Date:         Mon, 14 Oct 2002 15:53:07 -0500
Reply-To:     Bruce Nadig <motorbruce@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Bruce Nadig <motorbruce@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: SA Round Headlight Install Notes - Long
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed

One other note that I forgot:

The SA dual round grill comes with 4 mounting pins. Two of these pop in to
the H4 headlight bucket where the quarter turn fastener from the old
rectangular headlights attached. In the center of the grill there are two
holes that appear to be for bolts. On our US Vanagons there is nothing to
bolt the grill to. Carefully remove one of the old quarter turn fasteners
from your oil grill and install it in the center of your new SA grill. (The
quarter turn fastener is removed from the old grill by carefully working the
rubber retaining collar off the shaft of the fastener. Installation on the
new grill is the reverse of removal.) Your new SA grill will now be secured
by a quarter turn fastener in the center and a "pop in" pin on either side.

>From: Bruce Nadig <motorbruce@HOTMAIL.COM>
>Reply-To: Bruce Nadig <motorbruce@HOTMAIL.COM>
>To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>Subject: SA Round Headlight Install Notes - Long
>Date: Mon, 14 Oct 2002 09:50:30 -0500
>
>Follow Vanagonites,
>
>I recently installed the South African dual round headlight grill on my '87
>Vanagon GL. The installation went fairly smoothly, but here are a few notes
>I'd like to share with the board. This e-mail doesn't cover relays and
>wiring (separately I can send you notes and a picture of The Mother Of All
>Wiring Harnesses if you request, but the subject of wiring and relays has
>been covered pretty well recently), just the physical installation of the
>other pieces of the kit.
>
>1) Holes for the outer H4 lights are already in the body. You just need to
>remove the old lights and bolt up the new lights to these holes. Sheet
>metal
>screws will work fine in this application.
>
>2) When replacing the rectangular headlights found on the late model
>Vanagons, there is a tab that must be removed from the body of the van.
>This
>tab is pop-riveted to the front of the bodywork. The lower inner corner of
>the bracket for the rectangular lights was screwed into this tab. The tab
>must be removed because it interferes with the mounting of the inner
>driving
>lights. Once the pop-rivets are removed, be sure to treat the bare metal
>area that is now exposed. I cleaned the metal and painted the holes with
>some touch-up paint to prevent rust.
>
>3) It will be necessary to drill 4 new holes in order to mount each of the
>driving lights (a total of 8 holes). To locate these holes, place the
>driving light in approximately the correct position on the van. Have an
>assistant hold the light while you install the grill in its final position.
>Adjust the position of the driving light until it is in the center of the
>grill opening. Have your assistant hold the driving light in place with
>absolutely no movement while you remove the grill. If the light moves, do
>it
>again. Positioning is critical. After the grill is removed, mark the
>mounting location on the body with a permanent marker. If you have a
>strained relationship with your spouse or significant other I recommend
>having someone else hold the light for you during this step.
>
>4) Drill holes to mount the inner driving lights. No rocket science here.
>Just be careful and patient. Once the holes are drilled, carefully remove
>any burrs or sharp edges from both the front and the back of the hole.
>Carefully treat the bare metal (as above) to prevent rust).
>
>5) To secure the bottom of the inner driving lights it is necessary to use
>nuts and bolts. There are two layers of sheet metal there so using a
>self-tapping sheet metal screw just isn't a good idea. For the top you can
>used either nuts and bolts, or sheet metal screws. I used nuts and bolts on
>mine.
>
>6) The bracket that mounts the inner driving lights has a very shiny
>surface. Once mounted on the van, this shiny bracket can be seen even when
>the grill is mounted. To eliminate this, carefully cover the lens and
>adjusters with masking tape. Once everything is masked, paint the bracket
>black. I used a flat black spray paint. It worked pretty well.
>
>7) While on the subject of paint, there is another piece that is nice to
>paint. The thin round mounting rings that hold the H4 lights into their
>buckets have probably become corroded over time. Sand them a bit and then
>paint them with flat black paint also. For a little bit of effort you get a
>really nice finished look.
>
>8) If you are going to be using high wattage bulbs, I highly recommend
>getting some connectors that can stand up to the heat that can be
>generated.
>For the H4 connection at the bulb, I sued some Hella connectors that I got
>from Daniel Stern Lighting:  (http://lighting.mbz.org , Actually I got all
>of my lights there. Great prices, service, products, and technical
>assistance! All the standard disclaimers - I am just a very pleased
>customer!). The Hella connectors seem to be made of a heat resistant
>material similar to Bakelite. In the past I have melted headlight
>connectors
>and harnesses - never again. Use the right stuff the first time.
>
>9) To prevent corrosion, I used generous amounts of dielectric grease on
>all
>of my electrical connections. It is easier to put the stuff on now than it
>is to clean the corrosion later.
>
>10) Aim the headlights properly. Very detailed instructions can be found on
>Daniel Stern's site (above). The aiming process is easy and painless. I
>think it took me longer to set up the measurements on my garage door than
>it
>did to actually aim the lights. You can do the procedure by yourself. Just
>adjust the light, then sit in the driver's seat to see where the light goes
>with the added weight in the front. Be sure you have a full tank of fuel.
>That really seems to make a difference on the Vanagons.
>
>That's it. I was going to give some of the credit for this information to
>one of the other list members also. Unfortunately I accidentally deleted
>his
>e-mails to me and I have forgotten his name. For this I apologize. For all
>that read this, please don't give me all of the credit.
>
>Good Luck!
>
>Bruce
>
>
>
>
>
>
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