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LED bulbs on headlight, DRLs, and fogs?

23K views 20 replies 12 participants last post by  mattgarel 
#1 ·
Recently ordered my RTL in Obsidian Blue. Unfortunately my trim model does NOT come with LED technology on the headlights or DRLs like the Touring, Elite, and Black Edition. I am considering some after market LEDs. My old VW had HIDs and the vision and color at night was awesome. Going back to old halogen bulbs seems boring and outdated. Curious on this groups' opinion on these bulbs:

FluxBeam LED Headlights - OPT7

PHILIPS X-Treme Vision LED Fog Lamp | 12834UNIX2 | Bulbs.com

Also, any G2 owners know if the bulbs are easy to access without removal of the bumper or grille? I havent seen under the hood closely yet. Will this type of plug n play install mess with the factory warranty? Honda wanted over $500 per headlight to do the LED upgrade so I am going to be doing it myself.
 
#2 ·
Out of curiosity was the headlight swap compatible with the oem wiring? Each LED headlamp is like 560, each RTL headlamp is ballpark 200. I really wanted the LED DRL, but the RTL only gets the standard halogen DRL, and I'm not sure if the OEM wiring would even work if you swapped out the headlights. Standard halogen drl is the closest lamp to the grille, where the LED DRL is the "wraparound strip" Might have to really pull teeth to get the RTL-T
 
#3 ·
That price did not include additional wiring costs, which was quoted at another 200-300 per light.

There are plenty of plug and play aftermarket LEDs that will perform well and look just as good for a fraction of the cost. My question is how accessible are the headlight, DRLs, and fog bulbs? Anybody willing to snap a shot or two under the hood and report back?
 
#9 ·
I'm going to bump this thread... I'm a fellow RTL owner and wish i had the LED DRL's I was able to get a good look at the headlight tonight without yanking it out. the wire harness has 3 wires, high beam, low beam, and a wire that goes to an LED side marker. Yes we HAVE LED's but it's not the type you're thinking. it's strictly for a side marker and cannot be moved to the DRL spot. Now with that said my hunch is that the wire that goes to the LED side marker will have an additional connection coming off that plug. If you remove the plug you'd think there's a bulb on the other end but there's not. it's actually a wire that goes up into the top side of the headlight housing and connects to the side marker LED. now leaving this wire attached, if you pull it to the side and shine an led flash light in there, part of the LED DRL lights up! good news, you can add your own LED DRL and wire them up to a manual switch, bad news is they aren't going to light up fully because i believe there is an LED strip that is missing along with the proper wiring in the RTL and below models. I really wanted to convert the headlights to LED DRL's but seems you'd have to bake the light to open it, find a strip that looks the same and fits properly, then manually wire it off the high beam DRL circuit or generate a new one. looks like buying a new pair of RTL-T or B.E. headlights just went out the window :( If honda would have just used the same wiring harness,then they could sell the LED headlights as an upgrade part/accessory...
 
#10 ·
So for those that want LED bulbs for your Low Beam Projectors and Fogs...

I'd started this thread that talks all about the PIAA Performance LED I'd installed in my wife's RTS.
http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/...iaa-leds-phenomenal-projector-fog-lights.html

Then for those that want to Upgrade to the LED DRL "Swoosh" Headlamps...the guy at www.HardTopGuy.com has all the harnesses and Lamps to purchase there. Below is my review (but a person has to take the bumper off to replace the headlight assembles...its some work but worth it for me anyway).

Enjoy! :)


BIG News for those that want to Upgrade their RT, RTS, Sport, or RTL to the LED "Swoosh" DRLs or even the Honda "Stock" LED Projectors that come on the RTL-E or Black Editions.

The www.HardTopGuy.com just came out with a Plug & Play wiring harness solution to make it happen!

He also offers Genuine Honda RTL-T or RTL-E Headlight Assemblies...that are real Honda Parts for sure with no chance of eBay or Craig's List weirdness.

So with this new plug & play solution...I decided to go ahead and buy the RTL-E Headlight Assembly (which also has the Honda LED Low Beam Projectors)...so now I'll be taking out my beloved PIAA Performance LED bulbs to put them into my daughters Civic instead.

Below is the review that I just left on www.HardTopGuy.com web site...enjoy!!!


I have to say this is an AWESOME upgrade for any RT, RTS, Sport, or RTL owner who is looking to MASSIVELY improve both their "Cool Factor" and Safety Factor with the LED DRL "Swoosh". Plus, the MUCH improved Honda LED Projector Low Beams, too. I have an RTS that has gone from night to day. Just like the CBS Evening News, and Consumer Reports also featured this same Headlight Assembly and the Ridgelines that have these head lamps.

Next, I'm going to put some PIAA LEDs in the High Beam spot so a person can light up the night when nobody is around (of course).

Jeff was super nice via email and even on the phone. It's always fun to talk to someone who also really appreciates making detailed things simple for others with Professionally Engineered Mods that are Plug and Play rather than some home hack job.

So, I highly recommend this!!! You will not regret getting this upgrade!!! Far as I'm concerned worth every penny to satisfy my wife who wanted the simpler feature set of the RTS, but still get the safety and cool of the RTL-E or for those that don't want the LED Projectors...they can get the less expensive RTL-T lights that still have safety and cool factor with the LED DRL Swoosh. Either way is a WIN!
 
#12 ·
so for those that want led bulbs for your low beam projectors and fogs...

