Crap headlights

[Captain Furious]

Its worst through the 50mph road works on the M6 which are obvs all speed camera'd up so accelerating away isn't really an option.  I usually do the backing off the accelerator thing, but these are more your 'passive' tailgaters - ie they're not doing it try and intimidate you into giving up positional advantage, that's just how they flippin drive.

 

Although lorries are probably the worst for it and they quite often are being aggressive pricks.

[Guest Hooli]

 

 

Although lorries are probably the worst for it and they quite often are being aggressive pricks.

Out of interest have you ever compared your speedo to a sat nav? If not I'd bet they are moaning on a truckers forum somewhere about car owners who never do more than 47mph in a 59mph limit.

 

It's no excuse but I know how annoying it is when people drive too slow for no apparent reason.

[danthecapriman]

Thinking about rigging up a 100W spotlight on my parcel shelf to shine in tailgaters' faces.  Suspect there is some potential legal issues if one of the pricks dies tho.

On the back of my company Sprinter van there’s a worklight mounted up on the roof above the rear doors so you can back up to where your working at night and effectively work in daylight. They’re extremely bright white LED’s and they are still operable when the van is moving too...

 

So at the flick of a switch I can blind any twat stupid enough to try tailgating me! It works well too, they soon back off if you give them a quick flash!

[Captain Furious]

I understand that car speedos always read under and lorry speedos read accurate and this is the reason why they're aggressive wankers, but through there I usually go by the speed readout on my dashcam which is GPS.  (my speedo actually isn't that far out from it at 50 either, approx. 53 on the clock)

 

Honestly though, the distance they tailgate cars at is simply unacceptable, people are killed on a regular basis on this stretch of road, quite often because cars get squished between two lorries.  Next one to do it to me can expect the dashcam footage in his transport managers inbox before he gets back to the yard. 

[carlo]

Headlight technology is like ABS and airbags, the better or 'safer' they get the more people drive around oblivious.  If your headlights are shit at least you drive slower more responsibly.

[forddeliveryboy]

The very ones I have. They aren't brilliant, and the offside ones are losing their reflective surfaces. I've got a spare offside which is even worse, so I'm having to send that away

Is it not possible to locate a good pair (pref 70s or early 80s) without the bioptics? The difference really is night and day - it's surprising the dipped beam on the bioptic ones works given how they redesigned - sticking in a plastic divider - what was originally a superb unit.

 

First thing I ever did with those twin-bulb lamps was give them away or bin them, a total insult to the guys who engineered the car in the early 70s.

[MikeR]

On the back of my company Sprinter van there’s a worklight mounted up on the roof above the rear doors so you can back up to where your working at night and effectively work in daylight. They’re extremely bright white LED’s and they are still operable when the van is moving too...

 

So at the flick of a switch I can blind any twat stupid enough to try tailgating me! It works well too, they soon back off if you give them a quick flash!

 

I am looking at putting some reflective material around the middle rear  head rest so high shining head light lights can make  a permanent eye level irritant to the idot behind

[Guest Hooli]

I understand that car speedos always read under and lorry speedos read accurate and this is the reason why they're aggressive wankers, but through there I usually go by the speed readout on my dashcam which is GPS. (my speedo actually isn't that far out from it at 50 either, approx. 53 on the clock)

 

Honestly though, the distance they tailgate cars at is simply unacceptable, people are killed on a regular basis on this stretch of road, quite often because cars get squished between two lorries. Next one to do it to me can expect the dashcam footage in his transport managers inbox before he gets back to the yard.

Fair enough. I wasn't defending them, just asking.

[wuvvum]

Some bikes in London have these absurdly bright lights. I have a bike and have been careful to get a bright but not dazzling light. My experience is the more aggressive the light the worse the cyclist. About 1 in 10 jump red lights. 

I have one of those megabright Cree LED headlights on my bike.  Living in the arse end of Norfolk it's very useful for the considerable amount of miles I do on unlit roads in the dark.

 

I use it in the city as well, and it normally starts off pointing slightly downwards like a normal dipped headlight.  The first time some dozy twat pulls out on me or some brain dead pedestrian wanders out into the road in front of me, though, it gets pointed straight ahead and switched on to full-on epilepsy strobe mode.  Yes it might piss other road users off, but I'd rather do that than end up under a taxi / on top of a pedestrian.

 

Also I don't very often go through red lights, and I am insured.

