Reversing lights upgrade?

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WillyR
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Citroen Xantia 2.0 HDi 1999 (excellent car but it ate suspension spheres)
Citroen C5 2.2 HDi Exclusive Auto 2001
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 January - engine rattled until replaced. Gave it back at 1600 miles.
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 July - still going strong
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by WillyR »

GiveMeABreak wrote: 05 Feb 2019, 12:11 That 'projector' is simply a plastic lens that covers another LED inside at the bottom and magnifies that light outward - it does nothing for the LEDs mounted around the bulb itself.

Example:

LED.PNG

Image


That is possibly why my reversing lights are so NAFF.

I have kept your link details for reference when I eventually find out exactly what LED is in my reversing lights. Thanks
2015 (Jul) C4 Grand Picasso 2.0 Bluehdi 150 EAT6 Exclusive+ now running on 17" wheels - SO MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE AND SMOOTH THAN 18" - AND better fuel economy :) =D>
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Cutac
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by Cutac »

A crude drawing of what's it like on my car.
Image
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by GiveMeABreak »

Ok, so that's why we ask for the VIN as it saves a lot of time and faffing.

So you have the LED lamp unit that incorporates the FIXED LEDs - so there's diddly you can do about these.

Item (2) on the diagram:
C4  LED.PNG
The only bulb (14) in this unit that is not LED is a W5W filament. So I wouldn't bother trying to do anything with these as a new light unit is a mere pittance at £460.19 each side for the tail light unit - but that does include VAT of course :rofl2:

So you are stuck with what you have unfortunately.

Now I have seen some silly pricing, but that takes the biscuit for a lump of plastic and some LEDs.
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by GiveMeABreak »

Cutac wrote: 05 Feb 2019, 13:07 A crude drawing of what's it like on my car.
That's a cracking drawing :rofl2:

But now we have the VIN, nothing there is interchangeable or swappable on the OPs light unit.

On other standard light fittings (not this vehicle), depending on the housing (some have little to no reflector on the reversing light and of course the colour lens filters, these are extremely limited to what you can do.
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WillyR
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Joined: 18 Aug 2013, 21:24
Location: Ashford, Kent
My Cars: Peugeot 504 2.0 diesel 1984 (built in South Africa)
Peugeot 505 GTI 1986 (built in South Africa, and brought to Britain 1988)
Citroen XM V6 (UK)
Citroen Xantia 2.0 HDi 1999 (excellent car but it ate suspension spheres)
Citroen C5 2.2 HDi Exclusive Auto 2001
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 January - engine rattled until replaced. Gave it back at 1600 miles.
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 July - still going strong
x 4

Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by WillyR »

GiveMeABreak wrote: 05 Feb 2019, 13:18 Ok, so that's why we ask for the VIN as it saves a lot of time and faffing.

So you have the LED lamp unit that incorporates the FIXED LEDs - so there's diddly you can do about these.

Item (2) on the diagram:

C4 LED.PNG

The only bulb (14) in this unit that is not LED is a W5W filament. So I wouldn't bother trying to do anything with these as a new light unit is a mere pittance at £460.19 each side for the tail light unit - but that does include VAT of course :rofl2:

So you are stuck with what you have unfortunately.

Now I have seen some silly pricing, but that takes the biscuit for a lump of plastic and some LEDs.

Image


Thanks very much for your invaluable help, Marc. Is there any possibility you could email me the attached page plus any others pertaining to my rear lights? The picture shown is rather fuzzy, and it would be good to have in a higher definition.

Yes, Citroen UK parts prices are ridiculous. I recently bought a second set of rims for my Picasso (17" Aquillon) to fit a set of Michelin CrossClimates for the winter. I bought them in Calais for €828 compared to £1300 here. The difference was worth way more than the cost of a day out in Calais. The Executive+ should have 18" 225x45 profile wheels but they were so noisy and uncomfortable, PLUS they turned the car into a skier in the lightest snow, so I got rid of them and changed to the 17" 205x55 profile. Same brand of tyre in both instances - Michelin Primacy HP.

