cherrypik

Hi everyone,
I have a 2008 RX400h and looking to make a couple upgrades. First off, I did try searching the forums but I couldn't find anything. I want to upgrade just my speakers(either tweeters, door speakers, and/or dashboard) without replace the amp or head unit and can't find a DIY thread. Also, I wanted to upgrade my fog light to 5k or 6k. Can anyone suggest a safe and powerful bulb.

RX330inFL

You might find more specific help in the Special Interest Forums:

Lighting
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/lighting-128/

Lexus Audio, Video, Security & Electronics
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/lex...lectronics-12/

LEXRX04

You might have a problem with just changing out the speakers...unless you get speakers that are ohm matched. Also if you under power the aftermarket speakers will cause issues down the road with either damaging the aftermarket speakers, or the factory amp.

neelnaik

I have used Xentec HID conversion kits on all of my cars for the last 2-3 years or so. They work great and all have lasted me over a year (I drive a lot and a large amount of it is at night). You can find them on ebay for about $40. I put 6000K's in my fogs on the RX and they are visibly bluer than the factory HID low beams. Color temp with HIDs is (almost) entirely just preference. Installing the new bulbs should take about 20-30 mins per side depending on how you do it and if you have done these sort of things before. Let me know if you would like pictures of my setup or if want more info before you go spending money on stuff.

cherrypik

Yes please send me pics. It's been pretty foggy by me lately and I will need to get the 6000k bulbs. Would u changing the fog lights to 6000k make a big difference at night?

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

if you have a lot of fog...I would use 3000K (yellow) HIDs...

RX330inFL

I posted a reply to this previous and then removed it. Wanted to rephrase and clarify. In short, I am not sure going to a 6000K bulb is really the best if you are looking to specifically address fog conditions. If you are going for a look or for normal nighttime driving that may be fine. Otherwise, I believe you are giving up too much output (measured in lumens) by going with a hotter bulb. Will discuss further below.

Have done a good amount of high-speed backroads driving in all conditions in my time. Places where you are not just looking out for what is ahead on the road but also for things which may jump out onto the road. Hit a good sized buck in a sports car and you can write-off the car and possibly your life. At one point I had a set of fog lights when I was in PA which I could only use when driving highway speeds as they drew so much power the alternator could not keep up in my little Subaru wagon.

Have heard the "yellow myth" being disputed. Was not so much that you needed yellow, but that you needed a combination of items to include: color, intensity/output, location on vehicle (the lower the better), and specific directional lensing. Intensity alone is insufficient to solve the problem as you have probably experienced in the past trying out your high beams in the fog. You find the light being bounced right back at you and obscuring your vision. In this case location is important as your headlights are too far off the road and are pointing right into the fog. True fog lights are normally mounted as low as possible because there is less fog usually just off the road surface. They tell you to just run your normal headlights in fog, but I think that it is as much so others can see your headlights and brake lights while in traffic.

Some credence on color independence in the matter can be found in the fog light applications available from sources such as PIAA and Hella. They have both yellow and white bulb products. And in yellow, these are not merely a white bulb with a yellow covering. These are true yellow bulb applications. Here, I will agree with you, kickin8. Cooler yellow colored bulbs can have a higher output than hotter (color temperature) whiter bulbs and definitely better than the very hot 6000K bulbs at the same power consumption rating.

One way the manufacturers compensate the output deficiency on the 6000K bulbs is by increasing the power consumption of the bulb to 65W, 80W or even higher. Not only does this shorten the life of the bulb, as the socket you are plugging it into is designed for a 51W bulb you risk damaging your electrics not to say anything about the amount of heat generated.

In trying to find a specific example to show I thought back to the days when I would be at tracks like Daytona and Sebring where morning and nighttime fog are always a problem. Found the following video clip. Conditions, though they do not appear to be so in the video, at the time were foggy at Le Mans. Note the various yellow and white extra lighting some of the race cars are sporting.


And, from Click and Clack...

http://www.cartalk.com/content/do-fo...ou-see-through

http://www.cartalk.com/content/whos-...out-fog-lights

Though Lexus uses the term "integrated fog lights" in its literature, can it really be said that what we have are really fog lights and in truth are they not really a form of driving lights? I am not completely sold they are fog lights.

So with all of that, if anything I might suggest you go with a 4300K bulb which is whiter, is more of a match for the stock headlights and normally has a higher lumen output than a 6000K bulb. The 4300K bulbs are also widely available in applications with a lower power consumption of 55W and high lumen output.

neelnaik

RX330inFL, thank you for the excellent explanation. Here in Oklahoma, we don't really have to worry about fog very much at all, and so I really only use my fog lights when I am doing highway driving at night (roads are empty after about 9pm out here) or when I am on country roads at night. The main problem we have out here is deer and other creatures that like to make their way onto the highway. I am also a fan of the bluish color of 6000Ks, hence I choose 6000Ks for mine. However, if you live in an area which you will actually be using your fog lights for fog, I would go with 4300K or 5000K rather than 6000K. I used to live in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I can tell you from experience 3500Ks also do well in the fog, but I wouldn't say they are noticeably better or worse than a whiter light, but I am sure there are others out there that would rather have the yellower light. I think a lot of it just comes down to personal preference; I personally like the whiter/bluer light in general. However, 8000K and upwards seem to fair a little worse in fog than cooler temperatures.

As far as visibility goes, the HIDs, no matter what color you go with, are much brighter than the factory halogens. 4300K should nicely match the color of the factory low beam HIDs. 5000Ks will appear slightly bluer than factory, and the 6000Ks are noticeably bluer than factory.

I have attached a couple pictures for you guys. The first one I took during the install, so you can compare the colors of the halogens, the factory low beam HIDs, and 6000Ks. I don't know why, but the 6000Ks showed up almost greenish in these pictures, but in reality they are not green. They are instead just a bit bluer than the factory HIDs. I will try to take a couple more night shots tonight to see if I can get a better picture of them.

cherrypik

Everyone, thanks for your input.

satz

incidentally, what colour temperature are the stock HIDs?

They seem slightly yellower than European car HIDs.

Can't find the right LED colour to replace the parking and fog bulbs, so they match the HIDs perfectly

neelnaik

Your welcome cherrypik.

Satz, I believe the color temp of the OEM HIDs are 4300K.