Yostumpy Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 last night my front side light bulb went, so I replaced it with a spare. Then I noticed it was twice as bright as the other one. New one turned out to be 10w, old one was 5w. Makes a huge difference, but if I replace both fronts with 10w, is that too much for the fuse/ wiring of a 20 yo truck. I know it is a piffling 10 w total extra, but they fitted 5w for a reason. Any thoughts, or should I just refit a new 5w? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crwoody Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 A 12v 10W (or 2 x 5W) lamp will draw less than 1 amp, so 2 amps for a pair of 10W will be no problem at all for the wiring or fuses. Don't forget, you'll have 21W lamps for the indicators and stop lights on the same size wiring. I think the original choice of 5W lamps has more to do with construction and use regulations that were relevant at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotts90 Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 Just be aware the running the 10w may begin to melt the holders especially if they've been replaced by cheap units and you run with sidelights on all the time. The 21w are in the same holders but only momentary...ie brake lights (via a 21/5w twin filament) and indicators. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yostumpy Posted March 3, 2018 Author Share Posted March 3, 2018 hmm, just read an old post on Def 2 ( 5 years ago) about this, and one chap fitted 10w bulbs, and eventually it melted/ deformed his lenses. Think I'll get 5w. Thanks all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 Also... 5w is what the regulations allow for sidelights. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 Construction and use Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 Yus ^^^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yostumpy Posted March 3, 2018 Author Share Posted March 3, 2018 (edited) Ok, I wasn't trying to be clever, just noticed that they were brighter, and thought that could be a good thing. Anyhow just bought a pack of 2 5w, and put one in,....hmmmmm, that's still brighter than the other one, even in daylight. So I swapped the other one as well. This is what it looked like.. WP_20180303_10_05_00_Pro by mark tilley, on Flickr Is this normal aging or is it a type of 'silvered ' bulb. Never seen one like it. The other dead one was like it as well. As said, thanks all for the input. Edited March 3, 2018 by Yostumpy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cackshifter Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 Normal ageing, but they normally die before that. The silvering is vapourised filament condensing on the glass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yostumpy Posted March 3, 2018 Author Share Posted March 3, 2018 6 minutes ago, cackshifter said: Normal ageing, but they normally die before that. The silvering is vapourised filament condensing on the glass. Ah, prob original 20 year old ones then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 change to led front sidelights, much better than the bulb units & they are fully sealed from dirt/weather. I bought a pair of these from RDX [bolt on bits] https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-RDX-LED-73mm-Front-Side-Lights-Land-Rover-Defender-90-110-Kit-Cars-/232160928887?hash=item360ddea477 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yostumpy Posted March 3, 2018 Author Share Posted March 3, 2018 YEBBUT! they are £25, my 2 bulbs were 75p 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 I changed as I wanted lights that don't dim as they get older & can't get corroded & moisture in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanuki Posted March 4, 2018 Share Posted March 4, 2018 A decade back I thought it would be smart to put 10-Watt bulbs in place of the standard 5-watt ones. They melted the lenses, and let water in, causing the bulbs to fail. So I reverted to 5-Watt bulbs and put a blob of Araldite over the melted hole. To be honest, why bother trying to uprate your glow-worm-power 'parking-lights'? It's really rather easy and more sensible to fit a relay that switches your main-beam headlights on as soon as you turn the ignition-key. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwakers Posted March 4, 2018 Share Posted March 4, 2018 leds seem to be the best option Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted March 4, 2018 Share Posted March 4, 2018 LED is a good option either in buying new light units or like me buying a replacement LED for the bulb, Note that using an LED instead of replacing the complete light unit is not covered by Construction and Use Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oakmaster Posted March 4, 2018 Share Posted March 4, 2018 the problem is with LEDs (i changed all the bulbs in my Puma to LEDs the week it rolled out the show room, because mainly, A) I didn't want the unreliability issues, and B) didn't want to worry about leaving the lights on! What i didnt foresee was that fact that the heat from incandescent bulb helps drive off the moisture / condensation, and the lights are no more reliable (and in these times, that heat clears away the snow and ice!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted March 5, 2018 Share Posted March 5, 2018 That smoke is only for series with a dynamo. Be careful with Lucas smoke these days, as anyone who pays can use the Lucas branding. You may find that it's cheap Chinese smoke and nowhere near OEM or genuine quality smoke. HTH Mo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotts90 Posted March 5, 2018 Share Posted March 5, 2018 22 hours ago, Oakmaster said: the problem is with LEDs (i changed all the bulbs in my Puma to LEDs the week it rolled out the show room, because mainly, A) I didn't want the unreliability issues, and B) didn't want to worry about leaving the lights on! What i didnt foresee was that fact that the heat from incandescent bulb helps drive off the moisture / condensation, and the lights are no more reliable (and in these times, that heat clears away the snow and ice!) All joking aside, the heat is a double edged sword...it can dry off condensation and melt ice but if it's the usual black grime road spray the heat soon turns this into a nice brown film that vastly reduces light output. I would say my halogen transit lights suffer more through this than any icing that occurs on the defenders' LED units. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.