How to install h4 LED lamps correctly

Design

The standard H4 lamp combines low and high beam, which only work separately. The low beam spiral has a reflector installed, which limits the light from entering the lower part.

—	Halogen low/high	On Philips Z ES diodes
Power	55W/60W	from 16W to 23W
Light flux	1000lm / 1500lm	from 1000lm to 2100lm (equivalent)
Case heating	350°-400°	up to 110°
Colorful temperature	3200K	4300K, 5000K, 6000K

The connection plug has 3 contacts, the current strength at 14V is 5 Amperes.

Pinout pinout led headlight h4

Description of automotive LED lamps

What types of LED headlights are there, how to choose devices and what is their connection diagram? First, let's look at the basic data regarding car low and high beam light bulbs, starting with the design.

Design

H4 LED headlight lamps are equipped with an aluminum radiator, a fan located at the end, as well as diode elements. It is the diodes of car lamps that provide the emission of the light beam for low and high beam. As a rule, an h4 led light lamp is equipped with two diodes, but their number may vary depending on the model and type.

Simply installing xenon h4 or bi-xenon h4 instead of conventional halogens in most cars will not work, since the optics are designed for a certain type of lighting source. LED elements in h4 led light lamps are installed where the halogen spiral is usually located. This spiral is smaller in size than the diode element, that is, in fact, it cannot serve as a source of high or low beam.

To be able to connect xenon h4, the light source must be equipped with an additional lens. Therefore, if you want to connect bi-xenon, you need to make sure that the installed optics support their use. Otherwise, you will have to buy special headlights, since xenon h4 or led bulbs will not be able to function as required, namely, they will not be able to provide long-range illumination. As reviews show, most of our compatriots are faced with the problem of high beams not working.

Operating principle

When choosing light bulbs that increase the efficiency of a headlight, you need to understand how the devices work. When the high beam h4 is activated, the lights operate on the principle of a spotlight. The spiral of the lighting flux source, which is installed in a special focus of the parabolic reflective element, when activated, forms an enhanced flux of light. Moreover, it must be parallel to the road surface. To ensure this direction, a reflector is additionally used.

LEDs

H4 LED low and high beam lamps are manufactured using Philips, Cree, CSP LEDs and diode assemblies. The H4 socket is used only in reflector headlights, which are designed only for a halogen bulb. Very rare in xenon and bi-xenon lenses. A car reflector headlight is an optical system with its own focus, designed for a halogen filament.

To simulate a halogen filament, only Philips Z ES and CSP type ice diodes are used. Diode assemblies and Cree are too large; due to the characteristics of the reflector, they will blind oncoming cars.

During the production process, LEDs are divided into BINs, depending on the efficiency, the number of lumens per 1 Watt. From the table for Philips Z ES LED diodes, the efficiency can be from 97lm to 125lm per 1W. The number of lumens per diode with a nominal consumption of 2W can be from 170lm to 245lm. They won’t install expensive diodes with a maximum output of 245lm in a cheap H4 LED lamp for a car, but they will use cheap ones with an output of 170-190lm, and no one will measure it anyway.

The Chinese successfully copy the appearance of popular Cree and Philips diodes and sell counterfeit light bulbs as originals. The efficiency and service life of fakes are significantly lower than the original Philips and Cree ones, so they fail in a short period. The seller in the store will never admit that they are fakes, because he makes decent money from this deception.

Is it possible to install h4 LED lamps on a car?

Technically, a car equipped with halogen headlights can install LED lamps. This improves visibility, reduces energy consumption and actually makes life easier. But at the same time, there is a list of malfunctions and conditions under which the operation of the vehicle is prohibited.

Its paragraph 3.1 states that you cannot use a car if it uses external lighting devices that do not comply with the design. This is determined by the number of light sources, their type and color, and operating mode.

Note! Legislators do not allow the installation of lamps in headlights that may not work correctly in vehicles not designed for this purpose. They can blind oncoming drivers and prevent normal visibility, causing accidents.

For installing third-party light bulbs, a fine of 500 rubles is imposed; in addition, they may be forced to change light sources. But in this case, manufacturers played it safe and brought the characteristics of H4 LED lamps as close as possible to halogen lamps, even including the letter H in the name, which means halogen. Therefore, communication with the traffic police regarding the light may not always result in a fine.

Markings and brands

As a rule, Chinese manufacturers do not label their car bulbs. The name of the base, power and generation are used for designation.

