The Triumph Dolomite Club - Discussion Forum

A few months ago I bought a mark 2 Ford Focus (Titanium 145 hatchback to be precise)
and a good car it is too.
It reminds me of the (so called classic) Saab 900 but has better performance, fuel economy, cornering
and is stable in cross winds, etc.


The one disappointing thing is the headlight performance, which is adequate only, certainly not as good as the XJ40
twin round headlight set up I had on my Dolomite.

A Google search reveals options for "upgrading" the headlights, so I am wondering if anyone has experience of such please.
Options vary, but I would be prepared to go £300 on complete new units if these are really much better.



thanks,

Ian.

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What are the condition of the headlight units? If the clear plastic is cloudy then light output won't be all that great. They can be revived but the results are variable and the "fix" might not last. If you're wanting to upgrade the bulbs you could go for xenon or HID bulbs. One of the easiest improvements is to replace the sidelight bulbs with LED ones. Beware of some of the ebay ones. Some of them are poor quality even from the UK sellers. CrazyLEDs sell decent quality LED bulbs and are well worth the money. Another easy upgrade is to swap your halogen bulbs for Osram Nightbreakers. These are brighter than normal bulbs and are the best compromise between brighness and bulb life.

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Toledo Man

West Yorkshire Area Organiser & forum moderator
Meetings take place on the first Wednesday of the month at 8.00pm at The Old Brickworks, Wakefield Road, Drighlington, Bradford, BD11 1EA

1972 Dolomite 1850 auto (NYE 751L - Now for sale)
2003 Volvo XC90 D5 SE (PX53 OVZ - The daily driver)
2009 Mercedes-Benz W204 C200 CDI Sport (BJ58 NCV - The 2nd car)
1991 Toyota Celica GT (J481 ONB - another project car)
Former stable of SAY 414M (1974 Toledo), GRH 244D (1966 1300fwd), CDB 324L (1973 1500fwd), GGN 573J (1971 1500fwd), DCP 625S (1977 Dolomite 1300) & LCG 367N (1975 Dolomite Sprint) plus 5 Acclaims and that's just the Triumphs!

Check my blog at http://triumphtoledo.blogspot.com
My YouTube Channel with a bit of Dolomite content.

"There is only one way to avoid criticsm: Do nothing, say nothing and BE nothing." Aristotle

More watts. Use an old fashioned relay setup. At the time the units start melting you can try something new. But maybe only brighter sidelights will do the job.

Jeroen

_________________
Classic Kabelboom Company. For all your wiring needs. http://www.classickabelboomcompany.com

Seems to be common on modern cars. The headlamps on my VW Touran are pathetic on both dip and high beam. The Cibie 7" units on my MGB are much, much better, even with standard H4 bulbs.

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Mike
(1969 MGB GTV8, 1977 Dolomite 1850HL, 1971 MGB roadster now all three on the road)

Interestingly my colleague was complaining about the headlights on his VW and he was explaining how the wiring is excessively long and you lose a lot of current as it goes round the vehicle. Somehow he modified it and now they are much better. I have no idea what he did sorry.

I always thought my Focus had very good headlights, even when using very cheap headlight bulbs. It's usually the silvering that goes in them and that makes them dim, or as had been mentioned a cloudy lens. I would give them a through inspection and check the reflectors as best you can and perhaps invest in a pair of new bulbs as sometimes they can go dim.

_________________
Mark

1961 Chevrolet Corvair Greenbrier Sportswagon
1980 Dolomite Sprint project using brand new shell
2009 Mazda MX5 2.0 Sport
2018 Infiniti Q30

I have a good experience with the RING bulbs. These are availbale in many watt combi's. In my temporary daily corolla i use 100/110watt halogen bulbs. It is twice as much light also.

Jeroen

_________________
Classic Kabelboom Company. For all your wiring needs. http://www.classickabelboomcompany.com

Have you considered fitting some HID lights from something like a Focus ST Ian? If a suitable donor car was found it may also yield the washers and self levelling system which accompany HID lights.

James

I have James.
Alas I don't know anyone who owns such a car, to be able to try these lights out first.

I am going to try Philips Xtreme Vision bulbs for the main beam in my existing light units.
These are the same wattage but produce more light.

I'll report back in due course.



thanks,

Ian.

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TDC Forum moderator
PLEASE help us to maintain a friendly forum,
either PM or use Report Post if you see anything you are unhappy with. Thanks.

I don't know how good the Philips bulbs are but I'd recommend the Osram Nightbreakers. I had them in the Astra and I might fit a pair in the Picasso.

