[MrCreosote]

Previous owner installed LED's that produce radio static.
He says he didn't like the OE bulbs (why? "don't remember")
I hate the LED's - they have poor pattern more like flood lights, virtually no vertical cutoff.

Debating to put OE back in.

BUT I HATE OE with Brick Wall Vertical Cutoff: drove a fairly new 1/2 pickup where the cutoff was like 100%: NO ILLUMINATION (BLIND) above cutoff.

Don't want to invest money to make these LED's work. Can get junk yard 9008's for $5 each.

Might consider LED that have good pattern and no EMI but still CHEAPSKATE! LOL

 

[bangster]

If you have the stock reflector headlights, there will be no horizontal cut off line. That is a product of a projector lens and a physical shield, no matter what type of bulb (halogen, HID, LED).

I think you will be underwhelmed either way. What is vertical cutoff?

 

[MrCreosote]

All automotive headlights have a vertical cutgoff line - light is not supposed to illuminate above it because it would blind oncoming vehicles.

Some vehicles less than 10 years old have a razor sharp cuttoff line above which there is ZERO illumination - these are dangerous driving in hilly areas.

The LEDs on my 2010 have NO cutoff line - they are like flood lights. The bulbs are also "corncob" LEDs which will not produce the pattern the headlight reflected was designed for, a point source light.

I have no idea how good/bad the OE 9008's are and am not going to waste money if they, too suck.

One way or another these corncob LED's have to go.

 

[bangster]

If they have a horizontal cut off then there is both a projector style lens and a physical cut off. Only the facets in the reflector (or in some cars the lens) shape the output on yours, and they can't do a cut off line.

That is why sometimes the high beam is not the projector, or the projector has a physical gate that moves to have light higher (bi xenon only use the movement of the gate, there is no higher wattage for high beam).

There are some okay aftermarket headlights for the gen2 that are projector style low and reflector high, or just projector low and high.

 

[Mountain Escape]

All automotive headlights have a vertical cutgoff line - light is not supposed to illuminate above it because it would blind oncoming vehicles.

Some vehicles less than 10 years old have a razor sharp cuttoff line above which there is ZERO illumination - these are dangerous driving in hilly areas.

The LEDs on my 2010 have NO cutoff line - they are like flood lights. The bulbs are also "corncob" LEDs which will not produce the pattern the headlight reflected was designed for, a point source light.

I have no idea how good/bad the OE 9008's are and am not going to waste money if they, too suck.

One way or another these corncob LED's have to go.

I replaced my original housings with spyder housings that came with an LED DRL's installed. They switched to an H1 bulb, and I put in Sylvania Silverstar's… They were the brightest I could find.
I never found an LED headlamp bulb worth a hoot…
There's a guy online that has tested everything. He pretty much says the same thing.

These aren't cheap, so I don't know what to tell you.

08-12 Ford Escape Angel Eye Halo & LED Strip Projector Headlights - Black

www.protuninglab.com

I wound up bolting combination fog/driving lights into the lower valance openings. They are technically for off-road only, so you have to switch them off when you see oncoming traffic

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[dwightbresemann]

The corncob style LED light are the cheap/inexpensive type. Good LEDs have 1-3 CREED LEDs. Buy the top choices on Amazon for your size. Around $40-50. LEDs are way better than the OEM incandescent bulbs, when done right (not cheap).

 

[MrCreosote]

UPDATE: Finally went for ride in friend's '12 XLT w/OE 9008 bulbs. How OE compare to LED:

• Definitely have a cutoff that is not too dramatic: Winner OE
• Low Beam: Not quite as bright as my LED's: Winner LED
• High Beam: May actually illuminate further since is a more focued pattern. LED Highs are not a great improvement of their Lows. Split Decision OE
• Color temp is clearly Yellow, LED's White: Winner LED

If I had the OE lights, I would probably never think about how good they are.
However, after using the LED's I like the brightness and color.

9008 Solutions:

• Get OE 9008 bulbs (60/55 watts)
• Get HP 9008's - shorter life - more $$$

LED Solutions:

• Research if Ferrite cores would solve radio static problem.
• Get new LED's with better optics and no EMI - more $$$
  

I definitely like brighter lights. Picking out a LED that would have a good pattern and no EMI might be difficult but would probably be expensive. I can get $5 bulbs from junk yards and RockAuto. NOTE: might score LED's @ Upull & Pay for cheap but it's too far away for a casual visit.

