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I am wanting the electric headlight conversion kit (Richard's). He sent me the PDF instructions, and it looks pretty straight forward. However, I'm not really anxious to DIY. Those of you who have done this, about how long (honestly) did it take to complete the job? Any unexpected problems pop up? Also, anyone near me (Youngstown, Ohio) willing and able to do the job, you're hired.
It really was not a bad job at all. I like to wire things up so that was not an issue. Grinding the housing was the only thing I really could have messed up. Take your time and it will all fit in. Took maybe 5 hours total.
There is a few hi tech systems available in the US , IMO systems like Richard has posted here are better , simple and most importantly work.
to you question, if you buy a kit, it will take about 4 hours to fit if you are familiar with the wiring etc of the car.
building you own setup is time consuming but worth the effort again in my opinion..
bfit
I bought Richard's kit. No grinding or cutting or modifying of structure. Did it myself on my '73. A person younger than me (75) can probably do it in 4 to 5 hours if there are no complications (which will likely be the case). I did it in stages over a few days. If you have complications, Richard is very responsive with help.
I didn't specifically respond to your question, "Any unexpected problems crop up?" Yes, one did, which Richard helped me through.
My unexpected problem was: I got the installation completed and tested. The first time I needed the lights, which was fortunately at dusk and not complete darkness, they came up and worked fine for about a minute or two. Then they suddenly started cycling up and down alternately and continuously. As an aside, when I told my brother about that happening, he responded with, "Cool!", and my brother is NOT 10 years old. Anyway, Richard told me the likely cause (and he was right). I had, at some time in my 49 years of having this car, changed out the headlight switch on the dash with a reproduction one. Some of the reproduction ones can't handle the electrical load necessary for the modification to function properly. The original equipment headlight switches tend to work fine. The fix for my case is the addition to Richard's harness of a harness from Dapper Lighting (about $35 when I got mine, probably more now). I added that harness between Richard's harness and the car's power source, and all is well.
Thanks all, for your input. Responses are pretty much as expected. I am getting lazy about working on the car (especially laying down to work underneath at rusty bolts), but I will probably get Richard's kit. It's basically bolt in, the best engineered I've seen, and I will no doubt work on it in stages over a couple or more weekends sometime this summer, (unless I can employ someone).
Remember, this corvette thing is supposed to be fun. No stress, take your time. Enjoy the journey and especially the "Yeah, I did that" when people ask.
Well, the conversion kit is in and working like a charm. No, I did not do it myself (wimped out), but employed the local professionals in town at Sampson Performance. They do all performance work and specialize in modifications especially Corvettes. They had the installation done in no time (2½ hours, no hood removal needed), and I was back on the road. Purists may cry, but I think it's one of the best upgrades for a C3 Corvette. Hard to reach my camera close for good pics, but here's a couple (headlights closed).......
Just a warning.... now that the bug has bitten you.... there are side effects. Some of the ones I suffered from:
Why do the headlights, but not the wiper door? So I did. Used the same Miata motor. It`s great!
Added a Dapper Lighting Harness to re-route headlight power away from going through headlight switch. Now the only power it has to supply is for the relay.
Fiber optics don`t work with the Dapper Harness. Had to replace the connectors on the Dapper harness, THEN re-locate the fiber optic lines from the original connectors to the new ones.
All in all, it was worth it! I`m glad I did all of it. And a big THANK YOU to Richard..... for help & advice when things didn`t act right a couple times. He was quick to suggest causes & corrections.
And he was right every time!
Next Project....
