66toaster
Well-Known Member
The silver reflective material on my car's headlamps has partially deteriorated. Are the lamps a sealed unit? Recommendations for replacement. Thanks.
Coupe headlights
- Thread starter 66toaster
- Start date
Cibie, Marchal, or Hella euro lights with replaceable H1, H4 bulbs. No sealed beams.
what is cast into the glass? is it one of the names that Steve mentioned? if not, it is likely a sealed beam. throw sealed beams away and get some cibie or hellas
If you can replace the bulb without changing the lens, you obviously do not have so-called sealed beam headlamps. Likewise, sealed beam reflectors remain nice and shiny as long as the sealed glass element remains intact. Unless you plan on replacing all of the headlamps, for the sake of continuity, I would recommend sticking with the same make and style you are currently using with the headlamps you plan on keeping.
It is commonly accepted that the European quartz-iodide halogen lighting is superior to the US DOT mandated sealed beam lights. That would not be true if the reflector material has been compromised. And, if you do not drive the vehicle at night, it may be easier and almost as effective to use DOT approved sealed "halogen" lights. After all, sealed beams were original equipment on US sold E9s and they are probably still off-the-shelf available at most red-front auto parts stores.
Something I can't recall much discussion about is an upgrade to projector style led headlamps. As I do not have any personal experience with retrofitting LED headlamps on an E9, I will defer to those with that knowledge or experience. Setting aside the "look" of these headlamps and cost, if they are "legal," more effective and draw less current than stock lighting, it is something that might be worth exploring. :wink:
I have become spoiled by the xenons in my e39 and my wife's Benz. Further down my list of things to do to the coupe is to look into retrofitting xenons. Something like this (which I think are the xenons on that coupe):
https://www.theretrofitsource.com/c...morimoto-sealed7-headlights.html#.VnHYT0orJD9
https://www.theretrofitsource.com/c...morimoto-sealed7-headlights.html#.VnHYT0orJD9