There are so many custom car lighting options on the market today, and halo headlights is one of the most popular headlight solutions. There are two main ways one can go to equip a vehicle with angel eye headlights or halo demon eye headlights.
✔ You can equip your factory headlights with halo rings by installing a set of headlight halos into the OEM headlight assemblies. This halo headlights installation is pretty much a DIY job for a person that has some technical skills, yet you may have your lights upgraded professionally.
✔ Aftermarket halo headlights that feature built-in halo rings is another alternative. There are so many options of custom halo headlights for the majority of vehicle applications that replace factory headlights and feature easy plug-and-play installation. There are CCFL, plasma and LED halo headlights.
Custom halo projector headlights is an aftermarket alternative to stock headlights. LED halo projector headlights are a direct headlight replacement that is made to provide excellent visibility on roads and custom look. As a rule, halo projector headlights feature both halos and LED accessory accents that can be wired to DRLs for that custom look. Every halo headlight is pre-wired for easy installation and already comes equipped with CCFL or LED power invertors for error-free operation. Halo HID headlights feature slightly different setup, than halo ring headlights to provide the right focus for HID bulbs and cope with excessive heat emitted by xenon bulbs. So if you consider purchasing angel eye halo headlights, make sure you pick the assembly that is designed to work with your vehicle’s bulbs (HID or halogen).
CCFL
CCFL HALO KITS
Color changing halo headlights is an option for those, who want that stunning front fascia along with street legal headlights. Halo headlights that change color allow changing the color with a remote, or if you pick color changing halo headlights with app, you can use your sell phone to change color. LED halo rings for headlights, as well as CCFL halo kits, are available in either vehicle-specific or universal configuration. When selecting colored halo headlights, keep in mind that blue halo headlights, as well as red halo headlights are not street legal in the majority of states. RGB halo headlights allow selecting the color and then switching to the other when needed. So, if you are looking for halo headlight kits with solid color, make sure you are getting something you will not the ticket for.
Types of halo headlights & basic features
Based on the look you are into, you can select the design of the halo headlights that you like. Below is a quick classification that is used by the major aftermarket headlight manufacturers, such as Spyder, Anzo, Spec-D Tuning, IPCW, Recon, etc. As long as you have this information handy, you will easily understand, what kind of lights is offered based on just their title.
Halo headlights - headlights that feature 1 built-in halo ring per assembly. As long as nothing like ‘CCFL’ is mentioned next, this assembly uses LEDs to make the halos glow.
Dual halo headlights are lights that feature 2 halo rings per one headlight assembly.
CCFL halo headlights feature 1 CCFL halo ring per side.
Dual CCFL halo headlights have got 2 CCFL halo rings in each headlight.
Halo projector headlights feature 1 halo ring and a projector lens for the low beam in each headlight. As long as the name of the headlights you are looking at does not say ‘projector’, you will get the reflector headlights.
LED halo headlights. That ‘LED’ may look somewhat confusing, so we’ll explain this to you. LED halo lights have got LED accents. As a rule, these accents turn on along with your DRLs and are rather for aesthetics. Note, that these headlights do not come equipped with an LED conversion kit and even are not specifically designed for such an upgrade. Pay attention to this when buying headlights.
Black halo headlights feature a black background and a clear lens.
Chrome halo headlights feature a chrome-plated background and a transparent lens.
Smoke halo headlights are built exactly the same, as chrome headlights, the only difference is about the plastic exterior lens. It is slightly tinted. Make sure such lights are legal in your state before purchasing such a headlight assembly.
Technical features of halos in aftermarket headlight assemblies
When you check out the selection of aftermarket headlights for your car, truck, minivan or SUV, you will notice, that there are many things that are similar for all halo headlights on the US market. Normally, halo rings and LED accents are arranged on chrome or black substrates, which creates that totally custom effect.
The majority of aftermarket halo headlights feature built-in projector lenses for superior illumination. Unless the headlights you are looking at are called factory style, OE-style or Euro headlights, they feature that projector lens for the low beam.
As for the halo rings, there are several popular options available on the American aftermarket headlight market:
CCFL halo rings (Cold Cathode Fluorescent Light) are filled with glowing gas.
LED halo rings feature several light-emitting diodes that glow and make the halo ring glow.
