Is there any car which provides that?
One might need to open bonnet at night and it is not always possible to carry a torch.
Why not provide a light inside engine bay just like a boot light?
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Yes there is, definitely, and I cannot for the life of me remember what it was! AAGGHHH!! It was something one of my rellies owned once.... That is going to annoy me all day now!
Cheers
DP
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I shall beat PU to it
(q sean bean sheffield accent)
reason number 9,999 to shop at BMW
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AE,
I solved that particular problem. I bought ahead torch in Tesco for a tenner and I can use it for other things. Such is life in poverty spec land.
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Very annoying, even in a well lit garage the act of raising the bonnet blocks out all the light.
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my old Pug 505, VW Caravelle and Volvo 240 all had lights under the bonnet; indeed the 505 had a mercury (??? it was a silvery liquid in a glass bulb) tilt switch that turned it on when the bonnet was raised, don't imagine that would be allowed nowadays. Never had a car with one since.
Edited by normd2 on 16/01/2008 at 09:51
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Most of us on this sight may open our bonnets once or twice a week...
lesser mechanically minded, maybe once every 2 weeks or month.
Even then you'd only open it in the dark if something is wrong at night, or maybe in the winter. Just as valid as footwell lights though.
Sounds like a good idea, but may add £20 - 50? to cost of car with switches, fuses,wiring and parts. Anyone owning a large exec car is less likely to bother with oily bits anyway and these are the cars with these sort of options.
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never understood this I had it on a 1983 vauxhall astra, never had one since. Not vital bot handy on the odd occasion you need to fill washers or check oil level on a dark morning or evening.
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Had one on all my previous Vauxhalls - and if not fitted as standard, the wiring was in place so I just fitted a 2nd hand interior light in the hole provided. Not one fitted to my Vectra-C though.
Do I miss it? Not at all. Half the time in my previous Vauxhalls the bulb more often than not had blown anyway due to the light being on whenever the headlights were switched on.
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Petrol leak. Car stops. Open bonnet.Mr Sparky meets Mr Fuel.
Whoomph!
Possibly.
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GWS
I think you will find that in an engine bay, Mr high voltage coil, and Mrs High voltage leads and the spark plug children plus granny very hot exhaust manifold would have made short work of Mr Fuel before you get anywhere near opening Uncle Bonnet!
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Yes I think Mk2 Cavaliers had them didnt they? And AFAIR the 1989 Saab 9000 I had had one, but it was broken on mine.
We have a halogen security light pointing down at our drive, but opening the bonnet blocks out the light. I have to park way down the drive but then my own shadow blocks out half of the light.
But I always carry a big torch in the boot for work, so its not a major problem.
Edited by Rich 9-3 on 16/01/2008 at 11:08
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I had a Cav with it, later ones with an Airbag didnt have it, the dealer reckoned they used the bonnet light feed / fuse location etc for the airbag.
We have a double garage, to PIR controlled wall lights either side give excellent illumination if ever a bonnet is raised in the dark, as does the internal garage light if the door is open.
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i use a head-torch these days - feel like a complete dork but it does the job admirably.
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A mk3 Cav! Thank you.
My mk2 didn't have it. Not so's I noticed anyway.
Cheers
DP
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It was always a useless novelty. One which they got rid of and I don't miss it. Most were as dim as a candle. You can get a 7w luxeon torch i19.ebayimg.com/02/i/000/b1/93/fe46_2.JPG the size of a packet of polos nowadays for £5 and this is 100x more useful and practical. (Unlike these...) im.edirectory.co.uk/p/1270/i/8in1multilite.jpg
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My Wartburg Knight had one. With good reason...
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There is not much you can see on Hyundai Coupe, even in broad daylight. Almost everything is covered with sheets of plastic which stop you doing much even if you wanted to. So there would not be much point in an engine compartment light.
As a rough pointer to the period of their phasing out, 1984 Celica Supra had one, 1995 Supra has not.
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Why is it always rubbish cars that have them......?
How can you all have forgotten the push-button searchlight under the bonnet of a Lada!
[And a Rover SD1 had two!!]
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Volvo 240 has one. It has a mercury tilt-switch which can be set to automatically come on when the bonnet is opened, or be turned on/off manually.
Triumph 2000 has a socket under the bonnet for plugging in a 12 volt inspection lamp.
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it is not always possible to carry a torch.
What on earth can prevent you carrying a torch? New EU legislation? Please ....
Best underbonnet light I saw was on a 30-year-old Jap car. Toyota Crown I think. Torpedo-shaped, toggle switch on the end, the light end had a bayonet fitting and became a wander light with a hook as 3ft of flex uncoiled itself from the light body. Genius design, but a worrying lack of confidence in the machinery I thought.
Edited by Hawkeye {P} on 16/01/2008 at 22:36
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Ref Hawkeye - my Datsun 260C of similar vintage had the same underbonnet lighting system. I never had to use it in anger, so to speak, but always checked that it was functional as part of underbonnet checks "just in case". Haven't come across them in anything more modern though, so I always carry a good torch.
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You can still get tilt switches though I doubt they contain Mercury.
There is a design on the Escort Mk4 microfiche for an under-bonnet light. Wouldn't have thought it was ever allocated during construction and not sure what application it would suit.
Edited by mfarrow on 16/01/2008 at 23:53
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My Lancia Beta (1978) had an under-bonnet light - you always knew when the bonnet wasn't shut right 'cos the light shone through the holes in the bodywork to shine on the deck!
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My 1977 Rover 3.5 SD1 had under the bonnet lights. Very useful. Maybe Rover anticipated rather a lot of breakdowns! Or was it ahead of its time.
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Why not provide a light inside engine bay just like a boot light?
Because most manufacturers don't expect you to have it open very often.
Only to check your oil and replenish your washer fluid. They expect you to take it to the garage for anything else!
(exception is on a friend's 55 plate Honda Accord diesel. Sticker on A post - check oil daily! I guess this was when that engine was developing a reputation for consuming totally unreasonable amounts of oil)
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