Aftermarket head lights

[holtz]

Has anyone purchased a set of new aftermarket head lights for our 73/79 ford trucks and if so, what brand ? how did they fit ? and how clear and bright are they ? Looking to buy some but not sure where or who to go through.

 

[fatherdoug]

I've been very happy with the Hellas I bought several years ago. The beam dispersion is pretty nice, even though they are 65/55 watt. I have been meaning to install the headlight relays with some more powerful bulbs, like 100/80W, but haven't done it yet.

These are rectangular lights, also. They are plug and play.

I wished I would have kept the Marchals that I bought for the '79 in 1980. They were amazing. Nice for driving 80 miles in deer-infested country.

 

[73HulkLC]

headlights

Do you mean after market lights to replace the OEM sealed beams? If so, I would say any 7 inch clear replacement would work (even the ones for motorcycles) and just use standard H4 bulbs. The only thing you WILL need to do is replace the OEM wiring with a new headlight wiring harness that goes to the battery. I have this on my truck (73 Ranger XLT) and it looks great.

 

[DNFXDLI]

x2 on the Hella's....or Cibie.

Biggest thing is to get DOT approved shells....beam patterns on some of the aftermarket units is questionable at best.

If you are willing to shell out a few $$, look into Truck Lite LED....amazing lights with much less current draw than normal lamps..

http://www.truck-lite.com/webapp/wc...10001&storeId=10001&productId=92025&langId=-1

 

[m78]

Here's a link to the head light relay wiring upgrade.
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/relays/relays.html

 

[DNFXDLI]

Although there is nothing wrong with doing that relay setup, if you are running factory wattage lamps, I think you are better off making sure all the factory connections are sound.

If you run the numbers for voltage drop, you wind up with about .5 volt drop...so when the engine is running and the alternator producing 14.4 volts, the headlights are seeing 13.8-14 which is what the filament is designed for.

Of course if you are running above 55/60 watt lamps, then the relay mod is a must.

 

[holtz]

Thanks for all the info, I will have to decide what way I am going to go.

 

[miottimouse]

hella's all the way for me, I order the e-codes lights with 90-130 watt bosh bulbs and make my own relay harness. I do a lot of highway driving up here and they perform very well! I have tried that cool after market thing already ended up throwing them in the trash,ok if you don't go out of the city but for real light not worth the time or effert.

 

[Thundertruck]

Hella also with wiring upgrade and 55/100 bulbs, couldn't be better.