in a projector housing, they want a reflector housing so if the Kia uses reflective they would be good, search You tube for LED comparisons there is a ton there.My Led's have a great hot spot in the middle and light up the road great


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## alanl11 (Apr 8, 2018)

Here how mine look.
















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## AdamzCruze (Nov 16, 2017)

alanl11 said:


> AdamzCruze said:
> 
> 
> > Hello cruzers! I have an issue, maybe I'm getting old or there is some other issues,but! I think my projectors are working weird as ****! Been driving for a while with LEDs and was ok, until I started to drive a lot at night. I noticed that my LEDs are doing great job on side of the beam pattern, but in the middle are horrible.. I've put back my OEM sylvania bulbs and they do have a nice hotspot in the middle just not bright enough. Later I took my LEDs and put them into my friends KIA niro, and woah they do shine like a star, just perfect. What's wrong with cruze's projectors? Does anyone found a good solution for headlights?! What to do?! Maybe to HID? I've added 2 pics, LEDs and halogen(please not that they look a lot better in the pics)
> ...


What brand are they? Looks like a dream?? Just to be sure, it's in cruze with projectors?


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## H311K!77Y (Feb 19, 2019)

I had the same issue and would like to know a few brands that actually work great


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## alanl11 (Apr 8, 2018)

AdamzCruze said:


> What brand are they? Looks like a dream?? Just to be sure, it's in cruze with projectors?


I used Hikari from Amazon I had both the Cree bulb and the Phillip's ultra' are what I've got in my 2018 LT Projectors.
I put Phillip's ultras for my fogs.
Also on Amazon.

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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Sounds like they need to be re-aimed.

My 12's were horribly aimed (like a turn and a half too low) from the factory. The 16 needed a little bit of tweaking and it lit up the road much better.

I also put Phillips CrystalVision bulbs in mine. They have a slight bluish tint so they match the LED strip a little more, and provide more light output than the OEM long-life bulbs.


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## AdamzCruze (Nov 16, 2017)

I have the same bulbs..I don't understand why there is such a huge difference? Did you used 9005 bulbs? Re-aimed, made some changes twitches something..man I am so lost


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## AdamzCruze (Nov 16, 2017)

Hey, reaim you mean to adjust the height? Or something else? I played a lot with heigh, but the bulbs just remain scattered.. did you tried HID?


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## Ma v e n (Oct 8, 2018)

The difference for most people is the lighting performance is wildly subjective. And the average person can't tell small differences in headlight performance, so there's typically a huge change in performance before it's noted.

The stock projectors are designed for a 9005 bulb, where all the light radiates from all the way around a centrally located filament lined up within hundredths of a millimeter of a specification. LED emitters in the "bulbs" people use don't function this way. First of all, all of them have somewhere around at least 1mm between the emitters, then there's the fact that these 9005 shaped toys don't have to meet ANY specifications at all....Not from manufacturer to manufacturer or even "bulb" to "bulb". You get wildly performance and emitter aiming/location from company to company and even one lot of bulb to the next. 

Some of them may work great in one projector, others won't, some in certain reflectors but not others. 

Most of them "mimic" high output by splashing a load of light somewhere close to the car. Tricking you into thinking they are bright and functioning normally. They may be bright, but not doing the job they say.

I worked on a car with lighting issues just about a month ago, had the current style two sided blade LED bulbs. They came in a two pack, one used an entire amp more than the other. The seller wouldn't replace them because they both "looked bright" in photos. On the road it was abysmal.

A 9011 HIR1 bulb with a 30 second tab mod will put out more light, and is identical electrically and aim wise to the 9005 and meets specs as a real bulb.

Some of the "less cheap" HID kits will also throw a lot more light. Usually with notable glare above the cutoff that is dangerous. But with those you'll see right away that the bulb base, which locks the bulb in place and maintains filament/arc position....Are typically much lower quality and less precise than a stock bulb. But they do throw a lot of light, more than any of the LED "bulbs" I've seen.

