If you're like me, you are well away of how poorly the headlights perform on my Jeep, specifically the CJ's and Wranglers. This isn't helped by the design of the Jeep as the headlights might as well be right next to each other. The DOT regulations are outdated. By design DOT light as required to spread a snall percentage of light to up so as to illuminate overhead signs. This becomes more of a problem when using higher wattage bulbs. You can read more about lights and the regulations at -
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/In recent years we've seen more and more HID and Xenon lights. These lights have a distinct cut off line unlike seal beam headlights. The amount of light they produce and how even it is is what attracted me to them. Also, the conversions to 9003/HB2's SAE/DOT H4 require no extra wiring, no cutting, no nothing. Just remove your existing seal-beam, then swap to the new housings. Now most legit companies have a SAE/DOT legal housing. These are designed with the same specs as the seal-beams. Meaning, there should be no difference in the light pattern or light strength is using the same wattage. (60/55w) They typically also make ECE, European E-Code SAE-M Compliant which have the nice hard cut-off.
In the US this means one company. Hella. Cebie's can also sometimes be found but they are not officialy sold in the US, unlike the Hella's. Also, be aware that IPF, which is now a part of ARB are neither DOT or ECE compliant. In any case, the Hella's are easy to find. I bought mine from Amazon.com. The DOT lights are easier to find. Quadratec, 4WD Hardware, etc all sell them. They always come with bulbs. The ECE lights do not come with bulbs as Europe does not have a uniform regulation for bulb wattage. If you have a YJ or anything else that has the 7x6" square housing then this is the correct link. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VUAJEG/ref=oh_o02_s00_i00_details. For those with round headlights, you'll actually find a lot more options for you then those of us with square headlights. For bulbs, I went with the basic HB2 60/55w which are the cheapest ($5) lights available.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000CO7NGI/ref=oh_o02_s01_i00_details They also have 100/55w, 100/80w and a 130/90w but you'll probably want to upgrade the wiring if you're going to go with a higher wattage bulb. I didn't feel the need since I also have PIAA aux. lights for driving and fog as well.
Out of the box, the housing are fairly light. They reflectors are plastic but the lens is all glass. Since the box has no packing in it, the tabs for the bulbs were a little bent. Not really a big deal but if you don't pat attention, you'll spend some time wondering why you can't get the clips on or off.
The only tool you'll need is a phillips screw driver. First start off by removing the headlight bezel. There are 4 screws.
Once that is off, locate the headlight retaining bracket. There are 4 screws holding it on. There is also an adjustment screw at the top and on the outside of each headlight. Do not remove these as your alignment will be out of whack.
Make sure you DO NOT touch the glass side of the bulb. The oils on your fingers will cause the bulbs to have a shorter life span. So make sure you only hold the plug end. There is only one way for the bulbs to fit into the housing so there is no worry of getting them in wrong. Once the bulbs are in, clip them down and install the rubber boot. Make sure you push the boot all the way down so the prongs of the bulbs are exposed. Then place the housing into the headlight basket. Make sure it's seated evenly and reinstall the screws. Threading each screw a little until they're all in then tightening them down while using an X pattern so as to try to keep the housing centered.
I didn't bother to align the lights but after trying them, it looks like they were spot on still. Notice, the Jeep isn't parallel to the garage nor is it 25ft back.
Overall, I'm extremely happy with the lights. They work so well that I have stopped using my aux. lights while driving. I haven't been flashed and I can see. They aren't super white but I don't think they really need to be. The pattern is a lot more even and spread out, so I'm now able to see what's between the hot spot and the fenders. The only negative I can see is that in the distance you can see a darker area in the center. This gets worse with the high beams on. Also, when switching to high beams, you lose most of the light between the hot spot and the fenders. You could fix this by wiring the lights so the low beams stay on with the high beams though.
