[TR] Headlight replacement

[Dave1massey at cs.com]

In a message dated 3/2/2012 4:31:01 PM Central Standard Time, 
flywheelcoventry1 at yahoo.co.uk writes: 
> UK have Magneti Marelli headlamps in their TR's that were a straight swap 
> from
> Alfas and Fiats of the same era and they claim excellent light properties.
> Worth trying if you don't want Bosch, Cibie or Lucas smellalikes?
> 

When I fitted my ' 79 Mustang with just such a system I, too was quite 
impressed in the improvement in illumination.  So much so I fitted bulbed 
headlights to the TR6.  Unfortunately the units I fitted on the TR6 were cheap 
pacific rim units from JC Whitless.  After a period of disappointment I changed 
them out for sealed beam halogens from my local hardware store.  $10 a 
piece.  Much better even though they were half the wattage.

That's when it occurred to me that a headlamp is more than just a source of 
light.  It is a light projection system with a critically dimensioned 
reflector.  The cheap units I bought were not well designed or not manufactured 
accurately and even with 100 W bulbs they didn't illuminate the road very 
well.

My advice is to stick to known brands be it Cibie, Marchal,Bosch, Lucas, 
Marelli.  There is junk out there, beware.

Dave