Best/easiest way to get better light output?
 

I'm not satisfied with the light output of the OEM headlights at night time. They seem to barely light up the road ahead of me. I'm in a '13 FR-S. My goal is to have something brighter that can let me see more at night time.

I'm really not educated on lighting for this platform. What would be my options without replacing the entire assembly with something aftermarket?

Are there any brighter bulbs I can just swap out?

HID conversion kits don't seem very expensive. But I'd need to do some extra wiring, include a ballast, and there's quite a bit more involvement, correct?

I'm reading that a VLand/Morimoto swap although looks super cool doesn't really have great light output, so that would not accomplish my goal.

Correct way is to open it up, retrofit in some morimoto projectors with HID. TRS is what I use, I believe they have a projector that fits into the OEM Stock Headlights without having to create an adapter plate/drilling.


If you stick brighter bulbs like HID into the stock halogen, it'll improve a little bit but it's not ideal.

See below.

EDIT: This is only if you already have HIDs. If not, then a projector retrofit would be needed, not just the lenses

I do not have HIDs.

Are there any tutorials I can follow for retrofitting the morimoto projectors with HID? Or kits that you can recommend?

Since the lenses are a few years old, polishing up the outside surfaces may help a bit.

Yes! I polish mine once a year. I wet sand with 1500,2000,2500, then finish with Meguires plastic-x polish. It keeps them looking new.


OP, fog lights are a good way to add some light.

I've installed some fog lights already :) They're brighter than my headlights it seems.

talk to heresmymind, he is our resident lighting guru

Not sure how easy it is but you could get BRZ hid lights.

I believe these might just mount up to the OEM headlight's bracket without needing to cut or drill, I would email or call them to confirm:


https://www.theretrofitsource.com/mo...cion-gt86.html


I haven't messed with OEM projectors to tell, always made my own mounting plates/drilled if they didn't line up. Have to make sure you have a way to angle or adjust them when fabricating a mounting plate.

I've used FXR Projectors in motorcycles and currently in my car I have the H1 Mini in the Spec-D Headlights.

Remove headlights from car, bake open headlights in the oven or use a heatgun, split the lens/base and then you can remove the reflect/projector. I think there are a few guides on here where people opened them to paint the inside.

Are your headlights adjusted properly height wise?

Diode Dynamics SL1 LED bulbs... WAYYYY Better than stock with great cutoff.... work better than the HIDs on my Nissan Frontier, and the HIDs on my Frontier are WAYY better than stock. Thinking of replacing thr high-beams now as well with how awesome they work in the stock projectors...plus the low beams are brighter than the high beams... LOL

https://www.diodedynamics.com/low-be...cion-fr-s.html

I'd just warn blindly valuating bulbs as to how much "better" they are just by light output power.
Worth remembering that along seeing better yourself there is bit of not blinding oncoming traffic.
Many stock lights are "worse"/"weak" subjectively because they are made to legal requirements/standards by specific light output and beam shape.
Seeing way too often on highways cheap-modded reusing stock reflectors not fit for specific bulb type or too powerful bulbs fitted. Makes me wish to especially blind them in turn with high beams or give scare to themselves of head-on crash by weering to their lane. Good if country specific MOT inspection won't pass such, but in many countries inspection might be too lax.