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Car Headlamp convertors


Andyphilpott
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Just making arrangements to take my car down to the Var in December and have been enquiring about beam convertors, particularly as I have heard the the gendarmes are now stopping cars without any obvious adjustment - possibly apocryphal. I always used to use the black stick on patches available from Halfords and the AA (or black masking tape!) but understand from my local Mazda dealer that these are no longer recommended on modern headlamps for various reasons. Not sure about Halfords but the AA now only seem to stock the more sophisticated convertors which are a sort of plastic prism affair.

More expensive and I believe they are designed for single use since the adhesive only works once according to the suppliers - I will test that out sometime. They came out at around £7 a time but I contacted the people who supply the AA (travel-spot.co.uk)  mainly to make sure that the convertors would fit my car - they did; and they offered me a good discount if I bought 10 sets which, as they fit many models of car including my other 2 , seemed like a good idea. They were very helpful indeed. They also sell diverters for French cars coming to the  UK but to be honest I have never seen any non UK vehicles using such a thing - ever. I don't suppose they will until the police start taking an interest. Maybe they all have a switch under the bonnet to divert the beam? And pigs can fly.

They mentioned a tip for fitting and removing these convertors which I thought worth passing on.

Before fitting, warm up the headlamp by switching on for a few minutes.

When you return the convertors should be removed (otherwise I think it will contravene UK traffic regulations as the beam will be diverted the wrong way) and again warm them up first by leaving the headlamps on for a while. Then peel off and remove any residue of glue with meths or neat screen wash. If you leave them on long term they will be much harder to remove. Don't use solvents if the headlamp is plastic rather than glass.

Andy

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A neat trick, if you plan multiple trips abroad with the same car, is to invest in a set of polycarbonate headlamp protectors (if available for your car - I know they are for my wife's Audi A3). Then stick your beam benders to these, clip in place in front of the headlamps, and voilà! When you get back to blighty just unclip them and store until next time.

M

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Peugeot had a set of polycarbonate protectors. Made in Australia much to Isabels amusement. The had the masking position clearly marked. Prior to that I used to reuse the stick on prisms by using clear silicon to glue them in place. Mini, MG1300 and Mark I and II Cortina had round yellow convertors for their Lucas headlamps which held in place with elasticated spring clips. Looked a bit like suspenders for petrol heads again much to Isabels amusement

Knew of a Rover 3500s (2000) and a Datsun 1600 SSS which had twin headlamps and a set of relays so you could swop at the tougch of a switch when you crossed the border between Uganda and Rwanda  

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Hi people

If you drive old cars, mine are MGs, all you need is adhesive tape, just stick this on the right hand side where the shape is moulded into the glass, I know the new type cars are different, I have just come back from spending a week in France looking for a house, we went over in a Jaguar, which had completly clear glass on the headlights, what you are supposed to do in the case is buy very expensive headlight protectors and stick what ever on to them, I did this with a modern MG, which I no longer have, but I still have the protectors, I looked at where the the sticks were on these, then stuck the stickers straight onto the Jaguar headlights, it did not seem a problem as in the week I did not get flashed once, so they must have done the business.

Hope this maybe of help.

 

Colin

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All of these soloutions just mask or perhaps bend the beam to prevent the kick up zone on the left (UK lhd cars) from dazzling oncoming drivers.

I have modified my bulbs/bulbholders so that they can be quickly rotated to either the RHD or LHD position, checking and adjusting them on an MOT testers machine, and also a CT testers one showed this to work 100% effectively with the corresponding kick up at the correct angle and on the correct side for each country.

I dont always remember to adjust them until the morning that I arrive in either country but I have found that in this instance I will always be flashed several times in France but never once in England when returning at night.

Perhaps in the UK people are just used to being dazzled by either badly adjusted or foreign headlights.

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