For example, the designation “G7-H4 16W”:

G7 is a pseudo-generation, from the word “generation”, there are G6, G5;
then the base H4 is indicated;
power 16W;
light flux 8000lm, increased 8 times.

To promote their products, the Chinese came up with pseudo-generations (G5, G6, G7), depending on the design, in order to somehow systematize H4 low-range diode lamps without markings. Pseudo-generations are also used to increase sales, for example by indicating in the description “new, 7th generation, even more powerful”

Without testing, it is impossible to find good models with an H4 base; this cannot be determined by appearance. Some are looking for H4 LED car lamps under some brand (for example Starled, Sho-me G7 lh h4), in the hope that they will work much better than the nameless ones.

In fact, brands buy cheap Chinese junk without even testing or checking for compliance with technical regulations. The characteristics indicated by the Chinese are 2-3 times higher; to take measurements, expensive equipment is required.

Half of the model range of such brands is purely structurally unsuitable for use in a reflector, that is, it is very dangerous to use for you and other cars on the road. This is a scam, selling a product that is completely unusable.

About h4 lamps

H4 is an automotive lamp standard used in traditional two-headlight systems. The H4 lamp is used for high and low beam in many domestic and foreign cars.

Design Features

Historically, the H4 bulb is a two-filament halogen lamp in which the high beam is produced by a high-power filament located at the focal point of the lens, and the low beam is produced by a low-power filament shifted forward from the focus of the reflector.

Currently, diode lamps in headlights are gaining popularity. The headlights of most cars are designed to match the standard of halogen bulbs, which means that the LED lamp must follow it. The correct LED lamp follows the geometry of the filaments and reflector in a halogen device. The LEDs in it are arranged in the same way as the spirals in a halogen lamp, so the light beam interacts with the headlight reflector in the same way.

Characteristic features of LED lamps are the presence of a cooler and driver. Depending on the lamp manufacturer, the cooler can be active (fan) or passive (metal braids). The driver is required to stabilize the current in the circuit to the declared current consumption of the lamp.

In foreign cars equipped with an on-board computer, when installing diode lamps, the installation of a blende – a resistor – is required. The LED lamp consumes less energy than a standard halogen lamp, and the on-board computer displays an error that the lamp is damaged. The resistor supplies the missing load to the circuit and the error disappears.

Power

Car LED h4 lamps consume an order of magnitude less energy than halogen lamps. This creates confusion in the vehicle's electronic network. If you have an on-board computer, you have to use decoy resistors, which nullify the advantage of low power consumption. In domestic cars, installation of a blende is usually not required.

Brightness

In LED lamps there is no dependence of the brightness of the glow on the power consumption, as in conventional incandescent lamps. The characteristics of the emitted light directly depend on the properties of the LEDs. The industry is constantly improving diodes and lamps with new generations of LEDs and improved brightness are entering the market.

Brightness and illumination are quantitatively measured in lumens. It is this characteristic of the lamp that one should rely on when assessing its light. In addition, the light from a diode is always directional (unlike a halogen) and when comparing brightness, the scattering angle must be taken into account.

The brightness of about 4000 lm, stated on the packaging of the lamp, is calculated based on laboratory measurements. Manufacturers often mistakenly calculate it as the sum of the brightnesses of all diodes. In fact, the brightness of an LED lamp is only 10-15% higher than that of a halogen lamp.

Heat

Excessive heating of the LED lamp is compensated by the presence of cooling elements. An active cooler is a fan built into the lamp. Lamps with such a cooler are afraid of dust and extreme temperatures, because... dust damages the fan blades, and at high temperatures the cooler simply melts and freezes in cold weather.

A passive cooler is more bulky. It consists of metal braids extended outside the light bulb body. Under standard conditions, it is less productive than active. However, this type is more reliable, because works well in extreme temperatures.

Application area

According to traffic regulations, a vehicle equipped with h4 LED lamps cannot be driven on public roads. Because The LED headlight lamp is not provided structurally and can create emergency situations, blinding oncoming drivers and poorly illuminating the roadway.

However, modern high-quality diode lamps exactly repeat the behavior of the light beam in halogen lamps, have a slight advantage in brightness (110-115%) and can be used in car headlights.

If you doubt the quality of the lamps, you can always use them as an additional light source on off-road, empty ranges and rallies.

