2000 500 Headlight Bulbs

[nigelj77]

Hi folks, I'm hoping you can help, I'm looking to upgrade the headlight bulbs in my year 2000 Griffith 500 and am trying to confirm the correct bulbs, H1, H4 or H7 etc.

Manual suggests H1 but thought I'd enquire on here just in case.

Headlights themselves are as they left the factory and the light output as anyone with standard kit will know isn't great.

I'm not looking to upgrade beyond the bulbs, too much work.

Thanks in advance.

Nigel

[Granturadriver]

H1, H4, and H7 are different types of lamps with different bases. H1 and H7 have one filament, H4 has two filaments, so can combine different functions (eg rear light, brake light).

So you can't just swap between base or one and two filament bulb.

You must check what is now installed. If you want to change to another type, you need another socket holder.

[Englishman]

My Griff 500 has H1 bulbs for both dip and main beam.

[5.0ltr]

H1 55w on my 99 Griff which pretty quickly had Osram nughtbreakers fitted.

[Loubaruch]

Standard 5" dip beam headlights IMHO are always going to be third rate whatever measures you take to update them except fitting LED bulbs that are now illegal. I tried Nightbreakers and they do give a marginal improvement but they are basically over run filaments and dont last long before burning out.
The biggest improvement you can make with QI bulbs is to ensure that the full 12 volts is reaching the lamps. See:

http://www.bertram-hill.com/tvr-griffith-lighting....

A big improvement but still IMHO totally inadequate for modern roads.

[nigelj77]

Thanks for the responses.

Granturadriver, I realise the different H numbers are different bulb types, that was why I was asking, I don't want to fit an alternative model, just the same with improved brightness, nightbreakers etc.

The handbook plus 2 others say H1 so I'll order a set of something brighter, my Griff doesn't do an awful lot of night miles but when it did recently on unlit roads a candle may have been better.

Thanks again for your help.

[Polly Grigora]

Philips X-treme Vision H4 made a massive difference to a Peugeot 306 headlights, reflectors were in very good condition

It's all down to the condition of the reflectors, there's no point in fitting brighter bulbs if the reflectors are poor

Can't think of any reason why Philips X-treme Vision H1 would not be as good as the H4

Really couldn't believe the difference in brightness and distance

[Englishman]

Most recently I fitted Philips RacingVision GT200 bulbs, even better than X-treme's.

[Polly Grigora]

Englishman said:

Most recently I fitted Philips RacingVision GT200 bulbs, even better than X-treme's.

Wow - Product highlight - Up to 200% brighter light

They must be amazing

Do many oncoming cars flash you?

Might buy some

[magpies]

Polly Grigora said:

Do many oncoming cars flash you?

Not if adjusted correctly

and that applies to all cars

[blitzracing]

The " plus xxx percent " is a bit of a con as the base line is the minimum legal limit for a headlight so your +130 would only be 30 % more than the minimum level. A new standard halogen will already be brighter so paying big bucks for a fancy for a bulb of the same wattage is only a marginal improvement in real terms. You can get significant gains switching to 100 or 80 watt halogen but you do need a loom that can support the extra current. A cheap upgrade is to fit an aftermarket relay loom that runs direct from the battery or alternator and uses the old wiring just to switch the relays. Lots on ebay if you search upgrade headlight wiring if the bulbs fitted are H4 but could be modified for H1 if you replace the connectors. .Officially fitting higher wattage bulbs is illegal but when the lights are so poor to start with no one will notice as the beam remains the correct shape and colour. Clear halogen will always give better light output than those fitted with the blue filter to make them look white. All these do is filter out the yellow end of the light spectrum that would help visabilty if left there in the first place.

Edited by blitzracing on Saturday 16th April 07:47

[Plan B]

I fitted the Sportmotive 7” reflector package to my Griff some years ago. It entails fitting new pods to hold the bigger reflectors and enables using H4 bulbs so on main beam you get light from these and the original main beams in the lower grill. I also used high powered LEDs which really light things up. I’ve never had any MOT issues with the LEDs…….

[nigelj77]

Thanks again for the advice, I don't fancy chopping into the fragile electrical system so was just planning on an upgraded bulb in the same model, being sure of the model is the difficult bit.

It certainly sounds like H1 based on most comments, the not knowing without taking a wheel of is the nuisance factor.

I had a look the other day, lenses aren't particularly clean but I guess the only way of cleaning them would be to remove the covers which looks like an ideal opportunity to make a mess of my original paint.....