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xoo00oox Samba Member
Joined: February 11, 2010 Posts: 2672 Location: East Nassau, NY
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2012 2:43 pm Post subject: Lowbuck SA grille |
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I've had a few people ask me about how to make the South Africa grill out of the early round headlight grill.
I use the Hella 500 lights. Pop the cover off and position it in the grill where you want the holes to be. Use a sharpie to mark it.
Use a scrap piece of metal bent to the same radius as the lens cover and heat it with a propane torch, then push it through the grill where you marked it (you need to re-heat it often).
Use 180 grit sandpaper and a file to smooth it out.
cut 2 pieces of 3/4" flat stock to 11.5", then bend a 1" 90degree on each end facing the same way.
Mark where the center of the hole is and bolt the flat stock to the top and bottom of the opening using self tapping screws. Then take the lens out and drill a hole in the back of the housing, this hole needs to be marked on the piece of flat stock as you hold the housing into position.
I use a bolt with large fender washers to hold the two together. You can see I also am fixing a few chips in the grill with epoxy.
It takes a little bit of adjusting to get just right but is very easy to do in any direction.
The finished piece after paint.
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purplepeopleeater Samba Member
Joined: July 23, 2005 Posts: 3117 Location: E. Washington
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2012 3:06 pm Post subject: |
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Nice, the pikey in me is already planning on making one.
I mean even if I screw up its no biggie, already have the lights too.
thanks for the idea.
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insyncro Banned
Joined: March 07, 2002 Posts: 15086 Location: New York
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2012 3:09 pm Post subject: |
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brilliant |
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Jake de Villiers Samba Member
Joined: October 24, 2007 Posts: 5911 Location: Tsawwassen, BC
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Christopher Schimke Samba Member
Joined: August 03, 2005 Posts: 5375 Location: PNW
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2012 3:33 pm Post subject: |
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Very cool! I like the heated metal "cutter" idea. _________________ "Sometimes you have to build a box to think outside of." - Bruce (not Springsteen)
*Custom wheel hardware for Audi/VW, Porsche and Mercedes wheels - Urethane Suspension Bushings*
T3Technique.com or contact me at [email protected] |
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joseph928 Samba Member
Joined: September 22, 2011 Posts: 2114 Location: flagstaff az.
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2012 4:56 pm Post subject: SA grill |
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Cool, if my SA grill ever breaks , now I know what to do with my 84 grill. Thanks! Boy if it is good for 10 cent , must be a good idea! _________________ 1987 syncro westy tin top sun roof , GW2.3, rear locker, decoupler, Gary Lee tire rack & winch mount, lift, south african grill, big brakes , rhein alloy ,15 BFG AT, Fiamma 10 foot awning ,140 watt rear 85 watt front solar , mppt, truckfridge, automatic fire extinguishing system, tencent oil cooler, And a RMW SS exhaust! - 1971 bug convertible 1776 engine- 2010 Subaru turbo - 1993 Toyota 4x4 truck - 1999 Harley 95 CI, big bore, Andrews cams . Also 80-84- vans. Stock 65 sunroof bug.
Last edited by joseph928 on Tue Mar 20, 2012 8:45 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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tencentlife Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2006 Posts: 10067 Location: Abiquiu, NM, USA
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2012 6:51 pm Post subject: |
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I'm doin' that!! _________________ Shop for unique Vanagon accessories at the Vanistan shop:
https://intrepidoverland.com/vanistan/
Please don't PM here, I will not reply.
Experience is kryptonite to doctrine. |
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xoo00oox Samba Member
Joined: February 11, 2010 Posts: 2672 Location: East Nassau, NY
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 3:42 am Post subject: |
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Thanks for the comments guys. I wanted to mention that this van is a 1987 so it had the late style lights and grill. What you need to go to the old style is just the round headlight holders (these are much more durable than the late style) and the grill. You will also need the plug for the head lights, the NAPA part # for a low profile one is ECH LS6235. I like to use the flat style 7" head light rather than the sealed beam, the best place I have found to get them is Busdepot.
Here is a shot of the bracket for the small lights...
Once you get everything test fitted, mark them left and right as they might be slightly different and paint the brackets. |
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CQ Samba Member
Joined: April 11, 2009 Posts: 546 Location: San Diego, CA
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 7:12 am Post subject: |
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Great Idea! My Grill is kinda beat up best one to try this with.