[Noel Tidybeard]

whilst moving some motahs about for my burds gaffer i drove a Sierror 2.0iS with headlights, foglights & main beam on down one stretch i couldn't help think "God these lights are shit", the i moved the ovlov in 740 GLE flava and thought ahh these lights are betterer!

imagine my surprise when Malcolm (who i was following) said " oh one headlight is out on the vulva we'll have to check that tomorrow"!!1!

 

mind you to be fair i had been pretty spoiled by then with the Homofocal lights on the Mighty Maestro®

 

 

p.s around this time GFs mom, dad & myself all decided the headlights on her Y plate sierra 1.6L auto estate were diafuckingbolical and would i see if anything could be done- me and Dennis discovered fraud had fitted tungsten bulbs on L spec with dangle mirrors!

[forddeliveryboy]

For anyone thinking about an expensive re-silvering of reflectors, consider an A4 sheet or two (99p a time) of reflective silver sticky backed plastic, the really thin variety (not the 0.3mm thick stuff). Cut into ½ or ¾" strips and progressively reline the lamp, having removed the last of the old silvering. It works perfectly.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

Is it not possible to locate a good pair (pref 70s or early 80s) without the bioptics? The difference really is night and day ....

I think CX-Basis have bought up all the NOS stock (including RHD headlights), and are asking about 300 quid each. Fuck that.

[John F]

I can't believe this thread is 3 pages in without someone having mentioned the Calibra, so I'll do it.

 

The Calibra: a very aerodynamic car that will try to kill you in the dark. You'd be better off placing a tea light on the end of the bonnet.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

I can't believe this thread is 3 pages in without someone having mentioned the Calibra, so I'll do it.

 

The Calibra: a very aerodynamic car that will try to kill you in the dark. You'd be better off placing a tea light on the end of the bonnet.

I did mention it earlier, I thought?

[Mrcento]

Or a Citroen XM, even without yellowing filters.  Scary.

 

Land Rover Discovery 1, Fiat Cinquecento and Vauxhall Calibra all have lights (standard) so bad, you can get into some newer cars, put on the sidelights and get better light.

 

The Disco is probably the most surprising, being high up and with decently sized tall, square lamps, you'd think even if the lights were weak, they'd be acceptable.

 

You'd be wrong.

 

Probably something to do with the batshit way they came wired from the factory sending power through everything but the lights until the very end. (There's a reason direct battery draw looms are such a popular mod).

[Mrcento]

I can't believe this thread is 3 pages in without someone having mentioned the Calibra, so I'll do it.

 

The Calibra: a very aerodynamic car that will try to kill you in the dark. You'd be better off placing a tea light on the end of the bonnet.

 

I fitted HID's to mine, problem solved.

 

(And no, i never had a single driver flash, projector lights, very well controlled and the fact they are so narrow/crap to begin with mean even HID's were no brighter than the average cars dipped).

 

Far, far less dazzling the, for example Mazdas factory fitter lights of the time.

[forddeliveryboy]

I think CX-Basis have bought up all the NOS stock (including RHD headlights), and are asking about 300 quid each. Fuck that.

Sheesh. A couple of them is what I used to buy minters (complete CXs) for!

 

There are a couple on ebay for around £60, think they're single optic.

[John F]

Tadhg Tiogar, on 30 Oct 2018 - 02:15 AM, said:

I did mention it earlier, I thought?

 

So you did, apologies.

[chaseracer]

Never a problem looking at a Calibra twice 

[stuboy]

my aftermarket lights are cack even with brighter bulbs, thought about hid's

[Guest Hooli]

my aftermarket lights are cack even with brighter bulbs, thought about hid's

 

Go with LEDs, much less heat produced which can damage plastic reflectors & normally less 'gubbins' to hide behind the light too.

[capsuleboy]

Yes, the 'bioptic' ones. I seem to think they changed the reflectors from metal to poorly-made plastic ones too, which didn't help. I also remember single optic ones on a S2 car which didn't work half as well as those from the 70s and early 80s, all cost-cutting.

The French used to take their headlamps very seriously, driving as fast as they used to I suppose it was vital.

The combination of dulled reflectors and my love of yellow bulbs make mine a chalange at night on unlit roads.

[forddeliveryboy]

The combination of dulled reflectors and my love of yellow bulbs make mine a chalange at night on unlit roads.

That sidelight looks bright, the indicators would be blinding!

 

Your h/lamps must be nearly as dim as those 6v 30w ones I had on the Traction, with desilvered reflectors. On a bright moonlit night, they were only just visible.

 

It's a lovely-looking CX, which engine?

