tkdtim

I need a recommendation for aux lighting. My goal is to have better street legal lighting on both bright and dim.

I'm going to have room for 2-4 lights mounted between the stock headlights on a pull bar/brush guard. So i was thinking 1 set of driving, 1 set of fog. I would prefer to stick with 1 set just because I don't want it to look too cluttered, and law requires only 1 set active with the stock lights at a time.

Questions:
1.) Are KC and Hella driving lights about the same brightness/quality?
2.) Are these meant to be supplimental to bright lights and dim lights?

I saw the pictures in the technical section of the lighting setup, and the KC's looked brighter than all 4 hellas combined.

xjjeepthing

If it was Hella 500's they are only 55 watt. Most of the big KC's are 100 watt. KC and Hella are both good brands. Procomp make s adecent light as well.

BlueXJ

I have had both Hellas and KC. I like the KC mount better but the Hellas are slimmer and take up less space. As for their lighting ability the KCs are a better long distance (pencil beam) but the Hellas give a broader close up light pattern. For fogs I still have the OEM ones and also the Hella ones and I like the OEM for looks but again the Hellas have better light dispersal.
Bottom line is it depends upon the use of the light and personal prefference.

jeep98b

I have Hella 450's on mine now and love the light output. I put 100 watt bulbs in my Hellas. I will have Hella 500's on it soon for double coverage. I like Hella. My .02

bmrrwolfe

I have a set of Hella 500's mounted on my roof rack, they are extremly bright... i only have them on when im on back roads with no cars coming at me. but just for fun i took my friends car down the street and they are blinding.. (the angle they are at could also be part of it)

aircruiser

my KC 100w lights are pencil beams and throw alot more light than my hellas but they are twice the price (i bought my kcs used for $80 so i got a good deal). i use the hella 500s on my bumper as driving lights and they are great for just that. around here, 100w lights are illegal and 55w are max for legal driving fogs.

xj4fun

Quote:

Originally Posted by tkdtim

I need a recommendation for aux lighting. My goal is to have better street legal lighting on both bright and dim.

Sadly you will have conflicts trying to accomplish your goal and still stay legal.

A) I believe federal law mandates secondary lighting can't be used when high beams are on. Check your state code as it may allow it, but I doubt it. So the moment you turn on any secondary lights with your high beams, your out of compliance.

B) Federal also limits DOT supplemental lighting to 55 watts. So any lighting beyond this wattage, is for 'off road' use only.

C) Lighting not specifically DOT approved (regardless of wattage) is illegal. There is a secondary national standard allowed which might be 'SAE', but I don't recall exactly. The general rule is if the lens isn't stamped with one of these approvals, it's off-road.

To your specifc questions.
1.) Are KC and Hella driving lights about the same brightness/quality?
This is too vague to answer, as both manufactors offer several different types of lighting. You would need to make sure you are comparing apples-to-apples.

2.) Are these meant to be supplimental to bright lights and dim lights?
DOT (or the other approved certification) is meant soley for low beam usage. All other lighting (most of the market) is designed for whatever usage you want as long as it's off-road.

If you're state mandates vehicle inspection, you should also verify how many supplimental lights sources you can have (and where mounted). Some state may limit front lighting to 1 pair.

One option that would come close to meeting your goal is combined lighting. These provide two differing beams within the same housing. An example of this would be Catz 'Land Master Twin beam'. Neither beam is DOT approved, but you do get a fog and driving in the same housing with a combination switch.
http://www.everythingsuv.com/temp_offline/lights_land_master-esuv.asp

With all the above said, the only tickets I've heard being issued were in cases where the driver didn't shut down the supplimental lighting for oncoming traffic. I've also heard of warning for driving with supplimentals not covered by opaque light covers as well. In some states it's required they are covered at all times when on the road.

Sorry for the not-so-happy news.
Kent

tkdtim

Thanks guys! I think im going to go with a pair of hella 500's for now, for use only with my dims of course

tkdtim

Picked up some Hella 500s last night and got them mounted but not wired yet.

Everything I read says that the driving lights should come on only with HI beams. I see cars and trucks driving around ALL the time with what I assume is low beams, but their driving lights on also. Are those fog lights instead?

jeep98b

They should go off when high beams come on. I have mine wired to stay on unless I turn them off.

aircruiser

yeah i just used a switch and drove with my normal lights on unless i was on backroads. i dont have them on the bumper anymore because i broke them playing bumpers in traffic against my friends lifted dakota..haha. but if anyone was coming in the opposite direction, they would always flash their high beams at me. i just need better headlights because the relay fried and i was on backroads coming back from a road trip i took with my gf and the stock headlights were useless.

tkdtim

See here is what im talking about. Post from another jeep forum.

"I tapped the high beam relay for the trigger on the driving light relay on both rigs. That's the 'proper' way to do it. Your driving lights should not come on with the low beams as it violates DOT specs, IIRC.

Keep in mind though that it is illegal to run auxiliary lights without headlights in most states and it is discourteous and illegal to run driving lights with your low beams when there is oncoming traffic.

Fog lights should be wired to come on with low beams, driving lights should be wired to come on with high beams."

So i'm confused. Should I call the DMV?

bhulty20

I would just run them all to individual switches and choose for yourself when you want them to be on or off. Thats the way i did it with my 6 hella lights. 3 switches. I run my fogs at night no matter what and two pairs of driving lights when there is no one in front of me as they are very bright.

tkdtim

How do you find Hi Beam wire? Do I have to pull the headlight out? It looks like I have 2 bundles of cables wrapped going into the headlight area from the engine bay side.

And why is everyones covers black with white and mine are all white with black writing???

tkdtim

bump