So I have a 2014 2.5i premium with just the stock halogen headlights and I just found out about the 2.0xt headlights with the drl halo and I really liked the look of those. So what I was wondering is if someone knew where I could get some or if there are some other nice aftermarket ones that would like nice. Also, I was wondering if I did go through with this conversion if I would need other parts like the xt bumper or a new wiring harness.
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@thaoneguy, swapping the entire headlight assembly is really expensive. New headlight units are around $800 a piece. You can always try Ebay for used or aftermarket headlight assemblies. Usually the used ones have broken tabs or scratched lens. There are two more economical options if you want brighter headlights or projectors.
Option 1 Projector Retrofits. Do a retrofit using the current headlight housing. A popular option is the Morimoto D2S Projectors, You can then pick your shrouds and halo ring options. Cost wise without halo rings you are looking at around $400 all in with bulbs, ballasts, wiring harnesses, etc.
This is a pretty substantial DIY project that is not for the faint of heart. It usually takes about 3-4 days to do this conversion yourself. I have thought about doing this conversion but opted not to do so due to cost and potentially needing a new set of headlight housings if I messed anything up beyond repair.
Check out The Retrofit Source | The Best Brands in Automotive Lighting they have everything you will need.
Option 2 keep your current headlight housing. Instead of doing projectors get a set of H11 LED low beam bulbs. Either go with the Diode Dynamic SL1s. Or the Morimoto 2Stroke 2.0s. With LED bulbs you need to purchase a set that are corrected for original halogen filament placement so you have the crisp cut off line and are not blinding oncoming drivers. The cheap amazon and ebay LED bulbs do not pass this test. Both the Diode Dynamics and the Morimotos have the LED chip placed in the original halogen filament placement. Cost wise bulbs and CANBUS drivers will run you about $150 - $200.
I am currently running the Morimoto 2Stroke 2.0s. They've been in my car for about a year and a half now, and have great color and brightness. The DD are comparable in price, color and output.
There are other threads on putting a set of 2017 touring projector headlights into the SJ's with halogen headlights. Just like the XT headlights you will have to rewire / pin the connectors to make the new headlights work with the current system. ('14-'18) - 2014 - How to: Swap in 2017 LED...
Option 1 Projector Retrofits. Do a retrofit using the current headlight housing. A popular option is the Morimoto D2S Projectors, You can then pick your shrouds and halo ring options. Cost wise without halo rings you are looking at around $400 all in with bulbs, ballasts, wiring harnesses, etc.
This is a pretty substantial DIY project that is not for the faint of heart. It usually takes about 3-4 days to do this conversion yourself. I have thought about doing this conversion but opted not to do so due to cost and potentially needing a new set of headlight housings if I messed anything up beyond repair.
Check out The Retrofit Source | The Best Brands in Automotive Lighting they have everything you will need.
Option 2 keep your current headlight housing. Instead of doing projectors get a set of H11 LED low beam bulbs. Either go with the Diode Dynamic SL1s. Or the Morimoto 2Stroke 2.0s. With LED bulbs you need to purchase a set that are corrected for original halogen filament placement so you have the crisp cut off line and are not blinding oncoming drivers. The cheap amazon and ebay LED bulbs do not pass this test. Both the Diode Dynamics and the Morimotos have the LED chip placed in the original halogen filament placement. Cost wise bulbs and CANBUS drivers will run you about $150 - $200.
I am currently running the Morimoto 2Stroke 2.0s. They've been in my car for about a year and a half now, and have great color and brightness. The DD are comparable in price, color and output.
There are other threads on putting a set of 2017 touring projector headlights into the SJ's with halogen headlights. Just like the XT headlights you will have to rewire / pin the connectors to make the new headlights work with the current system. ('14-'18) - 2014 - How to: Swap in 2017 LED...
@PKratz Thank you for the very helpful information. When I first started looking for headlights the main reason I wanted to change them was that I liked the DRL halos on the XT which the normal halogen models don't have. I knew they were going to be expensive and that's why I was wondering if anyone knew any good aftermarket ones that would be cheaper but still give me the quality and look that I was going for. However, now that I have looked at the projectors that are offered I kind of like that look. I may end up going this route once I decide on the look that I want for those and as for the substantial DIY part of it, I am not worried about as I love working on cars and enjoy a good challenge. The only thing I noticed was that the projectors state that they are only legal for use as fog lights in the US and not as headlights. Now I'm sure this is one of those things that is just a technicality and everyone does it anyways but I that just caught my attention. Anyways thank you again for the great resources.
@thaoneguy,
You're welcome for the info. And you can totally run the projectors as regular low or high beams. I know a few people who have done it on their cars and it looks really good.
Here's a link to a retrofit with a halo set up. 2014 Forester XT Projector Retrofit D2S 3.0 - HiDplanet : The Official Automotive Lighting Forum
In terms of doing the Subaru Boomerang C light instead of a traditional circular halo, what I have found in my research about that retrofit is that you have two options. 1. put a LED strip on / in behind the C-light shape on your current headlights if they have them. Or option 2 is to get a set of headlights from ebay that already have the Boomerang C light in them and do the projector retrofit into those. Unfortunately the headlights that already have a Boomerang C light in them that lights up have a different sized bowl / interior assembly then the headlights that do not, causing the Boomerang lights to not fit into a non-boomerang headlight. I am sure there is a way to make them fit with enough dremeling and retrofitting. But everyone who I have seen and talked to that has done this conversion has gone the route of finding used headlights on ebay and swapping their projectors into those ones.
You're welcome for the info. And you can totally run the projectors as regular low or high beams. I know a few people who have done it on their cars and it looks really good.
Here's a link to a retrofit with a halo set up. 2014 Forester XT Projector Retrofit D2S 3.0 - HiDplanet : The Official Automotive Lighting Forum
In terms of doing the Subaru Boomerang C light instead of a traditional circular halo, what I have found in my research about that retrofit is that you have two options. 1. put a LED strip on / in behind the C-light shape on your current headlights if they have them. Or option 2 is to get a set of headlights from ebay that already have the Boomerang C light in them and do the projector retrofit into those. Unfortunately the headlights that already have a Boomerang C light in them that lights up have a different sized bowl / interior assembly then the headlights that do not, causing the Boomerang lights to not fit into a non-boomerang headlight. I am sure there is a way to make them fit with enough dremeling and retrofitting. But everyone who I have seen and talked to that has done this conversion has gone the route of finding used headlights on ebay and swapping their projectors into those ones.
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