I'd started this thread that talks all about the piaa performance led i'd installed in my wife's rts.
http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/...iaa-leds-phenomenal-projector-fog-lights.html

then for those that want to upgrade to the led drl "swoosh" headlamps...the guy at www.hardtopguy.com has all the harnesses and lamps to purchase there. Below is my review (but a person has to take the bumper off to replace the headlight assembles...its some work but worth it for me anyway).

Enjoy! :)
have done 4 or 5 convergence from halogen to hid setups all have been plug and play. Unless your set on an led setup xenon depot.com makes a hid kit for 2017 ridgeline owners .i have a 2017 rtl and like you wished it came with either led or hid but alas that would be too dame easy i havent really checked out what this changeover intails .expect the worse and hope for the best when i do i will let you all know what the deal is. Led or hid same thing to get access to bulbs
 
#11 ·
Did somebody try the piaa 17102 led for their fog lamp? I purchase the 17202for my lowbeam whit 3700lm.
The bulb dimension of the 17102 is not the same as the 17202.
I know that they are 2400lm
I just want to know is the fit is great

Im still waiting for my g2 canadian sport order in septembre. ...
Tanks ?
 
#13 ·
Hi @Fred lavallee I think @DROPIN is thinking of me, as quoted up above. ;) However, you mentioned a Part #17102, but I do NOT see any part number (ending in 102) by PIAA, as least that I can see on PIAA.com

Your information to the left does not say which model RL you have or which country you are in...so I will over explain...as I'm good at over explaining. :)

Lights and Bulbs...
In America Models RT, RTS, Sport, RTL and RTL-T headlamps come with a Low (H11) and High Beam (HB3/9005) Halogen Bulb.
In America ONLY Models RTL-E and Black Edition (BE) come with a Honda Proprietary LED Low Beam and High Beam (HB3/9005) Halogen Bulb.
In America ONLY Models starting with the RTS and above come with stock Fogs Lights that use a (H8) Halogen Bulb.

Daytime Running Lights (DLR)...
In America ONLY the RTL-T, RTL-E and BE get the Honda LED "Swoosh" DRL...for any other person that wants the DRL LED "Swoosh" they will need to purchase either the RTL-T headlamps (that will have Halogen's in both the Low & High Beams), or purchase the RTL-E / BE headlamps (that will come with the LED Low & Halogen High).

Sooooooooo....again not knowing which model you have I'll just say what I did to my wife's RTS (I did one modification and then I went for the big one later). ;)


First, I put in two (2) sets of PIAA Performance LED #17202 (and it is the same part number for both H11 and H8 bulb replacement). I put one (1) set into the Low Beam and one (1) set into the Fog Lights (these are obviously the "White" color and not Amber Color (Amber is #17502)...these were truly phenomenal when I was finished...a MASSIVE MASSIVE HUGE lighting improvement over stock halogen bulbs.

But what I did not like was that I could not put PIAA LEDs into my High Beam because Honda uses Pulse Width Modulation PWM to that High Beam bulb during the daytime to create that dimmer look as the DRL (that does not work with the PIAA LEDs).

So, I decided to go for it...I wanted to have LEDs everywhere. So from the www.HardTopGuy.com I bought the Honda RTL-E Headlight Assembles that already come with the LED Lows and the LED DRL "Swoosh"...along with the www.HardTopGuy.com cool harness...it now allows me to put a PIAA LED into my high beam location, too (but the High Beam HB3/9005 would be PIAA Part #17201). So the price of cool can be high. But to me it was worth every penny for the much better DRL cool and much brighter "Swoosh" during the daylight hours and then also to have the PIAA LED in the High Beam at night (not to mention the excellent Honda LED Lows, so obviously I sent back one set of the 17202s). And then now, when I hit the brights I expect to light up the world to be as safe as possible and then be good about turning them down when an on coming driver is seen. But when nobody is around...say cheese deer, nutria, opossum and coyotes! :)


Hope that helps! :)
 
#14 · (Edited)
In case anyone is interested I finally posted 15 Pictures of my ALL LED Modification / Upgrade to my wife's RTS...while using the www.HardTopGuy.com Wiring Harness.

I also re-wrote and condensed into a single PDF the Step by Step sequential "spoon fed" Instructions...that goes along with those pictures.

BUT I ended up having to break up my original customized PDF (un-shrunk version) because it was 5.4 MB and the smaller version was still 1.4 MB (all too big for the ROC). So, I had to turn them into 14 individual PDFs and posts.:rolleyes:

Here is the Link

http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/...h-into-non-equipped-models-4.html#post2339594
.

Enjoy...and a Happy New Year to All! :)
 
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#15 ·
@TEK Rider, Thank you for replying to my PM. I have installed LED High beams in my RTL-E, and have purchased and plan to replace the fog light bulbs with LEDs too.

No doubt that the PIAAs are the best money can buy, but at over $125 PER BULB (!!) I chose to go with another brand. I purchased Evitek LEDs through Amazon. They cost just over $40/PAIR. I've been running the same brand in my FJR1300 for over a year now and I find the brightness, beam pattern, and reliability to be very good. Yes, they are manufactured in China, and that may be a deal breaker for some, but I just thought that I would post this much more affordable option.

I'll try to get some photos showing the beam pattern this weekend.
 
#16 ·
So let see if I have this right - surely do not want to buy the wrong things

I have a 2107 Ridgeline RTL-T

If I want to replace my Low Beam and Fog Lights I use the 17202 or equivalents
If I want to replace my High Beams I use the 17201 or equivalents

If the above is wrong please let me know

What about backup tail lights?

Thanks

BobVal
 
#20 ·
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