Installation in headlight

To facilitate installation in tight spaces, the base ring on all bulbs is removable. First, the base ring is installed, clamped with a clamp, then the H4 diode lamp itself is installed. Sometimes problems arise when installing a car light bulb in a headlight; when installing a cooling system, the headlight cover does not close.

There are 2 types of cooling system:

fan-powered, small dimensions, the headlight cover usually fits the standard one;
passive, flexible or enlarged rigid radiator.

When installing passive ones, the flexible part must be straightened and positioned inside. If the lid still does not close, you can install larger lids, the depth of which is from 3 to 7 cm. The second option is to make a hole in the standard lid for the tapes and stick them out.

Top 3 Best H4 LED Bulbs

All H4 LED lamps that can be found on sale are divided into three categories - branded (and very expensive), slightly less expensive and made on the basis of high-quality branded LEDs, as well as cheap consumer goods.

Today, some of the best offers on sale can be considered lamps under the well-known European brand Philips, as well as the American brand CREE. However, it is necessary to make a reservation that the cost of these lamps may surprise an unprepared buyer - it starts from 9 thousand rubles.

You can also find many alternative options on sale - products under unknown Chinese brands, but produced on the basis of Philips or CREE LEDs. It is also worth mentioning the Korean developers of LEDs; their products have recently been in no way inferior to European and American ones. Such lamps not only have an acceptable cost, but can even boast of high quality (though not all, but only part).

As for cheap consumer goods, installing such lamps in headlights not only guarantees the dissatisfaction of oncoming drivers, but can even cause the headlight to fail.

Among car owners, the most popular H4 LED lamps are:

Which ones are better to buy?

XD Series

Lamps from this list showed very good results in the store https://netuning.ru

View and purchase good models:

Delivery from 4,000 rub. free, larger headlight covers as a gift. Returns and exchanges are no problem; if they do not suit you, you can return them or exchange them for others within 14 days. There is everything you need for quick installation, enlarged headlight covers, adapters for the base, and decoys. You can order the entire set at once, rather than searching for it separately using adapters and decoys.

Test examples

I am testing h4 led lamps for a car on an industrial scale; in reviews and tests I had 27 sets with H4 socket and 79 sets with H7 and H11 socket. The customer does not want to disclose most of the information, so the test results are transferred to the customer and are not published anywhere.

For example, I took a photo of 7 tested samples, try to choose the right option that can be used in a car. According to the principle of operation they are the same, in terms of quality they are all different.

All except sample No. 5 (CL6 from Cool-Led) work very poorly and cannot be installed. Therefore, buy only proven models.

I will show you the equipment that I use to test and measure real characteristics.

I conduct tests and reviews in my own lighting laboratory, the equipment is quite expensive, I have never seen anything like it on the Internet.

Equipment list:

certified lux meters with Osram sensors;
photometric spheres for measuring luminous flux;
spectrometer UPRtek MK350;
Thermal Seek Compact Pro thermal imager;
pyrometers.

How to choose?

Most car enthusiasts choose H4 LED lamps for a car based on luminous flux and power, without being interested in other parameters. This method of choice is completely wrong.

Others rely on advice from a store seller. I checked 63 popular stores, the sellers do not understand diode lighting, and do not know the real parameters of their products. This is a business, sellers are only interested in sales, so they will happily sell you any junk under the guise of the latest technology.

For H4, the most important thing is the location of the LEDs, which should be placed in the form of a halogen spiral. For this, miniature Philips Z ES and CSP LEDs are used. But the imitation halogen spiral in 90% of diode car lamps does not fall into the focus of the headlight. This is due to poor design and manufacturing errors in Chinese factories. The Chinese don't really care about this, they don't know Russian standards, so they pay attention to the glare factor.

There is no way to determine by appearance whether the LEDs will come into focus or not. It’s better to buy proven and tested models if you don’t want to regret your purchase later. Every day 30-40 readers turn to me for advice, this is 800-1000 people per month. It’s better to contact me or other specialists, save time and money.

You have 2 options:

you can buy cheap junk, get into a lot of trouble, suffer with it and then throw it away;
you can spend more, buy good ones and enjoy your purchase for the next 5-10 years.

If you want to buy a chocolate bar, but you only have enough money for a piece of gamna, then it’s better to save up for a chocolate bar

4DRIVE H4

Another model of H4 LED lamps, which is in great demand due to its low cost and high power, is the 4drive H4 model.

