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Re: P2 headlamp pattern

Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2018 11:49 am
by RobHomewood
I haven't had a chance to try focussing the headlamps yet but actually focussing them without the glass lens may well make it easier to see the pattern being produced.
Thanks for the advice about LED headlamps - I may well consider that as I have LED's in my rear brake/indicator lamps and in the trafficators and reducing the load more on the ancient wiring would be advantageous. Neither of your links seems to indicate the wattage output equivalent of the replacement bulbs but presumably it is better the 36W? I must check what wattage (dipping bulbs so not original) I have installed as I suspect it may be more than 36W,
As yet I have not found a double filament white LED to fit in my front sidelamps which have been adapted to include a dual filament tail/brake bulb as an flashing indicator with the sidelamp which would complete the set up, but I am sure it will be produced somewhere soon
regards
Rob

Re: P2 headlamp pattern

Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2018 11:51 pm
by dhbuchanan
LED headlamp bulbs produce a light so brilliant that considerations of wattage become irrelevant. The 48W bulb in my central pass lamp appears feeble in comparison. The current drain of LEDs is so small that you could probably run several sets of LED headlights on the current required for one set of 36W incandescents.

Re: P2 headlamp pattern

Posted: Wed Sep 12, 2018 11:07 pm
by stuartbell
Apologies for resurrecting an old thread, but a thought of mine (or two) on LED's in headlamps;

Firstly, they are fantastic, and have transformed many a weak 7" Defender unit into something fit for the 21st Century. They produce a considerable improvement in light output, often focus correctly through a glass lens, and only occasionally need any significant correction relative to the halogen bulb/s they have replaced. They also place much less strain on the electrical system/s.

Secondly, I have started to remove LED's from customers' cars headlamp units! Why? Because on the 18th May 2018, the new MoT requirements for road-going motor vehicles has a new clause under headlamp testing. There is a specific reference or two regarding HID units, which are inferior to LED's in my opinion, but separately a requirement which applies to all headlamp bulbs; The tester is required to confirm that the "headlamp light source" is compatible with the "headlamp unit", in other words, if the shell of the headlamp was not designed for an LED bulb (rare before 2010) then there is a technicality regarding any aftermarket fitting of LED's.

As far as I know, nobody has been pulled-up on this one yet, but if you fit an aftermarket bulb to a headlamp shell, it ought to be "E"-marked and compatible with that shell? Notwithstanding this concern, I am intending to fit LED bulbs to my own P2 in the future, when I get to that stage in the restoration, but might have to do more research on what is road-compliant out there......

Re: P2 headlamp pattern

Posted: Thu Sep 13, 2018 3:58 pm
by dhbuchanan
Let's hope (though I'm not holding my breath) that this is the kind of Brussels-inspired nonsense that Brexit will finally do away with.

Re: P2 headlamp pattern

Posted: Thu Sep 13, 2018 10:19 pm
by stuartbell
Amen to that!

There are some excellent all-in-one 7" units available for vehicles such as Defender, and they neatly circumvent the problem by being a total-swap for the headlamp shell, etc. etc. I even have a set on my own Defender as a research tool for light sources. However, I found that some of the LED "bulbs" that are for sale from one 4x4 specialist were superb on light output and their general construction, and out-shone the all-in-one 7" units by a significant factor, even thought the nominal current consumption into the LED driver unit was not significantly different.

The problem of these all-in-ones is that they just do not look "right"; bulbous lenses in front of each CREE-type LED cluster mean that they would look awful on any classic Rover, even a P6.

Maybe there is a market out there for a "classic" series of replacement units in various diameters?