New Daytime Driving Lights from Vestatec

DRL (Daytime Running Lights) are now fitted to many new cars, why not improve the safety and looks of your vehicle?
As with many things there are many cheap LED strip lamps available and when you put these side by side with DRL’s from Vestatec there is no comparison. Brighter whiter and more professional looking some of the new lamps look even better than the factory option.
Universal Superbright LED Daytime Running Light Strips with Auto DIM Function MPL010x

Jaguar XF DRL
Land Rover Freelander DRL
Land Rover Discovery DRL
Range Rover DRL
Range Rover Sport DRL
VW T5 GP DRL
Universal strip DRL

Now that the clocks have changed and the winter darkness is upon us the safety features of running lights is invaluable. DRLs were first mandated in Scandinavian countries where ambient light levels in the winter are generally low even during the day, Volvo with lights on all the time was taken a stage further by Audi with their very bright LED strips round the headlamps. Now you can have these easy to fit accessories fitted to your car. An ideal Christmas gift for your car.

Puddle lights with a difference

LED Puddle Lights illuminates the entrance to your vehicle when you open your door they light up the ground by your vehicle making it easier for you and your passengers to see any hazards in the dark. Now we can offer coloured laser projector lamps that throw the logo of your vehicle make onto the floor or interior of your vehicle, see photo.

These 12 volt lamps are easy to install with cutter included and will certainly make your car stand out from the crowd. Logo laser lamps are available for most vehicle makes and look very cool.

We offer a fitting service at our workshop in Dunbar.

Logo laser lamps are available for most vehicles

How to save your tyres for less than you think.

Last week I was driving a short distance to the shops and thought the car was not driving well, the steering was heavy and when I got home the front right tyre was soft. In the morning it was flat so I inflated it with the electric pump I carry in the boot and drove the car round to our local tyre depot to be told that because it was a low profile, the fact that I had driven it soft meant the wall on this otherwise newish tyre was ruined and so it cost me £195 for a replacement.

If I had spotted the soft tyre before I started driving it would have saved me a packet. So I have fitted our new wireless tyre pressure monitoring system or TPMS. It was so easy unlike some of the internal types that require the tyre to be removed from the rim then balanced and the sensor display head to be hard wired into the cars electrics, this system simply has the LCD display stuck on the top of the dash and the coded sensors screwed and locked onto the tyre valves with the supplied Allan key.

Costs less than one tyre Wireless Tyre Pressure Monitoring System DIY

The silver half ball shaped display is cool and very clever; it goes to sleep when the car is left unattended (saving battery life) and when you jump into the car and close the door it bleeps and wakens the green illuminated display. Well you hope it’s green because that means all is well with your pressures, if not the display will flash red and emit a warning sound. You can instantly see the pressure and temperature of each tyre while you are driving, I must admit I have become a bit anal in needing all four readings to be the same and have visited the filling station compressor more than I used to but I’m sure that will pass and anyway if it is saving my tyres and fuel consumption that can’t be a bad thing eh?

The kit comes with a cigar lighter charger for the display head and I keep it in the glove box and just use it to give it a charge once every couple of weeks but you could either leave it on or hard wire it if you want. The four valve cap sensors are a little bulky looking but I prefer them to the internal ones which apart from needing the cost of fitting have been known to break apart inside the tyre and give terrible wheel wobble because of the imbalance etc.

So for less than the cost of a single tyre you can have a really easy to fit system which will save you fuel and tyres plus the temperature sensors will give early warning of break or wheel hub problems. More info….

If you would like more information please call our friendly team on 0845 166 4454 (local rate) or Contact us..

tyre pressure monitoring system

Catalytic converter theft prevention

Stealing exhaust systems and CAT’s from petrol cars has become big business. With precious metal prices rising steadily, the demand for parts that contain them is also rising. The resulting theft of catalytic converters has become a concern for already beleaguered motorists.

Possible solutions include virtually indestructible stickers with a seven digit code and a 24 hour telephone number for the International Security Register which stores the code against vehicle details. This cheap but ineffective way in my opinion since the thieves usually sell to crooked metal merchants who don’t care about markings.

Another solution to catalytic theft is the CAT Lock at £150 it is still a lot cheaper than a replacement converter. It will certainly slow them down if not totally discourage the thief to look for an easier car to have a go at.

Recently the ProCatt Alarm has been introduced and for my money it seems better to make a racket and draw attention to the fact that some vandal is under your car with a hacksaw than just to try and slow him down. This device will scream as soon as the metal of your exhaust is scratched by the cutting gear the twin sensors on the ProCatt will sense the harmonic change and sound the alarm before any damage is done.

