Value of Headlight Conversion

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Value of Headlight Conversion

December 21, 2019, 05:12:36 pm

We had FOT do a headlight conversion on our new-to-us 2002 U320. Yes, I'm fully aware that we should have taken XTREME's higher estimate.

We got into a situation that required driving after dark - something we strive to avoid. Now, my question is whether the conversion is simply a cosmetic update or whether it should improve illumination?

My perspective is that illumination was certainly NOT improved.

What has been your conversion experience?

Larry

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #1 – December 21, 2019, 05:30:38 pm

The main reason/goal to do it is to improve illumination at night. I don't think any who have done it have done so with the aesthetic as the primary reason.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #2 – December 21, 2019, 05:43:25 pm

Well, we sure missed the boat on that 'little' expenditure.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #3 – December 21, 2019, 06:12:52 pm

Quote from: U295 Owner – December 21, 2019, 05:43:25 pm

Well, we sure missed the boat on that 'little' expenditure.

What is FOT's response on this one? The one done by FOT on our coach (albeit 7 years ago) did definitely improve over the OEM GM units, but we have not driven an Xtreme-converted coach for comparison.

Of course an old-style handheld flashlight with half-dead batteries would have illuminated things better than the OEM GM headlights in the 2002-2006 era coaches.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #4 – December 21, 2019, 06:53:42 pm

Sorry Larry, but I'm kinda in the dark here.

Why are you now aware that you should have gone with Xtreme, did you or anyone mention illumination improvement or did you have it done
just for aesthetics as you don't drive at night?

Also, are they adjusted properly?

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #5 – December 21, 2019, 07:28:21 pm

Jame's crew at XTREME has down hundreds (maybe thousands) of conversions. FOT (obviously) doesn't do very many. Neither place mentioned an improvement in illumination - I had just (wrongly) assumed that would be one of the advantages.

Even though I try to avoid nighttime driving, we get caught out on the road every now and then.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #6 – December 21, 2019, 07:32:03 pm

Oh, I would give XTREME a 5-star rating for their work; what I've seen on other coaches and the work they did on our previous coach. I can't see giving FOT more than a 3-star review.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #7 – December 21, 2019, 07:42:58 pm

Thanks, I understand now.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #8 – December 21, 2019, 08:06:04 pm

I tested mine before and after and xtreme conversion did give significantly better light. I used a long concrete driveway and a wall and measured where I could no longer see the wall lines of the blocks. It was aboutn15yards difference. The high beams were night and day different and I did a lot of night driving then.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #9 – December 21, 2019, 08:10:03 pm

I've not noticed lights done that I knew FT did..I find no flaw in mine that Extreme did.. They do light up the road nicely should I get caught out after dark. What does FT do that is lacking in the conversion? Just curious.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #10 – December 21, 2019, 08:28:00 pm

Think if I was doing a headlight upgrade by either place I would research which lights I would want and have them install the ones
I want,the hi dollar part of the conversion is fiberglassing where the old lights are.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #11 – December 21, 2019, 08:34:40 pm

Did they install led bulbs? I have the conversion and when I got the coach it has regular halogen bulbs. It was ok to say the least. I recently installed 6500k led bulbs and it is better but still not great. My next move will be to replace the hells driving with brighter led fixtures.. changing to led bulbs is easy and almost anyone should be able to do it theirselves. Got mine one line...

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #12 – December 21, 2019, 08:39:02 pm

David, you can take a close look at mine in Quartzite . I don't think the bulbs are led Keith. I could be persuaded.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #13 – December 21, 2019, 11:29:58 pm

Just picked up our coach from Xtreme last week and drove 1000 miles back to Ohio, a lot of which was at night and in horrible heavy rain. The new Xtreme headlights were brighter on low beam than the originals were on high beam even after polishing the old lenses.
The brights were bright enough that we were flashed, that had never happened before!!
So worth the money, also had them modify to give us daylight running lights and had LED back up lights added which made the last 200 feet of the trip a whole lot easier.
So much safer driving with the new much brighter lights!

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #14 – December 22, 2019, 07:09:49 am

I have priced FOT headlight kits for conversion, Parts Dept told me they had 2 prices
1. kit was around 800.00
2. other kit was around 1500.00
Don't hold me to exact prices but I do remember 2nd kit was about double
Parts Dept told me the difference was in the bulbs and fixtures that are used
Chris

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #15 – December 22, 2019, 08:04:32 am

There's a huge difference w/Xtreme's lights, though I have no experience with FOT's conversions. I'm a night owl, getting up at 2-3am & hitting the road pre-dawn...plus often driving at night & napping by day to get some places faster or avoid daytime big city traffic. I attempted to get it done at FOT but by the time I got jerked around on start dates, I'd had enough & decided waiting longer for Xtreme would be smarter.

Before: lights were pitiful (just as Michelle says) & night driving was downright scary. Now: bright & powerful, even on low beams....so much safer. Can't imagine keeping the old ones. I'm pretty sure they're the new edition with the LED's. Cannot compare FOT's conversion but glad I followed my instincts & waited longer to get the job done down the road a few months later.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #16 – December 22, 2019, 08:44:40 am

Foretravel has the skill , the ability no doubt but ---getting past that ever present attitude is sometimes just not worth it . I have dealt with it , put up with it , even pretended it wasn't there . Boy do I miss how it was back when The fore family owned and operated it . That attitude comes from the top , trickles down to each employee and then we , the customers get hit in the face with it . Maybe this is one of the reasons they have such a high turn over with mechanics .

Brad Metzger

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #17 – December 22, 2019, 12:36:16 pm

FOT must have installed the cheaper kit on mine. No wonder they were cheaper than XTREME. Relearned the lesson that you get what you pay for.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #18 – December 22, 2019, 02:42:00 pm

Quote from: U295 Owner – December 22, 2019, 12:36:16 pm

Relearned the lesson that you get what you pay for.

You can most likely upgrade either bulbs or entire lights with HID or LED and still be at or below the original quoted cost. This stuff has gotten very inexpensive.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #19 – December 22, 2019, 03:18:35 pm

Online Dealers – J.W. Speaker

This is the company's guide to online suppliers of their lights. Look over. There are other companies that sell lights.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #20 – December 23, 2019, 09:37:46 pm

When I picked up my coach after Xtreme's headlight conversion, the improvement was not spectacular. But Xtreme cautioned me that I needed to align them, since they don't have the facility to do that. It took some time to find a location and time to properly align them. Now they night time illumination is very nice, but it took time to do the job right.

Re: Value of Headlight Conversion

Reply #21 – December 23, 2019, 09:56:03 pm

Quote from: Chris m lang – December 22, 2019, 07:09:49 am

I have priced FOT headlight kits for conversion, Parts Dept told me they had 2 prices
1. kit was around 800.00
2. other kit was around 1500.00
Don't hold me to exact prices but I do remember 2nd kit was about double
Parts Dept told me the difference was in the bulbs and fixtures that are used
Chris

I am vaguely recalling this as well when we had our conversion done. We were offered 2 options, and it was a no-brainer to select the higher cost one. I am wondering if the service adviser did a disservice here by not mentioning the options prior to the conversion.

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