7 inch budget lucas-style round headlights

[CovKid]

My thanks to Oldie but goodie for guiding me on the fitment this evening, but he's quite right, these £10 light units from Euro Car Parts DO fit, with only very minor modifications.

I've WIKI'd this for posterity (along with more detail) : http://wiki.club8090.co.uk/index.php/VW ... headlights" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; - so look there for whole article.

Although at first glance it doesn't look as if they'll fit at all, the three lugs on back of the new light unit will drop nicely into the three recesses in existing light frame. All you need then is three clips to fix the headlight in permanently. (see WIKI)



Bear in mind they ARE curved rather than flat like stock ones but you don't really notice to be honest.

I have concluded that these units are almost certainly the same as those fitted to the Ambassador car, common on India's streets. Certainly thats where they're made. They are Autopal HL-101 units and they make fancier versions with fluted reflectors but these are bog standard reflectors. For under a tenner, they're a bargain but remember you'll need clips or something similar to hold them in place.

The alternative is to pay £45+ for complete headlight assemblies but for the sake of three clips, they're worth a shot. I think I paid £8.80 for each headlight!

[Plasticman]

not relevant but i used to fit these back in the day
http://www.panteraplace.com/page157.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
superb quality and really worked
mm

[CovKid]

Once you've made this mod, you can fit both stock AND ones like this. Suddenly the world opens up.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-7-Round-L ... 27e3bc5beb" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

They have the same mounting lugs.

Incidentally, when I picked them up today from ECP, the fella behind counter couldn't believe the price of those units either. As he pointed out, its not uncommon for some modern plastic units to cost £200 a piece! He even brought his mate out to look at them. No brainer really if your reflectors aren't great, plus you get a taste of India.

[ghost123uk]

Doh, and just after I have spent £90 on the JK ones. I thought the metalwork OBG was talking about was more complicated than THIS HERE (too lazy to pb that)

My fault of course for not reading the write up properly

[itchyfeet]

Got the same after a tip off on here, been in the shed for a few months as they didn't appear to fit, OBG said they would fit with small brackets but not got around to it yet.
http://forum.club8090.co.uk/viewtopic.p ... t#p7997818" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I wouldn't bother buying the proper HELLA ones, I had a smashed one from a stone just a couple of years ago and the chrome has already gone on the new reflector,, these may not be much better but at least they are cheap.

opps should have said Hella not Lucas^^^ edited

[CovKid]

Its a bit of a misnomer for ECP to describe them as Lucas. It conjures up all kinds of images including "Joe Lucas the Prince of Darkness", British Leyland etc when in fact the only 'Lucas' bit is the style of fitting. Lots of good reviews about Autopal H4 replacements and they're E-rated. Lots claim the lights are better than stock!

Google: "autopal h4 review" -

Autopal site: http://www.autopal.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

In any event, the difference compared to my old lights was astonishing (in no small part due to new reflectors) and the pattern seems well defined. For a tenner each, I'm not complaining.

The big plus is having fitted them (and it wasn't hard to be honest), I can experiment with so many lights now rather than being stuck with the Hella ones, good as they were in their day. Headlights now are made very differently and use advanced computer modelled reflectors rather than relying on the glass for the light pattern. Ofcourse some may see things differently (literally) but its a definate advantage to have a wider choice of light units now - or I can put in Hella ones as before.

You don't need to alter the headlamp frame - its more an addition. The real question remains, if the locating recesses are there, does that mean that VW did, or anticipated the possibility of using Lucas unit types? They're most definately there. In reality you'd use a proper Lucas bezel to complete the installation but those clips did the job. For another £20 I'd have two more spares I suppose but I'll probably tinker with newer Landrover ones which are extremely good I'm told. Even those are only £45 a pair - half the price of the JK ones.

[Oldiebut goodie]

These are the correct bezels and backplate for these units - they will not fit on ours without adapting them. The 3 tabs that would hold the bezel on are in different positions to the VW fitment so the Lucas backplate would need to be used. I haven't bothered to work out what is needed to change them over yet.
They are Lucas part No. 554872 - I picked up a pair of new ones dirt cheap. If anyone wants to play with some they were used on Minis, MGs and Jaguars amongst others.

[CovKid]

Looks like the clips win then.

[CovKid]

Follow up.

Had a few evenings where I've had to use the new headlights and they're pretty good - a whole lot brighter than what I had before. Good illumination on dipped, covering the road just in front nicely and excellent on full. This was with standard halogen bulbs.

One of my old headlights used to steam up constantly, even after drying out and resealing. No issues with new ones.

[Oldiebut goodie]

Just the same as mine - all steamed up and not a woman in sight! I was surprised at how much better they were after replacement. Bargain.

[itchyfeet]

One of my old headlights used to steam up constantly, even after drying out and resealing. No issues with new ones.

Same here, took the boot off the lamp connector and its been fine ever since.

[CovKid]

Best bet. I think I'd convinced myself that water/moisture was getting in via the boot and attempted (incorrectly) to seal that too. In hindsight I'm fairly certain the moisure was getting in via the edges of the lens and by sealing the boot I was actually making matters far worse. At one point I had an eggcup full of water sloshing around in there! Many headlights have a hole specifically for helping any trapped moisture out.

[Oldiebut goodie]

I thought mine was getting in through the lenses so resealed them but they still steamed up - I even dried them in the oven first.

[silverbullet]

I have been reading this but still a bit confused after I got a pair for the SA a whioe back only to come across the "wot no screw tags" problem.
Will Land Rover lamps fit as complete assemblies?
I much prefer the idea of modern reflectors and I am happy to pay £45 a pair for that.

[CovKid]

Can't see the SA ones being any different. You're absolutely correct in thinking "where are the screws" as they (or clips) don't come with lights. A cursory look suggests they don't fit. However, the lucas type lugs do definately drop neatly into the recesses so its only a case of making the clips needed to hold lamp in place. After that, they can be adjusted using same screws as stock lamps. Clearly its been done before, hence ECP flogging them as such, even if they don't provide a how-to.

I looked at them for some time, realising that they located ok before a chat with Oldie but Goodie confirmed that they only needed a little bench work to fix them in place.

If you like, hold on until I get the Landrover ones (week or so) and I'll add those to the WIKI. You still need to make up the clips but its no headache really. The difference would be that the Landrover ones will be made out of modern plastics but I imagine the beam will be far superior and the LEDs add a little glam. They'll fit series 1 landrovers so the lugs will be identical.

Better pic of light unit: http://images.esellerpro.com/2133/I/443/2/IMG_3908.JPG" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

and in the dark: http://images.esellerpro.com/2133/I/443 ... 20Copy.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Just remember, you WILL have to make up some clips though. I know of none available commercially (I hunted high and low) but I'm sure even the very stiff wire used to hold in headlight bulbs could be bent and made to clip lamps in firmly.

Something like: - not tried it but should work. I did it differently (check WIKI).