I don't yet believe there's a high enough quality, close enough optically LED product to warrant using them if you hope to be able drive at night safely. I'd like to test out some Diode Dynamics SL1s over a couple nights of driving and with a bunch of lux comparisons, but I don't yet have $150 to blow and don't really wanna wait 8 weeks to wait for them to show up but I love the idea of an American made high quality LED product..


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## AdamzCruze (Nov 16, 2017)

Wow maven thanks for the great answer, you really explained some stuff to me. Now I am calm. Can you please tell me more about the glare above the cutoff line with the HID? With stock i di have a bit of glare above the line, and you are saying that with HID i will blind all other drivers with that glare spot increased brightness? 
I have been thinking about the HIR, just want to be sure that it's the best option, because they do cost as the HID..
Thanks!


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

AdamzCruze said:


> Hey, reaim you mean to adjust the height? Or something else? I played a lot with heigh, but the bulbs just remain scattered.. did you tried HID?


Height, yes.

Please don't use HID bulbs in halogen projectors. They scatter light everywhere and blind oncoming drivers like myself. The crappily designed LED headlights on Toyota, Lexus, and Ford/GM trucks also do a number on my eyes at night.

I am OK with the lights in my car, but I would maintain that our 2010 VW has better low and high beams with its projectors.


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## AdamzCruze (Nov 16, 2017)

jblackburn said:


> AdamzCruze said:
> 
> 
> > Hey, reaim you mean to adjust the height? Or something else? I played a lot with heigh, but the bulbs just remain scattered.. did you tried HID?
> ...


Thanks. I'll take it to the final consideration, meanwhile I think I'll go with osram nighbreakers or hir bulbs..


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## alanl11 (Apr 8, 2018)

AdamzCruze said:


> I have the same bulbs..I don't understand why there is such a huge difference? Did you used 9005 bulbs? Re-aimed, made some changes twitches something..man I am so lost


No didn't change a thing, try re seating them I did see a bad beam at first till I seated the bulb correctly in the housing

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## Ma v e n (Oct 8, 2018)

AdamzCruze said:


> Wow maven thanks for the great answer, you really explained some stuff to me. Now I am calm. Can you please tell me more about the glare above the cutoff line with the HID? With stock i di have a bit of glare above the line, and you are saying that with HID i will blind all other drivers with that glare spot increased brightness?
> I have been thinking about the HIR, just want to be sure that it's the best option, because they do cost as the HID..
> Thanks!


The stock bulbs and projectors work together to make a certain pattern, and disperse a certain amount of light in specific directions, and some of this as you noted is above the cutoff. An HID bulb creates light that's out of "focus" compared to the stock bulb, but is closer to the 9005 in the a way it emits light than an LED chip is. But it's MUCH brighter than the 9005, so any glare the stock setup has is typically exaggerated by an HID bulb. 

You could also see if you notice a difference with a relay harness for the stock 9005 bulbs. A decent relay harness will deliver more power to the stock bulbs, making them brighter, and would make HIR1s brighter as well if you went that route. And if you decide the relay harness isn't enough change you can use it with an HID kit so it's not wasted money.


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## AdamzCruze (Nov 16, 2017)

Thank you all for the explanation! It's great to have a supportive forum members! now i can make my decisions..


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## AdamzCruze (Nov 16, 2017)

I think I solved it! I removed the tights that are holding the hikari bulb base, and started to play with it. Looms like the correct position is when the led chips are facing 12 and 6!! Now I just need to see how to tight them in this position


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## AdamzCruze (Nov 16, 2017)

sorry for bothering but I cannot let this led go..
Today tried to align and play with the bulbs.
Can you please take a look at the pics and explain what's wrong?
Even on stock(yellow) halogens I have sort of 'glare' above the cutoff, the LEDs are hikari. The headlights are projectors.
I am on my way to order a hid kit, but I am too afraid that it will have the same glare spots above the cutoff line. 
Thanks in advance.


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## Juliano (Jul 26, 2018)

jblackburn said:


> AdamzCruze said:
> 
> 
> > Hey, reaim you mean to adjust the height? Or something else? I played a lot with heigh, but the bulbs just remain scattered.. did you tried HID?
> ...


