Dguy210 Posted January 19, 2019 Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) 3 hours ago, datsunfreak said: You really want to check if the headlight switch gets hot, not so much the wiring at the lights. ? The silly way they designed these is all the juice for the headlights runs through the switch. The higher amperage draw the light is, the hotter the switch gets. 4 hours ago, fivetenguy said: The lights came with 60/55w bulbs, stock units were 50/40w, according to the owner's manual. I can see if the connector and wires get hot and go from there. If it's getting too hot, then I can either upgrade the wiring or change to a fluorescent bulb. I've had the fuse for the headlights get hot enough to cause damage to the fuse box in the past. I would STRONGLY suggest upgrading the harness with a couple of relays such that the only power running through the stock harness is the power to switch the relays. You can either buy a complete harness to do this (about $20 off Amazon) or you can just use a couple of standard automotive relays and a fuse straight to the battery. Very easy upgrade and will let you run higher wattage lights in the future. Edited January 19, 2019 by Dguy210 1 Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 19, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 4 hours ago, datsunfreak said: You really want to check if the headlight switch gets hot, not so much the wiring at the lights. ? The silly way they designed these is all the juice for the headlights runs through the switch. The higher amperage draw the light is, the hotter the switch gets. Thank you. Good looking out! I vaguely remember reading about the power going through the switch but I had totally forgotten about that detail. Last thing I want to do it ruin perfectly good components or worst, burning down the car. Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted January 19, 2019 Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 My 620 fuse clips for the headlight got so hot it took the temper out of them and they wouldn't grip the fuse properly which led to more heat. '80 on use relays. My B-210 I used a 5 amp higher fuse.... back then I didn't know better. Actually, at that age I thought I knew everything. The Datsun wires are only good for the original tungsten headlights, about 55 watts. Halogen will draw more power through them. HID and LED are more efficient, producing more light with less power drain and are close to the original or Halogen ratings of 55 or so watts. After market Hella or whatever will almost certainly be much higher. I think I had a set of 100 watt bulbs once. If you have upgraded your lamps you almost certainly need thicker wiring, and not just the power side the ground also. Current flow is the same anywhere in a circuit. On my 710 I ran all new 12 gauge wires to the lamps and to ground from two relays so if there was a failure I would still have half my lights. Each relay has a separate fusible link of 30 amps. Every connection soldered..... and then I got rid of them and switched to 4 Xenon HID lamps. Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 19, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 49 minutes ago, Dguy210 said: I've had the fuse for the headlights get hot enough to cause damage to the fuse box in the past. I would STRONGLY suggest upgrading the harness with a couple of relays such that the only power running through the stock harness is the power to switch the relays. You can either buy a complete harness to do this (about $20 off Amazon) or you can just use a couple of standard automotive relays and a fuse straight to the battery. Very easy upgrade and will let you run higher wattage lights in the future. I will do exactly this. I appreciate the tip. I remember seeing these harnesses with relays and plugs on Amazon about a year ago when I was considering using H4's. 1 Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted January 19, 2019 Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 H4s... that's what I had originally. Thicker 12 gauge wires made them a little brighter. The wattage ratings can go double the stock lamps so go larger (smaller gauge) 1 Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 19, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 7 minutes ago, datzenmike said: The Datsun wires are only good for the original tungsten headlights, about 55 watts. Halogen will draw more power through them. HID and LED are more efficient, producing more light with less power drain and are close to the original or Halogen ratings of 55 or so watts. After market Hella or whatever will almost certainly be much higher. I think I had a set of 100 watt bulbs once. If you have upgraded your lamps you almost certainly need thicker wiring, and not just the power side the ground also. Current flow is the same anywhere in a circuit. On my 710 I ran all new 12 gauge wires to the lamps and to ground from two relays so if there was a failure I would still have half my lights. Each relay has a separate fusible link of 30 amps. Every connection soldered..... and then I got rid of them and switched to 4 Xenon HID lamps. I figured since the new bulbs I have are 60/55W and stock being 55w,I could get away with plugging these bulbs in without issues. Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 19, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 6 minutes ago, datzenmike said: H4s... that's what I had originally. Thicker 12 gauge wires made them a little brighter. The wattage ratings can go double the stock lamps so go larger (smaller gauge) Will do! Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted January 19, 2019 Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 Well you could switch to HID or LED as these draw close to stock original headlamps... but with WAY more light. Much more efficient I figured since the new bulbs I have are 60/55W and stock being 55w,I could get away with plugging these bulbs in without issues. You should be able to do that. Never hurts to go larger gauge. There's less resistance and the bulbs may be slightly brighter. Also if you want to run a higher wattage hi beam bulb you can 1 Quote Link to comment
