Up-rated Headlight Looms

[Ginger60 0]

Thanks guys. With regard to HID- any links to where to buy a decent set should I decide to go down that route?

 

Hi there, I know your feeling a bit like a fish old of cold water & there are alot of copy HID kits so you do need to get wise, check all the specs etc. I got mine through my mate who contacted a guy direct from China, tell you what they are BRILLIANT!

 

If you are intrested in a genuine Bosch kit, that is really good by the way, i can put you in touch with my mate whos currently ordering a batch in as we speak... PM me any time.

 

It takes no more than an hour to fit the kit & knowing that these are fitted to BMWs is a nice touch 8)

[Critical_Mass 10]

Anyone know where I can get a decent loom which is plug and play and main and full beam?

[Ginger60 0]

Anyone know where I can get a decent loom which is plug and play and main and full beam?

 

The kit I has got does it all. My mate is willing to supply HID kits at a good price...

[Critical_Mass 10]

Cheers for the offer. But I got impatient and bought a better one that ive already got off ebay. Its not plug and play but I cut and crimped the wires for the last loom i fitted so it doesnt really matter i suppose. Im getting someone to knock me up some wires/relays for the inpros, so main and full beam work together.

[Mystic Rado 0]

Thanks guys. With regard to HID- any links to where to buy a decent set should I decide to go down that route?

 

Hi there, I know your feeling a bit like a fish old of cold water & there are alot of copy HID kits so you do need to get wise, check all the specs etc. I got mine through my mate who contacted a guy direct from China, tell you what they are BRILLIANT!

 

If you are intrested in a genuine Bosch kit, that is really good by the way, i can put you in touch with my mate whos currently ordering a batch in as we speak... PM me any time.

 

It takes no more than an hour to fit the kit & knowing that these are fitted to BMWs is a nice touch 8)

 

I don't think Bosch produces aftermarket HID kits fwiw. If they did, they'd be heinously expensive. Far eastern manufacturers are quite happy to knock out fakes by the bucketload. I'm not saying they're useless or owt, but genuine Bosch? For 75 quid a pop, what do you think?

[GivemeaVR 0]

Has anybody found a supplier for the loom upgrades ?

 

Really need one and can only fint the crap that is on ebay.

[The Hub 0]

I can see why people get fed up with making looms for sale, that's why I suggested to Andy that he might consider putting together a comprehensive 'how to', seeing as he's a professional electrical guy. I'm kind of tempted to do one myself, but I'm a bit wary with something safety critical like a headlight loom :?

 

I am considering having a go at this myself, the only thing putting me of is trying to source all the parts, if i knew were to go in one trip to get the bits and what part numbers i'd definately have a go. Any chance you or anyone who has built their own could give a description of all parts needed and where to get each part. I know theres a guide in the Wiki but it only tells you what you need and how to put it together. Would really help to know you've all the CORRECT parts before you start and don't get sidetracked cause you leave the job to go get that part you dont have :cuckoo:

[Mystic Rado 0]

I can see why people get fed up with making looms for sale, that's why I suggested to Andy that he might consider putting together a comprehensive 'how to', seeing as he's a professional electrical guy. I'm kind of tempted to do one myself, but I'm a bit wary with something safety critical like a headlight loom :?

 

I am considering having a go at this myself, the only thing putting me of is trying to source all the parts, if i knew were to go in one trip to get the bits and what part numbers i'd definately have a go. Any chance you or anyone who has built their own could give a description of all parts needed and where to get each part. I know theres a guide in the Wiki but it only tells you what you need and how to put it together. Would really help to know you've all the CORRECT parts before you start and don't get sidetracked cause you leave the job to go get that part you dont have :cuckoo:[/quote:1iil7l0g]

 

OK, off the top of my head, you need roughly this:

 

From VW:

2 x 357 941 165 (water proof plugs)

4 x 000 979 407 - 6mm preterminated leads

 

(these are the original headlight plugs and the wires with terminals to connect them, you also need some silicone sealant or suitable plugs to seal the entry point for the wires)

 

From an automotive electrical parts supplier: I used Vehicle Wiring Products, they're good but charge for delivery :(

 

Wire: basically fat wire because you want to keep resistance low and you may want want to use uprated bulbs, I'll check back and see what size I used then edit this.