 

[MrCreosote]

I replaced my original housings with spyder housings that came with an LED DRL's installed. They switched to an H1 bulb, and I put in Sylvania Silverstar's… They were the brightest I could find.
I never found an LED headlamp bulb worth a hoot…
There's a guy online that has tested everything. He pretty much says the same thing.

These aren't cheap, so I don't know what to tell you.

08-12 Ford Escape Angel Eye Halo & LED Strip Projector Headlights - Black

www.protuninglab.com

I wound up bolting combination fog/driving lights into the lower valance openings. They are technically for off-road only, so you have to switch them off when you see oncoming traffic

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Wow, there is a whole industry making projectors for 08-12 Escapes. Big $$$. That's definitely far beyond what I am willing to spend. The youtube guy sells some super $$$ stuff, but no mention of radio interference. Also if LED's are 700% brighter, doesn't that mean you are going to get flashed a lot even if on low beam? What's the wise decision?

 

[MrCreosote]

The corncob style LED light are the cheap/inexpensive type. Good LEDs have 1-3 CREED LEDs. Buy the top choices on Amazon for your size. Around $40-50. LEDs are way better than the OEM incandescent bulbs, when done right (not cheap).

I'll definitely look into that. Yes, the LED light source has to be the same size and location as the halogen to yield a good pattern. The big problem may be the radio static interference.

 

[JohnCT]

• Definitely have a cutoff that is not too dramatic: Winner OE
• Low Beam: Not quite as bright as my LED's: Winner LED
• High Beam: May actually illuminate further since is a more focued pattern. LED Highs are not a great improvement of their Lows. Split Decision OE
• Color temp is clearly Yellow, LED's White: Winner LED

You have to remember that the corncob LEDs you are running are by far the worst thing you can put inside the stock housing. Corncobs throw light where it shouldn't go. I'm not even sure they make them anymore.

LEDs have come a long way, and I am thinking about upgrading my stock bulbs to LEDs. I have a 1st and 2nd gen, and the stock headlights border on the unsafe. My wife's 09 Edge is running stock halogen bulbs in a reflector type housing that are original to the car (dimmer than when new I'm sure) and it throws almost twice the light down the road as my truck does.

There's also a good chance that the radio noise you are getting is peculiar to that particular corncob LED you are using. I've read hundreds of reviews of LEDs and have never heard RFI mentioned in any of them.

John

 

[MrCreosote]

You have to remember that the corncob LEDs you are running are by far the worst thing you can put inside the stock housing. Corncobs throw light where it shouldn't go. I'm not even sure they make them anymore.

LEDs have come a long way, and I am thinking about upgrading my stock bulbs to LEDs. I have a 1st and 2nd gen, and the stock headlights border on the unsafe. My wife's 09 Edge is running stock halogen bulbs in a reflector type housing that are original to the car (dimmer than when new I'm sure) and it throws almost twice the light down the road as my truck does.

There's also a good chance that the radio noise you are getting is peculiar to that particular corncob LED you are using. I've read hundreds of reviews of LEDs and have never heard RFI mentioned in any of them.

John

Yes, after thinking about my road test in a stock 2012, more lumens would be desirable.

I'll have to pull one of those LEDs in mine (orig owner put in) and see how bad they look and see if I can identify. But where are the multitudes of LED lights coming from? There must be 20-50 manufacturers.

I've never heard any mention of radio interference from any LED light test. However when I mentioned it to my garage owner mechanic friend, right away he said, "yeah they do that" so it's a common problem. Regarding LED comparison tests, the fact that they don't mention NO radio interference suggests they don't check since it sounds like they put the lights in a vehicle to test. However I wouldn't be surprised if some test with a headlight assembly "on a bench."

Some of these tests are by outfits trying to sell you bulbs. Like #1 rated bulb could be $250 for a pair of LEDs. (!) No Way Ray! I was shocked to see that outfits are making projectors for Escapes! Again many doing this!I

For now, my solution is simply turn headlights off in daytime which is when I do the majority of my driving. A little radio interference at night is not a deal breaker, but I will be on the lookout for cheap replacement LED's.

There should be a subforum for headlight topics: Halogen, LED, Projector Conversions, etc.

 

[dwightbresemann]

I installed LEDs in my 05 Escape. I, too, was overthinking the hundreds of different bulbs. In the end, I used Amazon and purchased some that were on sale from their top picks. I also did the interior lighting. Wow, what a difference. Huge outside and inside.

