V-LEDs Conversion Part 2: Exterior [INSTALLATION]
Posted by admin on 18 Aug 2011 at 11:19 am | Tagged as: Exterior, Installation
The last time we checked in on Project Tahoe’s lighting situation, we had drastically increased visibility inside the truck by replacing the factory interior lights with LED counterparts from V-LEDs. This time around, we’re tackling the exterior lights to greatly increase night visibility. Towing long distances often means driving through areas with little to no street lighting and being able to see clearly in low visibility conditions is absolutely vital. That’s where V-LEDs comes in, as we’ll be replacing exterior lights with V-LEDs, and our headlights with HIDs by V-LEDs.
We started out with the taillights. The taillights are simply secured using a few phillips screws. Once you remove the screws, the lights should pop right out exposing the sockets. To remove the lights, simply twist the bulb housings out, and remove the bulbs. The bulbs at the beginning of this article are taillight bulbs, showcasing the stock bulbs compared to it’s V-LED counterpart.
Moving to the front of the Tahoe, we come to the headlights which will be receiving a V-HIDs upgrade. This V-LEDs HID kit contains everything you need for a painless plug-n-play installation including Bulbs, Ballasts, and a relay harness for compatibility with your factory harness.
Removing the headlights on our Tahoe was incredibly easy. The headlight and daytime running light assemblies are secured using two metal posts. By lifting these posts out, we’re able to pop out the housings to access the bulbs.
The headlights are equally as easy as the taillights. Simply twist the bulb out of the socket, and replace it with the LED bulb being careful not to damage the bulb while inserting it into the housing.
Pull out the housing below the headlight housing. This contains our daytime running light as well as the turn signal. We twisted the bulbs and effortlessly replaced them with VLED bulbs. Pictured above is the parking/turn signal bulb ready to be replaced in the housing. Once this is done, both housings can be replaced, and the pins dropped back in securing them to the vehicle.
Installing the relay harness is easy. Simply ground the black wire, and attach the red wire to your battery lead. The remaining wires plug together only one way making this part a no-brainer. Plug the battery relay to the ballast, and the ballasts to the bulbs. Secure excess wiring and the ballasts to the vehicle using the attached zip ties and double sided tape.
The bulbs in the foglights were also due to replacement. We received an additional V-HIDs kit for our foglights to match our headlights. Installation was identical to the headlights. Simply twist out the factory bulb, and replace it with the HID bulb while making sure to not damage it while inserting it into the fog light housing.
Plug the bulb into the ballast, and the ballast is plugged into the factory fog light plug which will now act as a switch to turn on/off the HID fog lights.
Be sure to secure any extra wiring, as well as the ballast securely to the vehicle using the supplied zip ties and double sided tape. Failure to do so could result in damage to the HIDs or fog lights.
And that’s it! Quite possibly the simplest installation, and the results are staggering. Improved visibility means safer nighttime driving, and V-LEDs delivers unparalleled quality and ease of use.