Wait, I thought HIDs are the best option for projectors, are you talking specifically about the cruze projectors? Because on my dads 2015 Malibu, the hids worked best then the leds that we tried on.


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## Ma v e n (Oct 8, 2018)

Yes, even stock bulbs do throw some light above the cutoff. 

The LEDs seem to be putting A LOT more light above the cutoff. HIDs may or may not do the same


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Juliano said:


> Wait, I thought HIDs are the best option for projectors, are you talking specifically about the cruze projectors? Because on my dads 2015 Malibu, the hids worked best then the leds that we tried on.


There are projectors designed for HIDs, headlights designed for LEDs, and projectors/reflectors designed for halogen bulbs.

They are not universally the same and are designed for the output of a specific type of bulb. Putting plug and play HID/LED bulbs in a halogen projector/reflector = a giant "screw you and your eyeballs" to oncoming drivers.


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## moko (Oct 2, 2018)

jblackburn said:


> Sounds like they need to be re-aimed.
> 
> My 12's were horribly aimed (like a turn and a half too low) from the factory. The 16 needed a little bit of tweaking and it lit up the road much better.
> 
> I also put Phillips CrystalVision bulbs in mine. They have a slight bluish tint so they match the LED strip a little more, and provide more light output than the OEM long-life bulbs.


Is H11 the correct size on Phillips Crystal Vision?


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

moko said:


> Is H11 the correct size on Phillips Crystal Vision?


9005 for projector models (LT/Premier)

Or 9011 as Maven mentioned above.


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## moko (Oct 2, 2018)

jblackburn said:


> 9005 for projector models (LT/Premier)
> 
> Or 9011 as Maven mentioned above.


I checked on Phillips site for projector style is this:

https://www.automotivebulbfinder.co.../Cruze/?&qual=(With+projector-type+headlamps)

Image from link below, don’t know why it can’t post an image here directly

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/A1luSUglHcL._SX679_.jpg

so is 9012 correct for projector style?


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## Ma v e n (Oct 8, 2018)

No, projector headlamp models use a 9005. Many of the catalogs are wrong for some reason. Pop off a cover and check for yourself though, you're most likely gonna find a 9005SL+ installed from factory.


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## moko (Oct 2, 2018)

Ma v e n said:


> No, projector headlamp models use a 9005. Many of the catalogs are wrong for some reason. Pop off a cover and check for yourself though, you're most likely gonna find a 9005SL+ installed from factory.


How come Phillips doesn’t have 9005?

https://www.automotivebulbfinder.co.../Cruze/?&qual=(With+projector-type+headlamps)

To those who are using Phillips CrystalVision for projector what size are they using?


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

moko said:


> How come Phillips doesn’t have 9005?
> 
> https://www.automotivebulbfinder.co.../Cruze/?&qual=(With+projector-type+headlamps)
> 
> To those who are using Phillips CrystalVision for projector what size are they using?


They make em. Or they did...

9005 headlights/H11 for fogs.










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## Ma v e n (Oct 8, 2018)

moko said:


> How come Phillips doesn’t have 9005?
> 
> https://www.automotivebulbfinder.co.../Cruze/?&qual=(With+projector-type+headlamps)
> 
> To those who are using Phillips CrystalVision for projector what size are they using?


I already said the car uses a 9005, a 9012 won't work. Their catalog along with many others is wrong.
Pop a cover off yours and check. If you have a US/CAN Cruze with projectors, with anything other than a 9005 you would be the first.

Philips does make a Crystal vision 9005. 

But they aren't a true upgrade over the stock bulbs. You want an HIR1(9011) bulb. Avoid Wagner and any off brand ones. The factory globe type ones from GM and Toyota, along with the older GE stock are best.


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## moko (Oct 2, 2018)

Ma v e n said:


> moko said:
> 
> 
> > How come Phillips doesn’t have 9005?
> ...


Ok found the 9005, that’s it right

https://www.pepboys.com/philips-900...-upgrade-headlight-bulb-2-pack/product/930167


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