Sealed beam to Xenon conversion?

[muddbros]

I've recently aquired a beautiful silver 1978 4 speed that has been fully restored and then some. I took it out for my first road trip this weekend !! But one of my "dim" sealed beam headlights quit on me half way through the trip. I also noticed (as I was in deer country) that it would be a good idea to be able to see a bit better altogether... I did not notice groups that I would have much more quickly with more modern lights. Would it be too sacrilegious to change all four beams to Xenon? I'm personally not too big of a blue-beam fan, but at the same time most of my road trips are going to be "Up North" through certified deer country so I can go drive up around the lake and bay where most of my family is.

I'm thinking about these: 5 3/4", 6 1/2" & 7" Sealed Beam Headlight Conversion Kit

but I'm not sure if the 61/2 Xenon lamp would work as my current ones seem to be 61/4 when I measure them. Anyone do this before? I'd like to tap into the experience on this forum. I'm kind of leaning towards keeping the vintage headlight look but thinking about the deer threat makes me cringe. Thanks for any input!!

 

[Peer81]

Hello Jim,

First of all there are 3 different systems. You have sealed beams, you could change them to Halogen beams with a better reflector like the one you're looking at and then you have HID or Xenon.

To change from the first to the second isn't a big problem and is a big improvement. If you alter the wiringharness a little you can also run higher output halogen bulbs like 100W for the middle to big lights.

My opinion about HID / Xenon. At this moment there are alot of "kits" on the market that sell HID that first in a normal H4 lightsocket. My opinion about the kits is that the quality is very poor but that equals the money you pay for them. If you want a good HID bulb buy a Philips or a Osram.

Second. HID lights have a much bigger output and the standard reflector (or the one you're looking at) are not made for these lights. You'll get problems with the way the light is deflected (hot spots etc etc) also very annoying for the drivers that look into the light. Overhere in Holland from this moment you're only allowed to have HID bulbs in the original HID projectors. HID uses there own deflectors or to be correct they are projectors with there own lens to focus the light. Of course if you're driving in deer country without to many drivers around you could try it.

At this moment I'm trying to convert a C3 headlight into a real Bi-xenon headlight. This means alot of grinding and cutting. I'm using BMW xenon projectors and ditched the old 5.3/4 reflector headlights surrounding the projectors with Alfa 159 headlight fragments and then hoping it will fit

One last thing. If you're looking for more amps (also xenon have a higher startup amperage) be sure you've updated the wiringharness. Originally all the amps go through the headlightswitch and that isn't a good idea. So also look into that!

Also, the C3 headlights are 5.3/4 not 6.1/4

Groeten Peter

 

[muddbros]

Wow... great info!

Thanks for the great detailed information!!!

I'm going to take your advice and go with the Halogens for now... I've only had the car for a couple of weeks so I'm going to check things out a bit more to make sure I got things set up per your recommendations.

It will have to wait for a couple of weeks though, I'm headed out to Germany in a couple of days, then I'll be in Amsterdam until August 19th. It is going to be an awesome trip but I know I'll be looking forward to getting back to work on my car.

Again, thanks for the advice, very enlightening.

 

[73shark]

After you get the halogens in, check the voltage at the bulbs on hi beam and engine running. If you're getting less than the alternator output voltage, you might want to put a relay in to get a direct connection to the alternator and eliminate the voltage drop in the headlite switch and wiring.

 

[Peer81]

Great to hear your visiting Germany and Amsterdam. I'm living 40 minuten below Rotterdam so if you're around let me know.

Groeten Peter

 

[muddbros]

Cool, thanks for the tips 73shark!

-We might be taking a road trip to Brussels one of the days we're in Amsterdam... I'll let you know if that happens Peter! (Sorry if I'm wrong, but Peter is your first name, correct?)

 

[KANE]

I had an H4 conversion on my old '78 Vette.

I ran two low beams and then two to more low beams configured as high beams- all H4. They were great. I had a decent set of aftermarket lenses and loved them. I think I spent around $100 total. Worth every penny!

Just my $.02

Either way you go with your lights- POST SOME PICS!

 

[Peer81]

Hello Jim,

Yes it's Peter
Here is what mine (normal) 4x H4 Halogen looks like with almost the same aftermarket lenses as in your link.

As you can see in these pictures, I had to enlarge the hole in the pack of the assembly to accept the lenses (and to move them around). If you know the correct setting (aiming) for the lenses maybe enlarging the holes is not necessary.

Btw. If you would like to see some nice cities take a look at Antwerp or Gent instead of Brussels IMHO.

Groeten (Greetings) Peter

 

[1tpi]

Please post pic's