Reduce risk

To reduce the risk of theft of your car’s catalytic converter:

Garage your car whenever possible
Park in well-lit busy areas
Look out for people working under cars
If the car’s high risk consider marking the metal shell of the converter with a unique mark, so that if it is removed by thieves it will be easier to trace back to your vehicle
Or fit one of our solutions: The CatLock or ProCatt

Catalytic converter theft prevention

Car seat heater warm your buns.

Car seat heater. Heated seat cushions are ideal in this cold wintery weather, there is nothing nicer than feeling the warmth in the small of your back when the snow is inches deep on the roof of your car. aftermarket heated seats can be installed so anyone can enjoy the benefits of the luxury car feeling.

We have recently introduced two new 12 volt Heated Car Seat kits from C-KO. They are ergonomic design Carbon filament seat cushions, universal fitting with a cuttable design suitable for cloth, leather or vinyl seats. OEM quality equal heat distribution they are supplied with cables and have a choice of two stage (High/Low) or Variable heat switches. These car seat heater heating elements seat conversions give you the comfort at a fraction of the factory option cost. They come in two models, the W-16T-A & G-11T-A have two heater pads and the W-16T-B & G-11T-B have four pads, prices start at only £64.99 per seat. We Also offer a fitting service locally or can arrange a nationwide service.

Carbocomfort retro fit heated seat cushion car seat heating pad conversion kits are easy to fit and are suitable for the majority of cars on the road. Key benefit of carbon over traditional wire elements is its strength and durability, the carbon element is not as prone to failure as continuity is retained even if a single fibre is broken. The dash-mounted switch will integrate well with modern car dash and shows the heat intensity (30% economy for continuous or 100% fast heat) through the colour of the LED. Each kit comes with a pair of heating mats, one for base and one for back of the seat, a relay, wiring loom and the switch. Current car seat heater consumption is around 3A.

Automonitor‘s Retrofit Insert car seat heater for driver and front passenger seats is a more economical option using heating elements of extremely flexible, coated wire. These kits should be installed with care and if you are not sure about the wiring etc you should consult a specialist, if you contact us we can recommend an qualified fitter in your part of the country.

These car seat warmer heated seat conversion kits can be retrofitted to Audi, BMW, Citroen, Ford, grand cherokee, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mercedes, Peugeot, Porsche, Renault, Skoda, Subaru, Toyota, Volvo, Vauxhall, VW and many more. These are car seat heater like proper OE factory heating elements fitted heated seats, these are not heated cushions or seat covers that simply plug in to the cigar lighter point (easy and cheap but dangerous).

For more information on car heated seats contact us or Telephone : 0845 166 7104

Daytime driving lights DRL’s, the new batch.

Meta system has just introduced a new range of Daytime running lights for Land Rover, Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, Discovery and Freelander DRL’s are available.

Daytime driving lamps will be compulsory on all new cars from February 2011.
They add style and personality, but most importantly improve road safety.

We also have a universal Dual LED flexible strip which is easy to fit to any car and shows a bright white line of LEDS when driving, also when indicating to turn they flash amber, cool!

Fitting instructions. Discovery L319 Daytime Running Lights paginated

Angel Eye Headlamps

Upgrading your cars standard factory headlights to new angel eye or R8 style LED headlamp set is very simple “plug and play” angel headlights replacements headlamps give a refreshing updated look for your car. Remove the old ones, install these new ones with no additional work.

Many of these driving lights also include a projector lens as the primary light source, which allows more light to come out of the road lights. they have a wider light beam pattern than most reflector-housing headlamps. Just like the new BMW headlights, the custom headlight features an LED Halo Angle Eye ring around the projector lens

Our angel eye headlights direct replacement are sold in pairs, black or chrome projector style angel-eye headlamp units for the following cars: Ford Focus, Peugeot, VW Golf, Honda Civic, BMW

Xenon headlights and HID projector headlamp and DRL LED daytime running driving lamps are also available similar to Audi A4 Headlights. Brighten up the dark winter nights with some new car headlamps from CarAudioStuff, they are easier to fit than you might think and are legal plus will pass an MOT no problem. If you have a car and don’t see a set on our site, contact us and we will see if we can source some for you.

