I recently acquired a 2004 XJR and am having an issue with my drivers side low beam HID headlight turning on and off while driving. In my attempts to pinpoint the cause I have received mixed thoughts from various individuals. At night the light works properly for roughly 15 minuets then will repeatedly turn on and off for several minuets before turning off entirely. I can manually switch it back on but within a couple of minuets it will turn off again. Note that my passenger side works wonderfully. I’ve heard the cause is either the bulb or the ballast. I found the bulb for around $90 which I am considering but don’t think this is the issue. My local Jag dealer says for the ballast replacement I will need to replace the entire headlight for $1000+. Does anybody have any helpful advice for me? I’ve also researched replacing just the ballast(eBay) but am having trouble locating the exact unit my vehicle requires. Thank you in advance for any insight. Troy

 

Yes it usually is the ballast, and no thats bs. The ballast is avail seperatly but its on the bottom of the headlight assembly and you have to remove the bumper to get it off. The ballast list for $380-400
although i do have a brand spankin new hid headlight assembly for the drivers side in the box for $600 is you decide to go that route

 

I had an issue with my ballast last year. Tried to order one from Jag dealer, but a week later they informed me that the part is no longer available separately and I need to order the whole headlamp. I was lucky and scored one from ebay.

To rule out ballast vs bulb you can swap your left and right bulbs and see if the problem persists on the same headlamp.

There were a few ballasts on sale on eBay, so it's not impossible for get one - really easy to replace, once you get the headlamp off.

 

Had the same problem - luckily there was 1 month left on the warranty. They replaced the entire healamp assembly - ~1800 - or at least that's what the service reciept stated.

On a side note, if you need xenon bulbs there is a place in California - DDM Tuning - that sells two bulbs for about $80. I have purchased two sets from them. They are the real deal. The best price I could fine else where was $125 for an individual bulb. It's a great deal.

 

Can anyone tell me exactly which xenon bulb the XJ takes?

Thanks

- Tim

 

It's a D1S bulb - they are standard.

Don't get a D2S bulb with adapter it would likely not fit.

 

Thanks! D1S it is....

 

Has anyone had all headlights blink on and off like that my 04 XJ8 does this and I have had the car in several times and it never replicates for them. Any ideas? Desperate!

 

This is coming up as an old thread, but was on the first page of New Posts. Weird.

Anyway, I got the same deal on my 04 XJR, only with the passenger side. If it's gonna run me 4-500 for a freakin headlight, then I think I'm gonna put a For Sale sign on the car. It's only got 64K on it, and I've only had it about a month or so, but I seriously can't afford these kind of maintenance bills if this is what's gonna be the norm. I love the way the car drives and looks, but that's just flat rediculous.

Anyway, does anyone have a good source for headlights, ballasts, or whatever the hell it is I need to get this thing back to normal?

 

Amazon has the Sylvania D1S bulbs with igniters for $42 each, made in Germany by Osaram, good brand. There are a lot of off brands too for about $20 each, but I would not trust them, not worth damaging the assembly.

But first I would swap the bulbs since one of them seems to be working fine. If the problem follows the bulb/igniter (the metal box the bulb is attached to) then you have found your easy to remedy problem. Always replace them in pairs. If the problem remains with the assembly, then the ballast may be at fault. The assemblies are around $900 each but can probably be had for about 20% less than that from some dealers or forum sponsors like Nalley.

 

Thanx, gonna go swap em around now, see what happens. Noticed driving home from work last night that the drivers side seems to be flickering too. More so when I hit little bumps, etc, but was kinda doing the same thing when the passengers side went out.

Will check it out, see what I can see.

 

Well, pulled the bulb, and it was shattered. I guess when they go, they just explode? Good to know it's not the ballast, but now to find one locally.

It's an Osram D1S, as previously stated, but it seems even online, they are tough to find. Gonna call around a couple parts stores, but being sunday, not too optomistic.

Suggestions?

 

Amazon.com has them for $42 each. Replace them in pairs. They are the same part number the dealer gets $250 a set for.

Also make sure that there is not any glass melted to the inside of the housing.

Oh, and they can explode, among other reasons, when they are used beyond their life expectancy. I do not understand why no manufacturer that uses these lamps features an hour meter to measure their use. Other equipment that uses arc lamps do have hour meters for the purpose of performance (they dim and color shift over time) and breakage prevention. Hot melted glass can do a lot of damage.

 

Unfortunately, I had to suck it up, and get em local. Need the car. Gonna run me $200 for the pair, but it'll be done. Some things, I don't mind doing online, but when ya need em now.... Well, you know. As it is, I gotta wait til morning to get em.

Damn, guess I'll have to take the Harley to work on this sunny and 70 day. What a shame....

 

Amazon does overnight shipping for $3.99. Anyhow, where did you find them locally?

 

Autozone. They were 99 a piece, and I gotta go get em in the morning. Will let ya know details when I pick em up.

 

Interesting. Had no idea they sold them although none of the Autozones in my area have them, they are special order only and take a few days but if your dealer won't give you a 20% discount or you don't have a dealer close by this is a good alternative.

 

Well, now I got a minor situation. Seems the Autozone could only get one. So I came back, ordered 2 through Amazon, and it seems the shipping is 2 weeks out. WTF!! I know a ton of cars use these, why are they so damn hard to get? It's a freakin headlight!

 

Amazon had a bunch this weekend, now they have one left in stock to ship today


Amazon.com: Sylvania 66144 D1S HID - High Intensity Discharge Lamp, Pack of 1: Automotive

Must be high demand.