 

Relays: standard 4-blade ones preferably rated at 30 or 40 amps if you're going to upgrade. Number depends on whether you're just doing the low beams, which ideally would mean two, or dips and lows, a minimum of four, though you can relay the inner spots separately, which is a good idea if you're thinking of running, say 100-watt spots in them.

 

Splash-proof fuse holders - this page, eighth one down with the silicone seal for the lid, number depends on how you wire them but one for each relay basically. Again I used a silicone sealant to waterproof the wire openings.I

 

The rest is terminals / solder / tape. In an ideal world you'd solder and heat shrink all joints and terminals, but you can also buy neat heatshrinking terminals that you crimp into place then heat with a hot air gun, when heated they shrink, but also contain adhesive that melts, flows and seals the joints pretty effectively, I think. I reckon they're a pretty good compromise. You need four spade connectors (female) for each relay, plus two or more big ring terminals for the battery connections. I found that the yellow-coded heatshrink ones would take two wires each.

 

Convoluted tubing is a nice finishing touch, protects the wiring and looks neat too.

 

The other basic is deciding how you're going to connect the loom to the existing wiring. You're using the signals from the existing loom to trigger the relay and feed power direct to the headlights. In an ideal world you'd simply have a plug that matched the OE headlight plug, but as far as I'm aware, that doesn't exist in an off the shelf form, so you'd have to make one if that's what you wanted. I just chopped the plug off on one side and hardwired the new loom in with soldered / heatshrunk connections. I think some people plug male spade connectors into the existing plug but I really wouldn't trust that.

 

Those splashproof fuseholders are pretty good - if you uprate the bulbs, you'll also need to fit some bigger fuses, which means doing some basic maths, I think mine are 25-amp ones, but it obviously depends what bulbs you're running and how your loom is set up. You do want to think about protecting the relays. Mine are wrapped in HD polythene and taped up, but I'm going to stick them inside a tupperware-type box and use grommets and sealant to seal off the openings. That way if one fails, it should be easy to access and change.

 

Tools - soldering iron, decent electrical crimp tool, some sort of hot air gun, though you can use a lighter if you're careful.

 

Hope that makes some sense. It's a while since I made mine, so I'm dredging through my brain cell trying to remember the details.

 

I found this web site really useful on the theory side btw. There's also some stuff in the wiki here and on matey-matey.com.

 

Oh, and trust me, if I can make one then anyone can :)

[The Hub 0]

:shock: Thanks for that mate, as you went to so much trouble and detail writing that post i'd be embaressed not to have a go at this myself :salute:

I am off now for the easter weekend, so I'll get organised with the parts ordering and will be having a stab at this in the near future.

 

Thanks again mate your time and help are very much appreciated :D

[Mystic Rado 0]

No worries fella, dunno if you noticed, but it looks like one of the guys who used to make forum looms is thinking of producing them again, see one of the million other uprated loom threads :) Actually I quite enjoyed making my own, kind of satisfying and honestly quite straightforward. Have fun.

[The Hub 0]

No worries fella, dunno if you noticed, but it looks like one of the guys who used to make forum looms is thinking of producing them again, see one of the million other uprated loom threads :) Actually I quite enjoyed making my own, kind of satisfying and honestly quite straightforward. Have fun.

 

Yeah seen the other thread, so stuck between a rock and hard place now.... do i take the easy way out, or get stuck in and do my own. :scratch: Like you say it would be alot more satisfying and I think I'd enjoy learning how to do it :nuts:

[Corrado Euge 0]

As every other Corrado owner I am in real need of the uprated headlight wiring loom.

 

I have read all the pages in this section and ws hat I can work out is that nobody is making these anymore and that the best way is to DIY.

 

I have found a number of these on Ebay ranging from 15 - 38 pounds. Are the higher price ones the same as the ones that someone here used to make.

 

The other option I'm looking at is to buy the 6000K HID kit from some Chinese company on Ebay. Only thing that worries me is blinding everyone without projectors as the beam pattern isn't reall up to it.

 

Can anyone shed any more light on the Ebay uprated looms?

[VWRETROMAN 0]

I was very dubious about doing this to my car as normally when I attempt to do any wiring things go very bad, but I must say it worked very well. I bought the cheapo ones too got some xenon bulbs and they work a treat.

