FuelforWar

ok so tonight when i pulled up i thought it would be funny to toggle the brights switch on my 93 runner at my gf sittin in front of the house when something about it caught my eye, If i barely pull the toggle back the brights come on, but the dims stay on too, however if i push it back only the brights turn on, and forward its just the dims. went down the road and held it in that place and i was quite pleased with how much of a difference it seemed to make having both the brights and the dims on at the same time. Has anyone ever played with there wiring so the dims stay on while the brights are on? or is there a reason why this isn't suppose to be like this? I'm really intrigued to wire it up like this if at all possible. Input please!

nv4runner

I know I've seen a thread mentioning it somewhere. The main issue is that to do so you need to upgrade the stock headlight wiring, as the wires (mainly the ground) may not be able to handle that much amperage for extended periods of time. I'm sure a bit of searching would yield many results. Don't forget

FuelforWar

yea did some looking around here for a bit but maybe i just couldn't find the correct key words. Just curious if any one has done this before, i never realized til now they worked independently. I for some reason always thought the second filiment came on when triggering the brights, not just switching from one filament to another. So does this actually make the light brighter or is it just changing the angle of the beam?

Moonfish

There is a DOT spec like 55 watts low beam 60 watts high beam or similar.

Elton

ya will only take a few days to blow the bulbs not a good idea get some driving lights or something

tj884Rdlx

there's two filaments, and they're in different positions in the bulb. the different positions allow for different throw, one low and one high.

holding them both, you're powering both filaments and getting the high throw and low throw together.

the catch is this: A) you're blinding oncoming traffic with the high throw, and B) you're running 55w + 60w and generating a LOT more heat in the housing, in addition to the higher amperage through the plug. EXPECT TO MELT THE PLUG.

before you go wiring up the switch to run them both together, try these tips:

GO BUY BETTER BULBS. you can get a bulb with a slightly higher low beam wattage, or you can get a bulb with a better quality construction like the Sylvania Silverstars. i have those cheapy fleabay 5x7" headlight housings in my 88 so i can use H4 silverstars, and the light is a huge improvement over halogens.

PROBABLY THE BEST THING TO DO TO IMPROVE LIGHT IS MAKE SURE THEY'RE AIMED PERFECTLY.

once upon a time i took some old vehicle i had to a pitch dark road out in the middle of nowhere, and broke out a screwdriver to aim the lights because i had just replaced a broken adjuster. i took my time, covered one headlight with a dark towel while aiming the other. i was able to position the light where i really wanted it, just below the horizon line of the road but high enough that there wasn't glare on the pavement immediately in front of the car.

IT MADE A HUGE DIFFERENCE, and i've been doing it to all my cars, and motorcycles in particular, ever since. in fact, i haven't done it to my honda yet and it's irking me because i can totally tell it could use it.

SCToy

Silver stars are bright, but they don't last long. I went through them every 6 months. Try Osram's. Think their top tier bulb is the nightbreaker. Someone can correct me if I am wrong on that.

Alberta4x

Either way, if you get higher wattage bulbs or if you wire the lows to stay on with the highs, you should run your lights off of relays so you don't melt your stock wiring. Wire the low beams to one relay and your high beams to another relay, and a wire connecting the two with a diode so that you get low beams and high beams when you turn on your brights but your high beams stay turned off on the street when your brights are not on.

exist

Everyone saying just change bulbs - do you guys remember that we have sealed beam 7x6 lights?

Go get some Hella E-Code or replica E-Code housings and good bulbs, or go with a projector + hid retrofit for the same price at the end of the day and have 3x the light..

FuelforWar

Actually when the 2nd gen 4runner got a new facelift, they changed the grill, blinker location and headlight design. my 93 isn't a sealed beam. its a glass housing that takes 9004 bulbs.

FuelforWar

So thanks for all the replys guys, but to give you some more info on my current set up, I already have running lights that are running on a seperate switch (wired through a relay of course), my bulbs are one step up from silver stars, i got the ultras. All I was curious of is if anyone has tried to do this before and the reasons why it shouldn't be done if not. I'm not by any means disappointed with the lighting in the front of my truck, just notice having the lows and the highs on at the same time was an improvement. oh and I did intend on wiring the dims to come on with the brights. I'm not gonna blind everyone on the road lol. I already have my fogs lower than i should due to being paranoid of blinding people lol.

Alberta4x

If you know how to wire it up properly I say go for it, I've been planning on doing it for a long time just haven't got around to it yet, too many other things to take care of first.

Greg_Canada

This guy makes a box, but you can make it yourself... http://www.innovadd.com/bb.main.html

tj884Rdlx

i hope i don't jinx myself by saying this, but i've had mine in for a year, and one of my "fleabay" 7x6 H4 housings even has a crack in it. i was quick to apply good quality clear packing tape so i haven't seen moisture accumulate inside; but still, they're working. maybe you could check your housings aren't loose and allowing excess vibration?


the relay will allow for low amperage through the SWITCH, but it's still sending higher amps to the bulb's harness. a relay won't prevent melting the plug on the back of the bulb.

i TOLD HIM that i had the cheap replacement housings available on "fleabay" that were like $30 for the pair. it allowed me to put in the silverstars that i actually found on clearance at Targetto for half price. i've been running them for a year and they're performing well.

OP, as long as you're not wiring your lights to run your high beam continuously, you won't be blinding people too badly. it's one thing to increase your low beam wattage, or to change the color spectrum and use "bluer" light, but it's another to use the higher reflective "throw" of the high beams to oncoming traffic.

if you're doing it for off-road use only, then you may as well go for it. but then, i'd suggest disconnecting the high beam wires from your headlight switch, and installing a separate switch for that circuit. then you can run low beams continuously, and control the high beam circuit independently. THAT would give you the most versatility!

Alberta4x

"the relay will allow for low amperage through the SWITCH, but it's still sending higher amps to the bulb's harness. a relay won't prevent melting the plug on the back of the bulb."


I understand that, the point is that you get new "better" harnesses and re-wire the whole system using the stock wiring as the #85 (trigger) on the new relays so that you don't melt the stock wiring. Good new harnesses won't melt. And they're cheap.

aviator

If you want to aim your headlights here is the recommended method..
1] load the vehicle with the junk you normally drag around with you and between 3/4 and 1/2 a tank of gas.
2] park about 30' back from a dark wall or garage door on a level surface
3] measure up from the ground to the middle of the left light-go to the wall/door and place a mark the same distance up from the ground as straight in front of the truck as you can...
4] measure the distance between the middle of the left and right headlights... go to the wall and make a mark the same distance to the right of the first mark the same height up from the ground...
5] turn on headlights on low beam and adjust the center of the bright spot to hit the target marks you placed on the wall/door.

This will give you a fairly well aimed set of headlights in compliance with DOT regs.
Note: if you have a lift kit installed you may need to use a different method consult with a vehicle inspection station or dealer for advice.