xantia headlights (morettes)

Xaccers · Unread post by **Xaccers** » 28 Nov 2009, 19:54

lurchy666 wrote:according to the mot man who set them up for me said thet was spot on

I'd find a long straight flat road and blanking a headlight off at a time, check them yourself.
I got Cassy's to wash light as far as possible without dazzling traffic.

Unread post by **xantia_v6** » 28 Nov 2009, 20:29

lurchy666 wrote: i know it is the patterns on the glass

Which lenses do you have?

or

lurchy666 · Unread post by **lurchy666** » 28 Nov 2009, 20:52

, i think they are the still original lights, i'll have a look 2moro in the light see if i can find the part number or the name on them

lurchy666 · Unread post by **lurchy666** » 28 Nov 2009, 20:53

, i think they are the still original lights, i'll have a look 2moro in the light see if i can find the part number or the name on them

Unread post by **xantia_v6** » 28 Nov 2009, 21:10

Both of those lenses are original Xantia Mk1. The difference in light output is significant. The later one on the right has less fluting and more light actually gets to the road (on low beam). The change happened some time between mid 95 and mid 97. It is possible that they both have the same part number.

Xantidote · Unread post by **Xantidote** » 28 Nov 2009, 21:23

I think in one of my previous threads on headlamps, Kowalski said that the early S1 xantias had the poor design/performance headlamps fitted up to late 1994.

As Xantia-_v6 says, you should study the subtle differences in the lenses lines/markings in the above pics very carefully when checking against your headlamps. I've just been given headlamps off a P reg xantia, and one of them was one of the old design, despite car being built 1996 - the owner had no idea.

BTW, I've noticed that a number of replacement lenses advertised on eBay are of the old rubbish design.

Unread post by **xantia_v6** » 28 Nov 2009, 21:42

I am not sure, but I think that this lens change was additional to the 94 redesign. I am sure that 1995 cars were manufactured with the heavily fluted lens, and from memory, the Citroen service site does not show any change in part number after 1994, hence my theory that this was just a component improvement with no change in P/N.

lurchy666 · Unread post by **lurchy666** » 28 Nov 2009, 22:29

well i went out earlier and had a look when i git back they are the earlier type with the heavy fluteing, i'll have to see if i can find a set of later type glasses,

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 28 Nov 2009, 23:23

Hi Gents

Maybe not too relivant, especialy now that you are tracking down some later lights but i have morretts on my XM which as Peter has said also suffers in the lighting department.
My advise is this, you dont spend £400 on headlamps because your current ones are a bit dim, you spend £400 on headlamps because you like the look of the lamps but having said that the morretts are a vast improvement (mine have valeo lamps), they are now very good to drive with at night but i do have a slight critisism that may not affect the Xantia but having 6 H1 bulbs shinning away on high beam is fantastic, rabbits dont so much freeze in the headlights as drop down dead

, trouble is when going back to main beam it takes a while to adjust with the difference in light output being so huge, ive thought about HID'ing the outer main beam lights to compensate but decided against it, Ive started to dispise HID lights lately and BMW seem to be the worst offender of them all, whats the point in having such bright lights? all it means is the person coming the other way has to upgrade to equaly bright lights to try and see beyond you and you are both being dazzled even more being able to see even less at the crucial moment.
Maybe its because i live on i small island populated by idiots in BMW's who insist on driving down the middle of narrow roads nearly 2feet off their verge while im pushed up into the hedges my side all the while being dazzled by their HID lights, maybe as i get older i become more misserable who knows

. Anyway i digress, good luck with your lights.

D

Xaccers · Unread post by **Xaccers** » 29 Nov 2009, 00:02

lurchy666 wrote:well i went out earlier and had a look when i git back they are the earlier type with the heavy fluteing, i'll have to see if i can find a set of later type glasses,

I'll check the ones I took off my '98 LX for you

DickieG · Unread post by **DickieG** » 29 Nov 2009, 00:14

The first design of headlight with the poor lens was produced until RP 6442. i.e. 30th June 1994 so 'M' reg is the latest Xantia that would have had them fitted from new unless it was a very old stock car when first registered. The vast majority of these cars fitted with these lights would have been "sinkers".

For what its worth, as mentioned above check and compare voltage on the headlight bulb with the battery and fit relays as required, if the headlights are still poor then it must be down to poor alignment as when both of those factors are correct the light output compares well with the majority of other car's sold new today (including BMW's Audi's which I drive on a daily basis at work).

Xaccers · Unread post by **Xaccers** » 29 Nov 2009, 01:16

My first Xantia was a 95 N reg and had worse headlights than any of my others (although the brightness of Juliet's is ok, the pattern is nearly as bad as some vauxhalls I've driven, bloomin' S2)

Unread post by **xantia_v6** » 29 Nov 2009, 07:42

DickieG wrote:The first design of headlight with the poor lens was produced until RP 6442. i.e. 30th June 1994 so 'M' reg is the latest Xantia that would have had them fitted from new unless it was a very old stock car when first registered. The vast majority of these cars fitted with these lights would have been "sinkers".

Despite the Citroen documentation, that is just not what is seen on the road. My May 95 VSX had the heavily fluted lenses, and I am quite confident they were original, and all M reg cars and many P reg cars seem to have the heavily fluted lenses.

I have read on this forum of early Xantia headlights having an internal plastic lens. I have never seen such a headlight on a Xantia. Did they exist? and when?

Unread post by **myglaren** » 29 Nov 2009, 08:27

Xac wrote:My first Xantia was a 95 N reg and had worse headlights than any of my others (although the brightness of Juliet's is ok, the pattern is nearly as bad as some vauxhalls I've driven, bloomin' S2)

My Xantia was a 95 -N too but I can't say I had a problem with the lights.

The best lights I ever had were those on the S-reg GS 1220.

DeanXM wrote:My advise is this, you dont spend £400 on headlamps because your current ones are a bit dim, you spend £400 on headlamps because you like the look of the lamps but having said that the morretts are a vast improvement (mine have valeo lamps), they are now very good to drive with at night but i do have a slight critisism that may not affect the Xantia but having 6 H1 bulbs shinning away on high beam is fantastic, rabbits dont so much freeze in the headlights as drop down dead

If it is legal to have multiple headlights lit simultaneously, why are spotlights now illegal? Carefully aligned spotlights would be a very simple solution.

DickieG · Unread post by **DickieG** » 29 Nov 2009, 09:04

xantia_v6 wrote:
DickieG wrote:The first design of headlight with the poor lens was produced until RP 6442. i.e. 30th June 1994 so 'M' reg is the latest Xantia that would have had them fitted from new unless it was a very old stock car when first registered. The vast majority of these cars fitted with these lights would have been "sinkers".
Despite the Citroen documentation, that is just not what is seen on the road. My May 95 VSX had the heavily fluted lenses, and I am quite confident they were original, and all M reg cars and many P reg cars seem to have the heavily fluted lenses.

I beg to differ as both I and my Dad each bought brand new Xantia's in 1995 (N reg) and both had the later headlight lens, as does my present P reg VSX (built 5th July 96) whereas an L reg 94 VSX I also owned had the earlier (fluted) lenses and they were awful by comparison.

The only explanation available is that either the car's you mention have had their lights replaced due to breakage or were very old stock when first registered and on that note I recall that when I bought my new SX TD in 1995 being offered "new" Xantia's that were over a year old at a very large discount.