[kaiserVR6 0]

right is anyone still doing these, just managed to break mine argh :brickwall:

hope someone is still making them as i have to tools to complete a solder job!!! plus that would look gash!

[VWRETROMAN 0]

Have a look on ebay mate I bought mine off 1989corradog60. He's got loads on there be careful as to which one you go for as I got one that just did dipped or main rather than both, but it still works a treat.

[Critical_Mass 10]

Have a look on ebay mate I bought mine off 1989corradog60. He's got loads on there be careful as to which one you go for as I got one that just did dipped or main rather than both, but it still works a treat.

 

yeah bought one off him too. However, last eve i went outside to find the headlights on. The relays look to have got a bit of water in them and now i either have sidelights using switch but no headlights Or no switch and headlights on. A bit of a mess with the relays does make them go out. Anyone know where i can get replacement relays from?

[Mystic Rado 0]

Have a look on ebay mate I bought mine off 1989corradog60. He's got loads on there be careful as to which one you go for as I got one that just did dipped or main rather than both, but it still works a treat.

 

yeah bought one off him too. However, last eve i went outside to find the headlights on. The relays look to have got a bit of water in them and now i either have sidelights using switch but no headlights Or no switch and headlights on. A bit of a mess with the relays does make them go out. Anyone know where i can get replacement relays from?

 

You should be able to get them from pretty much any vehicle electrical supplier or car accessory place, just take one of the old ones with you, make sure the numbers by the terminals match and they have the same rating - probably 30A.

 

I'm going to case mine in a plastic box, but as a quick and easy solution, just poly bag the relays to make them less prone to getting soaked.

[Critical_Mass 10]

Have a look on ebay mate I bought mine off 1989corradog60. He's got loads on there be careful as to which one you go for as I got one that just did dipped or main rather than both, but it still works a treat.

 

yeah bought one off him too. However, last eve i went outside to find the headlights on. The relays look to have got a bit of water in them and now i either have sidelights using switch but no headlights Or no switch and headlights on. A bit of a mess with the relays does make them go out. Anyone know where i can get replacement relays from?

 

You should be able to get them from pretty much any vehicle electrical supplier or car accessory place, just take one of the old ones with you, make sure the numbers by the terminals match and they have the same rating - probably 30A.

 

I'm going to case mine in a plastic box, but as a quick and easy solution, just poly bag the relays to make them less prone to getting soaked.[/quote:21xtbjlz]

 

Cheers dude!

 

I did wrap them in electrical tape but obviously only worked for so long.

[junkie 0]

We all need to forget uprating the headlight looms and keep the corrado candle burning as it should be.

[skinnyman9000 0]

What the fooooook is happening with these now?!?

[Critical_Mass 10]

What the fooooook is happening with these now?!?

 

Move on mate, i dont think its alive anymore.

[Corrado_Addict 0]

I had the same problem and motorway driving at night really was quite scary barely being able to see a good distance ahead. Thinking of going for the HID conversion but would the HID kit still get the full voltage or would it be advised to fit an uprated loom then fit the kit?

 

Cheers folks :D

[VWRETROMAN 0]

I fitted an uprated kit first of all, I gained a bit more light but tbh not as much as i'd prefer, especially living in the countryside with very few street lights so plumped for the HID kit.

 

Best thing i ever did and I wouldn't really be concerned about all the legality surrounding it I've not had any problems in that respect.

 

Just to let you know i got mine of ebay, £80 all in, the full kit. Fitted it, realised I had a shedload of wiring and ripped out the orginal uprated loom and just kit the HIDs and it made no difference. Just a bit more space in the engine bay.

 

So to sum up the loom is all good until you get the HIDs then i'd personally dump it.

[Corrado_Addict 0]

Thanks for that buddy.

 

I'll just go for the HID kit rather than fitting the loom then, much apprieciated for that :D

[Mystic Rado 0]

HIDs draw a lot of power on initial start-up, then consume less than halogens while running. One thing to be aware of is that if your original loom is very tired, you may not have enough ooomph to fire the HIDs up reliably in which case you might have to fit an uprated loom anyway. With mine, I found that they would come on with the engine running, but with the ignition off, the voltage drop between lights and battery was enough that only one would actually fire up.