CorticalStack
New member
I had a headlight go out on my All Trac the other day, and I saw these 7x6 LED drop-in replacements on Amazon for $50 each-- very well reviewed. I thought I'd give them a try!
Final Review: (post)
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B013TMZUSM
The installation was straightforward in all ways except for the wiring.
The Amazon listing includes an image explaining that you need to switch the wiring around to convert a 4656 socket to H4.
I screwed this up initially, but after trying every combination, I found I couldn't get the low beam to work. After breaking out the multimeter, I determined the cause -- ground was providing power on low beam for some reason! :? Whether this is normal for the ST185 or not I have no idea... but that certainly wasn't working for the LED headlights. So I ran a fresh ground off the negative battery terminal (the stock ground connection seemed like it was being flakey anyway) and spliced that in place of the one that came pre-packaged in the harness.
To accomplish this, I used a flat-head screwdriver to pry up the plastic tab on the inside of the plug and pressed down on the metal lead with the tip of a needle nose pliers to get it started, then just pulled out the lead.
Once everything was wired up, I'd plug in the LED headlight and test it before screwing it back in to make sure everything worked.
Once I had everything working, I screwed it all back together. Looks pretty snazzy!
I wasn't too happy with the spread pattern-- there's a lot of glare. I suspected that might be the case. I adjusted it way down and in to keep that glare from being obtrusive to other drivers; I think it'll be alright, but time will tell.
The high beams sure are nice, though...
Final Review: (post)
CorticalStack":1o0ljdvg said:After driving with them for a couple of days, I have decided that I'm not at all happy with them.
The focus is so broad-- at 20 feet, the beam pattern is fairly tight, but beyond that it spreads out so far and wide that you'd be blinding other drivers, and you wouldn't see as far as you can with regular halogens, either.
The glare outside of the main focus is bright enough to make every reflective surface in front of you light up like you're shining a light directly on it. This is fantastic for you, but absolutely miserable for everyone around you.
For the price, these are pretty good, honestly. If they had these in a better enclosure that focused the beams more effectively, these would be astoundingly good. I do not believe they are DOT legal as is, however-- and with the wide spread pattern, there's a very good chance you'll eventually be pulled over for running them. That's not a light ticket here in California.
I'm going to return these and go with the Truck-Lite 27450C headlamps instead.
I'll post a new thread with my review of those when I get them.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B013TMZUSM
The installation was straightforward in all ways except for the wiring.
The Amazon listing includes an image explaining that you need to switch the wiring around to convert a 4656 socket to H4.
I screwed this up initially, but after trying every combination, I found I couldn't get the low beam to work. After breaking out the multimeter, I determined the cause -- ground was providing power on low beam for some reason! :? Whether this is normal for the ST185 or not I have no idea... but that certainly wasn't working for the LED headlights. So I ran a fresh ground off the negative battery terminal (the stock ground connection seemed like it was being flakey anyway) and spliced that in place of the one that came pre-packaged in the harness.
To accomplish this, I used a flat-head screwdriver to pry up the plastic tab on the inside of the plug and pressed down on the metal lead with the tip of a needle nose pliers to get it started, then just pulled out the lead.
Once everything was wired up, I'd plug in the LED headlight and test it before screwing it back in to make sure everything worked.
Once I had everything working, I screwed it all back together. Looks pretty snazzy!
I wasn't too happy with the spread pattern-- there's a lot of glare. I suspected that might be the case. I adjusted it way down and in to keep that glare from being obtrusive to other drivers; I think it'll be alright, but time will tell.
The high beams sure are nice, though...