My LED DRL Setup

Ok time to whore out my new retro setup. The setup is the same RX330 non-AFS i've been using but I now have LED light strips in the headlights acting as my DRL's.

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-ikEb5fYp4]YouTube - LED DRL setup (2008 Subaru Legacy 3.0R)[/ame]

 

And a second video:

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoYfRdMVUQ0]YouTube - LED DRL additional (2008 Subaru Legacy 3.0R)[/ame]

 

This setup was made by first disabling the DRL module in the cabin of the car. I then setup 2 SPDT relays which when the relay is in the normally open more send power to the LED's which then act as my DRL's. When I turn the headlight switch the relays become charged and power is directed towards the HID Ballasts. I am currently running an RX330 non-AFS retrofit with Celica clear lenses.

 

The two relays get their power from a third relay which is activated by a 12v ignition switch in the fusebox of my engine bay. This way the DRL's will turn off when the car is off. This was the biggest problem when figuring this setup up but thinking back on it the solution was simple.

Where did you get the LED strip?

 

I was looking at doing something very similar to this. Instead of a LED strip, I was going to use dozens of the individual LEDs I have and drill holes and wire them up. From the video, it doesn't look very bright to be effective as DRLs but maybe thats either the video camera or the angle of view.

 

My other thought was possibly the power you are running to the LED strip isn't optimal to get the maximum output. Unlike filaments, LED lights are more picky on the current going to them.

They're running at 12v through abrelay and shouldn't need more voltage. The iPhone4 camera was too low to get an effective shot. They work well a drls for sure.

Very nice look! I was considering the placement you did (along the diffuser), but the positioning of my LED strip wouldn't make that possible.

They work well a drls for sure.

 

Can you line-up next to a late-model Audi/Mercedes/Porsche, particularly in sunlight, so we can get an actual idea of the strips' brightness?

 

Where did you get the strips from?

Nice, hope the strips last longer than mine did!

My drl/hid setup has attitude

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3287447&postcount=181

 

EDIT: Halo's of course but they have not burned out yet.

Nice, hope the strips last longer than mine did!

 

Out of curiosity, how long did yours last and what happened then?

^ Virtually all of us have had issues with currently marketed LED strips - either of the format of the OPs, or of the "side firing" kind marketed by Oznium and others.

 

The circuits running through the flexible bodies are typically the cause of problems: resulting in a section of the LEDs "burning out" (which is *not* what actually happens) after a period of time.

 

I have about a half-dozen or so different strips of the OP's type, sourced through different Vendors, that have had some form of such problems a year or, at most, two, after install. I've also gone through about a dozen more that showed such issues either as they arrived from the Vendor or very soon thereafter, and were returned/exchanged under-warranty.

^yup Mine lasted about 4 months typically, but I had them on a lot

Okay, I was always wondering the "average" lifetime. Mine are nearing a year with no problems so far, knock on wood.

I have allredy did same work on my 2006 OB .But its FOR SHOW USE ONLY unfortunatly.I am steel looking for model with more light or better to say brightness.For real use.All others i found is to build somwhere outside of the car an it UGLY for me.

Okay, I was always wondering the "average" lifetime. Mine are nearing a year with no problems so far, knock on wood.

 

^ Yep, that's me, too - the strips that I eventually ended up with have lasted a while : but the overall average is just horrid. It seems that a combination of how these strips are made (which leads to inherent issues) and shoddy Q/C causes that "average" to really plunge.

 

It's the same everywhere. Go to any automotive-enthusiast community where its members use various LED strips, and this complaint will be there. It's literally so concerning that I outright advise hobbyists to either put them where they're accessible, or else be resigned to the fact that they may well need to open up a sealed area again, to effect repair/replacement.

 

putnik - The brightness component is a big issue for me. So far, I've yet to find a strip that's actually suitable for DRL use, which is why I asked the OP for a side-by-side comparison.

 

My current thought is to break open on of the Hella or Phillips LED DRL units, to cannibalize their LED and heat-sink assemblies, and to devise my own basic optics. Since the optics need not be sophisticated to simply insure "magnification" of the star's output (i.e. simple collimator may well do), this should be do-able.

 

I just wish I had the time (and money to funnel into such a project, too!).