A fairly well-assembled lamp, assembled on the basis of Philips LEDs. Its design uses large LEDs that provide a dense luminous flux of daytime white color. The power of the luminous flux is indicated for each lamp, that is, the “low” and “high” beams account for 3800 Lumens each. Great attention has been paid to the placement of the LEDs, so that the headlights will not dazzle oncoming cars.

The model features a large aluminum radiator and a cooler - a fan that provides good cooling of the control electronics.

The cost of the lamps is one of the lowest, and there are no difficulties with ordering them, since the lamps are sold in Russia. Lamps can be ordered at a discount here >>> (base should be specified by phone)

Deceptions

On many cars, the on-board computer diagnoses lighting equipment by measuring power consumption. If the low beam energy consumption is below normal, the on-board computer will show an error on the panel, or may automatically turn on the high beam.

To ensure that the power consumption matches the halogen source, a blende is additionally installed. It is connected in parallel and consists of a powerful resistor that consumes 20-30 watts.

Most buyers want decoys built into the low-beam LED driver, but such models do not exist. The decoy must be purchased separately; not all cars have an on-board computer that can be checked.

The decoy gets quite hot, it should only be placed outside the headlight so that it cools.

What will be the improvement?

When you install the right H4 LED car bulb, you will get 70-100% illumination compared to a stock halogen. If you put rubbish in, the light will not focus correctly and will be scattered by a large spot. This reduces the illumination range several times, but visibility in front of the car will be higher.

Good H4 ice lamps are more expensive and this does not suit many people; everyone is attracted by rubbish for 2000 rubles. Let's estimate what we get for 5000 rubles:

improvement of illumination by almost 2 times;
quick DIY installation;
the ability to quickly replace standard halogen sources;
long service life of 5 years.

Is there an alternative:

High-brightness halogens such as +130% are a deception, their luminous flux is the same as regular ones, only the color temperature differs, due to which they deceive you.
installation of xenon and bi-xenon will cost from 15 thousand rubles, service life 2000-3000 hours;
installation of Bi-Led LED lenses (bi ice) from 15 thousand rubles, service life from 10 years.

As you can see, with LEDs we get the best option in terms of price and characteristics, because any improvement in light will require at least 15 thousand rubles with the disassembly of the headlights and the impossibility of returning halogens.

Main disadvantages

Unlike a halogen lamp, an LED lamp is an electronic device that has a power supply, stabilizer, and cooling. The more complex the design, the more shortcomings the product may have.

The main problems with 90% of H4 LED bulbs:

shine down or up;
blind;
overheat;
interference on VHF and FM radio.
oblique reflectors.

1. The main problem with Chinese LED car bulbs is that the simulated halogen spiral is positioned incorrectly, higher, lower or deeper. The mismatch in height results in the headlight shining much lower than with a halogen source. If it shines higher, you can lower it down with an electric corrector and adjust it according to GOST using a regoscope. If the near beam shines lower, then you cannot raise the tilt angle upward using the electric tilt angle corrector. Approximately 50% of samples suffer from this deficiency. If the cut-off line is lower than required, then the illumination range is reduced; instead of 100 meters on halogen, you get 50 m. That is, if you significantly deteriorate the car's headlights, such a car cannot be used.

2. In order for the imitation thread to fall into the focus of the headlight, it must match the halogen spiral in length, width and thickness. It is also required that the position of the imitation thread be in the same place as that of the halogen. Most often, the thickness does not match, which consists of the thickness of the radiator and the aluminum plates on which the LEDs are located. As a result, the thickness of the simulated spiral is instead of the permissible 1-2mm. It turns out 5mm, that is, significantly exceeded. This discrepancy increases glare and glare of oncoming vehicles.

3. Ice diodes of little-known brands are most often susceptible to overheating; because of this, they can greatly lose power. For example, in tests, a cold H7 car lamp (led headlight) had a power of 19W, after warming up for 30 minutes, energy consumption dropped to 11W. The decrease was 42%; for Philips this figure is 20%.

The best H4 low beam car LED bulbs use a copper substrate instead of aluminum. Copper has a thermal conductivity 2 times higher than aluminum, which makes it possible to more effectively remove heat from the LED crystal.

4. Many people complain that after installing cheap car bulbs in their car, the radio in the radio stops working. The power supply is usually made with a high-frequency PWM controller, which has good efficiency. In cheap models, the PWM controller interferes with the car radio in the VHF and FM range. Expensive models have a filter installed in the power supply that removes interference and the radio works without problems.