_________________
Toledo Man

West Yorkshire Area Organiser & forum moderator
Meetings take place on the first Wednesday of the month at 8.00pm at The Old Brickworks, Wakefield Road, Drighlington, Bradford, BD11 1EA

1972 Dolomite 1850 auto (NYE 751L - Now for sale)
2003 Volvo XC90 D5 SE (PX53 OVZ - The daily driver)
2009 Mercedes-Benz W204 C200 CDI Sport (BJ58 NCV - The 2nd car)
1991 Toyota Celica GT (J481 ONB - another project car)
Former stable of SAY 414M (1974 Toledo), GRH 244D (1966 1300fwd), CDB 324L (1973 1500fwd), GGN 573J (1971 1500fwd), DCP 625S (1977 Dolomite 1300) & LCG 367N (1975 Dolomite Sprint) plus 5 Acclaims and that's just the Triumphs!

Check my blog at http://triumphtoledo.blogspot.com
My YouTube Channel with a bit of Dolomite content.

"There is only one way to avoid criticsm: Do nothing, say nothing and BE nothing." Aristotle

I have had both, and they are broadly similar in performance. However, on test, the Philips had much better consistency between bulbs and seemed to be made to a better specification, hence my recommendation as a higher quality product.

_________________
Clive Senior
Brighton

I once changed the headlight bulbs on an 03 plate Focus and that was an absolute pig of a job due to the lack of room so this is a job you only want to do once and get it right the first time. I think I'll try the Philips bulbs on my Picasso purely on Clive & Ian's recommendations.

_________________
Toledo Man

West Yorkshire Area Organiser & forum moderator
Meetings take place on the first Wednesday of the month at 8.00pm at The Old Brickworks, Wakefield Road, Drighlington, Bradford, BD11 1EA

1972 Dolomite 1850 auto (NYE 751L - Now for sale)
2003 Volvo XC90 D5 SE (PX53 OVZ - The daily driver)
2009 Mercedes-Benz W204 C200 CDI Sport (BJ58 NCV - The 2nd car)
1991 Toyota Celica GT (J481 ONB - another project car)
Former stable of SAY 414M (1974 Toledo), GRH 244D (1966 1300fwd), CDB 324L (1973 1500fwd), GGN 573J (1971 1500fwd), DCP 625S (1977 Dolomite 1300) & LCG 367N (1975 Dolomite Sprint) plus 5 Acclaims and that's just the Triumphs!

Check my blog at http://triumphtoledo.blogspot.com
My YouTube Channel with a bit of Dolomite content.

"There is only one way to avoid criticsm: Do nothing, say nothing and BE nothing." Aristotle

And Philips is Dutch ofcourse. Who doesn't want to be guided in the dark by something Dutch.

Jeroen

_________________
Classic Kabelboom Company. For all your wiring needs. http://www.classickabelboomcompany.com

Must have been a diesel one. My 1.6 petrol was the easiest car to change I've experienced.

_________________
Mark

1961 Chevrolet Corvair Greenbrier Sportswagon
1980 Dolomite Sprint project using brand new shell
2009 Mazda MX5 2.0 Sport
2018 Infiniti Q30

If you don't mind your lights having an orange tint!

Steve

_________________
'73 2 door Toledo with Vauxhall Carlton 2.0 8v engine (The Carledo)
'78 Sprint Auto with Vauxhall Omega 2.2 16v engine (The Dolomega)
'72 Triumph 1500FWD in Slate Grey, Now with RWD and Carledo powertrain!

Maverick Triumph, Servicing, Repairs, Electrical, Recomissioning, MOT prep, Trackerjack brake fitting service.
Apprentice served Triumph Specialist for 50 years. PM for more info or quotes.

I have no idea about a mark one Focus, but on the mark two I have it is easy enough to change the headlamp bulbs,
just one screw to remove and then two clips to release for each headlamp unit. The wiring does not need to be disconnected for access.
Takes about five minutes per side.

The Philips bulbs are noticeable brighter (I fitted one to compare to the existing).
Since fitting the new bulbs, I have yet to drive the car in the dark so have no comment to make on any difference I may detect.

I did find a thread on a Ford forum showing before and after photos (taken with a phone) which gave an impressive improvement, however
I do not know if the headlights are the same as mine (there are a few variants available which is according to model specification).



thanks,
Ian.

_________________
TDC Forum moderator
PLEASE help us to maintain a friendly forum,
either PM or use Report Post if you see anything you are unhappy with. Thanks.