Hi,

New member - I have purchased a brand new Courier - Ecoboost Petrol Auto - really pleased with how it drives.

I particularly like the heated seats and steering wheel and the ability to turn the van on and have it warming up via the Ford Pass app before I go outside 🙂

The only niggle I have is that at night the headlamps are not as white / bright as other vehicles I drive.

I have tried to locate replacement headlight lamps to change the Halogen to LED's - but the model is so new, that no suppliers seem to know what they would need to supply.

I just wondered if anybody else had changed the lamps over and if there were any errors on the CanBus system / issues ?

I'm also NOT very technical or hands - on - so are they easy to replace ?

Regards,

Mark

Halogen reflectors don't take well to LED conversions, plus they're an MOT fail.

They're bright to oncoming traffic, but you'll get no beam

You can upgrade to HID bulbs, but they're also illegal and MOT fail

Your best bet would be to upgrade the standard bulbs to Osram Nightbreaker Laser or similar

Not quite sure where I went wrong.

I bought some replacement H7 bulbs from Amazon.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07FXRDJV7?th=1
 

Took me a while to suss out how to replace them :-

- top set of bulbs in the headlight.

- unscrew the protective cover.

- ease off the electric connector plug.

- work upside down and hand wedged into a gap, unhook the spring retainer.

- remove existing bulb / refit new with square protrusion to the top.

- replug and put plastic screw rain cap back on.

I’m not very dexterous - took me about an hour to suss/do.

Went for a drive - WTF ? - I was illuminating bridges above me and everybody was flashing me… the new bulbs were 100% brighter, but for some reason the headlight beam was not aimed or focussed  as per standard bulbs and were casting light practically every direction.

 

Came back home and put the old, standard bulbs back in - back to standard coverage / focussed light and beam - but the usual dullness.

 

Did I buy the wrong ones or did I do something stupid in fitting them incorrectly?

Not even sure I fancy giving it another go - bit of a git trying to work blind - I’d never make a gynaecologist…..

 

any suggestions ?

3 hours ago, New _Courier said:

Did I buy the wrong ones or did I do something stupid in fitting them incorrectly?

I think Dave already answered this before you fitted the LED's

On 12/3/2024 at 11:27 AM, DaveT70 said:

Halogen reflectors don't take well to LED conversions, plus they're an MOT fail.

and of course there is the matter of the use of LED's in a halogen fitting being illegal for use on the public roads in the UK.

Depending on the construction of the LED it is possible with some to have the headlights realigned at an MOT testing station but more than likely they will refuse to do it.

@StephenFord might have some suggestions on what you could use.

41 minutes ago, unofix said:

 

@StephenFord might have some suggestions on what you could use.

I have an advantage of owning a very old car with little 'tech' in it's headlights. I installed LED bulbs in a 'halogen' headlight, and had them professionally aligned. They have now passed 3 x consecutive MOTs, and they don't blind anyone by the very fact of the beam pattern being checked. Also, I have a healthy disregard for authority 😂

EDIT

Despite the H7 having cut outs to prevent them being mounted with an incorrect orientation, sounds like you may have done just that (I managed to do same if you read this thread!)

 

It might pay you to look in the owners handbook for the instructions for changing headlight bulbs.

I don't know about your vehicle, but on my C Max it is very easy to take the headlights out to change bulbs (two screws for each one). I would guess yours will be similar. If you don't have a handbook, I think you can download one to your computer from Ford.

11 hours ago, Alan G H said:

It might pay you to look in the owners handbook for the instructions for changing headlight bulbs.

Now, if folk started reading the instruction manual for their car, this forum would be awfully quiet 🤣

21 hours ago, unofix said:

I think Dave already answered this before you fitted the LED's

and of course there is the matter of the use of LED's in a halogen fitting being illegal for use on the public roads in the UK.

Depending on the construction of the LED it is possible with some to have the headlights realigned at an MOT testing station but more than likely they will refuse to do it.

@StephenFord might have some suggestions on what you could use.

Hi !

Appreciate the reply - but the bulbs/lamps I tried were Halogen replacements - not LED ?

Regards,

Mark

21 hours ago, StephenFord said:

I have an advantage of owning a very old car with little 'tech' in it's headlights. I installed LED bulbs in a 'halogen' headlight, and had them professionally aligned. They have now passed 3 x consecutive MOTs, and they don't blind anyone by the very fact of the beam pattern being checked. Also, I have a healthy disregard for authority 😂

EDIT

Despite the H7 having cut outs to prevent them being mounted with an incorrect orientation, sounds like you may have done just that (I managed to do same if you read this thread!)

 

Thank you - appreciate the heads up - was a swine of a job trying to work overhand and blind - I could not be 100% certain I had them in right - but the two connectors were "vertical" as the originals. I could not see how to "easily" remove the headlamps - I found three starbolts and bought a tool to undo these - but the headlamps still felt "in there" pretty solid and taking off connectors to headlamps was pretty gut wrenching for me and about the upper limit of my ability as a mechanic... There was no handbook. I tried to download one - mentions all the lamp replacements - apart from the headlight....

20 hours ago, Alan G H said:

It might pay you to look in the owners handbook for the instructions for changing headlight bulbs.

I don't know about your vehicle, but on my C Max it is very easy to take the headlights out to change bulbs (two screws for each one). I would guess yours will be similar. If you don't have a handbook, I think you can download one to your computer from Ford.

New Courier was supplied with no manual.

There is a computerised one on the dashboard - nothing on there that seemed to show how to do anything with the headlamps - other than how to turn them on/off.

I found a manual on the Ford website in PDF - downloaded that and it runs through how to change all other bulbs - just not the headlights.

I bought a "star-tool" and undid three bolts - but they still felt pretty firmly embedded and I was reaching my upper end of ability at this point.

I'm not a tools man - at all.

Working overhand to replace those lamps was a nerve racking affair. They were Halogen replacements - I was hoping it would be easier in truth.

8 hours ago, StephenFord said:

Now, if folk started reading the instruction manual for their car, this forum would be awfully quiet 🤣

I would agree - 100% - however this is the first brand new vehicle I have purchased that did not come with any form of paper manual - the Main Stealer delivery driver said "all you need to know is right there on the dashboard digital manual"...

Even the PDF downloadable ford manual is quite evasive when it comes to the front headlights 🙂

Courier NEW Manual BA55MEN.pdf

15 minutes ago, New _Courier said:

Even the PDF downloadable ford manual is quite evasive

Ford? Evasive? Surely not!😀

Generally I find the html version better as it is at least searchable, and some stuff is not necessarily where you might expect to find it. Of course, if the info's not there at all, you can't find it whatever you do!

And you're right - from a quick glance that manual seems to describe how to change every bulb except the headlamp, though it gives the bulb specs.)