Just joined to hopefully get some help with my new 2022 F150 STX. Really did not like the truck for the first few months.. Changes are hard for old people..Liking the truck more now but still have two complaints that make me crazy. Halogen headlights on low beam are the worst I've ever seen. My old 2010 model was better..Is it just my old eyes or are the headlights bad? I'm hesitant to make modifications. Is it me or do others agree?. Next complaint are the outside rear view mirrors. They have built in blind spot mirrors that suck...Any fixes for that? Thanks!

 

Just some thoughts for your consideration ....

At age 70 my night vision is reduced for sure compared to younger days not that long ago.

The current F150 halogens are rated "poor" by IIHS, at least in comparison to other current lighting: https://www.iihs.org/ratings/vehicle...022#headlights

My still-owned 2005 F150 has halogens, my new F150 Lariat 500A has the LED reflectors (rated "Average" by IIHS, vs the "good" rating for LED projectors on higher trim levels).

On my dark rural roads I now realize the older F150 halogens have a lot more 'scatter' which in some ways makes them seem 'brighter' than even the new truck's LED reflectors. BUT, I've come also to realize that the 'useful down road' illumination of the newer headlights is indeed better for driving purposes. I've no idea if that might be part of what you are observing / perceiving in your comparison to your 2010 model? IIHS was not doing headlight ratings back in 2010 so it's not possible to for us to compare their headlight test details between our old and new trucks.

IF you decide to undertake headlight mods I'd encourage you to stay away from supposedly better 'brighter-bulb-swap solutions'. IME the vast majority of those may result in more 'apparent' light but quite often that's due to a lot of scatter and improper reflection which isn't really useful down-road illumination and more often that not serves to 'blind' oncoming drivers even on low beams (not a good thing, IMO). Truly 'better' down-road lighting consisting of complete headlight assembly upgrades from reputable manufacturers is not a cheap solution.

Aging eyes sux, but it is what it is and as the old adage goes "it's better than the alternative", lol. Myself, and I realize this has its limits, I just work to avoid night driving and when I can't I try to adjust speed so I'm not 'overdriving' my visual acuity.

From your username, a retired LEO (if so, thanks for your service)? Congrats on achieving old age and Good Luck!

 

Thanks...After reading your advice what the Ford service manager told me makes more sense..I think I too should just limit my night driving..

 

Since the release of the the 2015 F150, there have been a lot of complaints on the halogen headlights. I had a 2015 with the halogens, and now have a 2019 with LED. From my perspective, the halogens throw light down the road better than the LED and the LEDs are much brighter close to the truck. (I prefer to see further down the road as I do a lot of driving in the early morning on dark unlit country roads and deer tend to be suicidal.) In general LEDs tend to have a sharper cutoff too which with lighting up the road right in front of the truck brighter makes it harder to see further down the road. (Same with other brand LEDs, one our 3rd acura with them) One thing I've noticed that helps a lot is to turn down the display brightness in the truck as low as it goes.

 

Lots of quick add on LEDs,, for my 21 STX, I did the Alpharex headlights, huge upgrade.
Now there are DD, and Morimoto as well.

 

I don't do it but mine are so bad I can use high beam and only rarely will oncoming traffic flash me..I'm going to try to turn the auto bright/dim back on and see how that works...I tried it before and didn't like it..

 

You have to upgrade to LED lighting. I am 44 but I have had poor vision (keratoconus diagnosis) since my early 30s and darkness just exacerbates it. This was the MAIN reason I went with my Lariat 502A because of its superior lighting. I do a lot of night driving and I want to be comfortable with my vision. I agree with @fiver about exercising caution when getting some aftermarket solutions. I made this mistake a few years ago after I bought my 2012 Sierra SLE which had factory halogens. They were not terrible, but I thought I could improve it. I "upgraded" the headlight assemblies with Ebay projector lenses (a company called "Spyder") and installed HID Xenon bulbs. Even though it *looked* brighter (5000k), there was virtually no cutoff and the lighting was scattered everywhere. It was horrible. Not only did it blind oncoming drivers, it was actually worse than the factory halogen assemblies with the OEM halogens. I dreaded driving at night especially if it was raining. It looked good though. Over the years....there seems to be quite an improvement from stellar companies such as Alpharex, Diode Dynamics and Morimoto. I would read and watch objective opinions and make up your mind whether it's something you would like to invest in. I don't think avoiding driving at night is a good compromise. Just improve the equipment you have and enjoy your truck and/or night driving.

 

The headlights are usually the first thing our customers trade out. Now there is even a trade in program for your stock lights.
You can see it here:
https://www.f150forum.com/f37/umnitz...1-29-a-532745/
But to answer your question, you will really appreciate the night driving from both the Form Lighting product from DD or the Morimoto much more, the modification is easy.
@ 20% off using code mmbf20 - you get $1600 vs $2K and free shipping.
https://umnitza.com/ford-f150-21-xb-led-headlights.html