I have Stock Xenon HID self-leveling headlamps on my 02 X-Type and I've noticed that the driver side is dimmer than the passenger side. Two questions:
1) Is the difference in brightness due to a bulb "burning out" or is it more serious like the ballast?
2) I've read that using the after market bulb replacement off e-bay will stop the self leveling from working. Is that true? Any problems that I should know about when changing the bulb?
Any suggestions or comments will be greatly appreciated.

 

canman, aftermarket bulbs will not prevent the self leveling feature from working. What does end up happening is people are not careful putting in the new bulbs and end up breaking some of the supports inside of the headlight assembly, resulting in the headlight on that side pointing towards the ground.

As for a dimming bulb, it is possible that the bulb is starting to fail. You can get new bulbs and replace the current ones. The big thing that you need to make sure of is the new bulbs are rated the same as the current bulbs. HID bulbs do vary slightly between the manufacturers. So, you need to make sure that they are rated for the same voltage.

 

Thanks, I understand that from one of the threads, that is exactly what happened - I'll have a dealership in Buffalo (I've found that is really reasonable) install them. I've seen that the specs on the OEM is:

Type: D2S
Kelvin: 4,300K
Lumen: 3,200 LM
Lamp Voltage & Power: 85V, 35W
Life time: Est. 3,000 Hrs

I guess I'll have to change both and have been thinking on buying these on e-bay:

D2C (D2S D2R) HID XENON Bulb replacement
Watt: 35W
Color Temperature: 14000 K (Cool Ocean Blue)

For only $25 I think it is worth a try, can you think of problems with these?

Cheers

 

Just so you know 14000k's are not going to be anywhere near as bright as the factory 4300k's meaning you will see less when you are driving. 14000ks are going to be more of a purple color, if you want blue get 6000k's or 8000k's. On my last X-Type I had aftermarket 6000k's, my current X has the factory 4300k xenons and you can see much more of the road.

 

I saw that in the specs... the lumen goes down as the temp goes up, but I would like blue over white - maybe I will look into 6000K range then.

 

Keep in mind you pretty much get what you pay for when it comes to the Xenon bulbs. I think Hella made the factory bulbs, so you could use that as a point of reference. Try finding a company that offers a lifetime warranty so you don't have to keep spending money on problematic bulbs. The color is going to vary a bit between manufacturers as well, so try to find a site that shows the bulbs of your choosing installed with projector headlights (if you're getting a factory replacement). For the most part 4300k (white to a hint of blue), 6000k (light blue to blue), 8000k (deep blue to light purple), 10000k-whatever K (purple, pink, etc and are usually "show" lights). Good luck!

 

OK I've bought the xenon bulbs, but can't remove the old ones. It is easy enough to take the covers off, and the back off (counter clockwise turn) but the bulb does not come out? I don't see any clips, and have tried rotating it and it won't budge. I don't want to press or turn too hard in fear it might break something like the leveling mechanism. If anyone has changed the OEM Xenon bulbs before and can help, please let me know.

 

After the igniter is removed, I can't budge the Headlamp bulb retaining ring, does anyone know if there is a trick to this? Any input would be appreciated.