Dguy210 Posted January 20, 2019 Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 (edited) 5 hours ago, datzenmike said: Well you could switch to HID or LED as these draw close to stock original headlamps... but with WAY more light. Much more efficient You should be able to do that. Never hurts to go larger gauge. There's less resistance and the bulbs may be slightly brighter. Also if you want to run a higher wattage hi beam bulb you can As a side note the original sealed beam headlights were Toshiba brand (at least for B210, I would assume same for B110 as they are the same setup) and are very dim. I actually still have the original working headlights stored in a box from when I initially upgraded to halogen (20 yrs ago!) and then H4s. Bosch also sells a 100/55W and a 135/60(?) "offroad" Hella H4 lightbulb that is 1) cheap ~8$, 2) bright on highbeams but normal for lowbeams, and 3) has a very good lifespan. Edited January 20, 2019 by Dguy210 2 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted January 20, 2019 Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 7 hours ago, datzenmike said: Well you could switch to HID or LED as these draw close to stock original headlamps... They usually draw a fair bit less power than the stock lamps. Mine do... 1 Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted January 20, 2019 Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 I'm going by my HIDs that say 50 watts. So I guess slightly less. There were 35 watt ones but..... Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted January 20, 2019 Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 (edited) 5 minutes ago, datzenmike said: I'm going by my HIDs that say 50 watts. So I guess slightly less. There were 35 watt ones but..... 50 watts is the equivalent output, not the current draw. They usually draw a similar amperage to a 20-30 incandescent watt bulb. Edited January 20, 2019 by datsunfreak 1 Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted January 20, 2019 Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 No shit? I know the light output is like a MIG welder. Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted January 20, 2019 Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 Just now, datzenmike said: No shit? I know the light output is like a MIG welder. Yes sir. Even after running mine for 20 minutes the fuse and switch were stone cold, without added relays. Never seen that on a Datsun, even with stock bulbs. 1 Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 20, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 16 hours ago, datsunfreak said: 50 watts is the equivalent output, not the current draw. They usually draw a similar amperage to a 20-30 incandescent watt bulb. Very good point DF! Thanks to all of you for your tips and sharing your knowledge. On 1/19/2019 at 12:18 PM, datzenmike said: Well you could switch to HID or LED as these draw close to stock original headlamps... but with WAY more light. Much more efficient 16 hours ago, datsunfreak said: Yes sir. Even after running mine for 20 minutes the fuse and switch were stone cold, without added relays. Never seen that on a Datsun, even with stock bulbs. More light and less current draw... It sounds like it's a no brainer to run with HID or LED instead of what the kit came with. Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted January 20, 2019 Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 The only problem with a replaced bulb is the light pattern. Increased light output means increased glare for oncoming drivers. The best answer for this is the projector style with the sharp cut off. Ordinary reflector lenses still have lots of scatter. LED bulbs do not have the fine single point source of the HID and the light can't be focused properly by the stock reflector lens so glare is intense with them. These might work better in a projector housing. The internet is FULL of cheap ass Chinese LED replacement bulbs making ludicrous output claims. They remind me of just a few years ago when they were selling HID (like) halogen bulbs with the catchy BLUE coatings on them. They were shit. Worse than shit because the blue coating reduced the light output. Maybe LED lamps will get better but for now, reasonably good one are $300 and up a pair. 1 Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 20, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 17 hours ago, datsunfreak said: 50 watts is the equivalent output, not the current draw. They usually draw a similar amperage to a 20-30 incandescent watt bulb. Very good point DF! Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 20, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2019 (edited) 2 hours ago, datzenmike said: The only problem with a replaced bulb is the light pattern. Increased light output means increased glare for oncoming drivers. The best answer for this is the projector style with the sharp cut off. Ordinary reflector lenses still have lots of scatter. LED bulbs do not have the fine single point source of the HID and the light can't be focused properly by the stock reflector lens so glare in intense with them. These might work better in a projector housing. The internet is FULL of cheap ass chinese LED replacement bulbs making ludicrous output claims. They remind me of just a few years ago when they were selling HID (like) halogen bulbs with the catchy BLUE coatings on them. They were shit. Worse than shit because the blue coating reduced the light output. Maybe LED lamps will get better but for now, reasonably good one are $300 and up a pair. I wasn't thinking of gettig LEDs, but HIDs. Like you mentioned, you've got to fork over good money to get a good LED unit. Supposedly, these Hella lamps have the hockey stick cut off for the incoming traffic on the left side. Here's the description from the website: PRODUCT DESCRIPTION Hella 7" Round H4 Conversion Headlamps Datsun 240Z 260Z 280Z S30 280ZX S130 Roadster 311 70476 99996-70476 Made in Germany Includes 60W/55W H4 Hella bulbs These lamps are designed for cars that live in and/or travel in countries that drive on the right hand side of the road. They emit the “hockey stick” lighting pattern where there is a sharp cutoff on the left hand side that keeps the light from glaring into on coming tracffic Also, these lamps have just a slight curvature on the glass face- not totally flat, but not a noticeable outward bulge like the OE sealed beam types." So, my question to clarify things for me, will I be ok if I buy some HID bulbs? I won't have to upgrade to a relay system to avoid melting anything? At the same time I'll have better lighting for night driving? Or just run with what I've got and use the relay system? Information overload ?. Edited January 20, 2019 by fivetenguy Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted January 21, 2019 Report Share Posted January 21, 2019 As mentioned they draw less than the stock bulbs so your stock wiring should do fine. 1 Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2019 Ok. So I did understand. Thanks! Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted January 22, 2019 Report Share Posted January 22, 2019 On 1/20/2019 at 3:39 PM, fivetenguy said: So, my question to clarify things for me, will I be ok if I buy some HID bulbs? I won't have to upgrade to a relay system to avoid melting anything? At the same time I'll have better lighting for night driving? Or just run with what I've got and use the relay system? Information overload ?. Just to be clear on what I was saying, you either need upgraded wiring or HIDs. Your choice. 1 Quote Link to comment
fivetenguy Posted January 23, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2019 Thanks DF. At this point i think I will take the easy route and buy HID bulbs. Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.