Thread: Sealed Beam Driving Lights

My General Electric Sealed Beam Lamp Catalog is a bit dated but they did have a good range of automotive special purpose sealed beam lamps in halogen and tungsten. Find their local office in your 'phone book. I always found them most helpful in sourcing special purpose lamps for mining and earthmoving equipment.

Cheers, I should also say I'm looking for something commonly available so when I break another there's less wallet-ache.
The Hella 550's were about $100 each.

Or is there a better option for driving lights that won't fill up with water on the occasional time they get dunked? They need to be rectangular shape as they fit under the bumper in the factory location.

Seal them with silicone or butylmastic orsimilar (not Sikkaflex). + modify as below.

On the p38, the fog lamps have two tubes one that enters at the bottom of the housing the other that exits at the top of the housing on the oposite side. The other end of the tubes terminate high up under the bonnet. The reason for this system is that the seals prevent water/mud getting in but still allows the heat generated by the filiament to circulate out of the housing and cool clean air to enter, instead of drawing contaminated water and mud into the lamp.

Remember the lamps are always expanding and contracting depending upon the conditions and when a hot lamp gets splashed it cools instantly drawing whatever gas or fluid is easiest back into the lamp housing, which in that location is dirty water.

Lamps with breathers would be excellent. The Hella's had a vent on each corner of a type that would make fitting a breather very difficult.

Paddocks have P38 lamps for 60 quid each. It would be cheaper to just keep replacing Hella's.

Hi Dougal

The P38 lamps are the wrong shape for the classic air dam.

I was thinking of some sort of nipple fitting straight through the back of the Hella housing and likely matching holes at the back of the light recess in the air dam.

You should be able to seal over the original vent from inside using the same sealant used on the housing.

Hi Dougal
FWIW: have you considered the LED "Light Bars"? ... they're slim fit, rectangular, come in various lengths, far less heat /current draw... seem to have excellent long distance light throw ... often listed on e-Bay
cheers

I'm not running the original front air-dam, they keep getting broken. Just the lights and brackets from them. The size and position works quite well.

At the moment I think I've got no good Hella's. Both cracked lenses. There has to be a better option than spending $200 on new ones and then drilling them.
LED's are everywhere, but TBH I don't like them at all and they don't fit the look of a classic vehicle.

I don't use these a lot, but when I need them I'm very happy they are there. We have 6 monthly WOF inspections and if lights are fitted they need to work and not be full of water or mud.

The IPF 900XS (round) or 800XS (rectangular) are extremely well sealed. I've had the 900XS on the front of my Tdi for almost 8 years and nothing gets inside them. Their halogens but I haven't even replaced a bulb yet.

Strangely the HID versions are not only more expensive but have a gapping hole in the body.