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LED low beams so dark

Messages
100
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36
Points
27
Location
Atlanta, GA, USA
#1
Maybe it is just me the LED lowbeams suck. If I dont turn on the fog LEDS I can barely see the road. I can see it off the bumpers of the car in front of me and it looks bright but the light output when it hits the ground is really bad.

Could be that I'm coming from HIDS and a sedan which is lower to the ground so the output is much better but I look at the lights from other SUVs around me at night and it's significantly brighter than the ST.

Wanted to see what other owners think before I bring mines into the dealership.
 

Messages
286
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114
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37
Location
Cincinnati, OH
#2
I think mine works fine.
 

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54
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29
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17
Location
Pennsylvania
#4
Mine are way better than the LED's on my 2016 Explorer Sport I just traded.
 

OP
V
Messages
100
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36
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27
Location
Atlanta, GA, USA
Thread Starter #5
Weird.... guess I'll take it in and compare to another explorer they have.

Thank you everyone for their input!
 

OP
V
Messages
100
Reactions
36
Points
27
Location
Atlanta, GA, USA
Thread Starter #6
20200114_093538.jpg
Maybe some of my LEDs are defective. Does ya low beam output look anything like this? I only have a bright spot in the middle and the rest of the output is pretty dim.
 

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109
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45
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27
Location
Nettleton, MS, USA
#7
I always have my fog lights on so I can't really say. I'll have to check it out without them.
 

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114
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48
Points
27
Location
North Hampton, NH, USA
#8
I do plan to raise aim on headlights just a bit as I find the high beam a bit low while driving through wooded mountain passes with moose and deer.
 

Cdubya

1000 Post Club
Messages
1,443
Reactions
699
Points
262
Location
NE Ohio
Vehicle
2020 Explorer ST
#9
The beam pattern is not good and not uniform. I agree with Vash... it's not impressive.

The IIHS comments:

Low beams
On the straightaway, visibility was fair on the right side of the road and inadequate on the left side. On curves, visibility was good on both right curves and inadequate on both left curves.
The low beams never exceeded glare limits.
High beams
On the straightaway, visibility was fair on both sides of the road. On curves, visibility was good in all 4 tests.
High-beam assist compensates for some limitations of this vehicle's low beams on the straightaway and on both left curves.


RATING: Acceptable.
 

Messages
66
Reactions
40
Points
17
Location
Minneapolis, MN, USA
#10
The beam pattern is not good and not uniform. I agree with Vash... it's not impressive.

The IIHS comments:

Low beams
On the straightaway, visibility was fair on the right side of the road and inadequate on the left side. On curves, visibility was good on both right curves and inadequate on both left curves.
The low beams never exceeded glare limits.
High beams
On the straightaway, visibility was fair on both sides of the road. On curves, visibility was good in all 4 tests.
High-beam assist compensates for some limitations of this vehicle's low beams on the straightaway and on both left curves.


RATING: Acceptable.
No complaints about mine although I wish they were adaptive like the Platinum's.
 

Messages
84
Reactions
33
Points
17
Location
Jax, FL
#11
The beam pattern is not good and not uniform. I agree with Vash... it's not impressive.

The IIHS comments:

Low beams
On the straightaway, visibility was fair on the right side of the road and inadequate on the left side. On curves, visibility was good on both right curves and inadequate on both left curves.
The low beams never exceeded glare limits.
High beams
On the straightaway, visibility was fair on both sides of the road. On curves, visibility was good in all 4 tests.
High-beam assist compensates for some limitations of this vehicle's low beams on the straightaway and on both left curves.


RATING: Acceptable.
I dimmed the instrument panel and 10 inch screen all the way down on the ST and it made a difference in visibility. I still want to adjust the highlights up a bit.
 

Messages
2
Reactions
1
Points
2
Location
Harmony Township, NJ, USA
#12
Mine seem to be pretty good.considering I blacked the windshield and rest of the car out to 5% lol
 

Messages
28
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13
Points
2
Location
Baldwin Harbor, NY, USA
#13
Agreed with the OP. I came from a Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon with HID self-leveling and adaptive lights. But I do believe that headlights sitting about a foot higher might also affect how we perceive it.
 

hbalek

Active Member
Messages
838
Reactions
467
Points
182
Location
Kensington, MD, USA
#14
Mine are just fine after driving a 2013 MKZ with adaptive headlights for many years. I don't miss the gimmicky swiveling beams! LOL
 



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