I'm assuming this means that it's time to replace the lamp. Have been having the well-documented flickering problem for a while. Replaced the battery and it seemed to help some (also as an oddity, the lights would come on in the middle of the day when set to auto mode). Obviously there are several problems. This morning I noticed that one of the bulbs had color shifted to a light violet and was pretty dim.

Question: Has anyone replaced the HIDs with halogen or other 'conventional' bulbs? Also, can the bulb be replaced without replacing the entire light housing. My service guy says that you have to replace the entire housing (bulb, ballast, lens, etc) to the tune of about $1000 (US) per pop. He's generally pretty straight up so I tend to believe him.

Just looking for suggestions.

2004 XJR US configuration.

 

I don't think you have to replace the whole housing... that would only be if the ballast went bad. You should be able to just replace the bulb, if that is indeed the problem.

My coworker has a 2002(?) Acura CL that I'm about to replace the HID ballast for him on. Unfortunately the ballasts on that car are $500/each or something. So we are using an aftermarket kit and then splicing the wires in. I wonder if this is a possibility with the Jaguar, if your ballast is bad.

 

The HID bulb assemblies from Jaguar parts are only $120 each or less. Easier and cheaper to stay stock.

 

Your service guy is correct. You have to replace the whole headlamp assembly. The HID socket is weird and you can't find a bulb to fit + you have to route the power that hoes to the ballast - more hassle than the used headlamp assembly from eBay. They are 1k + from the dealer.

The HIDs go violet when the bulb is about to go out, not difficult to replace. Given they should last 3-4 years, the price is not a killer.

 

You mean they don't sell HID replacement lamps?

I thought he was asking if he could just replace the Xenon lamp and not everything else. In any case, I think you'd only have to change out the housing if your ballast was bad....

 

I think he was asking if he could replace the HID lamp system with the standard halogen system so it would be cheaper maintenance. You could buy quite a few HID lamps for the cost of changing the system over. Stick with the HIDs for now. The things that were so maintenance easy are now getting to be a nightmare. HID headlamps...LED tail lamps!

 

I read it a hundred times, but now I am seeing that he was talking about a halogen conversion!

How stupid of me!

 

Thanks for the comments guys. Yes, I am considering a halogen conversion. The HIDs have been a steady source of frustration for the past couple of years - flickering in brightness, sometimes going out completely (but only for a second or two), and now going dim. During the last service, the computer said that I had several low voltage indications so I replaced the battery - was hoping that it would help with the lights, and it seems to have helped some, but now there are other problems. If I'm looking at a couple of thousand (US$) for parts to repair, I'm wondering if a conversion to halogens would be as cost effective (immediately) and less of a headache in the future.

 

Did they check all of your ground connection points? There have been several cases where oxidation and poor connections have lead to situations similar to yours.

 

I wonder if it's possible to convert to an aftermarket ballast. I just did it yesterday on my coworker's Acura CL for only $60. Basically, you get the right bulb that will fit the headlight housing, put that in there, and hook up the new ballast/igniter and zip tie it somewhere. I had to splice the power source from the car into the power harness for the ballast.

I can't imagine the process would be any different for the Jag. As long as you have access to the actual lamp that goes into the housing, there should be no problem at all.

 

The ballast also contains the controls for the headlight leveling.

 

Is this headlight leveling really a necessary feature?

 

It is a legal requirement in a lot of countries especially when Xenon bulbs are used.

 

Correct for the US too, no need dazzling on-coming drivers.

 

Are these standard? Meaning can I use Sylvania D1S with integrated ballast (only about $40 each from Amazon) or are the Jag parts ones proprietary at $120 each (controls for leveling).

 

If the suspension is supposed to automatically level the car so that it is always flat (forward and back), why does it need additional leveling inside the actual headlamps?

I wonder if you could do without this feature if you had to install an aftermarket ballast.

 

I suspect they are independent of each other. The suspension leveling has nothing to do with headlights but rather weight distribution, comfort and aerodynamics. If the ballasts adjust the level of the lamps then I can think of any reason why it would not be needed.

 

If Wikipedia is to be believed, the US is one of the few countries where it isn't mandatory

Headlamp - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Interesting read. Not all of the cars I have had with HID had adaptive suspension but always had some form of leveling. I was informed that this was due to US regulations regarding high powered lighting but apparently that applies to the rest of the world, not this country. It also mentioned the suspension came into play, but again Jaguar said the adaptive suspension was for load leveling, comfort, performance and aerodynamics and a separate system was in use for lamp leveling. Hmmmm.

 

The HID bulbs are standard D1S - buy from whoever you want. The D1S bulb comes with the HID capsule and what feels like a coil assembly attached to it.

The bulb say "integrated ballast", but it's not the complete ballast. Most of the electronics for the HID is in a module on the bottom of the headlight assembly (made by Valeo).

The module on the bottom also contains something to control the headlight leveling motor. The suspension sends signals to the leveling module about the height of the vehicle. The leveling module then controls the leveling motor in the headlight assembly, so your low beams look the same height regardless of your vehicle load.

@jahummer - I was referring to the headlight leveling function, not the car height leveling function.