Car Headlights

Headlights are situated in the front of the car. They are a part of the lighting system. Due to them driver can see the road in the dark or in conditions of bad visibility. Lamps light in front of the car and can be used in different modes: upper beam, lower beam, parking lights. There are also daylight and swivelling headlights. Headlights play a very important role in traffic safety. They help other road traffic participants to observe vehicle at a big distance.

In headlights there are used bulbs, halogen bulbs and xenon lamps. Currently, halogen technology is a common standard, because represents an optimum relationship between price and quality. Xenon lamps give more light, but the price is respectively higher. Headlight’s damage may be observed in the course of a simple visual examination. One man seats inside the car and switches on different variants of lighting while another one stands in front of the car and checks if headlights' work. The most widespread reason the headlight doesn’t light is a burned-out lamp. Also headlight may be broken in the result of road metal hit or in the result of an accident.

While headlight substitution you should pay attention to the reflector to be installed correctly. Many of car fans forget about the fact that headlights must be adjusted to the car to light in the most efficiently way. Installation of new headlights in older cars will result in light efficiency rising, because nowadays there are available more perfect technologies. If you search for any other reserve parts for your car, we recommend you to visit our web-shop. There you will find brake blocks, horns, ignition plugs, back lamps, turn indicators, rear-view mirrors, stub axles, fenders and many other parts. We offer you goods of the best quality at attractive prices.

How to detect malfunction of the headlight

First, remove the lens and inspect the lamp. The bulb should be clean, and the filament should be intact. Then open the fuse and relay box and assess the state of the fuse. The fuse should not be damaged.

Then check operation of the Headlight relay. If the relay is working, short clicks will be heard when you attempt to switch headlights on. If no clicks are heard, the relay is out of order.

To check integrity of the connecting wires, open the hood and inspect them. Also pay attention to correct connection. The terminals should not have traces of oxidation.

If you fail to detect the reason of the malfunction yourself, visit a service station, and have testing done with special equipment.

You may notice that the main Headlight requires diagnostics by the following symptoms:

• when the Headlight is turned on, it does not light up;
• the light is dim or blinking;
• the direction of the light beam is distorted;
• moisture is condensing inside the component.

The reasons of headlight malfunction

Very often, the headlight cannot be turned on because its fuse is burnt due to a voltage surge. This may also be caused by strong shakes during movement of the vehicle.

Lamps are consumable elements, and have limited service life. Depending on the type of the lamp, it is 500 to 3,000 hours. It may be shortened by incorrect installation or unstable voltage.

Mechanical damages of the component are caused by road accidents and sharp temperature changes. Cracks cause loss of tightness of the headlight, and moisture is condensed under the glass. Headlights misting up may also be caused by clogging of the ventilation holes. Constant presence of moisture in the housing of the component results in oxidation of wires and formation of rust on the reflector and the inner elements of the Headlight. Poor quality components fail faster.

Repairing the Headlight

Most often, it is fastening elements that wear out and break. Therefore, the most popular are  the repair works aimed at restoring integrity of the fasteners. If the reflector or the housing are cracked, or junctions of the headlight parts have lost tightness, you may fix this yourself. To restore the reflector, it should be grinded and then polished. To restore the mirror coating, remove the deteriorated material from the walls of the housing, then degrease them, and apply new coating. If the wiring is faulty, seek help of specialists.

Replacing the Headlight

To replace the component, do the following:

1. Remove the bumper.
2. Unscrew and extract the fasteners.
3. Disconnect the power supply from the headlight.
4. Extract the housing of the replaced component from its mounting location.
5. Install, connect, and fasten a new component.
6. Install the bumper.
7. Test the new Headlight .