Beginning in the early 1990s, High-intensity discharge lamps (HID lamps) have been employed in motor vehicle headlamps. This application has met with mixed responses from motorists, who appreciate the improved nighttime visibility from HID headlamps but object to the glare they can cause. Internationalized European vehicle regulations require such headlamps to be equipped with lens cleaners and an automatic self-leveling system to keep the beams aimed correctly regardless of vehicle load and altitude, but no such devices are required on motorcycles, or in North America, where ECE regulations are inapplicable and inherently more glaring beam patterns are also permitted. The fitting of HID conversion kits (which include HID lamps that fit into original headlamp units in place of the original bulbs with no change to the headlamp’s lens, reflector or housing) generally results in extremely high levels of glare, and is illegal throughout most of the world. However, complete halogen headlamp units can be replaced with complete HID headlamp units, provided that the replacement headlamp units comply with the applicable standards.
Some of our most popular Angel eye and LED – Headlamps

Daytime Running Lights (DRL) will be compulsory on all new cars from February 2011.

What are DRL Daytime Running Lights?
DRL’s were first made mandatory in Scandinavian countries where it is frequently dark during daytime hours in winter time. Volvo and Saab cars being the first examples of the D-R-L technology.
Numerous worldwide studies since the 1970s have concluded that daytime running lights improve safety but they were not considered sexy until Audi featured their bright LED array on the R8 and subsequent models. Many aftermarket stick-on D.R.L kits are available and as always the quality and brightness of these have depended on price. Ours start at £29.99 up to £459.99 for the very latest Jaguar XF. If you own the Jaguar XF you can make you model look like the 2011 car with these easy fit Daytime Running Lights.

Fully legal to all ECE requirements
High powered original equipment white LED lamp units
Original equipment quality materials ensure a factory fitted appearance
Easy to fit – approximately 1 hour fitting time
Suitable for use with the XF standard bumper

The latest batch

We also have a large range of Angel Eye and LED lamps for many vehicles. If you want the look of the Audi R8 check out the range of aftermarket headlamps and car accessories on our webslite.

We Fit Stuff – Mobile Car Stereo Installation service

When you make a purchase from Caraudiostuff Ltd, you have choices when it comes to installing that Car Audio head unit, DVD entertainment system, Phone kit or parking sensors etc. You can Do It Yourself (DIY), You can bring it to our workshop in Dunbar East Lothian and let our expert specialists fit it for you, or you can have it fitted at your home or work premises’ either by our mobile car audio installers if you are local or by our nationwide network of independant specialist in-car entertainment fitters.

1. DIY

There are many guides and help available for keen amateurs but be wary of so called expert advice from websites like YouTube and Forums. Sometimes the advice they give is at best wrong and at worst dangerous. I recently watched an American YouTube tutorial which showed a Rosen AV7500 Headrest screen install where the fitter used scotchlocks or Tclips as he called them (we only ever twist/solder & wrap our connections) any of the crimpy type connections should be avoided. If you have purchased the product from Ray Smith CarAudioStuff you can contact us by telephone or email and we will make sure you get the best advice and instruction on fitting all car audio entertainment and security products.You can also check out our incar electronics tips section. If you get stuck you can always move on to stage two or three below.

2. Let us fit it.

If you take the time to bring your car to us we will give you a priority booking making sure your vehicle gets our best and quickest attention in our fully equipped workshop (Map directions) while we give you a lift into Dunbar high street and buy you a coffee at “Grayz Coffee & chocolate shop” , you can browse the shops and gallery’s or visit the historic harbour and when your car is ready we will give you a call and arrange to pick you up again or if you fancy exploring the area further with an overnight stop we can recommend “The Rocks” for dinner and accommodation. We can do Car Audio and DVD Navi Unit Fitting, Hands-free Car Kit Fitting, iPod/MP3 Connection, Speaker, Subwoofer And Amplifier Fitting, Parking Sensor Fitting and Camera Detector Fitting and much more.

3. Home or Work install

If you live in the Lothian’s, Edinburgh or Berwick our mobile fitting service can come to you for a small extra charge. Simply give us a call on 0845 166 7104 and make an appointment. If you are further afield we can arrange for one of our network of specialist dealers to look after you. The Four Master Network is made up of specialists with the same expert skills that we have and while not all of them may offer a mobile service and a trip to their local premises’ may be necessary, if this is a problem for you we will endeavour to find you a good qualified mobile fitter. Simply let us do the searching for you, we have many friends in the industry and we have not been beaten yet. We can arrange everything so one single payment at time of purchase can be made and a fitting voucher supplied if this suits.

Prices.

We won’t try to dupe you with free fit or ridiculously cheap offers like some websites, common sense tells you that quality workmanship is not free, I wish I had a pound for every Halfords free-fit we have rectified. Our labour is based on £40 per hour, we can fit the average head unit in half an hour using the proper harnesses and facia panels (extra cost). For a free quotation please contact us or call 0845 166 7104

For more helpful information see our Installation Guide