This weekend I made a third brake light cover out of vinyl tape from a decal shop and cut out the 4Runner logo. I think it looks good during the day and at night it shines 4Runner . Also I read about the Nighthawks so i picked up a pair and put them in. I noticed a difference and could see that I need to adjust my headlights. I atttached some pics as I too love pics.
the first pic has some protectant on it after cleaning so it looks greasy.

 

do you have any pics of the stock lights on a flat surface and throw pattern vs. the new lights?

 

no i dont ,,i was thinkin of that after i changed them out. im goin to align them and then when that is done next weekend when im bored and up for some truck tinkering ill swap out and take pics. for the pattern i noticed a difference in the side of the road right away, also a little up the road as well. High beams threw nicely compared to the stocks.

 

how much did you pay for the decal? they sell them on ebay for about 7 buckeru's. loks good but i have the rear spoiler and it might look funny with it on!!! nice look though.

 

I paid like 5 bucks CDN for two 2ftx1ft strips of black and metalic silver tape at a local graphic shop, so i could make mistakes. I just got a template off the web and used good ol' mr exacto.

 

Sweet!!

 

Ahhhh I blind.... Looks great!

 

UPDATE on the Nighthawks: Tonight was the first foggy/rainy night since i put these in. On the highway and on unlit rural roads these performed admirably. Much better than stock, and way better than silverstars that i had on my old runner. They were bright and the light did not get reflected back nor drowned out. Both the low beams and high beams performed very well. So far, so good.

 

I love my GE nighthawks!

Time to install the RB harness tmw...i got it upgraded

 

mmmmm upgrade

 

Installed mine this afternoon and I'll try them out tonight . It's raining and that's a good time to check them out on the back roads.

 

I like those lights. Where did you get your GE Nighthawks from? What part number for a 3rd gen ('98 to be exact)

 

the only thing i can see on the package (of whats left) is 9003-H4. I picked mine up at Canadian Tire, although I read in another post that they could be found at Walmart. Although the Walmart in my city do not have them.

from the GE site
Where can I buy GE headlights and bulbs for my car?
In the United States, GE car headlights and bulbs are available at Wal-Mart, Fred Meyer, and Ace Hardware.

 

It looks good but you could of saved yourself some time:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/4Runn...QQcmdZViewItem

 

yes i knew of those,thats where the idea came from.... but why buy it when you can make it??

 

After doing some serious research on other boards as well as this one... I decided on the Silverstars. I just ordered a pair from Amazon for $39 shipped. I'll post photos when I get them (in a diff thread).

 

You researched and still bought silverstars?? Mine only lasted a few months before both burned out. OE lasted 5 years. Current bulbs are at a year and still going.

Every post I have read about the silverstars complains about the short life (as I found out...).

hupptoy

 

I was reading on other boards... Acura, Honda, etc. They all like them and recommend them. I got mine for under $40, so it's not a HUGE investment if they suck.

 

It is not that they suck, they just don't last long enough to justify the $40. I liked mine for the 1st 3 months...then not so much. I think they both burned out within 1 week of each other.

hupptoy

 

I have the facts to back up what we perceive to be brighter.

I just replaced my headlights with Nighthawks H3.

My old stock bulbs were reading 2590* kelvin, the Nighthawks are 2900* kelvin.

The nighthawks are 60 percent brighter in the main beam and 30 percent brighter outside the main beam.

I am in the film industry so I did my testing in a controled enviroment with professional light meters and color temperature meters.

I haven't seen them at night yet but I could see the difference when I was testing.
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