This is my first post and want to first thank all of you in advance for your answers and help. I'm not a mechanic and the first car I pick to work on is the car listed in the title...go figure eh?

Question;
Driver headlamp has burnt out twice within 1.5yrs time. Now the passenger side is needing replacing. I want to switch up to LED but see the two major differences in lamps. One with a builtin fan and the other with a copper core cooling thru cooper braids. I read the copper braids are the newer tech, anyone have any experience in this? Some require the removal or center drilling out the cap to allow for size of bulb and extra cooling benefits. Does this allow moisture to enter the lens area?

Fan or copper cooling, anyone can help me? Thanks!

Also, anyone trying to find rotors for a 2003 S-Type R Sport 4.2 twin turbo supercharger or similar. I found to be the best fit were the EBC Brakes USR1602 Rotors with the EBC Brakes DP31462C. Les Schwab and a local Auto Repair was not able to find proper rotors after (6) tries between them. No joke, hard to match, these are larger and deeper then standards. Searched internet and ended up contacting EBC directly for match and according to my wife, these feel so smooth, no flutter or wobble and stop NOW!

 

After I opened this forum I saw at the top right where it says: "No Technical Questions." Sorry, I did try to delete but wasn't able to find how. Please forgive me for my lack of attention to observations and detail.

 

Hello,

I have the one without the fan, latest tech.
There is a large rubber seal that does the job done without getting water in.
But the results is moderate on an S-type, bundle you get is quite bad.
I needed to modify the plastic inserts to get a reasonable bundle.
Sill I need to put back the normal lamps for every MOT.

Regards,
Peter Jan

 

Are you saying the original bulb system works better then the LED set up as far as producing light? Not sure what you meant by; " Sill I need to put back the normal lamps for every MOT." what is a MOT? And when you refer to bundle, you're referring to the light package itself? You say the light fixtureor bulb needs to be modified? Did you incorporate the clip wire that's in the lighting system or did you delete that all together?

Sorry about the amateurs questions, I've been a Commercial Builder all my life and now that I'm retired, I'm going to take time to work on my wife's car. Thanks for your time and help Peter.

Peace, Simon

 

Hello,

We have a yearly technical check you have to pass, ( in the UK called MOT )
your lights need to be adjusted right, and you need a nice straight light bundle or image.
The Led bulb comes with a plastic holder, that you put in place of the bulb, since you can't reach the clips anymore when the led bulb in place, it's just to big.
But the light bundle has to be adjusted, the set came with 2 different holders, Both holders give another way the light is projected. Both were somewhat off.
I modified one holder, that gave some improvement.
Still those leds are not jet ideal,

Regards,
Peter Jan

 

Okay, understand much better, thank you. But what I'm getting is that the new LED lamps needs more design work before being worth installing?

What light would you recommend then? Thanks Peter for all your help!

 

I recently did lots of research on replacing my 2003 3.0 S-type's halogen headlights with LEDs. The last time I replaced a burned out low beam I pressed too hard on the spring clip and shattered the brittle plastic adjusters, causing the entire headlamp to droop and that bulb to flop around loosely inside the housing.

I created an entirely new lexicon of swear words that day.

Now I have 2 new metal adjuster-equipped headlamp housings ready to be installed. I hoped to install LEDs in them so I never have to change another damn bulb after my last experience. LEDs claim anywhere from 50,000-100,000 hours of life.

I learned that there is a mind-numbing array of LED replacement bulb choices out there (most made in China), all claiming to improve your visibility while reducing power consumption and extending battery life. Much of it is hooey according to some folks who've installed and tested them. Others claim LEDs are akin to the second coming of christ. Most folks tend to agree that with LEDs - you get what you pay for.

Here's what I learned...
LED headlights get scortchingly hot, so first generation LEDs have a fan mounted on the rear of the bulb to cool them. And as you pointed out, the latest generation of LED headlights replaces the active heat dissipation of a fan with a passive heat sink made of several flexible braided metal ribbons designed to wick heat away from the bulb housing. The ribbon design reduces the overal length of the bulbs and may make them useful in tight quarters where a 1st gen bulb with fan will not fit.

So it appeared to me that no 1st gen bulbs with fan were suitable for my Low (dipped) Beams because of the circular cover on back of the headlight housing. I measured as best I could, and determined the bulbs with fan are simply too long to allow that cover to be screwed back on. Remove or alter the cover and my guess is you'll have moisture incursion and potential problems with your headlights and electrical system.

2nd gen LEDs with their flexible braided heat sink look like they might completely fit inside the headlight housing with heat sink braids tucked inside and back cover screwed on, but I'm not 100% certain. You'd have to measure for yourself.

I don't know how hot those heat sink braids get, but I have reservations about enclosing them inside my headlight housing for fear of melting the plastic lens or housing, maybe even causing a fire. So I also ruled out 2nd gen LED headlights for Low Beams. Bummer.

My conclusion is that current LED headlights, with or without fan, are just not suitable for my '03 S-Type's Low Beams. Instead, my reasearch pointed me toward a suitable high visibility Low Beam alternative - PIAA Extreme White 4000K halogens. I have not installed these yet but they are some of the highest rated halogen bulbs on the market, according to other users.

Unfortunately, they are halogens and I will have to replace them in the future. So I'm practicing my technique on releasing those Low Beam spring clips and bulb replacement before my new light assemblies are installed. Don't want to break them again.

For my Main (high) Beams, I've bought PIAA LED performance bulbs, which have a cooling fan on them. I've measured them and they will fit my high beam mount without problems, but I don't know how they will work in your car.

The PIAA's are pricey, but I was able to find an open box deal online for half the normal price. I have not yet installed them so I cannot speak to their performance, but I'm hoping they will be bright and high quality like other PIAA products, and will last the life of my car. If so, they may be worth the price.

One factor to consider when buying LED headlights is the design of the lens into which they are being installed - is it a reflector lens (as halogen lenses usually are)? Or is it a projector lens (as HIDs are)? Once you determine that, you have to read the specs on the prospective LED replacement bulb to determine if its beam pattern is suitable for the lens design. I chose the PIAA LEDs specifically because their literature said these lights were suitable for reflector type lenses, which is what is on my car.

Shopping for replacement LEDs is complicated and may not yield the results you were hoping for. I hope this was helpful. Good luck!

 

You have factory HID's on the STR. I would just fix them as that was the top lighting system on the S Type.

Bulbs should last a very long time. I am still on one of my original bulbs in my 2005 STR.

Are you buying factory bulbs or EBay replacement bulbs?

Your car does not have twin turbo superchargers? You have a roots style blower on the engine.

Rotors are a bit hard to find and many listings have errors. Do you know what the diameter of the brake rotor is that you need? Be sure and check that before ordering.

I have used R1 concepts and like the slotted discs they sell.
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.
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Wow, thanks for the mini LED biography, it sure says a lot and has help tremendously. But my lights are HID and I'm thinking without any other type socket for mounting, I may have to stick with this type of fixture? I'm glad I waited before buying.

Thanks for your time, greatly appreciated!

 

I haven't purchased any bulbs at this time. Do you know which of the HID's would be the best to use?
As for the twin turbo/supercharger, it says right on top of the engine cover. As for rotors, I used the EBC Rotor USR1602 slotted, and they seem to work quite well.

Thank you for your help!!

 

There's something strange about your car then.

The type R had a single supercharger. No gas-powered Jag has twin or even single turbo, irrespective of what the engine cover says. No car has both.

Maybe post a photograph so we can figure out exactly what you've got?