ASD Dad Posted April 8, 2015 Hello all! Just wanted to join and say hello. Traded in my loved Toyota Tundra TRD Crewmax for a Silver NVP 3500 SL over the weekend. The Tundra served me well but we now have 3 small boys and two large dogs and ran out of room even with the Crewmax cab. We camp quite a bit and tow a 6600# 30' camper so needed space and power. The NVP ticked all the boxes and my wife uses her Sienna for her shuttle so the Tundra went away. I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised when I test drove one. I expected it to ride like a typical one ton chassis and bounce everywhere. It's quite stable and even "cushy" for a large van. Steering was very nice and direct too vs. other 1T vans. Power isnt near what the Tundra had but it's good enough for this sized vehicle. Seats are comfy and love the ability to move them around. I'm looking forward to driving the NVP on many trips but it will also be my DD. Only real complaints - the hard plastic everywhere. The center console cover feels like 80 grit sandpaper. I need to figure something out for that. The huge B-pillar creates a nice blind spot. The blind spot mirrors dont adjust out or high enough for me to really use them well. I am 6'2" with a long torso. I have the small mirrors maxed out up and I still see mostly road vs. other cars. High beams are pretty useless for some reason. Low beams are great. We live out around mostly farms so no lights, lots of trees and lots of animals (deer, coyote, turkey, etc) so lights are a must upgrade. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
radin2son Posted April 8, 2015 Welcome. Does your "must" headlight upgrade include the unit itself or adding lights? Attach* photos when you can of this and other projects. *If you are a Mac, iPhone or iPad user, this can be somewhat convoluted. Basically, export your photos one at a time to your desktop (JPEG medium) and then you can chose and upload. I have had to use my old lap top to do this. There probably are other work arounds. In a couple of weeks, we'll be in SC, working our way to DC, and plan to check out Congaree NP among other places. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris_CommercialManager Posted April 8, 2015 welcome!! :) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 8, 2015 (edited) Welcome. Does your "must" headlight upgrade include the unit itself or adding lights? Attach* photos when you can of this and other projects. In a couple of weeks, we'll be in SC, working our way to DC, and plan to check out Congaree NP among other places. I am not sure what my upgrade will be yet. My Tundra had good HID's installed for 5 years that worked fantastic for lows and the high beams were replaced with higher wattage halogens with a relay. The NVP being single bulb will narrow down choices. There seems to be a ton of room up front for an LED bar but those dont throw light very far unless you get a lot of emitters up there. I am looking at getting the Aluminess roof rack and if I do that I can mount anything up there! Congaree is very nice. We camp 4-5 times a year all over the area. Edited April 8, 2015 by ASD Dad Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
radin2son Posted April 8, 2015 (edited) We are more than happy with our NV SMB, but want to make improvements, not major modifications, where they matter. The existing headlights being one. I!m interested in a "single bulb replacement." Under the headlights topic, Jean Desjardins posted a video on how to install an HID headlight kit and pictures of the before and after results. Edited April 8, 2015 by radin2son Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 9, 2015 I am looking at HID's as well as LED replacements. May try LED this time around although lumens are a little less than HID. I normally dont like messing with single bulb headlights as they are hard to get beam patterns right vs. a single bulb but the high beams are really lacking right now! Still may end up going the LED bar mount but I want long throw which isnt their specialty unless you start spending a lot. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
andy_george Posted April 9, 2015 I have an led bar I'm going to put in the bumper hole. Like you said, I don't expect the throw to be fantastic, but for me it was a cheap and easy way to get more light... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 9, 2015 Andy - please post photos and how the install went when you get it installed! What brand/size bar did you go with? I was planning on just doing one of the more popular eBay specials vs. something like a Rigid. When I was looking at the bumper hole it looked sort of shallow so I wasnt sure if it would fit in there or not. The grill would easily hold some square LED's but I dont want to block too much airflow to the coolers. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
andy_george Posted April 9, 2015 I went with a 20" ProSeries light bar from superbrightleds.com. I've had it for over a month, just waiting on a free day to do the install. I'll be sure to post pics when I get finished! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 10, 2015 Look forward to seeing some pics. I am getting my front windows tinted today, those huge windows and SC summers wont mix... I am still looking at headlight options. I plan on disabling the DRL's today, I dont like the dim highbeam look. If you want to do DRL's put some proper ones in! I'll also need to disable those if I do a HID/LED upgrade. Thankful it's as simple as pulling a fuse. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jerry Posted April 11, 2015 (edited) x Edited July 28, 2015 by Jerry Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris_CommercialManager Posted April 13, 2015 (edited) If you're looking to improve your vision while driving at all times at night stay away from the led stuff. They do not have a "cut off" to allow them to be used when other cars are on the road. If it's strictly when you are the only car around that go for it. Those ebay specials you speak of are maybe 85% as bright as a rigid. You can see the attention to detail is not as good as a rigid but it's still very good on most of them. If you go that route you may want to invest in a some clear silicone to seal them up, some can tend to get water in them. If I were you, I would not just throw an HID in the factory shell as they can tend to blind oncoming traffic. While brighter it may not be good enough for what you are looking for. If you are handy, I could not recommend this company enough. I would do a projector retrofit http://www.theretrofitsource.com/ Do that and you'll never complain about the light from the headlights again. Last piece of advice, if you're going to buy LED buy off of amazon. Unlike the ebay sellers you can't see the review on the product your buying and don't really know if the unit has any inherit flaws or things you should know about. Pricing is very similair. Edited April 13, 2015 by Chris_CommercialManager Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 13, 2015 Most all of the LED kits I have read about so far get bad reviews. Poor longevity and bad beam placement due to where the chip/bulb is placed. I think they are out. HID, I had fantastic luck and results with the basic DDM 35W kit in both my Tundra and wife's Sienna. Tundra was a reflector and Sienna was a projector. Cutoff was of course better on the Sienna but on the Tundra the beam pattern was very good and I never got flashed. I have never used a hi/low HID kit so I am not sure about the pattern it could throw and I dont want to blind anyone. I know of the retrofit source and they are good if a bit pricey. I am looking at putting a 20" LED bar in the bumper opening possibly. I've had upgraded lights for years, my old vehicles I would just slap some Hella drivings on it and/or upgrade the actual housings and be done with it. Much easier and cheaper then! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris_CommercialManager Posted April 13, 2015 (edited) I have used this product, from this seller and am very happy. They are BRIGHT. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KPF3CCS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 You can save big money vs the retrofit source too. It is a project but if you enjoy DIY's you can do the whole job for a little over $100 including HID bulbs, ballast, etc. I've used these before, check them out if you are interested. http://www.amazon.com/Nilight%C2%AE-MINI-BIXENON-PROJECTOR-LENS/dp/B00B21R0TA/ref=sr_1_1?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1428942571&sr=1-1&keywords=hid+retrofit I know what you mean on the Hella, still have them on the front of my 78 bronco, actually converted them to HID. Lighting is usually one of the first things I fiddle with on new vehicles. Edited April 13, 2015 by Chris_CommercialManager Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 13, 2015 I love good lighting, it is normally the first thing done to a new vehicle when we buy one. I remember the factory HID Hella ralleye 1000's when they came out. Crazy bright and crazy expensive! On that first link, which light did you use? They have a lot of models! I was looking at Superbrightleds.com for the 20" Titan model. Thought I may be able to get it in the lower bumper opening but never got far enough to measure things really close. I have looked at the retrofit kits in the past, I didnt know Amazon sold them. I looked on DDM and sites like that. I wasnt sure how bright they were and I was afraid of baking my headlight housings to open them up! Looks easy enough but I could see my wifes face now if I told her I need to borrow the oven for the afternoon to bake my headlights... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris_CommercialManager Posted April 15, 2015 RioRand® 18w LED Spot Work Light 1800 Lumen 6500K 30 degree Waterproof Light(2pcs) Retrofit isn't too bad, NV actually looks like a great candidate. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 15, 2015 I wonder how far those little lights can throw a beam... They would be cake to fit in the bumper. I bet they could make fun backup lights too! Their price on the 21" combo beam bar isnt bad either. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris_CommercialManager Posted April 16, 2015 I wonder how far those little lights can throw a beam... They would be cake to fit in the bumper. I bet they could make fun backup lights too! Their price on the 21" combo beam bar isnt bad either. They don't throw that far, I don't think it's what your looking for. They howevber would be great in a combo with a pencil beam like the hella's we talked about. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris_CommercialManager Posted April 16, 2015 (edited) wasn't going to, but here she is, you can see where they are mounted. You may want to try another route but this is the combo that works perfect for me, and functions FANTASTIC in the capacity you are needing. Hella conversion to the 55w HID's throws light so so far down the road it's awesome. The fogs are 125 or 130 watt (can't remember) piaa's that slice through inclement weather in isolated places really well. you can see the two rectangular little LED's directly beneath the fr bumper. You'r comment about the reverse light capability for those is dead on. I have halogen pointing sideways and rear under the vehicle in NO light situations to navigate and I am going to convert to those LED's soon. Edited April 16, 2015 by Chris_CommercialManager Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 17, 2015 Nice vehicles to pick from - classic offroader and a great canyon carver. Wife isnt sold on the idea of Hellas mounted up front. I am still looking at roof racks so could toss some lights up there easily. I am also still looking at LED bars for the bumper. There are actually some nice options on this vehicle so I just need to decide and get to it! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris_CommercialManager Posted April 20, 2015 I hope you do something, I'm excited to see how it turns out. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 20, 2015 Chris - right now I am more worried about getting the small things fixed on my van! It goes in this evening to get looked over for the items I found wrong. They told me I'll be in for at least 2 hours, should be fun... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