5. Glare and flare are affected by reflectors in the low beam, which on diode ones can be slanted or placed incorrectly. In terms of design, they can be stamped, cast, or are part of the body. The stamped ones are always very bad, I have never seen the correct ones. Cast ones are almost always positioned correctly, there are no defects.

Disadvantages of LED headlights

I will touch on the important topic of choosing LED lamps for car headlights. It used to be very simple: buy it, install it, go. And now it has turned into roulette.

All these problems arise due to lack of certification. The Chinese and Koreans are trying to make a good LED light source for headlights, but in terms of performance and safety requirements they have not reached the level of halogen ones. Although logically the new technology should be superior to the old one. Some models have come close to the required parameters, but cannot overcome them, because the design of a car headlight is not intended for a diode lamp. The area of the LED is several times larger than the spiral, so it requires a different reflector.

1. Main disadvantages
2. Let's look at the shortcomings, part No. 1
3. Continuation, part No. 2
4. Results

Main disadvantages

Models that overheat

I have compiled a list of shortcomings that you may encounter after purchase. The worst thing is when they meet almost all at once. H4 LED lamps have the most problems due to their more complex design. Half of them can only be identified after purchase.

the luminous flux goes down, the illuminated distance is reduced by 2 times;
poor assembly, resulting in poor heat dissipation and overheating of the LED and its blinking;
different direction of light, there were samples in which the diodes were not installed evenly; in tests of the cut-off line, the lamps shone differently;
overheating of the lamp due to ill-conceived cooling or lack of a fan;
inflated brightness, Chinese marketing writes huge numbers so that they would buy registered LEDs, not xenon;
lack of focusing due to improper placement of diodes;
overestimated power indicated along with driver consumption;
incorrect design of the lamp, for example, only 3 diodes on top, which violates the entire principle of operation of the headlight, especially for the H4 socket.

Of all the Chinese and Korean variety, I know only 3 good lamps that do not suffer from most of the above disadvantages. But there are still no ideal models.

If the price is low, then 95% then it has major design flaws, low quality and inflated parameters. Measured many times by me, my colleagues and thousands of other buyers. So don’t be fooled by low prices and discounts from Chinese stores like Aliexpress. The seller is simply selling the junk because no one is buying.

Which lamps to choose?

A large number of readers ask which lamps to choose and where is the best place to buy. If you are interested in high-quality and proven LED lamps for low beam, high beam, PTF, DRL, then I recommend the trusted online store www. netuning.ru I checked 63 stores for LED lamps and only one employs specialists who have expensive equipment for testing automotive LED lamps. The store will select the right lamps for you, or you can contact me.

Let's look at the shortcomings, part No. 1

LEDs from the same set shine differently, oblique assembly

I will describe in detail all the shortcomings from the list, which was clear to everyone who would encounter this for the first time. Simplicity is deceptive. Often in the characteristics they write:

super bright;
super bright;
USA LEDs installed;
New Generation;
the best and most powerful;

and other similar words that do not carry any meaning. At the same time, they do not indicate any clear parameters. There is no need to buy from online stores where there is one blurry photo and 3-4 lines of text that have nothing to do with this product.

Point No. 1, the headlights shine downwards. Due to the different designs of car headlights, it often happens that the luminous flux in range is 2 times less than that of a standard halogen. Although the light becomes more powerful, it is very dangerous. Imagine you are eating with your neighbor at night, but you see the road 2 times less than it was. The time to react when an obstacle occurs is 2 times less. It’s better to be upset once that you bought a bad product than to travel with them and put your lives in danger.

Online reviews

Before purchasing, many people look for reviews of the models they are interested in on forums and automotive communities. These reviews are written by people who hold diode car lamps in their hands for the first time and have no experience in using, setting up or testing. They shine the light on the wall, on the road, and based on this they draw conclusions, give advice and write recommendations. They usually write that it shines like xenon, although they have never had xenon and they don’t know the real parameters of xenon and LEDs.

Once again I repeat to everyone, do not trust reviews, it is better to read reviews and tests according to standards and technical regulations using measuring equipment. Tests without equipment are just rough guesses. Moreover, the human eye is not able to compare the illumination and luminous flux of sources with different color temperatures.