Plasma halos employ the latest technologies to create a solid glowing ring without giving that segmented appearance.
If we are talking about LED halos, there are 2 main ways the light-emitting diodes are arranged:
Mounted on an SMD (surface mount device). This is a kind of chip to arrange LEDs within one halo ring.
Employ semi-conductor technology for even a non-segmented look.
These variations allow everyone who is looking for custom headlight solutions pick the right design and style of aftermarket headlights. Check out this article to find out more about halo ring types and compare different types of halos: CCFL vs LED vs Plasma halos: Comparison.
Reflector and projector lights
As we’ve noted before, many aftermarket headlights that feature halo surrounding come equipped with projector beams for the low beam. Quality projector beams provide better visibility at night and help to focus the light, produced by the headlight bulb. By adjusting the headlight bulbs properly, you will get the perfect angle for your headlights, directed exactly where you need to.
The combination of an elliptical reflector and a transparent lens also provides a perfectly focused beam of light. If you compare this beam with the one produced by the factory parabolic reflector technology on the older vehicles or optic lenses of the conventional lights, you will notice the difference.
Another great thing about having a set of projector headlights is ergonomic design. The projector lens is small enough, compared to the reflector, so there is more room for creative elements like halos and LEDs, in the headlight assembly.
Halo ring kits for the factory lights
If you do not wish to replace your OEM headlight assemblies, but still like the aesthetic effect halo rings create, there is one more variant for you. You can purchase a set of halo rings along with the controllers and all wiring and get the aftermarket halos installed. You will need around 2 hours to install a regular LED halo ring kit in the factory composite headlight assemblies. Of course, halo rings differ in shape, design, and technology depending on the manufacturer. The installation process is pretty simple, and you will cope with it as long as you have basic tools and some mechanical skills.
Aftermarket halo kits feature plasma LED technology that ensures bright and even glow these halo rings produce. The backing of such halo rings is made of aluminum, so the construction is lightweight, durable, resistant to moisture, corrosion, rust, vibration, etc. Check out our guide to halo ring kits to get a better understanding of how these products are installed and what is included in the kit.
Sealed beam headlights conversion
Great news for those, who were not happy their older car, truck or SUV came equipped with the sealed beam headlight assemblies. If you are tired of that old-school look and you think of something aftermarket, consider sealed beam conversion halo headlights. Amazon and the leading aftermarket headlight manufacturers offer solutions with the projector and reflector designs that ensure great visibility at night.
The designs differ from the manufacturer to manufacturer, so you can pick black, chrome, smoke lights, ones with halos or LED accents. Unlike the stock sealed beam lights, the aftermarket conversion headlights feature replaceable halogen bulbs and can be upgraded to HID or LED for even brighter output. Based on the vehicle application, you may need round or rectangular headlight assemblies. Note, that some vehicles require a complete set of 4 headlight assemblies for a finished look (2 per side).
History and Origins of ‘Angel Eyes’
Halo headlights, also known as ‘angel eyes’, have first appeared on BMWs. They became a distinctive feature of this particular make. The aggressive fascia of a BMW of the 1990s has always been associated with their corporate ‘kidney grille’ and angel-eye headlights. With time, these lights became popular among car enthusiasts, and, as a result, many manufacturers started offering headlights with glowing rings for many popular vehicle applications.
Today, you can find halo headlights for almost any vehicle. There are so many brands, who offer aftermarket headlight assemblies and halo rings, that you can install into your stock headlights and enjoy the combination of custom touch and OEM quality.
If you do not wish to replace your OEM headlight assemblies, but still like the aesthetic effect halo rings create, there is one more variant for you. You can purchase a set of halo rings along with the controllers and all wiring and get the aftermarket halos installed. You will need around 2 hours to install a regular LED halo ring kit in the factory composite headlight assemblies. Of course, halo rings differ in shape, design, and technology depending on the manufacturer. The installation process is pretty simple, and you will cope with it as long as you have basic tools and some mechanical skills.
Great news for those, who were not happy their older car, truck or SUV came equipped with the sealed beam headlight assemblies. If you are tired of that old-school look and you think of something aftermarket, consider sealed beam conversion halo headlights. Amazon and the leading aftermarket headlight manufacturers offer solutions with the projector and reflector designs that ensure great visibility at night.
