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Headlight Conversion Lighting Question

6K views 47 replies 15 participants last post by  akcooper9 
#1 ·
Hello everyone!

I just recently finished installing the last of the parts to cover the basic performance side of my truck (...atleast for now lol :D). Now, I want to work on the looks of my truck. I would LOVE to lift my truck and put some good looking tires/rims on them, however, as a young guy, it isn't realistic. I looked into doing an '05-'07 front end conversion, but again, it is a little more expensive than what I can afford for right now, unless I am somehow able to pick up a super good deal. Now, onto some questions for you guys...

If I do attempt the conversion, would I take the valence to a car paint shop to have them paint it, or is there a cheaper alternative that still gives good results?

If I should the the conversion, where should I buy all the parts from? Not having a ton of luck on Craigslist so far..

Should I do an '08 mirror conversion.. is it really worth it? I like the look, just want some opinions
- Where should I get the mirrors from? Again, I would like to stay under $300 if possible.. I would like them to have the clearance/turn signal, the other stuff I don't care about so much

Cab lights.. Thoughts? Smoked/Amber?

Now, it's your turn! :D Feel free to name any mods that you would recommend doing to make my truck look even better.. Just looking for some insight and opinions from some other people. I also attached a photo of my truck so you are able to see how it sits right now.

**EDIT: I no longer have those ugly step rails on.. possibly another mod idea?

Thanks to anyone who can give me some help!
- Bryant :ford:
 

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#2 ·
You're a "young" guy but have an old man camper shell. Suspicious!

The 05-07 swap is about $1,000 with new parts and doesn't look right unless you get the badges and change the wheels from 99-04 stocks.

A cheap mod is getting rid of those ugly orange turn signals. You can find a set of clear or smoked ones off ebay/amazon for not much.

Other than that I would just leave it as is. Maybe a leveling kit and 33's but not a fan of how ecsb's look lifted.
 
#3 ·
I know, I know.. I get hell from my buds about the canopy all the time lol :D

You are talking about the turn signals in my headlights, correct? Do you think switching to '08 tail-lights would look any good?

Thanks for the opinions by the way. It's nice to hear from other people.

- Bryant
 
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#4 ·
+1 on the turn signals here too. I never liked the orange ones. I have a pair of the 03-04 style lights with the clear healight lense and clear turn signals with a black housing on mine that I got off ebay for like $120 at the time. Only thing to watch about a lot of the after market housing is the seals on them. It's a good idea to run a bead of clear silicon around the seams so they don't fog up on you. I also went a little different on the cab lights and put smoked 03ish Ram ones on. Just thought they looked a little sleeker than the Fords but JMO. I never really liked the 08 tailights always thougth was weird how they basically turned them upside down with the reverse light on top...never made sense to so kept my stock, but to each their own.
 
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#7 ·
#5 ·
Sell it! Apparently they're worth some money.

Yes the turn signals. Having a silver truck look at gorecon led tail lights. I think the smoked ones would look good with matching brake light. They're plug and play where 08-10 aren't. I agree the 08-10 look weird and even all the 08+ aftermarket tails put the reverse on the bottom.

Can't tell if you have it but oem fog lights?
 
#6 ·
I apologize for my stupidity, but do I literally buy a clear/smoked blinker portion for my headlight, or buy a whole new headlight that is clear/smoked? I'm fine either way, some new headlights to make my truck look better most likely aren't outside of my budget.

Nope, no fog lights. The guy before me had a bull bar on it, which I wasn't a fan of, so I pulled that off. I've thought about putting some on.. Your thoughts??
 
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#8 ·
Those will work. If you just want the blinker portion you can get that as well as its two pieces.

Another option is 05-07 headlights which are one piece but you have to cut your header panel for them to fit.

Get fog lights! Doubles your vision at night.
 
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#10 ·
What do you mean "if I want the blinker portion"? Are you saying if I just wanted to change my current headlights a bit?

Yeah, I really like the 05-07 headlights. I may end up doing those the more I think about it. I just hope that cutting the header panel doesn't screw anything up too much (as in if I ever wanted to put my old, current headlights back in.. would they still work?).

I may just do that! What brand do you recommend?? I wonder if they make smoked versions of the fog lights, without losing its main function of light output lol :D
 
#9 ·
Yeah like that. The 99-01s were before the clear lenses were used and don't think you get the light output you get with clears that came on the newer ones.
 
