Faired-in (26R type) headlights & HID conversion

[elj221c]

Jerry,
Are you UK based? I ask as I have assumed from your post that you are running faired in headlamps. My car never had any problems getting through an MOT but it has been off the road now for 20 years and I am a bit concerned that it won't now get through. However, I never actually had them faired. Did you have any problems with the MOT?
The rebuild is imminent. (I've been saying that for years! )

Roy
'65S2

[jkolb]

No, I am in a part of the US where we don't have any kind of inspection. MOT sounds like a problem.

Jerry

[twincamman]

I use tungsten lamps from a Ford -5 1/2 inch diameter as used in any Ford quad headlight system ----I notice no difference whether the perspex covers are on or off ----ed

[ill_will]

thanks all for your responses. Some thought-provoking comments.

Jerry - reasoning behind faired-in lights was simplicity (thus reliability); potentially improving the light output/beam pattern for night driving, reducing current draw, and reducing weight. All fairly big pros. I don't actually think the faired-in lights look substantially better than the normal ones in the down position. When they're up though, fair enough! If the perspex covers are a problem, running them fixed but not faired in would be an option.

Would someone with standard ride height and a spare minute or two be able to measure the distance from ground to the lowest and highest point of the light aperture please? It would be a massive help for working out whether the centreline of smaller diameter headlights can be made to be 24" off the ground. (My car is in pieces currently - the body is actually bolted to a frame which is bolted on its side to the garage wall at present. Two cars in one garage.)

Would anyone happen to know if it is legal to not have a full beam headlight, just dipped ones?

Having been dazzled by loads of cars with badly-adjusted normal halogen lights I don't think the case against HIDs is clear cut - IMO a correctly adjusted HID system is preferable to a badly-adjusted halogen one... Each to their own though, I accept the flashing sensation when they're behind you on a bumpy road is bloody annoying!

will

[paddy]

By my measurement, the highest point of the headlight aperture is 65cm off the ground - so a centre of 24" (61cm) would be possible if the diameter was 8cm or less.

Paddy

[bcmc33]

Fairing the lights has been in my mind for some time - thanks for the input.

Jono,
HID is a very grey subject. On regular production vehicles there are very strict rules ? the main one being that automatic levelling is required for homologation approval. But for retro-fitting it is not, I believe, specified as a law, and I don?t think the MOT would question it. All the HID sellers I have viewed on the net specifically say that their HID units are; and I quote ? ?The HID systems are DOT approved, MOT approved and fully E-compliant in all safety, E.M. emmission and performance specifications?.
This is of course true for the light units, but vehicle approval requires successful compliance with the homologation process ? something the retro-fitting does not have or require. That?s why it is a grey area.

Will,
I?m not too sure about this, but at my last MOT the tester adjusted the lights for dipped beam and was not interested in the main beam. So perhaps a main beam is not a mandatory requirement.

[ill_will]

I did some reading through some of the MOT websites and it looks like there are separate requirements for matched pairs of dipped AND main beam. Haven't confirmed with the MOT man yet, but it's looking that way.

Paddy, thanks for taking the time to do that measurement, much appreciated.

will

[gerrym]

Will, each to his own of course, but....living in Scotland, I do a small bit of A road driving in the dark, not always following other traffic. I would never be without my fullbeam for this kind of driving. No matter how good the dipped headlights, they just don't give distance illumination. So HIDs without any full-beam?

Regards
Gerry

[gerrym]

Will, if your could live with a 7" HID setup, the following link is selling H4 HID replacement bulbs with Hi and Low beams. They also sell a 7" reflector with the correct baffles to suit the HID Low beam.

http://www.hids4u.co.uk/product.php?pro ... =15&page=1

Anyone tried this kit?

Gerry

[bcmc33]

Just as a matter of interest I took a look at a neighbours new MX5 today. The centre of the headlight is 26??, and if the suspension was lowered 2?? it would look so much better. 3? better still.

With flared headlights my Elan would be 21?? ? so I guess there would be some difficulty in getting a safe light pattern on the road without blinding on-coming traffic.

[elj221c]

Brian,

I certainly didn't have problems with my set up and it passed MOTs until 1989. Obviously, being closer to the ground the beam length is reduced but it didn't seem to be a problem for normal driving.
I can't measure the height at the moment as the car is on blocks and not its wheels. In a couple of weeks time I will be able to put the wheels on and give it a measure. I think that one would have to pick one's MOT tester carefully. There must be a fair few cars without the pop-up lights around so it must be possible to to get a certificate, even if it means jacking the suspension for the test!
Roy
'65S2

[bcmc33]

I spoke to my MOT guy this morning and he was quite emphatic that he knew of no rule that said the headlights had a minimum height restriction. He advised that if I flared the lights and that they worked and were aligned properly - that would constitute a pass.

I have to say that I have always been under the impression that there was a minimum height of 24" - hence the Elan pop-ups.

[paddy]

I don't know if this is the definitive reference:

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si1989/Uksi_19891796_en_9.htm

It says for any vehicle first used on or after 1 January 1956 the minimum height is 500mm.

Obviously even if it is the definitive reference now, it wasn't at the time the cars were designed. According to "The Autocar Handbook - The Complete Guide to the Modern Car (1953 Ed)" the minimum height requirement at that time was 24".

Paddy

[ppnelan]

Interesting.... So how high is the centre of, say, an Elise headlight from the ground

Matthew

[bcmc33]

So as long as our cars meet the 500mm (min) to 1220mm (max) height specifications there will be no problem with the MOT.

I shall see my MOT guy in a couple of days when I get new tyres fitted - I shall challenge him with this "new" information just to see what he has to say.

Back to Jerry's original subject - is 5.1/4" dia reflector the maximum size for faired lights? In a quick search I could find only 5.3/4" reflectors.

Gerry,

Those H4 HID bulbs you found do look interesting. They are designed for a 7" reflector - I wonder if they would work in a smaller reflector.