 

[MrCreosote]

UPDATE: My LEDs: BeamTech
This is troublesome: some highly regarded LED's have the same 6 chip layout: they have a good pattern and cutoff in the tests. Maybe the chip pattern is OK and the problem is WHERE the chips are? Maybe depends on the vehicle??? I have no cutoff to speak off - I'd rate the pattern "terrible" (i call it a "flood" pattern.)

$38 on Amazon 50w

 

[bangster]

Are they properly clocked? They (the LEDs) should be on the sides when inserted and locked into place.

No light on reflector top or bottom, some sort of cut off I guess...

 

[dwightbresemann]

So, the LED pictured was installed in the vehicle? I would not consider this a "corncob" LED. Looks like a normal, mid-range, LED lamp.

 

[bangster]

This is what a projector style headlight cut off looks like. It isn't sexy like LED or HID with the purple band as it is just halogen, and this is with the fogs on (also cut off, in a different manner, easy to find examples of the aperture used to do it). No reflector only headlight will do this, even the 1980s shield on the glass seal beams.

HIghbeams on...separate bulb, reflector only, no cut off, low beams still on, fogs off (didn't have bambi mode enabled).

 

[MrCreosote]

Are they properly clocked? They (the LEDs) should be on the sides when inserted and locked into place.

No light on reflector top or bottom, some sort of cut off I guess...

Yes, properly clocked. So the question is: does this chip pattern not work well in Gen 2 Escape reflectors OR is the chip array in the wrong place???

I would think if the chips are in the right location, by definition the LED's should work.

NOTE: When I got a ride in neighbor's 2012 to check out his OE headlights, the cutoff line was instantly and clearly seen as soon as the vehicle moved. I never even a hint of a cutoff line.

 

[bangster]

I think this might be the post that gets me thrown off this site (which I no longer own an Escape, so...) but

• They also can be 180 degrees out (since it is a high and low beam, the low could be on the top or the bottom unless they are top on one side and bottom on the other).
• You never really mention checking how they are clocked before. This is the most common reason for even poorer performance for sub par setups that are not 360 degrees.
• They are probably Chinese rated...they are actually 25w, and I bet if you dig deeper, they are 12.5w each side, 25w together for low beam, and another 25w together added for high beam, for a total of 50w), and that 12.5w is also over rated.
• You aren't going to have a cut off line, I really am interested in what you think that means on that 2012. I no longer own a vehicle without projector beam lenses, if I did, I would post a photo of the beam on a wall and show how it is scattered all around high low and sides (like my high beam image). Even if you follow the steps in the owners manual for vertical alignment, at 25 feet you are going to have significant spill of light above the horizontal line that you draw, and only the hotspot matters. There is zero light above that in my vehicles.

You are probably not going to ever have a headlight setup you are happy with with your $5 budget. Reflector headlights are very common, cheap, and not very deep, so easy to package. Even the aftermarket projector ones don't have a great reflector bowl or focal length, but can be better than OEM but not without spending some time and some dough.

 

[bangster]

20 feet, 2012 Fusion low beam (projector with gate)

low beam also with fog (which have a vertical aperture)

high beam, which is low beams on, and an H7 in a reflector housing on

Sure it isn't the 25 feet like the vertical (there is no horizontal adjustment...) alignment process, and it isn't 25 feet and a full width wall or screen, but it is pretty telling. Compare the expected light for the 2012 Escape versus the 2012 Fusion in the manual, while there is still a hot spot, there is a serious lack of spill above.

This is my 2019 Edge, with factory LED in a low/high projector arrangement (where low has the gate in place, and high moves the gate). These things are torture for oncoming drivers, have all sorts of shadows and bright spots, and I would love HID over them.
low beams

low beam with fog (unknown projector style, I haven't torn one apart...yet)

high beam

 

[Mountain Escape]

Wow, there is a whole industry making projectors for 08-12 Escapes. Big $$$. That's definitely far beyond what I am willing to spend. The youtube guy sells some super $$$ stuff, but no mention of radio interference. Also if LED's are 700% brighter, doesn't that mean you are going to get flashed a lot even if on low beam? What's the wise decision?

You are correct, people with overly bright headlights do get flashed a lot, a lot of times you have to reaim a headlight when you are running something that bright. A lot of people who put lift kits on their vehicles also don't realize they need to reaim their headlights.

NHTSA along time ago regulated how many lumens was the max allowed, now they have thrown that into the trash. I write them emails all the time.

you are getting a ton of information.
for cost savings I would recommend just going back to a stock lamp, and polish the lenses.

That should also eliminate your radio static as well