hello gents-

I have the headlights pointing down, and I am quite certain the internals have all failed.

currently I am trying to figure out if I want to fix them myself, buy a refurbished pair, or buy a brand new pair. Problem is, I am not sure if Jaguar ever improved the quality of the internal clips/adjusters/gears......

if if anyone knows please share. Thanks

 

I have a 2007 with the original headlights and they are OK. I don't know if the parts have become brittle
but so far have they have not failed. I had a 2003 where they did fail and I took the headlights all apart and
glued the broken parts together. My fix worked but I was not happy with the result. The parts were so
brittle that they would almost crumble in my hand. The fix did hold up until we sold the car at 200,000
miles.

Our current 2007 X-type has only 91,000 miles but is now much older now than the 2003 was when i did the fix.
I take that to mean that the plastic in the 2007 parts is better than the plastic in the 2003 parts. Jaguar
did improve things during the manufacturing run of the X-type. My 2003 had the typical oil leak at
the oil pan gasket, my 2007 does not leak oil anywhere.

 

Hi Spikepaga.
The headlight adjusters are a known fault as the plastic they were made from gets very brittle. They have even been known to break whilst replacing a bulb.
Luckily they are not too difficult to replace and the parts are readily available on e-bay. There are some extremely good videos on u-tube on this.
I have done this job myself and the longest part of the process was removing and replacing the bumper cover. The replacement adjusters are well made and are a good fit. I believe they are made to a better standard than the originals. I would say to anyone attempting this job that, for the work involved, even if only one of the headlights need repair, it would be more cost effective to replace both.
Good luck, let us know how you got on.

Alan in sunny Malta (overcast to-day.)

 

I have the parts to replace this summer (if it ever warms up this year, lol. Been a LONG winter in Utah). Mine failed last year on my 2006 when attempting an adjustment. The replacements are a completely different material and I believe, once replaced, will outlast the car.

 

Thanks for your replies.

The main reason I was thinking of just getting new lights is the idea of having to remove the bumper and then have to Betty Crocker the headlights in the oven and fix them seems very unpleasant.......Seems much more pleasant to take the bumper of, get the lights in and just be done.

 

I'm going to heat gun them apart and last fall I also ordered in some new butyl cord strip to replace all the old just for g.p.
AND the price of the repair kit is a FRACTION of buying even one headlight assembly.

 

Hi Spikepaga.
I used a heat gun as shown in the u-tube video, which proved very easy and effective, You will find the original sealant strip stays in the grove so that on re-assemble all you need to do is heat up the headlight for a few seconds to soften the sealer, and push the lens back into place. For extra waterproofing I ran a bead of black silicone round the whole lens.
To repair in this way is far cheaper than new replacements or repaired units.

Good Luck.

Alan in sunny Malta (overcast to-day)

 

Just watch out when ordering plastic adjusters, they are not the same for xenon and non-xenon headlights.
Opening lenses is very easy. You can heat it in a oven or even with a hairdryer.
If You already have it opened it's easy to replace butyl rubber, I used morimoto butyl rubber, but i guess any butyl is the same.
You can fix them for a fraction of a price of used replacement headlights that could fail any time.

 

Hey Spike
I do these and sell them refurbished for 125. Per light. With your old lights sent to me when you get your new lights.

Thanks,
The Dr
484-903-4813

 

Just an f.y.i. the parts I bought are made of PA-6 which research shows is darn near indestructible compared to the original material Jag used.



Heat is the villain for these adjusters and PA 6 property is = melting point is at 215 °C (419°F) and can protect heat up to 150 °C (302° F) on average.

 

Thank you. I think this will be the ticket for me. I don’t think that after spending 1 hour removing the bumper I will be in the mood to do headlights. I will send you a text when I am ready to complete this job