Lights, blinding lights!

[HMC]

Awards for shite lights on fairly recent vehicles?

 

On my shortlist from recent experience would deffo be disco mk1's and e34 bmws. Checked bulbs, checked allignment, theyre just not all that good.

 

Edit- what Im really saying with the disco is that  LDV 200 headlights are not up to much

[Pete-M]

Calibra headlights are utterly utterly hopeless. E34 lights are dismal on dip. Not too bad on full.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

E34 dipped beams........same as the E32.

 

Utter abysmalage. But.....

 

I was driving mine a few years ago and my passenger commented on how crap the lights were. And they were fucking terrible. Turns out both dipped beams had failed and the dipped beams were in fact the sidelights. The light control module detects a failed dipped beam and puts more POWAH thru the sidelight bulbs.

Two new bulbs and I could see almost 30 feet in the dark - remarkable.

[dollywobbler]

I find my Disco's lights quite acceptable, which is odd as they were always slated for being crap and they're in terrible condition. The Sirion is a bit rubbish. A real pet hate is indicators inside the headlamp though. Yeah, really clever. Mk1 Focus facelift, I'm looking at you (and Mk4 Golf).

[Vince70]

I can vouch for Audi lights from the early to mid nineties being useless but then again I do buy my bulbs from pound land and they are bad quality.

I must have a bit of pikey in me or it could be that I'm just tight lol

 

I changed one recently which only lasted a couple of weeks and when I took the old bulb out it had a massive bulge in the glass where it got so hot.

 

But I've recently I've been driving a early A4 an 80 and a A6/100 and all seem bad either that or I have a cataract in my only working eye lol.

 

The only other cars that I can remember being as bad are the old 6 volt electric VWs.

 

What we need is a campaign to bring back the rally giant.. As seen in the Argos catalogue next to the Harry moss cassette player. Or if you couldn't muster up the £25 you could get them off your mums catalogue for 5pence a week over 30 years..

 

I see you can buy them on eBay.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Round-Car-Spot-Fog-lights-Ring-Rally-Giant-Lamps-Including-Covers-RL030C-Giants-/251405653500?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3a88f1d5fc

I just wish I could buy a badly modded mk1 escort/ mk3 cortina for 50 quid to stick them on.

[Stanky]

How does the law stand with things like Rally Giants? is there a limit to the power/wattage/number of these thing you can attach to your vehicle on a public road? I saw a Bini Cooper today with a bar fitted to the front with 4 spotlights attached so i assume its legal to fit them, it was daylight so wasnt sure how the lit up at night, do they have dipped and 'main' beam or do they just come on when the full beam is activated? They must be pretty dazzling with a combined 6 lights, even if they are just regular 55w jobbies, I assume fitted to a new-ish Bini they are MEGGERPOWAH HID type things and you could cook your dinner by placing it anywhere within 30 feet of the front of the car with the lights on full beam?

 

I had toyed with the idea of making a sort of rally-replica almera with a similar setup but wondered to myself whether the plod would take me to town over it.

 

I do agree with HillmanImp on the dazzling you get from Xenons sometimes. I often find this roving back down the A32 of an evening and literally just aim my car to the left of the ONLY FUCKING THING I CAN SEE and hope for the best. I havent managed a 2-wheel offroading adventure yet but I'm sure its only a matter of time before an oncoming X5 with a total cock cheese at the wheel is hugging the white line and I misjudge and plough into the verge/a tree/a ditch/a drunk on his way home from the pub because i literally cant see anything other than blinding white light coming at me. It'll probably send me blind one day, at least thats that story I'm sticking to.

 

A guy I used to work with occasionally borrowed his wifes MR2 and loathed the thing because of the low driving position, it was at exactly the level of a ford transit headlight beam and if you had one behind you (presumably a matter of inches behind your rear bumper) you couldn't see a thing because all of your mirrors were directing 86.87402114% of the van's headlight beam directly into your retina. At least that's the story he told me.

[Stanky]

Also, totally agree with you Dollywobbler re: indicators inside headlamps. Cant see the indicator flashing for shit if the dipped/full beam is on. I usually assume they are going to drive erratically anyway and stay well clear. I'm usually proven right, though it remains a mystery whether they were or were not indicating before they veered off the road suddenly,

[PhilA]

Read something about the headlights/indicators thing that here if the turn signals are within x inches of the headlight they have to be brighter or bigger.

The indicators on the GTA are about 2/3 the size of the headlight. Still can't see them though. The headlights are pathetic, silly semi-sealed-beam affairs at 50/60W for dip and main beam. The dip beam makes two bright-ish globs on the road in front and spreads the light out to the side a little. Main beam is as effective as unscrewing the lens off a mag-lite and waving out front.

 

re "auxiliary lights" such as additional spotlights- there are rules as to placement from the side and middle of the vehicle, they should be symmetrical and must be no more than 55W power consumption.

I had 4 on the front of my Fiat which were switched on with the main beam. Failed MoT when one burned out. Other than that they were good. I kept all the lights on my cars aligned correctly. Surprisingly the lights on the Cinq were good on dip but terrible on main. Hence the spotlights.

 

I've noticed US-spec lights are designed to pass more light upward than European ones.

 

20131222_210559_W 25th St by renault9gta, on Flickr

 

Holding my camera up fairly high, that's the glare from the Dodge.. new bulbs, new lenses. Apparently it's a "safety feature" and a "convenience" for other drivers to be able to see you and also for the lights to more effectively illuminate reflective street signs.

 

 

--Phil