[reb]

I thought the 205 had shit headlights, till I realised they were aimed at the floor and had ancient no-name bulbs. For a time I had Very Legal H4 LEDs fitted, which had the interesting effect of making everything look like it was the same distance away. Did act as an early warning system for Rozzers though as it would light up retroreflective material from at least a mike away. Had to be careful with high beams and road signs for that reason. Now back to properly adjusted halogen bulbs, dip beam is pretty much good enough to not need high beams at all most of the time!

 

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

[Zelandeth]

Have to admit the best car I've owned for the headlights is the Lada, beyond a shadow of a doubt. Once I fitted a decent quality set of lamps anyway.

 

Huge rectangular headlight, massive reflector area and a pair of good old H4 lamps.

 

Saab was reasonable - though it really needed the passenger side headlight replaced as the reflector was shot. Has been an advisory on the MOT as far back as 2003 I believe.

 

Have to admit that I'm really surprised by the lights I've fitted to the Invacar. They're Mini/MG etc retrofits which have a clear lens and textured reflector. I bought them in error for something else years ago, but never bothered to return them as they weren't dear.

 

I had the Lada parked up next to it with the lights on to get a ball park alignment done, and the amount and quality of the beam produced was really quite excellent. Will be curious to see how they do actually on the road. That will probably be what determines if they do together replaced with period lenses or stay as they are. I'll sacrifice a couple of points of originality for something as safety related as headlights.

 

Lada Niva I had didn't have halogens in the headlights, meaning the dip was just about enough to see where the edge of the road was - however there were 300W worth of halogens in the spot lights that came on with main beam which let you see everything within about a mile and a half. Given I lived in the back of beyond at the time I usually met maybe one or two cars when driving at night, so the poor dip beam wasn't really an issue. Astonishing how quick drivers who either couldn't be bothered or forgot to dip their lights did so after I flicked main beam in that at them a couple of times...yes it did knock about 250rpm off the idle speed when turned on.

 

Worst lights I've had to deal with on a modern car were on a first gen Ford Fusion. They were honestly dangerously poor - especially as it was my father's Motability car and his night vision was shocking to start with. Basically we just never drove it after dark if we could avoid it. The Mk II was *slightly* better.

 

Xantia ones aren't great, though they do the job... I've noted that they seem to be *really* sensitive to the lamp condition, so I'm guessing the optics don't have any real margin for error and any slight sag of the filament during life knocks it out of alignment. I just replace the dip beam lamps annually at the start of winter as a service item.

 

I drove an Audi (A4 I think) as a rental that had HID headlamps. It seemed to produce absolutely epic amounts of light based on the back scatter from anything reflective (number plates and retro reflective signage was outright dazzling) but somehow seemed to manage to get absolutely none of it on the road itself. Fiddling around to see if I'd set something wrong I turned the front fog lights on at one point - they got more useful light on the road than dip beam did. Granted, that was the least of the issues with that car, hence me abandoning it at a depot in Glasgow and getting the Megabus home. The stop/start system having tried to kill me a second time was enough. The bus (this was back when they were still running what were essentially school spec buses on that route, so 100 seats crammed into what should have been a 70 seat vehicle) was more comfortable too...

[jon.k]

Someone in the ask a shiter thread recommended fitting spotlights to improve lighting. Thanks for the tip... it looks ridiculous but they are quite effective. Much better than just fitting powerful bulbs, and these were only £20 jobbies from Amazon.

[stuboy]

Go with LEDs, much less heat produced which can damage plastic reflectors & normally less 'gubbins' to hide behind the light too.

ordered some from EbAy

[Rusty_Rocket]

Land Rover Discovery 1, Fiat Cinquecento and Vauxhall Calibra all have lights (standard) so bad, you can get into some newer cars, put on the sidelights and get better light.

 

The Disco is probably the most surprising, being high up and with decently sized tall, square lamps, you'd think even if the lights were weak, they'd be acceptable.

 

You'd be wrong.

 

Probably something to do with the batshit way they came wired from the factory sending power through everything but the lights until the very end. (There's a reason direct battery draw looms are such a popular mod).

 

The headlights on my D1 are great!  Check your voltage at the plug and remove the dim-dip resistor...

[martc]

For anyone thinking about an expensive re-silvering of reflectors, consider an A4 sheet or two (99p a time) of reflective silver sticky backed plastic....

 

You are Valerie Singleton AICMFP.

 

[anonymous user]

The worst lights I've ever had on a car were the 5" pre-focus bulbed ones on my Austin Dorset, if you parked it with the headlights on, in the dark, against the garage door you could see that they were on, the rest of the time you would have to walk around the front to check. It was not a car to drive in the dark on an unlit road