Halogen vs LED headlights on 2021 F-150 -- real world comparison pics

BuffaloBill · Jan 25, 2021

I had an opportunity to test drive a '21 STX with halogen headlights and a '21 XLT 302 with LED reflectors, back-to-back. I recorded a portion of each drive, and made screenshots of the same approximate location for each. I just had the low beams on, no auto high, and no fog lights. You can see the LEDs are brighter and project further down the road. But both have a distinct cut-off.

I also recorded my '14 Tahoe (halogen with SilverStar Ultra bulbs) and you can see in the last set of pictures below how noticeable the cut-off is.

Is this cut-off typical of newer vehicles, and is there an advantage to this?

I only test drove the previous generation F-150 halogens once at night, and I was really disappointed with those lights. I could definitely see better with the 21's, including the one with the halogens. I thought this would be helpful for those considering '20 vs '21, or '21 301 vs 302.

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STX halogen vs XLT302 LED reflector vs '14 Tahoe halogen (SilverStar Ultra)

discothan · Jan 25, 2021

Maybe there is a regulation that forces car manufacturers to limit the throw of headlights.

Knickell · Jan 25, 2021

BuffaloBill said:
I had an opportunity to test drive a '21 STX with halogen headlights and a '21 XLT 302 with LED reflectors, back-to-back. I recorded a portion of each drive, and made screenshots of the same approximate location for each. I just had the low beams on, no auto high, and no fog lights. You can see the LEDs are brighter and project further down the road. But both have a distinct cut-off.

I also recorded my '14 Tahoe (halogen with SilverStar Ultra bulbs) and you can see in the last set of pictures below how noticeable the cut-off is.

Is this cut-off typical of newer vehicles, and is there an advantage to this?

I only test drove the previous generation F-150 halogens once at night, and I was really disappointed with those lights. I could definitely see better with the 21's, including the one with the halogens. I thought this would be helpful for those considering '20 vs '21, or '21 301 vs 302.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11
STX halogen vs XLT302 LED reflector vs '14 Tahoe halogen (SilverStar Ultra)

Finally someone has got one of each of these trucks out at night! Great comparison. Top work!

Bryan Simon · Jan 25, 2021

discothan said:
Maybe there is a regulation that forces car manufacturers to limit the throw of headlights.

Pretty sure there is.
Intensity & color.

I’m still not a fan of bright white or blue lamps.
I probably be less annoyed with them if people actually knew how the dimmer worked, but even with the dim yellow lamps, I get a case of blindness with oncoming traffic.
Always have—probably always will

KBKEITH · Jan 25, 2021

discothan said:
Maybe there is a regulation that forces car manufacturers to limit the throw of headlights.

Yes, there are standards that must be met in the US (Europe has their own standards) by the OEMs for forward lighting.

Agashi25 · Jan 25, 2021

This great. Thanks for taking the time to get this put together and posted!

JimL · Jan 25, 2021

I absolutely despise the halogens on my 2020 F150 XLT. They’re almost dim yellowish, like when the alternator is going. Is it possible to swap out the LEDs from a Lariat? I’m willing to swap the housings & everything. The aftermarket brands just look too aftermarket.

satexas · Jan 25, 2021

One needs to understand the K spectrum to understand why LED LIGHTS are shooting white at that level.

Its because they're using around 6500 (‘daylight’) and not ‘warm’ (yellowish) levels nor bulbs which are known to cast a yellowish look common in home lighting. Bulbs you grew up all your life with that you always called white are really slightly yellow.

Many of you maybe used to terms like warm, cool, and daylight.... but really its all about the 1000-10000K... that determines color In LEDs.

I bought a new home last year with vaulted ceilings everywhere and switched out every bulb in the house with 6500k bulbs and my house is now a very bright clear white. Its a hair harder in the eyes for some because its so clear white and less soft for reading, but we totally love it. Traditionally, most all homes use 3000k light as shown below.

Ford F-150 Lightning Halogen vs LED headlights on 2021 F-150 -- real world comparison pics 1460F675-7A1D-4CCD-BD0D-494960DE728B

KBKEITH · Jan 25, 2021

satexas said:
One needs to understand the lumens spectrum to understand why LED LIGHTS are shooting white at that level.

Its because they're using around 6500 (‘daylight’) and not ‘warm’ (yellowish) levels nor bulbs which are known to cast a yellowish look common in home lighting. Bulbs you grew up all your life with that you always called white are really slightly yellow.

Many of you maybe used to terms like warm, cool, and daylight.... but really its all about the lumens... that determines color In LEDs.

I bought a new home last year with vaulted ceilings everywhere and switched out every bulb in the house with 6500k bulbs and my house is now a very bright clear white. Its a hair harder in the eyes for some because its so clear white and less soft for reading, but we totally love it. Traditionally, most all homes use 3000k light as shown below.

CCT (correlated color temperature) in Kelvin, is what is shown in your chart.

Lumens are a unit of Luminous Flux. Luminous flux is the photometric value of an LED light source measured inside an integrating sphere.

CCT and lumens are not dependent on each other. In other words, you can have an LED with a 5500K CCT yet it can also have a very wide range of lumen (flux) values.

Djlee1592 · Jan 25, 2021

Are the led headlights on and xlt 302a high adjustable? Say if one gets a leveling kit, can you adjust them

Sergeant Gearhead · Jan 26, 2021

The results are about what I expected. The LEDs being brighter than the standard halogens, I think people might sway to them now (granted they can stretch their budget further).

Jim Bandy · Jan 26, 2021

Thx & great compairson. Anything bighter will work for me!

mnstang · Jan 26, 2021

Would also be cool to see the LED reflectors vs the LED projectors, I saw the Pickup Truck Plus SUV talk on youtube had a video comparing them but it wasnt very in depth. Here it is if you care to look (I embedded the time in the video no need to fast forward):

satexas · Jan 26, 2021

KBKEITH said:
CCT (correlated color temperature) in Kelvin, is what is shown in your chart.

Correct, using the word lumens was incorrect. I edited and removed to keep people from being confused.

My post otherwise, however, is totally accurate when showing why projected bulb lights are shown as yellow (and some aftermarket bulbs are blue), and why the new LED ones are the bright 6500k whites. (I say this for people reading this wondering if my post is still valid - yes.)

satexas · Jan 26, 2021

Djlee1592 said:
Are the led headlights on and xlt 302a high adjustable? Say if one gets a leveling kit, can you adjust them

Getting a leveling kit and only going ~2 inches won't change anything you need to 'adjust' IMHO. Waste of time, energy and possible cost.

Halogen vs LED headlights on 2021 F-150 -- real world comparison pics

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