[Healeys] Lucas LeMans headlights

Oudesluys coudesluijs at chello.nl
Wed Oct 21 16:23:36 MDT 2009


In the EU the old Lucas 5,5" and 7" units and sealed beams (illegal over 
here) are often replaced by Cibie H4 Halogen Lucas lookalikes or with 
flatter but better Hella units. There are others as well. You can even 
fit 100W or more bulbs in them if you fit thicker feed and earth wires. 
Possibly VW Golf units do fit. They are used in a number of old British 
cars.
The old units that carried the double filament Tungsten bulbs can be 
fitted with after market higher powered (60W I think) Halogen bulbs, 
however this is not a very satisfactory solution. These bulbs are 
generally of inferior quality and the filaments do not line up to make a 
properly shaped beam.
Kees Oudesluijs
NL


Peter Svilans schreef:
> I would agree more with Ken.  My BN6 always had the Le Mans lights with stock
> bulbs.  Really neat looking, with the LeMans 24 script,  but they were never
> totally satisfactory.  They really are period racing- not everyday modern-
> lights IMHO.
>
> The superb Lucas design and precise alignment was able to extract the very
> maximum out of a normal stock tungsten bulb of the 1950's.  But only on high
> beam.  Low beams were always just two miserable yellow pools in front of the
> car, as if there was a sacrifice of one (low) for the other (high).  I suppose
> one didn't dip beams coming up on a competitor in a race.  These lights with
> stock bulbs are really not up to modern lighting standards, but I rather like
> the distinctive British Car yellow look.
>
> The original Lucas P 700 and PL 700 'tripod' lamps were the performance road
> lights of the time, with both excellent high and low beams.  I say 'original'
> because the tripod reproduction lamps commonly seen now are of absolutely
> abysmal quality- lacking all of what made the Lucas units great- superb
> optical quality, precision alignment and high assembly standards.
> Tungsten-halogen bulbs with the P45 base these tripod lamps need are readily
> available, but the LeMans take a harder to find P36 base.  Can't help
> wondering if the original precise alignment of reflector to filament, is not
> quite the same with a replacement WalMart halogen bulb.  More power, though.
>
> The LeMans lights were usually left on high beam with few disagreements.  And
> we've generally gotten more used to looking into paint-blistering blue HID
> lights these days.
>
> Best
> Peter
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