Morimoto 2Stroke 3.0 LED bulbs

[2011EL]

I need to replace the weak OEM headlights as they are simply terrible and provide little to no assistance with night driving for my 2011 Expy. I've looked at replacing the entire housing assemblies with aftermarket headlights, but I'm less than impressed with what little I was able to find. Sooo... that leads me to replacing just the bulbs. I know some folks love LEDs.

First question is, are LED bulbs legal in Texas? I've seen on several truck sites that LED and HID bulbs aren't legal under federal law. I honestly have no clue how accurate that us. Several stores said they won't sell bulbs for headlights per federal regulations. Is this true?

Second question, are LED bulbs good for night driving? I saw a video a while back comparing old school halogen bulbs, LEDs, and HID bulbs in the same car driving on the same roads. LEDs didn't appear to do much beyond making the immediate area around the car much brighter, but distance visibility wasn't enhanced much at all. HIDs blew the others away based on that video. But, I've heard HIDs create tons of heat.

With all of that said, has anyone had any experience with the Morimoto 2Stroke 3.0 LED headlight bulbs? The marketing makes them look amazing which naturally causes me to doubt it.

Any additional advice/guidance anyone can offer would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ManUpOrShutUp]

LEDs have come a long, long way in recent years and in terms of brightness I have no complaints. In my personal experience though, I still find HID offers better throw. Worth the extra heat, power, etc though? Probably not at this point. For me the biggest draw with LED is that existing wiring can be used with a massive improvement in lumens.

 

[Adieu]

HID in reflector headlights (stocks are reflectors) is generally treated as a violation by most law enforcement

HiD in projectors is almost universally tolerated

LED...hmm, I don't know of any jurisdictions that have gotten around to rewriting their laws to cover this new-ish tech

 

[2011EL]

I figure I'll save the halogen bulbs for the annual inspections. I'm leaning towards these Morimoto bulbs simply for the internal fans to help cool the lights and the housings.

The latest question I have is, do I need a PWM module for these LED? I have no clue if Ford uses PWM technology for headlights on the Expy. Part of the reason I ask is that Morimoto's site says they're optional, but they want $247 for a pair of bulbs (expensive). I found the same bulbs on another site for $103 (still expensive, but much more doable), but they don't offer the optional PWM.

I don't want to buy the wrong thing and regret it by either buying much more expensive item just to get a module I don't need or buying just the bulbs to save money only to have the bulbs fry or damage my truck.

I tend to over analyze things in case you haven't noticed.

 

[Stephen Dunster]

I have been using Hikari LED 12000 LM since March, one week after buying a 2013. Purchased on Amazon for about $35. I adjusted headlight aim after installing and have not been flashed down once. They do not require any adapters.
They are a significant improvement over stock halogen both in brightness and distance. I ran similar bulbs in my 2004 and 2006 expy's and never had a failure in 130,000 miles on the '06 and 200,000 miles in the '04. I am the type that will spend a bunch of money on something when I need (want) it, and the performance of the Hikari works well for me. I drive 45 to 50k a year.
I can't speak to legality, but with the lower lumen output than some of the brighter (18000 LM), I am satisfied and not so worried about a ticket.
Sorry if I sound like a Hikari advertisement, but I have had a great experience with them.

Amazon.com

 

[Ellison Brown III]

I’ve got bulbs from Headlight Revolution; the S-V.4’s. They are LED’s. So many different ones to choose from. Just depends on what you’re looking for. I went with one of the brighter outputs among what was offered. https://www.headlightrevolution.com/buyer-guide-by-vehicle/2016+Ford+Expedition

 

[bloodhound]

I've mentioned these a few times in here. SEALIGHT LED bulbs. Had them in for the last year and a half. Plug and play, no blinding others, and a million times better than stock.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07G6ZP9CM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1&tag=expeditionforum-20

 

[2011EL]

I just ordered bulbs from Morimoto directly. They price matched what I found on AmericanTrucks.com which saved me about $180. I ordered the 2Stroke 3.0 bulbs with the puddle lights and the Morimoto XB Projector LED Fog Lights. I'll post an update with photos once they come in.

 

[2011EL]

I got the headlights installed. Like every other job I do, the first light took longer than expected. Took me a bit to get the light assembly removed from the truck. I wound up having to get under the truck and used a trim pull to get some leverage behind the assembly in order to pull it out.

I also was thrown for a loop when I removed the original bulb and it left behind the red rubber ring. I assumed the ring was the rubber seal for the bulb and housing. I finally figured it out a few mins of struggling to get the new bulb to lock. Anyway, I figured it out and got the light installed. The second light took less than 5 mins. Of course it did.

Here's the stock halogen lights.


Here's a shot of one each for comparison.


Here's a shot of the lights against the garage door. You can easily see the new LEDs are much brighter.


I also purchased new Morimoto fog lights. I can't install then yet as they accidentally sent the wrong adapter. I emailed support the next morning with photos of the adapter they sent along with the stock bulb. They responded within 30 mins or so and acknowledged their mistake. They shipped the correct adapter the same day. The new adapters should be delivered no later than Tuesday of next week. Sadly, I'm taking my family out of town next week for the holiday. So, I'll share pics of the fog lights when we get back and I can install them.

 

[Fort C]

I’m always reading posts about upgrading headlights. I have a 2015 Limited that I bought in January of 2016 with 20k on it. I’ve have been very happy with the head lights. Is there something different about my 2015 Ltd’s lights than what everyone is replacing?