Replacement door lights

[simontdo]

I've got some replacement interior door lights. These are the black ones rather than the original chrome ones, but they're slightly smaller.

Anyone got any tips to stop them falling through the hole in the door card?

[FI Spyder]

Only thing that comes to mind is out of stiff enough plastic made a rectangle with rounded corners the same shape as the lights, a little bit bigger with a similar shaped hole in the middle to act as a flange. You could go with clear or spray it with plastic paint whatever colour your door panels are although the paint may eventually wear off at some point.

[UKPhilTR7]

I brought some replacement ones from Robsport, which are from a Frence company. With these, I had to trim down the door card slightly to allow them to fit nice. Once I had done this all was good.

[supercass]

Are the original light escutcheons in situ? If you have replaced the door cards with the new pattern improved version you usually have to transfer these across. supercass

[stevie_a]

As far as i am aware the after market lights that fit are from the Peugeot 106 interior light

[stevie_a]

Just had a look on e-bay

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PEUGEOT-106-2 ... Swi0RXyAxf

[dmtrmp6]

Yep,
I too have the Peugeot replacement fitted to my wedge. They are a common light across a wide variety of Renault, Peugeot & Citroen models, accordingly quite readily available from a number of UK suppliers to the french car owner both used and second hand. Typical Ebay prices range from about 4 UK pds and upwards for second hand and 3 -4 times that for new. Mine were supplied from the rear interior light of a Renault Scenic model, low use and essentially as new. No problems fitting with some minor easing (enlarge) of the existing door mounting holes.

Happy parts hunting. Rgds, DM

[supercass]

The Citroen / Peugeot and Renault lights are different. The most convincing replacements are the Renault ones as they usually slot straight in and they are dimensionally similar to the originals. Unfortunately they tend to have grey surrounds. If you could effect a chrome finish on the surround (easier said than done) you would be unlikely to recognize it as non original. The Citroen / Peugeot variants have a black surround and a squarer profile. You need to enlarge the escutcheon to fit these. With both of them you have to adapt your wiring as they take smaller terminals but that is easily done. They are both becoming pricier. The Renault model that utilized these lights was produced up to 1999 or thereabouts so most will have been scrapped by now. The Citroen model is still available new and from some suppliers at a price less than TR7 specialists. There are a few Renault versions that pop up second hand on Ebay but they are noticeably dearer than they were a few years ago. Genuine s/h B.L. originals are nearly always broken and were not that durable when new (can't blame Lucas for that they were made by a French company) and NOS tend to go for comically high prices. I suspect if you paid such prices youy woulkd probably just store them because if you fitted and used them they would break like the originals! supercass

[busheytrader]

Back in '89, Grinnall undertook bodywork on my DHC and it was handed back with mismatching door lights. One with a silver surround and one black from the communal "this is what was stripped off this month's intake" bin.

[bottomtop]

I bought the ones from an online suite in the US called "Juliano's Hot Rod Parts" or similar. They are slightly larger than the originals, requiring a little fettling with Stanley knife in the door card. They use a festoon globe like the originals. They tilt through 3 positions like the originals, but I think from memory the switch configuration is a little different. These ones come on from the courtesy light switch when in the centre position. Or when the door is closed you can tilt them to the up position or the down position to activate them. The surrounding plastic has clips that hold them securely to the door card. I did have to replace one though when after about 8 years the diode blew on it. They were hideously expensive including post to Australia because I had to use a forwarding company (the website store didn't post to Aus), but I don't remember how much or what the breakdown was between the item and postage. It would be kinda funny (not) if they were actually the Renault ones and I had financed from going to France, to the US, to Australia!

[supercass]

I believe there are some lights from a Hummer that can be fitted and there are some generic lights available in the U.S. that have an LED option, notwithstanding most can utilize LED's simply by replacing the bulb. I'm sure a forum member posted about these a while ago. supercass

[simontdo]

I bought mine from S&S and I'm pretty sure they are the Peugeot ones, but mine are too small for the hole in the door card (Or maybe the door card holes are too big for the light?)

Either way, I'm sure I can make them fit with a bit of thought.

[FI Spyder]

Door lights can be repaired. I've repaired my originals back in 2006/7 and they are still working fine. What usually happens is the plastic gets hard with age and the tines that hold it in place beak off. I repair these by crazy gluing these back in place with crazy glue, let it sit for 24 hours, then reinforce the break by epoxying the tails of small zip ties to the backs of the tine with 5 minute epoxy then wait 24 hours. Prebend tails so they don't put too much pressure on glued tines as the break is still fragile. Stronger than originals. It's a method we often used in repairing office equipment for hard to get pieces. It does take some manual dexterity working with small delicate parts though. You can also reinforce/glue parts with Shoe Goo.

[supercass]

I find with the originals though that not only do the tabs break off but the switch mechanism appears to get loose and sloppy and it seems very difficult to adjust them to function with precision. Metal fatigue perhaps? simontdo, there should be a black plastic surround fitted to the hole for the lights, this is separate from the lights and it is this plastic surround that has to be trimmed back to enable the Peugeot lights to be fitted. If the hole is too big then the only reason that springs to mind is that the surround is not there, a common occurrence if the door panels have been replaced with repro versions. I suspect more than one person may have thrown away tatty old door cards and then realized they should have taken this plastic trim off to put on the new ones! supercass

[MikeRotherham]

With regard to the mechanism getting sloppy.

I fixed this on one of mine by removing the transparent Perspex part and cutting some thin pieces of earthing sheath and pushing it on the lugs and then refitted the transparent part.

It acts as spacer and stiffens up the switch action.