#11 ·
Also, where should I buy the 05-07 headlights from? Any reputable places that sell some good ones??
 
#12 ·
I have a set of Eagle Eye 05-07 Harley Davidson style headlights I put in my 04. They have been fine for several years now and are less expensive than OEM ones. A lot of people say to use OEM only because they don't think the Eagle Eyes fit the best, but I personally haven't had an issue. If you do go with 05-07 one piece headlights, you will have to cut the header panel, as mentioned already, and will NOT be able to go back to the 99-04 two piece style headlights.

There is a vendor here, 1A Auto, that sells them I believe. Plenty of places on ebay sell them as well.
 
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#14 ·
Ok, thanks for the info. If need be, I assume I would be able to purchase another header panel if I needed to reinstall my old headlights?
 
#13 ·
1+ to eagle eyes. I have them just never installed them. I got them from Amazon for $130 I believe.

What I was saying is that you can just buy the clear blinker portion instead of buying both the blinker and headlight if you wanted.

I only ever came across one company that makes smoked fog lights for 99-04 and they're led and had pretty bad reviews so I never bought them.
 
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#15 ·
Ah, I see.. So, pretty much any fog light for my truck will be better than some smoked ones lol
 
#16 ·
I have the 04 eagle eyes and they rock. I considered doing the 05-07 lights but every one has them and I kinda like the originals. the light they throw is great
OH and 70 bucks on ebay 3 years ago
I do have an issue with one blinker getting fogged up and need to either grab a second set and let these dry or pull them apart do a black out of non reflector sections and reseal them...another to do item for 2020 or so :rofl:
I had an extra set of stock fogs but ssoldl em off to someone who needed them ...then right after out...:hehe:
you can get a yellow lens old style fog at harbor freight for pretty cheap.or a light bar seems to be the wave of the future. I have a couple myself to mount up when i get the time
 
#17 ·
Yeah, just from this thread I'm hearing a lot of good things about Eagle Eyes, so I'm kinda leaning towards buying from them. The only thing is that it doesn't look like they sell the Harley Davidson edition 05-07's? Maybe I'm just missing it..

Yeah, I wouldn't mind a light bar at all. The only thing is that I am not sure where to mount it. I want to leave my from license plate so it is still legal, am I am not interested in mounting it on the roof lol.. Trying to think of any possible mounting areas??
 
#18 ·
My eagle-eyes are the Harley ones. I've seen people drill holes on the top of the bumper and mount it that way or get a mesh grill and put it behind it.
 
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#19 ·
Oh really.. I might just need to do a bit more searching then. Yeah, there are some options.

I also thought about getting these guys --> D2 - Hyperspot - Pair Surface White Black | Rigid Industries

I could mount them in the same position the stock fog lights came in and get some light output. I may wait on a full size light bar, because quite honestly, I don't think it'd look good on my truck the way it sits currently. We will see though, time will show what's in store lol
 
#20 · (Edited)
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#22 · (Edited)
my eagle eyes are the 04 style but flea bay has the 05-07 harley lights they do look good but i think mine put out more light and honestly i kinda am liking the original ones. just because while i do think the 05 07 look great they are kinda over done in my opinion :dunno:
and again i think mine put out more light where i need it :D

I think 1A Auto carries them @tony@1AAuto that was supposed to attach last night :doh:
 
#24 ·
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my eagle eyes are the 04 style but flea bay has the 05-07 harley lights they do look good but i think mine put out more light and honestly i kinda am liking the original ones. just because while i do think the 05 07 look great they are kinda over done in my opinion :dunno:
and again i think mine put out more light where i need it :D
I can't find the eagle eyes 05-07's for the life of me! I can't find the parts I need lol.. Would you possibly be able to link me to what you have on your truck? I do like the look of the '04's though.. I also like the price tag when compared to the other headlights
 
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#25 ·
I can't decide.. Would the Harley Davidson's or the standard '05-'07 lights look better on my truck with its silver paintjob?? I'm wondering if the black of the Harley Davidson's would be too much contrast with my paint job.. Especially considering I don't have black wheels or anything.
 
#26 ·
You could separate the lenses and color match...
 