Thanks. _________________ 82 Westy 'Betsy'
72 Bus 'Bertha' -Sold
Learning about 2.0L AFC Everyday. |
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thummmper Samba Member
Joined: November 25, 2009 Posts: 2015 Location: Meadow Valley, California Republic
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 7:39 pm Post subject: |
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exemplary my man! very creative |
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buspor63 Samba Member
Joined: February 17, 2005 Posts: 1179 Location: Knoxville,TN Where America stops for gas
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 9:05 pm Post subject: |
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It looks like you used the "driving" light and not the "fog" light, correct? Did you wire it in to the high beam circuit or use a seperate switch. Sorry if you answered above and I missed it. _________________ Imagine that, theres not an "h" in either Westfalia or Syncro? |
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furrylittleotter Samba Member
Joined: May 19, 2008 Posts: 1506 Location: West Seattle
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 9:27 pm Post subject: |
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Excellent post. I agree it looks even better that the SA grill which look too much like a tonka toy. I plan to attempt to simply mount a second set of round headlights and buckets. I have found the lenses on these driving lights mounted high impossible to aim due to their unfocused lenses and they blind other drivers which piss them off and they high beam me which, in turn blinds me and pisses me off. Fog Lamps are actually mounted as near as possible to the ground to avoid reflecting off the fog. I have actually turned off my headlights (using my running lamps) and run fog lamps exclusively on extremely foggy days in the mtns, which at least allowed me to get up to 20 mph! |
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purplepeopleeater Samba Member
Joined: July 23, 2005 Posts: 3117 Location: E. Washington
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 9:34 pm Post subject: |
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Why do I want to carve some square ones in my late grill? |
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Squidfish Samba Member
Joined: November 24, 2004 Posts: 336 Location: 95519
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 1:55 am Post subject: Thanks! |
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Always wanted to do this with a pair of yellow rounds, possibly from a 300d mercedes...now I have the cutting idea and simple bracket fix, thanks for the post!! _________________ 1985.5 - Vanagon Westfalia Weekender Wolfsburg Edition - LH8U - "Penny"
- 2.6i 5-Cylinder 10v (2004) |
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vanagonjr Samba Member
Joined: October 07, 2010 Posts: 3425 Location: Dartmouth, Mass.
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 3:55 am Post subject: Re: Thanks! |
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gonewesty4good wrote: |
Always wanted to do this with a pair of yellow rounds, possibly from a 300d mercedes...now I have the cutting idea and simple bracket fix, thanks for the post!! |
LOL - me too. Warped minds think alike : ) _________________ John - 86 Wolfsburg Westfalia "Weekender"
Flint reversed 1.8T W/Passat 5-Speed
LiMBO (late model bus club) www.limbobus.org
LiMBO is on Facebook too! https://www.facebook.com/groups/
FAQ thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=525798 |
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xoo00oox Samba Member
Joined: February 11, 2010 Posts: 2672 Location: East Nassau, NY
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 4:03 am Post subject: |
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Here's one I did with yellow lens.
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danfromsyr Samba Member
Joined: March 01, 2004 Posts: 15129 Location: Syracuse, NY
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 6:53 am Post subject: |
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Indeed these high mounted aux lights should never be confused with #1) Fog lights or #2) driving lights on public roads (w/o exceptional dilligence)
on vans in our fleet I mount Bosch FOG lights up under the van about under yoru feet.. they've drive thru snow and such well so far.. though certainly not for those who explore down fire roads or other serious off pavement exploration.. but ours are street & campground runners.
but they provide a very clear view of the road w/o any glareback or annoying other drivers.. in fact I have them on w/running lights full time.. (they are still switched to shut off if I want while parking, etc..)
on the mock SA grills I'll take a pic of my brother's 82 sunroof with the DIY quad look, with the HUGE Bosch off road in the stock headlight location & buggy headlight buckets in the inboard location, but he's never finished the DIY steel grill for it. still a very potent off road light setup.
furrylittleotter wrote: |
Excellent post. I agree it looks even better that the SA grill which look too much like a tonka toy. I plan to attempt to simply mount a second set of round headlights and buckets. I have found the lenses on these driving lights mounted high impossible to aim due to their unfocused lenses and they blind other drivers which piss them off and they high beam me which, in turn blinds me and pisses me off. Fog Lamps are actually mounted as near as possible to the ground to avoid reflecting off the fog. I have actually turned off my headlights (using my running lamps) and run fog lamps exclusively on extremely foggy days in the mtns, which at least allowed me to get up to 20 mph! |
_________________
Abscate wrote: |
These are the reasons we have words like “wanker” |
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climberjohn Samba Member
Joined: January 11, 2005 Posts: 1840 Location: Portland Orygun
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 7:27 am Post subject: |
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I like it! I've been holding off on the SA grill because it seems so darn expensive for what you get, and this may be just the ticket.
Thanks for the post and extra photos.
If anyone else has done this, a report and more photos are welcome.
-CJ _________________ '86 Westy, 2.5 Subaru power
Know your limits. Exceed them often. |
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thatvwbusguy Samba Member
Joined: April 18, 2007 Posts: 1712 Location: Newmarket, New Hampshire
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 11:18 am Post subject: |
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For a closer match to the overall look of the SA Grill and the ability to have a completely aimable H4 headlamp, I have been toying with the idea of trying the Hella HL00243. It is a 5.75" H4 with a mounting ring that includes adjusters.
The included bulbs are 24V, so they will need to be replaced with 12V H4's, but the total cost will still be about the same as a set of premium quality fog/driving lights.
The wiring can easily be set up to only use the inner lights for high beam (like the SA Grill) or for full time high and low beams in tandem with the stock outer 7" lights.
Here is a link to where you can get them:
http://www.rallylights.com/detail.aspx?ID=4788
I just ordered a set, but have no idea when I will be able to get around to the install. Lots of projects and very little spare time these days... _________________ Jay Brown
'85 Zetec Westfalia
Newmarket, NH
If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion. |
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SteveVanB Samba Member
Joined: June 01, 2008 Posts: 1645 Location: This side of Daytona
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Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2012 7:56 am Post subject: |
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I have a set of MKII inners that I was about to toss, guess I have to use 'em now.......Thanks for the simple solution _________________ 91 CARAT |
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