There are no LED or HID bulbs that will throw a correct beam pattern in a halogen reflector. It is difficult to see from inside the vehicle because there is still a "cut off", but there is much more scattered light above the cutoff and it will be blinding to oncoming traffic - especially people with light sensitivity or night time driving issues. Please do not go this route.

If you want to upgrade to LEDs then the only right way is to retrofit projectors into your factory headlights. It has been done - it's a bit involved but the results are very good if well executed. A little more up front cost and effort, but less of a safety risk.

Edit: actually, it's hard to see, but my profile picture has a picture of my disco with projector retrofits from several years ago. Here's a better picture as well.

 

That's just not correct or true. The size of the diodes have been shrunk as LED tech has improved and they are no wider than halogen filaments. They have no disadvantage compared to halogen in terms of beam pattern or cutoff. The diodes are in exactly the same place as the filaments would be. It is true that the lamps made for halogen bulbs have inferior patterns and cutoff compared to projector lamps or lamps with more advanced designs. But the beam pattern and cutoff will be just as inferior with halogen bulbs.

 

So what is the correct LED solution?

 

I am extremely picky when it comes to lights. I tried the usual ebay H4/9003 LED's and they were awful. Auxbeam makes an H4/9003 bulb with the fan (inside the bulb assembly vs hanging out the back) so it drops right in with zero mods. Secondly the light output is crisp
and I run them on 4 out of 6 of my LR's currently. Drive up to a wall and the cut off is perfect with no halo blinding glare from the lights.

I was skeptical until I bought a pair to test out. In the 94-99 D1/99-02 D2 glass housing it works very good.

Besides that LED bulb the rest are pure garbage!

 

Well, jury's still out ...I'm just looking for a simple swap solution for my my 2002 Discovery S2 and appreciate all inputs so far. Auxbeam's P20 (a.k.a. Eagle) has surfaced a couple times here and other posts, so I wrote Auxbeam to get their feedback since it does not come out as an option when running a "search by vehicle" on their website for my Disco; other two models do, but it seems they require a bit more than just a bulb swap. I'm also looking into other Sylvania halogen bulbs (XtraVision or Ultra) for an upgrade, especially after comments regarding orig headlamps being designed for halogen instead of LEDs, affecting on-coming traffic, etc... so yup, jury's still out searching how to light up my way during dark times! ;-]#

 

...thanks for your input BEST4X4; which specifically have you tested? I find these when running a search for 2002 Discovery S2: H4/9003 LED Headlight Bulbs 120W 25000LM GX Series and H4/9003 LED Headlight Bulbs 70W 18000LM F-16 Plus Series; but not these, which has also been mentioned in other posts: (2pcs/set) P20 LED light Bulbs Mini Size 5000LM (pic shows H7, but you can select the H4/HB2/9003 option). The first two seem to require more than a simple bulb swap, but the third just a swap, I think.

 

I think we're going to get into a bit of a semantic difference here. I will concede that if you are looking at percentage split between above and below the cutoff, then a well designed diode may have the appropriate cut off. That is assuming that, as stated, the diode is small enough, in the right position, and diffuses properly. The last of these is key because diodes are generally much more directional than heated filament style bulbs, so certain parts of the reflector will get more light than others when compared to a halogen bulb. It sounds like Aux beam has done some engineering to help with this issue based on the reviews here.

However, if we are judging cut off by the amount of light allowed above the cutoff, then the overall brightness of whatever bulb is being used is also important. Simply by the nature of a reflector there will be some bleed past the cutoff, and each reflector is designed to meet a certain amount of light above the cutoff with the bulb it was designed to be used with.

Another note, and this is a generalization that is not directly correlated to the LED/HID/Halogen discussion because all three have lots of options, but generally LED and HID lights are going to be more blue which is also harsher on the eyes specifically at night time, especially for people with light sensitivities. This is just a thought, but the wavelengths of blue light are also different (longer) which might have some effect on how the light interacts with the reflector. I'd be very interested to see a comparative analysis of identical brand/model bulbs in different colors measuring overall light output and light bleed above the cutoff. In fact, this may be responsible for part of the effective difference difference between LED/HID and Halogen when other factors are similar or the same, because Halogen bulbs put out a wider spectrum if light where as LED and HID let off a much narrower spectrum of light. Would really love to see some more research on this.

Also, unrelated to the "ok or not ok" discussion, but more white/blue light also does not provide as good of visibility in rain and snow when compared to a more yellow light of equal brightness. Remember that the kelvin rating (eg. 2800k) is the bulbs color temperature, where as it's lumen output determines brightness. More blue lights (4500k and higher) are perceived as brighter to the eye, but that does not mean they actually provide better visibility.

Let me say, I want there to be a good LED option that works with reflectors as the OEM intended. I'd switch my vehicles over if there was. Even some of the OEMs have started doing a poor job on some models with their LED Headlights - see, ~2019 Silverado headlights. Terrible headlights, very blinding even in stock form.

Anyway, that's my general overview of the subject. I'm not trying to start a fight here. I am one of those people with light sensitivity, so this is something I deal with personally - and that does give me some bias here, though I think I do a fair job remaining objective. At the end of the day, do your own research and decide what you think is right.

 

You can buy these adapter plates that will allow you to run high quality 7 inch round led lights.

https://www.ultraflex4x4.com/ecommer...klreef1g00aqm5

I swapped them into my 02 disco a few years ago and have been really happy with them compared to the stock lights.

 

They've changed them slightly but this is the style I've used. These are not crazy bright like those other LED'S which remind me of HID kits.​​​​​​ These are 44w vs most of LED's which are pushing 100/110/120w.

 

Thanks for your input GECKO951! ...do you have a closeup or more detail pic of your headlight job? although not looking into a total headlight upgrade for now, I may be interested in the future, thanks.

Also, I see the link is from Australian vendor, since you installed the part I must assume you had no issues with ordering and shipping from them. I see they carry the "headlight adjust clips", which I have one beyond repair and makes my driver headlight swivel out like a door when i go over a bump, so I need them. Let me know about your shopping experience with them, thanks.