MCI 9 Headlights

[ojgetaway32]

Gentlemen/women:

The headlights in my bus are both dim and loose.  I have put (4) new halogens in and tried to tighten up the hardware and aim them.  There has been no improvement.  What should I do?  Are there retrofits available that don't cost as much as a tank of fuel?  Should I go square or round?  Should I drive during the day only?  Sometimes I feel like Wile E. Coyote after painting a tunnel on a rock.

Josh

[gumpy]

The headlight cans on these old buses are a constant problem. The cans corrode. The screws are usually stripped, or some idiot maintenance worker put an oversized wood screw in them. And typically, the plastic adjusters are broken.

The best solution would be to buy new cans. Not sure if they are still avialable, but I'd check with MCI.

If your cans are not too corroded and the mounting screw holes are still in decent shape, you can possibly rework them and make them tighter. Possibly weld them up and redrill them.

As for the plastic adjusters, I found some replacement adjusters at NAPA that can be retrofitted into the old cans, with a little bit of effort and ingenuity. You have to remove the old adjusters, and then drill and file a square hole, but they seem like they're going to work ok. I had started modifying one can, but had to put it on hold for awhile. Will get back to that this fall and finish it.

I recommend sticking with the round headlights, but many have converted to the rectangular lights. I know some have purchased headlights from truck junkyards and installed them. Don't know which ones work best. I've heard there's one particular year of Ford pickup that works well, but don't know details. Maybe you can find it in the archives.

craig

[chvyman]

I just got thru fixing and modifing mine the round ones on an MC8 . I went to a junk yard and found some buckets that the head-light  fits in alittle mod. on one side they came off of an older lincolyn. I found some 24 head lights at Holt cat. "just a reboxed wagner bulb" .I will get the part# after i get homeand post it tommorow. I found the adjusters at fastenal it is the same as an old chevy ,buick, and oldsmobile cars. I used the relays from the oridnal a/c system to run the relays . I brought a 6 gage wire on a fuse from the from main electric bus and used the orid. dimmer to control the relays they work great. I have the low beams on the condensor relay and run all four high beams on the evaperator relay "SUPER BRIGHT!!!" I am pleased with how they turned out.

                                                                   Bob  "Chvyman"

[Hi yo silver]

Josh,
The previous owner of my MC9 told me the square lights on mine are a retrofit from a Peterbilt.  I can get the specifics if you need to know.
Dennis

[ojgetaway32]

Hi yo:

Yes I need to know, puhleeze...

Josh

[bottomacher]

I sold my mc9 buckets and bezels to a fellow about 20 miles from here about 3 years ago. He hasn't used them, and I think he's parting out the bus due to a divorce. Mine is a California bus- there was only slight surface rust, and they were complete and functioning. If you want me to, I will ask him, BUT- I don't like him and don't want to ask if you're not serious. I charged him $75 when I sold them (if he weren't so nasty I would have given them to him.) I don't know if or for how much he might sell them, but it's worth a try if you need them. Let me know.
Don

[JohnEd]

Josh,

In my experience the old headlight system of switches/connections/wires is just FULL of gremlins.  When I have had problems I simply found a + bus strip "anywhere" and connected a 12 or 10 gauge stranded wire to a terminal.  This became my dedicated power line to the lights after going through the new 30 amp fuse.  I ran this line to the 30 amp cube relay and ran the power line from the relay to the bulb + terminal directly.  The relay gets controlled by the "old" bulb circuit.  The old circuit has enuf power cause it is now carrying a single amp instead of twenty.

You installed halogen bulbs and in my experience they draw more power than the old lamps and they are way more susceptible to low voltages inherent in every stock system I have ever seen.  Connect a voltmeter "across" the bulb and see how many volts you are getting.  I rewire if this is more than 1 volt less than the bat voltage but that is just me.  If it is easier, measure the volts at the bulb + term and then at the bulb - terminal and subtract.  More than 1 volt at the neg terminal and you have a bad ground.  Take all measurements with the lamps ON.

Do the cube relay!  This also applies to the additional fog lights and driving lights.

TWH (this will help)

John

PS:  If this isn't sufficiently confusing...I could expound

[Hi yo silver]

Josh,
Do you have a maint./repair manual for your bus?  If not, you will need to find one.  It will be your Bus Bible.  There should be a wiring diagram for the 12 volt headlight system there. 

I finally found the info on my square headlights in the pyramid of manure on my desk; They were out of a Peterbilt 379, according the the prev. owner.

Please keep us posted re. your progress.

Dennis

   

[ojgetaway32]

Guys:

All of the ideas so far are great.  Thank you.  I am not sure which one is best for me.  Yes I have a manual and think I will read it for awhile, maybe it will decide for me.  I am sitting on the fence right now in deciding which way to go.  I would love to hear more and will advise when I make a call.

Josh

[JackConrad]

   We kept the OEM round headlights on our MC-8.  We rewired them to our house (12 volt) batteries, which are charged while driving by a 12 volt alternator we added tot he engine.
   We also modified the inside cans and installed high-low bulbs like the outside cans have, We used 10 gauge wire to 2 relays (high and low beam), with these relays controlled by the dimmer switch. We now have 4 bulbs on low beam as well as high beam.  Because the low beams put the light closer to the front of the bus, we have never had anyone flash their lights at us when we are running low beams. High beams are the same as when the lights were OEM. This gives me more light on low beam as well as the redundancy that if a low beam burns out, I still have at least 1 bulb on each side. Jack

[NJT5047]

We used IBP MC9 square headlight conversion kit.  The panels fit, the headlights work well, and continue to work after 6 years.   
I've heard that square headlights aren't bright enough...I dunno.  But this system is balls ahead of my OEM round headlights.  Probably due to simple age of the OEM system. 
In any event, the panels fit amazingly well.  Most of the rivet holes lined up without any work. 
I believe the square headlights are more modern looking....that's a debate among the purists.  Don't matter to me.   
Since square headlights are on 90% of OTR trucks....I can't see the problem?  They work great.
If worried about lighting, mount some off-road lamps on the top of the bus for serious effect...and lighting!
I believe these unit cost about $400 bucks?  Panels and headlights were a package. 
Note that I lost the turn signals too...those panels were less than $100 bucks each. 
Whatever floats yer boat!   
JR