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#27 ·
I never even thought of that :doh:: that might be really cool :thumb:
though I admit being something of a raiders fan since 67 i like the look of silver and black :D
team went to hell after they lost the mad genius madden....i don;t even bother watching anymore :doh:
anyway depending on truck color etc that could be a really cool look :thumb:

hit up @tony@1AAuto pretty sure he has em or i will try to drop a link for the older style off flea bay
well it seems eagle eyes have rather caught on since i bought mine the link i saved i bought mine from now carry something called saber sport ?no idea as to durability or quality but link anyways cause i said so
1999 2004 Ford F 250 F 350 Superduty Excursion Chrome Headlights Corner 4pcs | eBay
 
#30 ·
thats how i read it, and yes the bulbs should swap over i believe.
mine came with bulbs in them and i ordered the color change led bulbs for the blinkers.
in true me fashion,
the leds got here after i had the new lights in, so i will swap them when the other bulbs burn out and need changing :look:
 
#32 ·
Now, if I am to do the '05 headlights, I'm still somewhat confused on the wiring. I understand that I should purchase the 9007/9008/H13 conversion harness, which I believe would be converting the actual headlight plug to work in the newer style headlight (please, correct me if I am wrong)?

If that is all good and dandy, then what do I do with my blinker harness and bulb? Does that just plug right into the blinker section of the '05 headlight?

Soon I am going to look at my bulbs, but I assume my blinker bulb is clear as it has the orange cover in front of it to illuminate the orange light.

Thank you EVERYONE who has been able to offer me your help.. At this point, I'm sure all of you have about had it with my stupidity on this topic lol :D

Thanks again and hope you all have a great 4th!

- Bryant
 
#33 ·
2005 Headlight Conversion -- Help?

I will be doing the '05 headlight conversion on my 2000 f250 soon using Eagle Eye headlights (if you have any other recommendations that won't break the bank, feel free to give me some options). I had following questions about the conversion to ask:

How do I know when I cut enough of my header panel out to fit the headlight? Why do I have to cut the panel? Do I only have to cut the panel until I can screw in the 2 lower screws on the headlight?

Also, with the 9007/9008/H13 conversion harness, do I just plug my stock headlight harness into the conversion harness, and then plug the conversion harness into headlight?

Thanks in advance!
- Bryant :ford:
 
#34 ·
The back of the lights are different so you have to cut away more material in order to let the 05 lights sit in correctly. There are several posts explaining where to cut on the header to allow them to clear. Otherwise just keep trimming until you can get your lights to sit in the header correctly. It sounds much worse then it is, I took my header panel completely out to make the cuts it was much easier and only took a couple minutes to remove. The conversion harness is just like you said plug one end into stock harness the other side into the new bulb.
 
#35 ·
Ok, that is good to hear. Now, would you recommend taking the header panel out for cutting? If so, how difficult is it to remove? I assume that you can still make sure the lights will fit even if the header panel is not in the truck (as in being able to see if it lines up with the mounting holes)?

Thanks for helping,
- Bryant
 
#36 ·
2005 Headlight Conversion Lighting Question

Hi,

When I do my conversion on my 2000 F250, I understand that I need a 9007 to 9008 headlight conversion harness, however I am confused as to if I need to purchase a 9008 bulb or if I am able to reuse my current 9007 bulb?

Secondly, am I able to to leave my current turn signal and parking lamp bulbs in when I switch to the '05 headlight (as in do they just plug right into the headlamp)? Also, I have heard that I may need to change one of my bulbs to an amber bulb, or vis-a-versa?

This is just SO confusing for me.. Ugh!! Haha

So, to lay it out on the table, I plug the headlight bulb into the normal headlight port, and then where do I plug the other 2 bulbs into?

Lastly, do I need to buy the dfuser heavy duty 9007 to 9008 conversion harness with all the fancy relays, or do I just need the basic plug and play harness??

Thanks to anyone that can help!! I am super confused on this, and I really shouldn't be lol :D
 
#37 ·
Well, ANZO makes a nice replacement housing that you don't need to swap to the 05-07 housings. But if you already have the housings, you'll need a 9007 to H13 adapter pigtail. Just don't buy the cheapest ones on eBay. The plastic plugs are very cheap and the retainer clips break easy. The turn signal light plugs are the same.
 
#38 ·
Oh ok. Then what is the 3rd bulb? Is it a running light? Does that need to be changed out at all?
 
#40 ·
Ok, awesome. Thanks for the help.
 
#42 ·
You can put an 05-07 header panel in, but then you would need an 05-07 grille too.

I have heard that they now make some 05-07 looking headlights that fit into 99-04 trucks and do not require you to cut the header panel. @Corey@CNCFAB
 
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