i got to looking into swapping my stock Sierra headlights for some OEM Denali units & realized that the low beams are different. stock uses 9006, 55W bulbs and Denalis use 9005, 65W bulbs. then i got to looking further into any changes needed for the swap and found nothing.

my questions about swapping to Denali units are:
do i have to reterminate my low-beams to a 9005 connector?
are the power & ground wires any different between stock & denali due to the bulb load differences? (65W vs. 55W)


i also plan on upgrading to HID low beams at some point, so i don't wanna get a 9006 set now & it be useless after the swap. i figured out that, with a little coaxing & a thicker o-ring, a 9005 bulb will fit in the non-denali low beam bousing. then i got curious... has anybody actually ran a 9005 HID kit in thier low beams? i know proper aiming would be much more important, but it would let me go ahead & get my HIDs now then be able to just swap them over once i can get the projectors.

what are y'all's thoughts?

 

There is a harness built into the Denali headlight housing. You dont have to do anything to the truck harness.

I have no idea on the high beam HIDs working in the low beam. You could try it and if it dont work just wait for the Denali headlights.

 

another concern...

i'm still wanting to get some OEM projectors, but the amber reflectors are a no-go, so i'm just wondering if anybody's found a how-to on clearing the OEM denali units. i read a huge thread on GMFS about how it's some ridiculous pain & the few people who know how to do it without breaking them ain't tellin...

 

if i remember correctly, you would need the entire grille, headlights, and parking lights for the setup to fit... but i may be wrong.

 

The lights are a plug and play, take 5-10 min to install. As far as removing the reflective amber in there, it is def a pita ***, I decided to leave it in, rather then risking F%^KN up a set of 250$+ lights.. Only thing I notice is the denali lights stick out about a 1/4-3/8th further then the sierrra light did.. Got used to it fast thoguh..

 

yeah, i know they're a direct swap (it's the only denali front piece that is). i was just trying to figure out how fesible it is to clear them before i buy a set

 

I thought you were asking if they were, sounds like it in your first post

 

its not fun at all i done one set and dont want to do another

 

oh yeah... i asked this on 3 forums, so sometimes i forget which ones i'd got answers from

i figured out that they're plug & play, so that made me more willing to get a set (not that i'm scared of modding stuff anymore). the thing is that i want OEM units because they're gonna be the best quality & most reliable ones to have (without worrying about cracking, melting, yellowing, etc). the only downfall to that is that they have the amber reflectors (which i know are a DOT "requirement") and everything amber on Penny has been cleared or blacked, so it would look really out of place & also disagree with the red paint. that's why i want to clear them.

it would be well worth it to me. shoot... after my engine swap taking 5 months (mostly for financial reasons), it's hard to think of a mod taking "too much time". care to sell them or let me know how to do it?

 

I sold them and I wish I wouldn't have now I'm just rocking some stockers with the oragne reflectors in them.

On mine I just cleared them like you do any other ones I used a butter knife and and razor knife and just pry and cut. You have to heat them up to get the glue where you can cut it. And it cools down fast so I had to heat em up like every 5 min. The glue they use to hold those headlights together is rediculous. It is a lot stronger than the plastic housin and I broke a lot of pieces off while prying and cutting them but I glued it all back together when I put them back together. But basically you just start by heating them up cut heat cut heat cut heat ....... And work your way all the way around the headlight using the butter knife to pry alittle so you can get your razor knife in there.. They really suck to do and I'm not gunna do another set I have been trying to buy the set I cleared back forever.