A610 Headlight bulbs?

Could someone help me with the correct bulbs for both main and dipped beams? Owner's manual says H1 Bulbs but having bought some they don't fit. Car has what appear to be H4s installed previously, however, H4s are dual filament for use in single lens units. As the 610 has separate lenses for dip and main beams this doesn't seem correct either. Pretty confused!

[mettersl]

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Hi Hedley,
It looks like there might be more than one type of headlight out there. The dips are clearly standard bosch units used elsewhere...they even have a sidelight bulb in them.
From memory I had some dipped units with H1 bulbs when I had my last 610..but I sold off all the spares.
However I have just bought a new dipped beam headlight from the USA supplier on ebay and its picture is below...definitely H4 with two filaments. What wiring does your car have?
I dont have the wiring book with me, but it looks like h4 is fine, for the dips anyway if tours are like this one.
That means that even more lighting could be provided with some wiring mods and an extra relay to put the second filament on for main beam on the dips, main beam on the main and with the spots too. Still doesn't help the pathetic dipped beam, where the GTA is much better.
Hope this helps
Lee

Thanks Lee. Mine doesn't have the side light built in. There's only the main bulb. It looks like it's wired for H4 bulbs. It seems weird to have dual filament bulbs in both the dipped and main beam units only using single filaments in each. My lenses were filthy inside so I'm hoping the lights will be much more effective now I've removed them and cleaned them internally.

[mettersl]

Even the new ones I have seem to have a foggy appearance...I’ll have to try and clean mine too and see if I get a better result, otherwise night driving tends to be sedate (when the car worked, currently at rats).

I have had some good results with some LED bulbs. A significant upgrade!

https://www.classiccarleds.co.uk/produc ... sion-9-32v

Mine still need aligning properly. They (just) fit, with the heatsinks turned round the opposite way from supplied.

I did have HID lights before, but wasn't satisfied with them.

The standard lights are appalling. I have no idea why that is the case, but...

Yes mine were cloudy too. After much scrubbing I realised the dirt was on the inside. Once off the car I managed to clean them through the bulb aperture by pouring in kettle descaler. They are crystal clear again now. It's made a huge difference

Yes mine were also cloudy. Cleaning them did make a big difference but they were still rubbish... Now need to upgrade the high beams too. As far as I remember there are shutters on the high beams. Might be possible to remove them for more light output?

My lights are h4's
I have just upgraded my lotus carlton with some very nice leds lamps and doing the same with the a610

[stephendell]

If you are worried about such things don't forget afaik there are no currently no road legal aftermarket LED headlamp bulbs. Even the hugely expensive and very nice Philips ones which are purportedly the best are clearly marked "for rally and race tracks" "Not for use on public roads"

Doesn't worry me as I had totally illegal aftermarket HIDs in the Twingo but just so you know in case you get a strict MOT tester or pulled over by a jobsworth official.

Trick is apparently is not to go too blue in an older car to draw attention and check the alignment, not sure anyone would even be looking though.

Hi all,

As most of you know I own a 1993 A610 and on all 4 lamps both Dipped and Main Beam in the glass the word H4 is moulded so you don't make a mistake bulb wise even though the wrong bulb is stated in my owners manual.

Yes I have to use double filament bulbs with only one filament being used. I have changed all four bulbs for Osram Nightbreakers that have given 'some' improvement but they're still not brilliant . I too would be interested in a possible LED option.

Cheers, Barry

Barry, all,

I can heartily recommend the LED lamps I chose. They are so much better than halogens. I only upgraded the low beam. When funds permit I plan to upgrade the high beams too. They still need adjustment but the improvement is dramatic! They only just fit... it might be good to consider some with the fabric-type heatsinks.

Andrew