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General Volvo and Motoring Discussions This forum is for messages of a general nature about Volvos that are not covered by other forums and other motoring related matters of interest. Users will need to register to post/reply. |
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Dipped beam hopeless on 2011 C30 D3Views : 618 Replies : 7Users Viewing This Thread : |
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Dec 6th, 2019, 18:51 | #1 |
New Member
Last Online: Apr 16th, 2022 12:45
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Location: WARMINSTER
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Dipped beam hopeless on 2011 C30 D3
I am struggling with a headlight issue on my Volvo C30 D3 2011. The projector headlights on dipped beam are dangerously dim. I have gone from standard 55w H7's to Osram Nightbreakers and have now tried 55w HID's which are all dangerously inadequate and fail to throw very much light onto the road in front. On mainbeam, all is fine, but on dipped beam with cars coming towards you it is very scary, as I cannot see and am just driving into a black hole.
Can anyone please give advise on what to try next? is there an after market internal projector that will improve the light emitted or should I buy some after market headlights? Presently, the car can only be driven safely in the daylight, which is absurd Many Thanks Johnny |
Dec 6th, 2019, 19:12 | #2 |
Pete
Last Online: Jul 4th, 2021 22:21
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Location: North West
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Have you had the headlamp beam alignment checked? My V70 was slightly low but the adjustment made a big difference.
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2003 V70 D5 [163] SE - Sold at 188,000 miles. 2011 V70 D5 [215] Rdesign - currently owned. |
Dec 8th, 2019, 22:52 | #3 |
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Last Online: Aug 29th, 2020 13:16
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My 2010 c30 seems fine, have you tried cleaning the lights inside? They get foggy and that cuts the light emissions down substantially. Worth a look.
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Dec 9th, 2019, 11:01 | #4 |
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Last Online: Jan 30th, 2021 12:00
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I had an S40 that was as appalling and tried a range of different bulbs with no success. I was very happy to hand it back, it was dangerous. Sorry I can not help, hopefully the other suggestions can, but you are not alone in having duff lights in an older Volvo.
It must be housing related in some ways as the upgraded bulbs help in other cars.
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Dec 9th, 2019, 11:11 | #5 | |
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Dec 10th, 2019, 08:02 | #6 |
Pain in the backside
Last Online: Today 00:21
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As Mr. Clan says, projectors are stuffed. Have a go at retrofitting new projectors in. Headlight out job. Have a look at retrofitlab.com They sell not too expensive projectors, some are direct replacement, some may need some loving to get to fit.
https://www.retrofitlab.com/en/volvo...eadlights.html Aharon are top brand. I have them retrofitted in my 300c. I had your similar issue. Burned out projector lenses. Now, I have retina burning light at night. Perfect for the foglight toting eejits.
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'Designed by a computer, built by a robot, and driven by a f***ing nutter' '09 XC70 SE - 2" lift, D5 225bhp, poverty spec.
Last edited by monkeh; Dec 10th, 2019 at 08:07. |
Dec 10th, 2019, 09:57 | #7 |
Volvo S40
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Just how these cars are, terrible dipped beams. Even after cleaning headlights with original bulbs they wernt great.
I replaced my OEM dipped bulbs with a HID conversion kit with a 4300k bulb, so close enough to the original color and that sorted my dipped lights out fine. If you post in the relevant section of the forum for the model of your car, you will get more people that can help you.
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Dec 10th, 2019, 13:37 | #8 |
FCW Auto Service
Last Online: Apr 17th, 2024 23:49
Join Date: Feb 2015
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A number of us here have fitted the RetroFitLabs.com E46 H7 projectors, which are a plug and play swap. Just 3 torx screws to fit them+ a bit of adjustment.
Approx £130, but hugely worth it. Pros: - 100% plug and play, easy to install. - Excellent distance visibility with halogen bulbs. - Razor sharp horizontal cut-off beam pattern (if you like that sort of thing) - Maximum brightness is focused right at the very edge of the cutoff... like a spotlight. - They include a solenioid activated shutter that opens when main beam is activated, so that the halogens can assist the main meam. (OEM dipped doesnt have this feature) - No need to use HID kit with these projectors, a good quality set of Halogen Bulbs are easily bright enough. Cons: - The beam is narrower than OEM - Beam height adjustment needed, but the crappy adjusters on the Volvo headlamp always snap off. This is Volvo's fault. These units have been designed to take as much light as possible from the light source and throw it as far down the road (directly infront of you) as possible, so for seeing straight ahead they are excellent. Last edited by T5R92011; Dec 10th, 2019 at 14:22. |
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