Driving Light Install - Light A Candle, Curse The GlareInstalling Cibie Auxiliary Driving Lights on our '72 Stingray From the October, 2012 issue of Vette By Jeremy D. Clough Photography by Jeremy D. Clough
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There are things in this world that work in the dark. Luminox watches, for example, SureFire flashlights, anything made by Trijicon. Note the conspicuous absence of C3 headlights from this list. With anywhere between 30 and 40 years of age (and advancing technology) behind them, they leave a lot to be desired for nighttime driving, especially when that driving involves lots of curves and lonely roads. While it's possible to upgrade the headlights themselves, there's also the time-honored option of auxiliary lighting, and that's where we're headed this month. Before the howls of "sacrilege" start to rise, let's take a minute to talk about this particular car. Every well-built car is a unified whole, composed of disparate elements selected for how they fit into a single vision. In the case of my '72 coupe, aka "Scarlett," the goal is to create a chrome-bumper shark with performance and driveability that equals or exceeds that of late-model Corvettes. Since the car is regularly street driven, we're also trying not to wrap it around a tree or fling it off the side of a mountain, so things like actually being able to see the road matter. In addition to making the car faster and better handling, we're adding styling cues from the road-race cars of the early shark era. While this car is not and never will be "correct," it should still look right within the bounds of what it's intended to be. With this in mind, the choice of which driving light to use was easy: Cibié. Although there are plenty of other lights available--PIAA, Hella, Light Force, and KC Daylighters come to mind--when you look at old racing photos, the cars at Le Mans and other tracks generally had the distinctive yellow-and-black sticker of the French lighting company. Although Corvettes often appeared with rectangular lights for competition, it's hard to make that shape fit into the front of a Stingray and look right. Thus we arrive at the Tango light, which is a smaller, round light around 5 inches in diameter and with a shallow, 2-inch-deep back. Devilishly hard to find (I ordered mine from Aardvark International in California), the Tango comes in a white or yellow fog beam, or a white drive beam. (It's also sold individually, so double the price you're quoted if you want a pair.) While the Tango used to be available with either a black housing or a chrome ring around the front, only the black is currently in production. Pricing for Cibié lights varies quite a bit, but they're never cheap, which makes it reassuring that they come with plastic covers to protect that precious glass up front when they're not in use. After installing mine and adjusting the angle a little, I find that they do exactly what I wanted, casting a clear, white light across and down the road. And since I wired them to the dimmer switch, I can dim them along with the high beams when there's a car in the oncoming lane. Once you've used them, you get a real sense for just how pale the wan light of the factory beams is. I've used the Cibiés both on straightaways as well as up in the tight mountain curves, and they make a world of difference, with the extra light furnishing the confidence needed to negotiate the tightest corners--so much confidence, in fact, that it makes me wish that Scarlett held the road a little better...  Headlights are one of those...  Headlights are one of those things that time hasn’t been kind to on the C3. Adding a set of auxiliary lamps, such as these Tango lights from Cibi�, can help you see trouble in time to avoid it.  1 Although a relay will be...  1 Although a relay will be used to power the lights, there has to be some source of power to activate the relay. In this case, we pulled power from the dimmer switch, so the new lights operate in concert with the factory high beams. The yellow wire tapped into the blue one operates our (previously installed) ECPB electric headlights, and is hot all the time.  2 The pale-green and light-tan...  2 The pale-green and light-tan wires, however, are only on when the high beams are, so we installed a tap on the green one and plugged a male connector into it.  3 We then ran this wire from...  3 We then ran this wire from the tap to the toggle switch, which was already located on a custom-machined Street Shop, Inc. switch plate. Note the insulation on either end: While this is interior wiring, my personal approach to harnesses is “death by heat shrink,” as I don’t like chasing shorts.  4 Here, the switch plate...  4 Here, the switch plate is pulled up out of place, showing where the wire from the dimmer switch plugs into the base of the toggle switch. Since this toggle switch has a blue LED indicator in its tip, it also requires a separate ground, which we ran through the firewall to the engine block. Also note the housing for the indicator light, located just to the right of the toggle switch.  5 The operational part of...  5 The operational part of the indicator light is shown here, pulled down out of its housing. To operate it, we ran a wire from the “out” terminal of the toggle switch to one of its terminals. We then ran another wire from it, under the dash, and through the firewall to the relay.  6 This photo shows the toggle...  6 This photo shows the toggle switch and blue-lensed indicator light installed on the switch plate. While the lens is blue, the bulb in the indicator is still white, so the light itself is mostly white as well. I’ll probably upgrade to a blue LED bulb to get a true blue light.  7 Here, the Bosch relay has...  7 Here, the Bosch relay has been laid across the alternator, where we pulled the power to operate the lights. The small red wire, which makes a U-turn, is coming from the switch in the passenger compartment; the small black one grounds the relay. The thick, 12-gauge red wire is the power out to the lights, while the orange wire is the power in from the alternator. The latter holds a 15-amp fuse to protect the system.  