To start this off, I'm somewhat of a headlight snob. I used to run a small retrofit business for fun and my daily drivers always had retrofits. Once you drive with a proper headlight setup you never want to go back. However I recently bought my Pickup with the intention of it being a new daily driver but I don't want to put much money into this truck if it isn't maintenance.

So after some research I decided to upgrade the headlights. I originally wanted to buy the Hella housings but after some research I found that the IPF's were near identical, and that AutoPal's version is nearly identical as well. I wanted to find budget friendly housings that were DOT compliant and non-sealed. So I searched eBay and found a set of DOT housings (this is key). Most of them are E-Code, so the DOT's are harder to come by.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/120924121819...84.m1439.l2649

I wanted something that would pass inspections with no-hassle. These housings are DOT approved and have the DOT stamp on the headlight glass. The headlights themselves are of great quality and put out a very nice, defined cutoff. Included were some standard "bright white" H4 bulbs which were actually tons better than the sealed and leaking Sylvania's I previously had.

Now I wanted to put some better bulbs in there from the minute I ordered them. I also did a lot of research on this subject and I wanted the best light output at the stock wattage (DOT compliance) with a compromise for slightly better life. I was divided between the Osram Rallye 65/55 and the Philips X-treme Power +80. The Philips had seemed to be getting better life so I decided go with them. I bought them from Candlepower, they have great customer service and pricing.

http://store.candlepower.com/90h4hbxtpo.html

Overall I was VERY impressed with the bulbs. I noticed an immediate difference from the generic bulbs the headlights originally came with. They were definitely more bright and more white. As far as kelvin rating, I'd say these are definitely anywhere from 4500k to 5000k. I can't emphasize how white they are. Paired with the AutoPal headlights, you get an extremely defined cutoff with pure white light. These give off a super nice, bright light pattern. I live in Oregon where it is foggy and rainy and this lighting setup cuts through the rain. I also noticed comparable or better output than a lot of modern cars on the road, and 10000000x better than the local ricers with plug and play HID setup (if this is you, please upgrade to this setup). The high beam setup is also amazing, I'd call it the perfect "sign reader." If you live anywhere like I do, it can be tricky sometimes to read what is on a sign up ahead. These shine perfectly upward to be able to give you light to read what's on the sign.







Overall review of the setup

Pros:
Less than $100 ($88 shipped)
DOT compliant
Stock wattage
Sharp, defined cutoff
Direct fit

Cons:
More than $50
Somewhat narrow beam output

 

too bad you couldn't get the e code version. They light up waaaay better than the DOT version.

 

My E-Code Hellas to wonders for the night

 

I'm tempted to order these for my Tacoma because the sealed beams are awful. I've been eyeing the Hella housings but the price was a turn-off.

 

The autopal e codes are just about the same thing. I run them on the work vans and my truck. Love them.

 

That's probably what I'll do after looking at several before/after pics on various forums.



Do the H4 bulbs plug into the stock harness or do they need to be adapted?

 

Its plug and play.

 

mini hijack:

GE sealed beams vs Autopal E Codes with Autopal bulbs. Lowbeams, same camera settings used for both photos.