I have led truck lite style headlights on my Jeep and last night the headlights were not working when I got home I was looking at them and they turn on. It’s just super dim. They put out no light at all off the reflectors. I took the headlight out and just tested the headlight with 12v wires and the headlights worked. Some of the wiring by the connector is thin and stripped but none are touching eachother so I’m out of ideas as to what to check.
TJ Truck Lite style LED headlights are super dim
- Thread starter Tycarver
- Start date
The headlights themselves. I would still inspect and clean the connections first though.
derekmac
TJ Addict
I think you answered your own question there. Take a multimeter and check the voltage at the connector.
I was going to grabbed my voltmeter and it’s toast so I just went ahead and ordered new connectors and I’ll cut back the ones on my Jeep and solder in the new connections tomorrow. (Love 1day shipping free with prime)
The factory wiring is 16/18 gauge wiring which is not designed to carry much load. The factory fuses are only 10A and really should be 7A considering the wiring size.
Before I upgraded the factory headlight wiring; the best I could get to the headlights was 11.3V, but after installing a dedicated headlight harness; using the factory headlight wiring to trigger the relays I received (13.8-14.3V) what the alternator was putting out.
The increase of 2.5-3.0V increased the amount of usable light the headlights put out.
Before I upgraded the factory headlight wiring; the best I could get to the headlights was 11.3V, but after installing a dedicated headlight harness; using the factory headlight wiring to trigger the relays I received (13.8-14.3V) what the alternator was putting out.
The increase of 2.5-3.0V increased the amount of usable light the headlights put out.
K Suspension makes an good economical harness. There are several other suppliers available online OR you can build your own. Susquehanna Motorsports makes a REALLY good one, but it’s substantially more expensive.
That doesn't make any sense - if it's getting full voltage from a direct connection and working fine, I would suspect the connector is failing or corroded.
My 2006 LJ is a low mile rig and it still had headlight connectors that were broken and had lots of corrosion. I highly suspect that this is the root of your issue...
Relays are usually a good idea, but if @Tycarver intends to keep his headlights as LED, the factory circuits should be plenty fine. I just bought a set of heated-TLs, and when I looked it up, TL states that they only draw 3.85A per light with high-beam and heaters on. On low-beam only, they draw 2.2A. For the non-heated versions, TL states 2.95A/1.45A for high/low.
I agree with Chris....
I have observed LEDs going bad that flicker, go off and then come back on periodically before they finally fail.
The higher the voltage provided (13.8+ vs 11.3) the lower the amperage the circuit will draw...
I have observed LEDs going bad that flicker, go off and then come back on periodically before they finally fail.
The higher the voltage provided (13.8+ vs 11.3) the lower the amperage the circuit will draw...
True, but certainly not what I would assume based on what @Tycarver said about having damaged wiring and after confirming proper operation with a full-voltage test. That said, it is possible that the lights could have been damaged due to a possible short in the wiring (though I would expect a solid-state device to fail and stay failed, though weirder stuff has happened).
Also I found it improbable that both headlights would die at the same time. So I’m leaning to it being an electrical issue like your saying. Thanks.
I’m in tampa. I appreciate it a lot though! I would be happy to meet up for a wheeling trip someday. I’m waiting on my winch to get delivered right now.
It's not the LED lights causing the problem, both would not be failing simultaneously... it's the wiring or a wiring connection. Both LED lights are grounded independently at their respective mounts so it's not a ground connection problem. So it has to be a bad wire leading from the headlight switch to the driver's side headlight, or a bad connection of that wire to the connector. The driver's side + lead is connected to that same wire.
A heavier gauge wire is NOT needed for LED head lights that were previously powering conventional incandescent headlights. LED lights draw WAY less power than incandescent headlights do so if anything, not that I am recommending this, even a smaller gauge wire could be used theoretically.
The red wire with the orange tracer is for the low beams. The violet wire with the white tracer is for the high beams. Make your measurements from the driver's side wiring and connections.
A heavier gauge wire is NOT needed for LED head lights that were previously powering conventional incandescent headlights. LED lights draw WAY less power than incandescent headlights do so if anything, not that I am recommending this, even a smaller gauge wire could be used theoretically.
The red wire with the orange tracer is for the low beams. The violet wire with the white tracer is for the high beams. Make your measurements from the driver's side wiring and connections.
The h4 connector to the headlights is what I’m going to replace tomorow the wires there are bare and look like they have half the copper wire that they used to in a few spots.