Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Rich5ltr]

Hi Chaps,

My Lagonda had a fine pair of ex-Rolls Royce P100 headlamps fitted by a previous owner some years ago and I am now trying to replace them with a pair of P80 S lamps as originally fitted. Apparently the P80 S are quite rare but people sometimes swap them for P100s which are larger.

So anyone got any leads on P80S or fancy a swap?

[Rich5ltr]

I am told that these would have been fitted to a pre-war Rolls Royce Phantom say 1935-39.

Does anyone know any good British based RR forums on which I could explore the possibilities of a swap or sale?

[peter scott]

Probably not a cheap solution but you might be able to broker a deal with this company:

http://www.vintage-headlamp-restoration.co.uk/headlamps.html

Peter
_________________
http://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[Rich5ltr]

Indeed, I have been in touch and as you say, not cheap at around £2,500 for a pair of P80s with my P100s in exchange. Interestingly a similar company called Genius of The Lamp are talking a similar deal.

I'm happy to pay what's right but it's establishing what the value that's difficult. Lee at the headlamp restoration company admitted that he only valued my lamps at £500 because he will need to restore them before selling them on. If I can find someone who requires P100s then I would expect around double that and then pay as necessary for the P80s

[Rich5ltr]

Managed to acquire a nice pair of P80s from a chap who saw my post here although he didn't join the forum. As he's got an Austin 7 and a Jensen 541 I'd say that he really should!

I will get the bowls and rim re-chromed but the glass and reflectors are in good nick so I'm happy.

Then I need to decide if I am going to re-wire them with modern twin filament bulbs or stick with the original dipping system of a solenoid moving the reflector down.

Must say that as far a lighting is concerned I tend towards being able to see rather than originality.

[Penman]

Hi
Is switch and dip still legal on a 1933 car?
I thought that at some time in the past they changed the laws and brought in a cut off date which meant that earlier cars after that date had to be changed over to double dip.
_________________
Bristols should always come in pairs.

Any 2 from:-
Straight 6
V8 V10

[Rich5ltr]

You're right about "dip n switch" as certainly one has to have a pair of lamps illuminated rather than just one however I am told that if the car left the factory with only one dipping lamp then it should be tested in that state.

Evidenced by the fact that my car passed it's MOTs with only one dipping lamp up to 2013 when it was last tested. That said I can't get to the bottom of an actual definitive statement on the matter as whatever one person says someone else seems to have alternative advice!

[ukdave2002]

Dip and switch isn't legal on any vehicle made post 1st Jan 1931. I had quite a lengthy correspondence with VOSA about this some years ago, as I wanted to return a 30's car to its original factory specification.

I don't recal when the regulation changed, but it's one of the few regulation changes that effects vehicles retrspectivly. At the same time as dip and switch being outlawed on post 1930 vehicles, there was a requirement to have 2 tail lamps ( my Morris left the factory with a single unit) and 2 rear reflectors were required, none of which were original.

Post 1931 vehicles shouldn't pass an MOT with dip and switch, not that anything pre 60's needs to now, if it did it still doesn't make it legal.

All that said I very much doubt any policeman is going to waste his time pulling up a 30's car with what appears to be a lamp out, and if he did it would probably just be to advise it's out. So I'm returning my Morris to dip and switch

The regs can be found here:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1989/1796/schedule/1/made

Cheers

Dave

[peter scott]

Fitting twin filament bulbs to these lamps doesn't work because you can't achieve focus on both filaments. The best solution for double dipping is to convert the fixed lamp to solenoid operation.

Peter
_________________
http://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[mikeC]

The original dip and switch arrangement was for one lamp to dip and the other (usually the off-side) lamp to go out. This arrangement is now illegal on post 1930 cars as you say. However, it is perfectly legal to have the system re-wired so that one lamp dips and the other stays lit, so long as it is set not to dazzle. This is commonly done on cars like an Austin Ruby - with the performance of the Lagonda, I think I would go for something more effective!

[Rich5ltr]

[mikeC]

From the driving seat of my Austin Seven, your Lagonda still clips along, I can only dream of cruising at 50-55mph

[Rich5ltr]

Well due to a schoolboy error which I will put down to youthful exuberance the lamps I bought are the incorrect kind for my Lagonda and will not fit. I had not realised that there is a fundamental difference between the P80 and the P80S - the S type has a raised lip or collar around the base of the fixing and this is what the brackets clamp up against to secure the lamp on the mounting brackets.

I have passed the P80 lamps on to a chap with a SS Jaguar 1.5 Mk IV and as a result I am on the lookout for some P80S lamps again...