Philips

International brands Bosch, MTF, Osram, Koito, Hella are trying to produce diode light bulbs with varying degrees of success, from downright bad to decent. The leader is Philips led h4 x-treme ultinon, which has its drawbacks. The main disadvantage of Philips led h4 x-treme ultinon is the small size of the radiator, which limits power, light output and service life. A small passive radiator has one advantage: it is faster to install.

Models from CL6, CL7, Smart are made using the same diodes as the original Philips H4. But they have a more efficient double radiator, consisting of a rigid and flexible part. This reduces overheating of the LEDs, and allows you to increase the luminous flux and power from 16 to 22 watts. This is 37% more than the originals, the difference is significant.

The price of the original Philips X-treme ultinon is 8-10 thousand rubles.

Types, technical characteristics

The main differences between light sources of the LED Headlight H4 type are: the shape of the product, the type of light-emitting elements, their number and location, as well as the type of cooling system. As for the last of these parameters, there are light bulbs with active and passive heat removal.

Chinese model G9X 2015, passive radiator with flexible ribbon elements

The difference between them is the presence of a fan. The shape of the LED headlight H4 can be different: with 2-3-4 edges, which determines the way the diodes are arranged. There are flat and cylindrical products; in each case, the light-emitting elements are arranged differently, which is influenced by their number and size.

Models with active radiator cooling: this makes it possible to use powerful LEDs to illuminate the road

However, tests show that not all design options for such light sources are equally effective. The closest to real lighting, similar in light boundary to “halogens,” are lamps in which the chips are installed in the same way as the filaments in their halogen counterparts.

The CREE company produces five series of high-power LEDs, different in design and type of crystal used: XR-C, XR-E, XP-C, XP-E and MC-E.

Also, in some models, a so-called curtain is installed on one of the diodes, thanks to which, when the low beam is turned on, a light border of the desired shape is created.

The number of light-emitting elements can be different: from 2 to 18 pieces, and the type is usually represented by the following options: SMD 2323, SMD 5050, CREE (with different parameters). The power varies from 4 W to 50 W, which is determined by the type of diodes used in LED Headlight H4 bulbs and the cooling system. More powerful chips and forced ventilation increase not only the level of load created, but also the cost of such a product.

In addition to the power value, the lighting element in this design is characterized by other parameters:

power supply (12/24 V);
luminous flux: sufficient for low beam is 1,000 lm, for high beam – 1,500 lm, in addition, LED headlight H4 lamps are capable of providing much higher radiation intensity;
type of diodes, usually the manufacturer indicates the brand CREE, SMD, less often the parameters are written, for example, 1512;
color temperature – for sources of this design, the normal range is 4,000-6,000 K;
degree of protection;
temperature range during operation of the LED headlight H

Often, instead of chips from well-known brands (for example, CREE), nameless analogues are installed. You can distinguish a fake by visual signs: the second option is usually characterized by non-standard sizes: larger than the original.

Examples of bad

The Internet is full of advertisements that show in detail and clearly the advantages of LED light bulbs. But they don’t indicate anything specific to such advertising, except for the power and light flux that is 2-3 times higher. Usually they simply write “super-bright, new generation, new development.” A car enthusiast who doesn’t understand car lighting will buy it.

There is no need to buy products under the brands Dled, 4Drive, Turbo-led, which are actively advertised at the end of 2021. The companies Dled and 4Drive sell rubbish, it’s just a business for suckers, that is, auto suckers.

How to properly connect LED lamps to headlights

To connect the light bulbs correctly, you do not need to understand the design. High-quality products should come with a standard connector, in which the contacts are always located the same way.

The arrangement of contacts is standard for all manufacturers and does not depend on the type of light in H4 lamps.

If for some reason you need to install the connector yourself, use the diagram shown above. This is exactly how the wires need to be arranged for the light bulb to work correctly. The connection is always made using a block; you cannot simply twist the wires or wrap the joint with electrical tape.

It is important that the base design matches the standard halogen. If this is done incorrectly, the light distribution will be disrupted and it will hardly be possible to adjust it.

It is better to buy light bulbs from well-known manufacturers; cheap Chinese products do not provide normal quality of light.

Thematic video.

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Features of installing LED lamps in different headlights

In this article we will talk about where it is better to use LED lamps and where it is better not to use them. Let's start our conversation with where it is better to install LED lamps, and where they will give the maximum increase in road illumination.

