Headlamp level adjustment

[Peter Aston]

Guys,

On my Turbo there is a knurled knob on the rhs of the dash to alter the headlamp seetings on the move presumably when carrying large passengers in the back seats or heavy weights in the boot!!!!

As I have a fetish for having everything working on the car, I'd like to get this feature working but I cannot find any reference to it anywhere. No mention in either the standard or Turbo workshop manuals, no mention on the wiring diagrams as far as I can see.

Does anyone know how to debug the system or even how it works? It seems to be pneumatic?

Peter

[johndglynn]

I think option 605 is vertical headlamp adjustment, so there was a factory option on it. The only way they could have this moving Peter is to have the headlamp bodies on swivels, so if you take a lamp off and look at the back of it you should see some kind of adjuster, something to respond to the dash knob.

 

I don't know how they would get this to work in the tiny space of the headlamp bowl, or what it would act on on the lamp unit itself, so would be interested to see a few pics if there is still a device in place. If there's something there it will most likely be either pneumatic/hydraulic I would have thought, like the Volvo system, as servos would be too big in this area. Have you tried following the tubes from the adjuster and seeing where they go?

 

Fascinating stuff...I wonder if Bones knows about this, he knows loads.

[Peter Aston]

Thanks for the info John

 

So, it was an option. Any idea when it started/finished? Many cars fitted with it? What the hell was it for? I know it is a standard feature on any vehicle subject to heavy loads upsetting the dipped headlamps but why would that be an issue in our cars?

 

I will take some piccies at the weekend and post on the forum (I'll have to find out how!!). The vertical adjuster switch on the dash has 2 thin pipes leading from the back. They emerge in the offside area of the front wing close to the bonnet damper where there is a round device fastened somehow into the inner wing panel with tubes leading to and from it to the headlights and dash switch.

 

You are quite right about the headlamps. They have a vacuum (?) device that mechanically pull/push the headlight bowl up and down. Pipes in with the wiring harness to the bowls. I recently replaced both headlights complete with the verticle adjusters from Specilaist Cars of Malton, no problem obtaining them at all and all part of the Bosch headlamp assembly.

 

Cheers,

Peter

[Jean Berk]

I know a bit about these - one of mine didn't work when I got the car. It's a vacuum powered system, run off the brake servo vacuum accumulator I believe. If the engine is not running, you can still move the headlights briefly until the charge is exhausted. There is a vacuum 'bellows' on the back of each headlamp which moves the unit - there is a small diameter plastic pipe which runs down the nearside of the boot to the front and splits to the N/S lamp, then across to the O/S lamp. This section of pipe was collapsed in one place on my car so, I spliced in an inch of rubber tubing to repair it - instant fix! Hope this helps...

[Peter Aston]

Guys,

Right managed to get some piccies. Here's the switch on the dash:

 

 

I haven't found the piping Jean refers to yet it all seems to be behind the wings? Here's the accumulator fitted into the offside front wing:

 

 

And the headlight unit photo'd on an old headlight:

 

 

I have found the feed off the vacuum chamber of the brake booster. I need to fing the rest of the pipework and trace it to find the collapsed area Jean suggests, it just been too warm this weekend!!!

 

Peter

[johndglynn]

Aha! I always wondered what the big round hole on the offside inner wing was for. Thanks Peter!

[limalbeps]

I know this is an old thread, but does anybody know how to go about fixing it ? Mike