Headlights
Upgrades
X1/9s use a common 7" diameter high/low headlight used in many other vehicles. Aftermarket headlights and headlights with replaceable bulbs are also available, though some of these are for "off-road" use only. Check local laws before changing your headlights. When using many aftermarket headlights, you must alter the wiring in the headlight socket to match the needs of the bulb, as with an H4 bulb. H4 bulbs are available in 55/60w, 80/100w, even 100/120w. When you consider that most original 7" bulbs were 35w it's easy to understand why upgrading the wiring is needed.--Gregory 14:38, 16 September 2009 (UTC)
Supply voltage
Regardless of the headlights you have, low voltage or bad grounding will not allow them to operate to their fullest potential. The relay instructions on the BrownWire mod page (duplicated below) will ensure that full voltage is provided for the headlights and is a requirement for aftermarket lights. (duplicated bel-Gregory 14:38, 16 September 2009 (UTC)
Headlight motors
Headlight Switch
Proper Aiming
Aiming your headlights is essential for proper function and safety. Simply put, the high beam or mains bright spot should be centered in front of the car at the same distance from the floor as the headlight center, as measured at a distance of 25'. When switched to low beam or dipped, the bright spot will be on the pavement ahead of the car. Always test drive to make sure the aiming is successful.--Gregory 14:38, 16 September 2009 (UTC)
Headlight Relays
(an excerpt from the Brown Wire Mod page BrownWire) See image below.
This mod provides a direct source of pure voltage from the battery to the headlights. As the current system was designed... the low and high beams only receive 10.5 to 11.4 volts after it has been routed through its many switches and componants.
NO AMOUNT OF HALOGEN UPGRADES WILL HELP until the PROPER voltage is applied.
Using the new Auxilliary Fuse Block with its NEW direct tie to the battery... we will INTERRUPT the original wiring and use the original voltage to the headlights simply to TRIGGER one of the two NEW relays... which will connect the new souce of power directly to the low and high beams. This will be done WHILE STANDING UP, in the front trunk next to the new fuse block and existing wiring harness.
1. Mount the 30A relays to the firewall next to the new fuse block. Be sure the relays are well GROUNDED by scraping away paint. They need the body as a ground source in order to operate... much like your horns.
2. Carefully unwrap the wiring harness to expose all the wiring. Look for 4 wires that are black with grey stripes, and black with green stripes. Separate them out of the loom so that they can be cut and lengthened... in order to operate the relays. DO NOT CUT THEM YET!
3. Cut EIGHT pieces of tape and use a marker to mark the wires, 2 each, LH, LL, RH, RL... for Left High, Left Low, etc.
4. Turn on the headlights and switch from high to low and insure all four lights are working... Left Low, Right Low, Left High, Right High. With the lights still on... CUT one wire. Note which light went out... if none initially, then switch the high beams on... Mark the cut ends of the wire with the appropiate tape label. Do this with all four wires and all 8 pieces of tape.
5. The relays should have their leads marked with L, S, and B. L is for LOAD, in this case the lights, B is for battery, or the new voltage source, and S is for switch, or the "trigger" source. If they are different, you will need to determine what each function is for the relay you have.
6. Run one wire from Fuse 2 to the B post of one relay... run another wire from Fuse 3 to the B post of the other relay. (Now each relay has a fused source of power directly from the battery... DO NOT install the fuse yet.)
7. Locate the two wires marked RL and LL coming from the cockpit... and twist them together. Add a length of wire from these two to the S post of one of the relays. LABEL this relay LOW. Locate the other two wires marked RH and LH from the cockpit, twist them together and add a length of wire and tie thes to the other relay's post marked S. Label this relay HIGH.
If you turn on the lights now... the LOW relay will click as you turn on the switch... and the HIGH relay will click when you activate the high beams. (no lights will light yet though.)
This is a good test to this point though...
8. Lastly, locate the two LL and RL wires going to the lights, twist these together and add a length of wire and tie it to the L terminal on the LOW relay. Do the same with the RH and LH lead and tie to the L of the HIGH relay.
9. Insert fuses and test.
10. Happiness abounds and LOADS of light. While yur at it... make sure all grounds are good coming off the lights in the pods...
11. You have one or two fuses left... I suggest you buy a 15 - 20 dollar air horn set from Harbor Freight or Pep Boys and use this as a source of power for them. Horns will mount inside the LEFT LIGHT POD and I guarantee... you will never go unnoticed again!
I also found most two horn, air horns harmonize BEAUTIFULLY with the two original horns!
Modified 1978 OEM Manual High and Low Beam Circuits. Light Gray = Removed lines in diagram | Red = Power supplied from battery | Green = Modified existing lines to trigger relay and to power high beams | Dark Gray = Modified existing lines to trigger relay and to power low beams