Second-gen Silverado Headlight Upgrades Modernize Your Chevy
Why settle for 1960s lighting technology in your 2007-2015 Silverado when you can upgrade in mere minutes?
HID and LED lighting are relatively new advances in automotive technology. And once you’ve driven a truck equipped with either, you’ll quickly realize what a game changer both truly are. Old school halogen lighting is simply inadequate, giving you a dim and dull driving experience. HID and LED lights are considerably brighter, illuminating a much larger area in front of you. They also last much longer, saving you from having to change bulbs frequently. But if you’re driving even a relatively new 2nd-gen (2007-2015) Silverado, you’re likely stuck with old school halogen lighting.
Thankfully, there are several solid aftermarket options to rectify that problem. But if you’ve ever shopped for headlight upgrades for your Silverado, you probably found yourself lost in the sheer number of different options out there. It’s obviously hard to figure out which lighting upgrade is best for you. But we personally found this handy guide from American Trucks to be extremely helpful in breaking down and explaining the many headlight upgrades available for the 2nd-gen Silverado.
First, it’s important to understand the difference between HID and LED lighting. HID (high-intensity diodes) are a lot like halogen bulbs, but ditch the heating filament in favor of gas. This way, they operate at lower temperatures and last a lot longer. Only problem is, they tend to be more expensive than LEDs, are typically harder to install, and don’t last as long. Though some kits are actually brighter than their LED counterparts.
LED (light emitting diodes) lighting is the latest advancement in automobile lighting. They consist of small semiconductors that emit light when a small electrical current passes through. LEDs are among the brightest lights on the road, and they can last over 50,000 hours. Most LED kits also contain daytime running lights that show up better in daylight and use less energy than alternative options.
With those options in mind, American Trucks offers up a few popular options to consider for your Silverado. First up – halo headlights. These LED powered, ultra-bright rings are used in many aftermarket conversion kits. The halos intensify the light emitted from your headlights, helping them appear to be brighter. Both CCFL halo rings and LED halo rings are inexpensive and offer their own pros and cons. CCFLs are not as bright as LEDs during the day, but do offer greater visibility at night.
From here, you’ve got a couple of vanity Silverado headlight options to choose from. First up are chrome headlights, which sort of act as one bright LED bulb. These lights can even be customized with color-changing diodes depending on what look you’re going for. Or if you don’t want to get too crazy, simply opt for a regular set with amber lenses. Either way, you’ve got plenty of options to choose from.
The blacked-out look is quite popular these days, and a set of black headlights can really change the look of your Silverado as well. These headlights are available with two-piece or four-piece panels with LED bulbs. And they’re plug-and-play, which means you don’t have to splice into factory wiring or install any additional equipment.
And if you’re looking for even more brightness or a unique look, you could opt for an LED Dayliner strip. These lights run along the base of your headlights, also offering up color changing diodes. Dayliners are also easy to install and don’t interfere with your existing headlights.
No matter which option you choose to go with, any of these Silverado headlights will provide a big upgrade over your stock halogen lights. And in our opinion, it’s one of the first mods you should perform on your 2007-2015 pickup. After all, your truck isn’t that old. So why should you settle for headlight technology that’s been around since the ’60s?
Photos: American Trucks
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