I LOVE Citroens, but NOT Citroen UK.
2015 (Jul) C4 Grand Picasso 2.0 Bluehdi 150 EAT6 Exclusive+ now running on 17" wheels - SO MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE AND SMOOTH THAN 18" - AND better fuel economy :) =D>
WillyR
Donor 2023
Posts: 103
Joined: 18 Aug 2013, 21:24
Location: Ashford, Kent
My Cars: Peugeot 504 2.0 diesel 1984 (built in South Africa)
Peugeot 505 GTI 1986 (built in South Africa, and brought to Britain 1988)
Citroen XM V6 (UK)
Citroen Xantia 2.0 HDi 1999 (excellent car but it ate suspension spheres)
Citroen C5 2.2 HDi Exclusive Auto 2001
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 January - engine rattled until replaced. Gave it back at 1600 miles.
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 July - still going strong
x 4

Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by WillyR »

Cutac wrote: 05 Feb 2019, 13:07 A crude drawing of what's it like on my car.
Image


Thanks for the drawing. You saw Marc's explanation of the light assembly, so I guess I'm stuck with what I've got. =D> =D>
2015 (Jul) C4 Grand Picasso 2.0 Bluehdi 150 EAT6 Exclusive+ now running on 17" wheels - SO MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE AND SMOOTH THAN 18" - AND better fuel economy :) =D>
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Cutac
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by Cutac »

GiveMeABreak wrote: 05 Feb 2019, 13:23
Cutac wrote: 05 Feb 2019, 13:07 A crude drawing of what's it like on my car.
That's a cracking drawing :rofl2:

Right? :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Yeah, manufacturers often see the reversing light as an indicator of a car backing up, not a light that should make backing up easier.
If it was up to me, cars would have crude halogen projector(s) instead of a standard reversing light. One H1 projector would illuminate better than any "classic" reversing bulb, and if necessary, a white indicating light can easily be fitted somewhere.
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XM 2.0 Turbo Prestige Polar White
XM 2.0 SX Polar White
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by GiveMeABreak »

WillyR wrote: 05 Feb 2019, 14:06
Thanks very much for your invaluable help, Marc. Is there any possibility you could email me the attached page plus any others pertaining to my rear lights? The picture shown is rather fuzzy, and it would be good to have in a higher definition.
Unfortunately these are not available in hight res - you can click the image to magnify it up but that's about it.

Try this:
C4 LED.PNG
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van ordinaire
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by van ordinaire »

Back to the supplementary reversing light then. While one of those el cheapo aftermarket DRL's might be tempting, I'd want a demonstration of how much light it'd actually throw on the ground before paying out good money. My preference would be for a strategically but discretely mounted small foglight.
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by Cutac »

Which car is it for?
You could buy a halogen projector, take it apart, cut the blind/shutter/cut-off metal in a manner which would make the cut-off flat and then drill a hole in your bumper and fit the projector there.
WillyR
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Joined: 18 Aug 2013, 21:24
Location: Ashford, Kent
My Cars: Peugeot 504 2.0 diesel 1984 (built in South Africa)
Peugeot 505 GTI 1986 (built in South Africa, and brought to Britain 1988)
Citroen XM V6 (UK)
Citroen Xantia 2.0 HDi 1999 (excellent car but it ate suspension spheres)
Citroen C5 2.2 HDi Exclusive Auto 2001
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 January - engine rattled until replaced. Gave it back at 1600 miles.
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 July - still going strong
x 4

Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by WillyR »

Thanks very much for your time and helpful advice, gents. I guess I'm stuck with rubbish reverse lights. I seem to remember reading somewhere in the early stages of this series of posts - before I joined the discussion - that a third reversing light is/was illegal. My next steps will revolve around that.

Now, on to the useless front Fogs. They may work as fog lights in driving mode although I'm totally unimpressed, but as cornering lights they make not one bit of difference to visibility during the turning operation. I will check for a specific thread and if I don't find one, I'll start one.
2015 (Jul) C4 Grand Picasso 2.0 Bluehdi 150 EAT6 Exclusive+ now running on 17" wheels - SO MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE AND SMOOTH THAN 18" - AND better fuel economy :) =D>
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C5 MK II 2.0 HDi Exclusive Obsidian Black
C5 MK I 2.0 HDi SX Wicked Red
Xantia S2 2.0 HDi SX Hermes Red
C15 Romahome White
XM 2.0 Turbo Prestige Emerald Green Pearlescent
XM 2.0 Turbo Prestige Polar White
XM 2.0 SX Polar White
CX 20 Polar White
GS 1220 Geranium Red
CX 2.4 Prestige C-Matic Nevada Beige
GS 1000 Cedreat Yellow
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Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by GiveMeABreak »

I have directional Xenon's, but that aside, the X7 has dedicated active cornering lighting as well as front fog lamps. On mine, the angular lighting is activated on turning the wheel at certain speeds and at junctions, and I get a 90 ° beam angle left and right that lights up hedges or road junctions, as well as the directional headlamps. But the lamp housing is set at 90° for this lamp - so is very effective.

