Hello all I have a 1998 xj with stock headlights in it. Everyone knows these headlights SUCK. I drive a lot at night and on back roads and have had some close calls with deer and other animals. I NEED some advice on what to do. I want to upgrade to a much better light. I don't know where to start. I have done a lot of research and I am confused. Do I need to upgrade my wiring if I upgrade my headlights? I was thinking h4 conversion, but I don't know where to begin...please if anyone has any suggestions...I want to keep it under $100 if I can help it. Thanks so much, you guys are awesome!

 

Your going to need yo spend a little more than a 100 if i were you i would buy new head light housings and swap them out with HIDs

 

If you're willing to spend around $300, there is an awesome headlight setup. It involves retrofitting, fabrication, and cutting into your header panel support.


Step 1: Get a set of ebay H4 housings - $24.99
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/H6054...Q5fAccessories

Step 2: Get 2 Morimoto 5Five Ballasts - $110.00
http://www.theretrofitsource.com/pro...roducts_id=163

Step 3: Get 2 Morimoto 5Five 5000k HID bulbs - $50.00
http://www.theretrofitsource.com/pro...roducts_id=240

Step 4: Get 2 Morimoto Mini D2S Bi-xenon projectors- $110.00
http://www.theretrofitsource.com/pro...roducts_id=236

Step 5: Follow this retrofit guide
http://go.jeep-xj.info/HowtoBiXenonProjectors.htm

I'm running something very close to this setup and it's great, you can see far down the road at night.

 

Cneck your voltage at the headlights. If you have 2+ voltage drop, you might want to run a modified lighting harness to supply full voltage to the headlights(my '96 has less than 1V drop). The least expensive upgrade headlight that I would recommend is the Sylvania Silverstar sealed beams at $25 each. They are supposed to yield 4000K light, so should be bright and white and a direct plug-in. They ARE DOT legal so no problems with LEOs.

I've added a pair of PIAA 520ATPs and aimed them to compliment my low beams. In that they aren't wired into the lows or highs, they aren't techinally legal, but give me the option to run them in conjuction with low/high or alone.

Driving lights and pencil beams yield a narrow, far reaching beam. Fog lights yield a vary wide, short reaching beam. PIAA ATPs are between the two extremes.

Check with your state's DOT and see what you're legally allowed to run, and where they can be mounted. In Pa anything above the mirrors must have covers on them when on public roads. Mine are on the bumper so as to not attract extra attention.

 

I got a nice h4 kit from ebay for less then 25 shipped

 

I'll bet they have great reflector housings.

 

This is mine,
http://www.eautoworks.com/product-eA...com-189849.htm
http://www.jeepinoutfitters.com/scri...?idproduct=603
http://www.4wheelparts.com/Lighting-...65&t_pl=101484

Much better than stock.
GL.

 

AutoPals H4 Lights for $25 on Ebay. 10X better than stock.

 

I replaced the headlights with new stock type, but put quality uprated lamps in. That made a big difference.

Rob

 

I got this wiring harness made a huge difference.

 

any good upgrade usually has little ballasts (batteries) that come with it. some kits are just a bulb replacement with a higher power output that are a plug and play deal. others (like stated) will need that ballast to power it. quadratec has some good upgrade options. i know there is one for like 120 (kinda pricey, but good **** aint cheap.. usually...) thats the most expensive one, so you can go cheaper and still get the results you want. id avoid doing a flebay purchase here, get ones from a reputable store that actually has a good return pollicy. my roommates headlight purchasing experience w/ ebay was less than desierable... idk- IMHO...

 

this looks like a nice setup, is the wiring harness plug and play with the cherokee? How bright are they compared to stock? Thanks everyone and keep the suggestions coming..I love it

 

Here is the write-up....a walk in the park.

 

Well, it seems pretty much plug and play. What type of fuse did you use going to the battery? I will be doing this to mine. They look amazingly bright in the night photo on the garage door. Do you ever get flashed? Thanks so much for the info

 

That sounds like the Delta eurospec housings with xenon bulbs. http://www.quadratec.com/products/pr...s+for+Cherokee I bought the Deltas with halogen bulbs for $106, but then spent more $ to upgrade to PIAA bulbs. I didn't think the halogen bulbs supplied to be bright or white. The PIAAS ARE.

They also offer the DOT approved Hella housings.http://www.quadratec.com/products/97009_02.htm

Rampage housings http://www.quadratec.com/products/97009_501.htm

and IPF housings http://www.quadratec.com/products/97017_1600.htm

I would have liked to have tested these side by side, but the guy at Quadaratec suggested the Deltas and Hellas as the better units. Other research indicated the ECE spec lights put more light on the road than the DOT spec.

The Sylvania Silverstars are probably the brightest DOT spec sealed beams available. http://www.quadratec.com/products/97000_101.htm This probably the most bang for the buck.