bright light bright light

[Vagrant No2]

I have found a lot of dim lights in many cars are actually caused by dirty/corroded reflector in the actual headlamp , so the bulb is not to blame . Some Surfs I have seen , which now are over 10 years old , are using corroded / dirty headlamp reflectors .


Rick

[BUZZ]

Doesn't matter how bright your bulbs are if the glass is dirty - just giving the lens a quick wipe to remove the weekends off roading before a long journey makes some difference...

[Guest]

I have found a lot of dim lights in many cars are actually caused by dirty/corroded reflector in the actual headlamp , so the bulb is not to blame . Some Surfs I have seen , which now are over 10 years old , are using corroded / dirty headlamp reflectors .


Rick

Also a major problem that has been proved on Toyotas is that the headlamp wiring has a major problem with loss through the circuit. By replacing the headlamp wiring loom with one that has less loss across it you can considerably increase the standard light output.

Mind you I kind of agree with Turandot, with something that increases safety when driving at night, £299 isn't actually a lot to pay, we can pay considerably more for a set of bull bars which to be honest are nothing more than a looks thing and do nothing for safety or performance.

Personally my approach would be a good set of Xenon bulbs and a decent set of driving lamps, however If South East Modification's approach is to go for the HID kit (he's not the only one, there are quite a few guys on the Yotatech forum who have bought these systems for considerably more) then it's his choice and to be honest, from where I'm standing it's not a bad one at that.

It would be interesting to see a picture of a stock one and the HID one side by side at night with the lights on and see what the difference looks like.

Oh and one more thing, the reason that HID systems are being fitted more and more is that they produce supposedly a more natural light than standard bulb systems. The blue/white colour more naturally represents the light spectrum of daylight and gives more natural colours and contrast.

It's somewhat like the fact that people doing crafts use Blue craft lights which again are supposed to give a light more like daylight.

Cheers

[skydso]

On ebay they range from 25 to 100 pounds a kit! Aren't they the same thing?

[hiroler]

nice thread from 2004!!

[skydso]

OH OOPS!

I only just logged in!

[POPEYE]

I got some from my local accessories shop, direct replacement H4 bulbs, the pack says "for off road use only" but they are no britghter than HID lights, about the same IMHO. the cost.................£13.99!
p.s, I have been eating more carrots lately.

Thats more like it, you'd have to be friggin mental to pay 300-600quid for "brighter headlights" if anyones got money to waste like that give it to a worthy cause, Me!!, i'm perpetually skint, its so bad were rationed to one crap a week to save paper

[Maverick]

i'm perpetually skint, its so bad were rationed to one crap a week to save paper

I find the sunday telegraph helps solve that problem

[Diezel Weazel]

Thats more like it, you'd have to be friggin mental to pay 300-600quid for "brighter headlights" if anyones got money to waste like that give it to a worthy cause, Me!!, i'm perpetually skint, its so bad were rationed to one crap a week to save paper

Ian that's probably why the half the feckers are driving round here after fitting em, with just one !!

"Cos short cuts cost more in the long run"

[POPEYE]

Ian that's probably why the half the feckers are driving round here after fitting em, with just one !!

"Cos short cuts cost more in the long run"

Hehe! bit like lazer eye treatment then! if you can only afford one eye

Mav, newspapers ok but it has to have pictures of gordon brown (or hitler) on it

[Vultch]

I have come along a bit late but....

i am looking into buying these things... and as in all things there are only a few factories making the kits bulbs and ballasts (electronics).
On ebay you can buy a kit from say £50.00 even a H4 that has dipped beam.

I looked at the demon tweaks kit (lots of £££)...its identical in build, shape, colour etc etc which leads me to believe its from the same chinese factory selling the £50 kit, except it has demon tweaks written on it...

[dieselboy]

Let us know how you get on because my headlights are CRAP!
I may even look at replacing the headlight loom and change the bulbs if that will improve it. But driving around a country lane at night with the standard headlights is poor.

[POPEYE]

There was/is a much cheaper upgrade i seem to remember, involved a small replacement harness ans relays i think, dam sight cheaper then 300 quid
how much brighter can it be for 300 or 600

[Maverick]

I have Hids fitted at the moment, they cost me about £90 either two or three years go. They are extremely bright, so much so that I have had to adjust them down to stop people flashing me (the beam pattern is brilliant). Unfortunately the main beam pattern is too poor to pass the MOT (because a relay moves the filament to create a higher beam pattern) so I have to change them out each year.

I currently have all the diodes, resistors, relays, and H4 connectors to make the uprated headlight relay (it's just one of those jobs I keep forgeting to do), that way I can see what difference having full voltage at the bulbs makes with normal bulbs.

[Maverick]

Right I got off my backside today.







The little box of goodies contains two diodes and a resistor, so the main beam indicator lights on the dash (many people who have HiDs fitted will tell you that this is lost due to the negative switching). It is over engineered with 40 amp cable, 30 amp relays, and 20 amp fuses, so I could effectively run overated bulbs without problems.

In daylight without the engine running there is a slight visible difference between the output from stock wiring and my new uprated wiring.

I won't be doing any more until after my annual pilgramige to Scotland, but after that I'll be replacing my spots (which are still full of December Salisbury water) with ones that take the Hid bulbs, and installing new uprated bulbs to my new uprated wiring. This will save me having to take the Hids out ever MOT due to the poor main beam.