Installation of diode lamps in a headlight with H4 socket

Installing diode lamps in a headlight with an H4 base in 99% of cases will give a significant increase in illumination, usually by 2-3 times. That is, H4 and LED lamps are a must have! The whole problem is that the LED itself is made competently and with high quality, that is, it falls into focus and has chips with a small area, and not a large one, like cheap LED lamps. If these conditions are met, you will receive an unprecedented increase in light on the road. Why is the H4 base the most significant in terms of increase in illumination? This is due to the fact that the H4 halogen lamp itself was designed quite a long time ago and its design is not optimal. Therefore, it turns out that the efficiency of the lamp is small. But, since the efficiency of a halogen lamp is small, LEDs, correcting the shortcomings of this design, very well replace the halogen lamp in this base and you, as a user, get at least a 2-3 times improvement in lighting on the road. In addition, the H4 LED lamp, due to its largest dimensions, is the least heat-loaded. This, as you understand, also has a positive effect on the characteristics of LEDs.

Installation of diode lamps in a headlight with H7, HB4, H11 socket

The next type of headlight in terms of efficiency of LED lamps are the so-called “monocoles” in reflector headlights. Mono-bases are bases H7, HB4, H11, that is, separate light, a separate section of low beam. LED lamps in them also shine quite well, but the increase is somewhat less. What is this connected with? First of all, with the fact that the design of the halogen lamp itself was developed after the H4 lamp, and in this design the disadvantages of the H4 lamp were already taken into account, and the efficiency of the incandescent lamp itself, that is, the halogen lamp, became much higher. The halogen lamp began to shine brighter, and that is why this standard replaced the more outdated standard of the H4 lamp. Therefore, LEDs in these sockets are more difficult to compete with halogen. But we can still improve illumination by 1.5-2 times using good, high-quality lamps with a well-thought-out heat dissipation system and correct focusing.

A special subgroup are headlights whose bases are not installed vertically, but at a certain angle. The bottom line is that in such headlights, where the seat is installed at an angle, even high-quality LED lamps can shine completely incorrectly. This is due to the fact that the halogen lamp itself, installed in the headlight, shines 360 degrees, regardless of whether the base is placed straight or at an angle. LED lamps have not yet learned to shine 360 degrees, so when we place an LED lamp in a headlight with a seat located at an angle, we can get an incorrect, distorted cut-off line. For such headlights, it is better to use LED lamps that allow the base to rotate relative to the lamp itself, or modify LED lamps where there is no rotation.

Installing diode lamps in a headlight with a lens

One of the most difficult areas for installing LED headlights is lensed optics and lensed headlights. If you have a lens installed in your headlight, then the increase from using LED headlights will be minimal. This is due to the fact that the reflector of such headlights is the smallest, and even half of this reflector is covered by a curtain, which forms a cut-off line. The quality of the cut-off line of such headlights will always be ideal; even by installing LED lamps in them, you will not worsen this indicator in any way. But, often, there is a tendency that after installing LED lamps, the illumination in front of the car remains the same as that of incandescent lamps. However, it is worth noting that at the edges it increases significantly due to the light distribution characteristics of LED lamps

Installation of diode lamps in a headlight with H1 and H3 sockets

Well, the most difficult option for LED lamps are sockets H1 and H3. Why are the plinths H1 and H3? Yes, because those who have seen the H1 and H3 light bulbs understand that it is the smallest of all incandescent filament lamps. For LEDs this is extremely important because heat dissipation is important for them. It is one thing to remove heat from chips on a board with a width of, for example, 1-1.5 cm, and another thing on a board about 5 mm wide. Accordingly, the higher the temperature of the chips, the worse they shine, and their service life is also shorter. Therefore, it is extremely difficult for manufacturers to make a well-luminous, high-quality and long-lasting LED lamp. Chip manufacturers are certainly working on increasing the operating temperature of chips and their service life, but work in this area is not progressing as quickly as we would like.

Installing LED lenses instead of standard ones

For owners of cars with lensed headlights, installing LED lenses is much more effective than installing LED lamps in existing lenses. Thus, we will immediately receive a significant increase in illumination (from 3 to 10 times). Moreover, over the past six months they have decreased by 40-50%, that is, this is no longer the huge money that it was last year. We strongly recommend that if you have lenses that no longer shine, you spend the available funds on replacing the lenses, and you will get the maximum result that will completely satisfy you.