8 The preliminary routing...  8 The preliminary routing for the wiring is shown going into the relay. While I don’t like excess wire hanging around, it’s better to have too much than to be short and have to start all over again. When in doubt, make a loop from the excess and zip-tie it in place when you’re done.  9 I mounted the relay in...  9 I mounted the relay in an existing hole in the inner fender. Since I get nervous anytime I bolt steel through fiberglass, I used one rubber washer between the head of the stainless screw and the fender, and another between the fender and the relay. I then tightened it all up with a washer, lock washer, and nut.  10 The raw material for the...  10 The raw material for the pigtails to run and ground the lights: 12-gauge automotive wire, female spade terminals, two sizes of heat shrink, and a butt joint. I used the butt joint to make the pig tail, inserting the stripped ends of two wires in one end, and a single wire in the other. Although the joint comes with heat-sealing material on it, this tends to get torn in the crimping process. I invariably seal it up with heat shrink—and remember, slide the heat shrink on the wire before crimping the terminals into place.  11 I grounded the lights...  11 I grounded the lights directly to the alternator using a ring terminal (it’s the lower wire). Since the terminal was significantly larger than the wire, ordinary heat shrink—which only gets so small—wouldn’t effectively seal to the wire. I generally use two widths of shrink: one large enough to fit over the terminal, and a smaller second one that’s big enough to overlap the shrunken insulation and still seal to the wire.  12 Cibi�’s Tango auxiliary...  12 Cibi�’s Tango auxiliary lights pack a lot of light for their compact size, and they don’t look anachronistic on a chrome-bumper shark. Note the mounting bolt and the twin wires: one is for ground, the other for positive power, and it doesn’t matter which one you use for which.  13 This is where the lights...  13 This is where the lights are going: the bumper mount at the nose of the car, shown here with the eggshell grille removed. Note that the mount itself has a rolled edge, which creates a lip toward the inside; this is where the upper bracket for the lights will go. The four tabs are where the grille usually mounts.  14 The upper bracket that...  14 The upper bracket that fits inside the bumper mount began life as a piece of 1.5 x 1.5-inch mild steel in a 90-degree bend. Though I don’t recommend doing it by hand with a hacksaw and a vise, you can—and I did. A bandsaw and a pressbrake would be preferable.  15 The roughed-out upper...  15 The roughed-out upper bracket needed to be relieved in the middle so it would fit into place around a central brace. It will also need to have the mounting holes located and drilled. Note that the horizontal part of the bracket has been cut off on the sides, which will fit inside the bumper mount. The only part remaining is the section that will bridge the gap between the sides of the mount.  16 With the holes spotted...  16 With the holes spotted and drilled in the front part of the upper bracket (I used a nail to scribe the location of the existing hole), I installed it and used a Sharpie to mark where the lower lip on the bumper mount would overlap. This marking shows the outer limit for how far the light mounting holes can be spaced.  17 With the upper bracket...  17 With the upper bracket back out of the car, I used more Sharpie and a dial indicator to measure inboard from this lip-overlap area, to make sure the mounting holes were placed consistently. I then used the sharp end of the calipers to scribe a line, and crossed it with another line measured off the length of the bracket; this gave me the center of the hole.  18 Here, the lights and brackets...  18 Here, the lights and brackets have been dry-fitted together before installation in the car. Notice the lower bracket, which is a simple piece of angle steel with holes that match the light-mounting holes in the upper bracket. It will fit underneath the bumper mount, sandwiching its lower lip between it and the upper bracket. For final assembly, the lower bracket had to be relieved to let the factory grille fit into place behind it.  19 This image shows the upper...  19 This image shows the upper bracket after it’s been drilled, painted black, and had its sharp edges removed. It’s ready for installation.  20 Here, the upper bracket...  20 Here, the upper bracket has been bolted in place inside the bumper mount, using stainless bolts, washers, lock washers, and nuts. While the vertical face of the bracket is facing the camera in this shot, it’s the horizontal face--where you can see the holes on either end--that the lights will mount to.  21 With the upper bracket...  21 With the upper bracket in place, reinstall the grille that will fit in place behind the lights.  22 The spacer that comes...  22 The spacer that comes on the lights’ mounting bolt is relieved to fit against the mounting tabs on the rear of the light. This way, it spreads clamping force evenly across them.  23 Slip the lights’ mounting...  23 Slip the lights’ mounting bolts through the lower bracket and into the upper, then tighten them into place and run their wires back through the grille. Finally, plug them into the harness you’ve built.  24 Once you’re sure all the...  24 Once you’re sure all the wiring is correct and functional, zip-tie it in place and cut off the excess tie material. In a perfect world, this would all be concealed inside loom material. Still, there’s a lot to be said to keeping the wiring accessible.  25 Even with the lights bolted...  25 Even with the lights bolted into place, they can be adjusted by hand, both horizontally and vertically. They come with white-plastic covers to protect them from rocks, and considering a pair of Tangos runs pretty close to $400, the wise man will keep them covered except during use.  26 This photo shows the light...  26 This photo shows the light provided by the stock headlights, using only the low beams.
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