Your fogs have a 'cornering function' - but in reality, all that can possibly mean is switching the fogs on at speeds under 25MPH when the main lights are on and using that small spread to throw a little more light on the near ground - they don't have a directional adjustment mechanism, so cannot pivot or change light spread direction. It's just offset slightly as can be seen on the picture below:
C4 Fogs.PNG
The X7 directional headlamp looking side on - here you can see the dedicated cornering light throws a good spread out that I approximated and marked in yellow and the headlamp spread (directional lamp looking ahead).
X7 Angular B.png
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Marc
WillyR
Donor 2023
Posts: 103
Joined: 18 Aug 2013, 21:24
Location: Ashford, Kent
My Cars: Peugeot 504 2.0 diesel 1984 (built in South Africa)
Peugeot 505 GTI 1986 (built in South Africa, and brought to Britain 1988)
Citroen XM V6 (UK)
Citroen Xantia 2.0 HDi 1999 (excellent car but it ate suspension spheres)
Citroen C5 2.2 HDi Exclusive Auto 2001
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 January - engine rattled until replaced. Gave it back at 1600 miles.
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 July - still going strong
x 4

Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by WillyR »

Yes, I knew about the C5 light (some C4s had it as well) and I have done a few hundred miles in a 2009 model so I know how good it is.
I bought a 2001 C5 MkI 2.0 Hdi auto, new, which I had the great pleasure of driving with a Superchips upgrade to 175 neddies for over 175,000 miles - a truly wonderful car. I would still be driving its successor if they were still made with hydraulic suspension. Sadly they no longer exist, so I bought my first New Picasso in Feb 2014. The first Picasso expired with a dodgy engine in under 2,000 miles (2.0 Bluehdi 150 EAT6) and I ended up giving the car back. My second one (July 2015) is brilliant. over 50mpg on a trip and nearly as comfortable as my old C5. It certainly likes eating motorway miles without crippling any passengers - or the driver.
2015 (Jul) C4 Grand Picasso 2.0 Bluehdi 150 EAT6 Exclusive+ now running on 17" wheels - SO MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE AND SMOOTH THAN 18" - AND better fuel economy :) =D>
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'81 2CV Club (quietly sleeping in a parallel universe)
'05 (yes, really) C15
'97 Xantia Exclusive estate
others:-
'96 Jeep Cherokee Limited - the "donor"
'99 Jeep Cherokee Orvis - the green one
'97 Jeep Cherokee Limited - the red one
'99 Cadillac Seville STS
'96 Cadillac Eldorado ETC
& numerous what might be described as abandoned projects!
x 405

Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by van ordinaire »

The lighting Regs. DO limit reversing lights to 2 BUT as the 3rd one was only to be used "off-road" that's not really an issue but if you were really concerned, a 5-pin relay could be used in the auxillary circuit so that it came on instead of the O/E ones.
Citroens:-
'81 2CV Club :cry:
'05 C15 :!:
'97 Xantia Exclusive estate [-o<
others:-
Jeep XJ Cherokees x 3 :?
'96 Cadillac Eldorado
'99 Cadillac STS :|
& the numerous "abandoned projects" #-o
WillyR
Donor 2023
Posts: 103
Joined: 18 Aug 2013, 21:24
Location: Ashford, Kent
My Cars: Peugeot 504 2.0 diesel 1984 (built in South Africa)
Peugeot 505 GTI 1986 (built in South Africa, and brought to Britain 1988)
Citroen XM V6 (UK)
Citroen Xantia 2.0 HDi 1999 (excellent car but it ate suspension spheres)
Citroen C5 2.2 HDi Exclusive Auto 2001
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 January - engine rattled until replaced. Gave it back at 1600 miles.
Citroen Grand Picasso II 150 HDi EAT6 Exclusive 2015 July - still going strong
x 4

Re: Reversing lights upgrade?

Post by WillyR »

Thanks Van Ordinaire.
Any details supplied most gratefully received.
2015 (Jul) C4 Grand Picasso 2.0 Bluehdi 150 EAT6 Exclusive+ now running on 17" wheels - SO MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE AND SMOOTH THAN 18" - AND better fuel economy :) =D>
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