Spare bulbs

[pheasantplucker]

Hi,

Has anyone any idea of which main and dipped beam bulbs are needed in the new (2011) Transit please. All the Ford manual lists is the wattage and Chausson are even less helpful? Do I need a H1, H4 or H7 as I need to put a bulb kit together?

[Robinhood]

AFAIK the main/dip units on current Transits are H4.

 

(confirmed by searching some online suppliers)

 

And BTW, AIUI you can tell which type of bulb in this case from the quoted wattage (for a standard bulb).

 

H1 55w single filament

H4 60/55w double filament

H7 55w single filament

[Derek Uzzell]

ALL Transits, since halogen headlight bulbs became the norm, have used an H4 bulb for their headlights.

 

If your Transit Mk 7's manual resembles my Mk 6's, within the "Roadside Emergencies" section there will be information about bulb replacement.

 

My manual says "Headlights - dipped/main beam 55/60 watt halogen bulb". Although the bulb reference (H1, H4, H7, etc.) is not specifically stated, "55/60 watt halogen" indicates an H4 bulb. There is no other vehicle halogen headlight-bulb with a 55/60 watt specification.

 

As Robinhood advises, there are several websites that allow searching for bulbs against vehicle make/model and all of these indicate an H4 headlight bulb for Transit Mk 7s like yours. Although such websites can be useful for panel-van-based motorhomes, they are less trustworthy for coachbuilt motorcaravans that may well have completely different light-units rearwards of the cab. And, for A-class motorhomes, anything goes!

 

I think, for a Transit Mk 7, it's easy to remove the headlight units and that this may be the simplest way to replace headlight bulbs. (Your Ford manual should provide instructions on what's involved.) I do know (from personal experience) that changing headlight bulbs on Transit Mk 6s can be a swine when the vehiclev is fitted with cab air-con, but removing the headlights to do it is unfortunately not a realistic option.

[Keithl]

And if you are looking for headlight bulbs try your local Aldi as they had 2 bulb packs on offer a couple of weeks ago for £3.99 a pair. My local store still had stock last night.

 

Keith.

[mikebeaches]

Lots of universal bulb kits available on Amazon - here are a couple:

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sakura-HG-079-00-Universal-Emergency/dp/B0012KQNY4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321638105&sr=8-1

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Aa-Car-Essentials-N-Universal/dp/B003E6K1LK/ref=pd_cp_auto_2

[pheasantplucker]

Thanks for this everybody. I was confused by there being no type designation other than 55/60w in the handbook. Previous van had the Hi & H7.

 

Sorry to be so long thanking you all, medical excuse I'm afraid but nearly back to normal.

[Derek Uzzell]

mikebeaches - 2011-11-18 5:43 PM

 

Lots of universal bulb kits available on Amazon - here are a couple:

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sakura-HG-079-00-Universal-Emergency/dp/B0012KQNY4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321638105&sr=8-1

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Aa-Car-Essentials-N-Universal/dp/B003E6K1LK/ref=pd_cp_auto_2

 

It's also worth reading the negative reviews...

 

For the Sakura-branded product:

 

"...However the build quality and light output (tested headlight bulbs only) are at best below average. Also the fuses are the standard type, not mini."

 

and for the AA one:

 

"...went to replace the faulty bulbs with my spares from the bulb kit - to my horror the bulbs were defective out of the box. So put the bulb holder back in the headlamp assembly and ordered some new off ebay - not AA I may add. Stick to maps AA people cos your bulbs suck."

 

For a Transit Mk 7-based motorhome, I'd be tempted to purchase a pair of premium-branded higher-output H4 bulbs and fit them as replacements for the originals. This would a) provide better lights, b) be an educational exercise regarding how easy headlamp-bulb changing would be in an emergency and c) give you a couple of spare H4s. I'd then obtain one spare bulb suitable for each of the 'vital' lights on the motorhome. (In many cases this will result in only a few bulbs being needed.)

 

I can't see much point buying a spare-bulb kit (however cheap) where most of the bulbs in it will be unsuitable for your motorhome. It's also worth noting the Amazon-review observation "...the fuses are the standard type, not mini". Unless you can obtain a vehicle model-specific bulb-kit (and that won't be the case for many coachbuilts motorhome), there's a strong possibility that the fuses supplied in the kit wll be the wrong type.