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Here's the results of my mucking around with the rear suspension. All measurements are taken from the center of the hub to the bottom edge of the fender, so that tire size is not a factor and anyone can directly compare to their own truck. If there are 2 measurements it's because it didn't sit even side to side.
Front suspension: 19.25"
Air suspension set to "N": 21-21.25"
Air suspension set to "H": 22.25-22.75"
SSO kit w/ 2 spacers per side, FJ Cruiser rear springs, no spare tire underneath: 22.75"
SSO kit w/ no spacers, FJ Cruiser rear springs, no spare tire underneath: 22.25"
SSO kit w/ no spacers, FJ Cruiser rear springs, spare tire underneath: 21.75"
End result is about 1/2" taller in rear than stock air suspension on "N" setting, which is acceptable to me. Once loaded down with gear it should sit about where the stock air springs would be. The ride is nice, I like it better with the spare back underneath, seems to feel more settled than without. I was surprised with how much the spare brought the rear height down, about 1/2", it's possible the trip home with new wheels/tires in the back helped things settle, but either way I'm down to the height I wanted to be. The 265/65/17 tires look smaller than the 265/70/17's that were on there, but it still looks good, and hopefully it's quicker, pulls the double sled trailer better, and even gets a bit better fuel economy with the stock size rubber back under it. The bigger tires looked cool, but we don't use this vehicle in a way that justifies dealing with the cons of the bigger rubber.
I can't speak to their longetivity because I've only had them in for a few weeks. However, no issues so far. Good steady beam which works well with your projector style housing. Not TOO "white" to where it looks like a teenager messing with their car, but just enough that it brings out road signs and reflective lines much better than stock.
Last edited by dahoseman; Nov 7, 2017 at 11:32 AM.
awesome! I have LED Highs and Lows also. Love them! I think a headlight upgrade is a must do for anyone doing any routine night driving. Such a profound difference in light output over OEM.
I'd like to see what these LED options are like on the road, but nobody around here that I know of has gone that route (not specific to GX's). I've been very impressed with the low beam HID conversion I did on our GX a few years back, much improved output over stock. I do have concerns about the LED's ability to melt snow off the lenses, that would be a deal breaker for me where I live.
I am interested in the LEDs too. But I did some research and looks like the retrofit LED has different light pattern due to the OEM reflector design. I wonder if you have the low beam only, do you have a cut off line and a bright spot like the stock in picture?
Attached picture is my HID conversion. Stock on the left and HID on the right.
I am interested in the LEDs too. But I did some research and looks like the retrofit LED has different light pattern due to the OEM reflector design. I wonder if you have the low beam only, do you have a cut off line and a bright spot like the stock in picture?
Attached picture is my HID conversion. Stock on the left and HID on the right.
Not all LED's are created equal... some will work very well, some not so much. I like the way mine cut off. For me, you have too much blue in your light. More white in there and the light becomes more useful... at least for my eyes.
Not all LED's are created equal... some will work very well, some not so much. I like the way mine cut off. For me, you have too much blue in your light. More white in there and the light becomes more useful... at least for my eyes.
I have 5000-6000K HID before (in picture). Now I replaced with 4300K which is more white than blueish. I guess your LED is on the left?
I have LEDs on the Fog lights. I think they are bright but the light is more spreading out all over than focus to the front. So I am not yet confident on the retrofitted LED headlight until I see some good examples.
I have 5000-6000K HID before (in picture). Now I replaced with 4300K which is more white than blueish. I guess your LED is on the left?
I have LEDs on the Fog lights. I think they are bright but the light is more spreading out all over than focus to the front. So I am not yet confident on the retrofitted LED headlight until I see some good examples.
yeah I think 4300K is a much better color for HID, Yes, led on the left in my pic. It was not dark enough to capture the light, but the cutoff is more what I was going for. I didn't get the brightest leds, but rather the cheapest with good reviews. My High beams are even less expensive, but once the tech is out for a few more years, I believe they will faze out HID for the most part. You have LED fogs? H3 bulb? My personal experience with H3 led is that they produce minimal usable light compared to factory halogen, unless you use a non standard H3 led and modify the GX's housing in some way. Again, that's been my experience with my GX. and that is what I did. I have crazy bright led fogs, really good lows and meh Highs. I don't use highs much, so not a priority to be super bright, I just wanted all the lights the same color and better than OEM lighting without blinding anyone in on coming traffic. So I am sold on LED.
I have 5000-6000K HID before (in picture). Now I replaced with 4300K which is more white than blueish. I guess your LED is on the left?
I have LEDs on the Fog lights. I think they are bright but the light is more spreading out all over than focus to the front. So I am not yet confident on the retrofitted LED headlight until I see some good examples.
For the $ I spent on my H11 Low beam, I would say they are a great example of the quality light you can get from LED headlight bulbs in a Projector Lens. The Bulbs I purchased adjust to fit your application. At least that was how they advertised them. lol I am super happy with them so far. I didn't need to adjust them, plug and play.
Today I installed LED’s in place of the OEM reverse bulbs. I watched a video recently on YouTube about how to remove the rear panel, once I did that, I gently pulled back the plastic and the rear of the reverse light housing is accessible. The driver side went in no problem, but the passenger side must be different because the long LED’s that I bought would not fit. After examining the bulbs I just bought I decided to remove a little material at the top (end) of the bulb. From what I could tell, it was just metal heat sink. So I busted out the hobby saw and went to work. First attempt = success!!! Very happy with the light out put. I have a long driveway that is one way, you pull in, you will back out and vice versa. So add tinted windows and you can see why I would want more light than Lexus gave us.
Thanks for reading!
