2011 1.8 Avensis - headlight bulb upgrade???

[ToNo10]

Hi, Good Morning, has anybody SUCCESSFULLY upgraded the original headlight bulbs on the above model?  The two faults that annoy me about Avensis is… 1. Very low volume on indicators.  
2. Poor lighting from dip beam headlights.

Otherwise all good, my next post is regarding GS2 chip on same Avensis.😱

[avensis_2018]

send some pics .... 🙂

[ToNo10]

Of what? 

[avensisnz]

Unfortunately, all H11 bulbs suck. I previously owned a Hyundai that also used H11 bulbs and the headlight performance was just as bad as the Avensis.

I replaced my factory-fitted bulbs with these Hella high performance bulbs, which are better, but it's not a huge difference:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B078SGBFK6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[ToNo10]

And these would be plug and play in a 2011 T27 Avensis?

Thank you for replying 👍

[MrAurisT]

On 11/19/2023 at 10:11 AM, ToNo10 said:

Hi, Good Morning, has anybody SUCCESSFULLY upgraded the original headlight bulbs on the above model?  The two faults that annoy me about Avensis is… 1. Very low volume on indicators.  
2. Poor lighting from dip beam headlights.

Otherwise all good, my next post is regarding GS2 chip on same Avensis.😱

Yes, I have a 2010 1.8 and changed to the Osram bulbs, below. Better and an easy fit.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/183743377811?var=691335450159

[ToNo10]

Thank you, it seems that ALL halogens have less than 50% the longevity of the standard H11? 

[UlleB]

I'm using Osram Night Breaker bulbs on mine but I might not bother next time. They cost 3 times as much and only last around 5-6 months for us. I also did a headlight restoration. Both the Osram bulbs and restoration worked but the lighting is still far from the level of a more modern car.

It's actually crazy how dim the headlights seem when you're driving even though they're functioning correct. But I think part of the explanation is that car headlights seem to have vastly improved in the past 5-10 years which makes the headlights on the Avensis (2009) worse than they are. However since I was recently driving on the autobahn at night time I can confirm that the lighting just objectively isn't good enough unless you're blasting the long lights.

I really wish there was a way to upgrade the headlights to a more modern street legal setup with stronger lights.

[ToNo10]

Me too!  Especially as the U.K. can’t afford to light the sodding motorways 😤

[avensis_2018]

the original factory are philips and they are last longer then any else. i changed mine and the original that are still good, after 4 years,  put them to spare in the glovebox .

[ToNo10]

👍  Thanks.

[MrAurisT]

23 hours ago, ToNo10 said:

Thank you, it seems that ALL halogens have less than 50% the longevity of the standard H11? 

I must be a lucky one then, as mine have been in over 12 months now, no issues. Don't believe all the hype though regarding the improvements, yes, there are improvements (I would say 25% brighter), so they are worth fitting, but don't expect miracles.

[ToNo10]

I am surprised at Toyota fitting such poor headlights 😤

[avetoy]

Well, I think Toyota is not the only one with poor headlights...

My T27 (-09) has H11 low beams and I tried those "night breakers" but they only lasted 4 months... They were brighter but too expencive. 

Last winter I tried led bulbs... All the front lights were led (low beam, high beam and even parking lights). They were much brighter, but I still wasn't satisfied. The range of the lights was somehow short. Maybe they were too cheap ( under €200 all together). And not legal ofcourse!

Now I have regular halogen bulbs again and I think I can manage with those.

The car has an extra high beam led bar too (legal).

[ToNo10]

Thank you 👍

[avensisnz]

All manufacturers fit bulbs that are designed for endurance, rather than ultimate performance. They don't want to be replacing them under warranty. Having said that, H11 bulbs are particularly poor performers.

I remember my dad's 2005 Honda Accord had excellent low beam headlight performance. They were just standard halogen bulbs with a projector lens like the T27 Avensis, but I looked them up and they use H1 bulbs. Still only 55 watts, but they produce 1410 lumens of light output vs. 1200 lumens from an H11 bulb.

[ToNo10]

So would it be feasible to swop the Avensis H11 for H1 bulbs?

 

thanks 👍

[avetoy]

4 hours ago, ToNo10 said:

So would it be feasible to swop the Avensis H11 for H1 bulbs?

I´m afraid it is not. The bulb sockets are different and so are the filaments...

[ToNo10]

Tuh! 😤

[Konrad C]

On 11/19/2023 at 3:14 PM, ToNo10 said:

Of what? 

I think the other poster wants to see what you replaced the bulbs with, and the results. I forgot to add, he didn't read your post which was a question! 

Edited December 25, 2023 by Konrad C
additional words

[ToNo10]

Hi, if the last post is for me (the post author) based on the comments received I have not touched the Avensis headlights because there doesn’t seem to be an alternative 😤

[Konrad C]

Night driving has a few issues. The eyes of everyone is different. I prefer lower light when using my phone, people say they can't see my screen, I prefer soft lighting. Bluish light is harsh for the eye and a lot of bright LED's are more common these days, especially from SUV's where the headlights are mounted a little higher. Worse are aftermarket LED's that thankfully are not legal here in the UK. Then there is the issue of using brighter bulbs. The problem with these is lifespan, plus the headlight unit and wiring could get damaged due to the electrical load and extra heat. 

I have not had any problems with my standard halogen bulbs. I also cycle at night and often ride in poorly/unlit cycle paths, depending on my bike lights. 

When driving in unlit roads, I found my car headlights in dipped and main beam okay for me (my previous Mk1 '98 Avensis and my current Mk3. Admittedly, some cars do have better headlights.   

 

[Konrad C]

22 minutes ago, ToNo10 said:

Hi, if the last post is for me (the post author) based on the comments received I have not touched the Avensis headlights because there doesn’t seem to be an alternative 😤

I edited my response to say the other guy didn't read your post. You were asking for options and he assumed you have already did or about to do upgrades. You are correct that there are limited upgrades. My eyes work well in low light, and I keep the headlights clear as possible. My issue is the blinding light from other users.