Long time away from these forums, but glad to see them still going strong! I've had my 2009 XKR for over 10 years and have had very little issues until recently. Taking it out of storage after the winter, the passenger (US version) headlight was out. Got the usual flashing warning and indicator failure. Started with replacing bulbs, no effect, then took it to my indy Jag guy, who replaced the Lamp Control Module, still no effect. Next week he's going to check the grounding in the wheel arches that I've seen suggested in others' posts here. I think it's the headlight itself and was hoping someone could tell me if I can replace the whole unit without needing a deal to calibrate/program it. None are local and the nearest one is not known for the charity, lol. Going through posts here already, I'm not sure. I may be missing something or reading something wrong, so if I am and someone can point me to the right post(s) I'd be grateful for that too.

 

Not the headlight, but...when I first bought my (pre-owned) XK, had no license plate lights. Spent most of the day tracing wires / voltages / fuses to no success. Read (on this forum) to do a hard reset (remove battery terms, short together). This fixed my problem and may fix yours. Computer logic - arrrggghhh....

 

As these age it’s becoming more common for either the 3 headlamp modules to fail (assuming yours has AFS) or the internal wiring in the assembly disintegrating. There’s several threads here on these topics.

 

Thanks for the replies. I did the hard reset but no effect. That was my first hope. It fixed a problem with my convertible top years ago. I do have the AFS. I tried to edit my original post but I think I messed it up. I don't know exactly the code, but it pointed to the Lamp Control Module which I replaced with a new one with no effect. I think it's the motor. I've read AFS problem threads here and a lot of them describe the problem as the headlights pointing down and in, cross-eyed like. Nothing like that here, both lights stay fixed ahead. My mechanic wants to check the grounding again to be sure but I'm readying myself for a new headlight. My wife not so much. At this point I'd gladly pay for a new one. Just want to make sure it'll work.

 

until you see the cost of replacement…

 

Here's a hint:

 

As I mentioned there’s three modules. You only mentioned replacing one. Also did you check the wiring inside the assemblies? It’s unlikely both motors went out at the same time.

 

Jahummer: The diagnostics only showed a bad code for the Lamp Control Module which was replaced. Unfortunately that was as far as we got and my next date got pushed back to 4/12. I have to say thanks for all the pics you've posted from your other thread. I got them together and met with my mechanic. He's going to go over everything from the grounds, internal wiring and swap out the modules. All or nothing, or in this case a new headlight. I thought about checking the headlight wiring myself, but I'm the guy that know just enough about things to really mess them up on my own.

 

To answer one of your questions, I replaced my right side headlamp with a new unit complete with the control modules attached to the unit, and didn’t need to program anything. But my failure was one of those “points to the ground” things and I had no warning lights at all, so your situation might indeed be different. Good luck and please do report back with the eventual resolution!

 

ram_g - thanks so much for the info. As expensive as it would be I'd be happy to just replace the light knowing that it would work.

 

If the adaptive headlight fails, what are the options? Is it a common problem? Fortunately, ground and wiring seem to be a standard problem that's cheap to fix. Replacing an adaptive with standard on just one side doesn't work. Is installing standard lights on both sides relatively easy both mechanically and electrically? Opening up the sealed headlight (if it's motor/gears) sounds like a real project. My 07 XKR is a recent purchase. I'm looking at being proactive on service and problems. So far, I've fixed the stuck drain (reaching down the firewall did work). Don't want to be searching for a replacement adaptive in 5 years when they're impossible to find and payment is in gold bars. Thanks

 

Well, I've had the car since 2012 and this is really only the second major repair bill other than regular maintenance/inspection etc. Weekend/summer car only has 36k miles on it. I had the back window on the convertible top slide out. Ended up replacing the roof entirely. I got lucky and a local guy installed it, overall cost was less than $4k. I won't quote what the dealer wanted to put on the same roof, lol. Now the headlamp problem but I think I'm still ahead of the game cost-wise over the 12 years. When I saw the wiring diagram of the car and where the grounds were, it's the same side/tire that one of lovely city pot holes bent the rim on a few years back. I hopeful this may have effected the grounds and they took to now to fail. Previous Jag was an 02 XK8, which had a weird starter issue that I never got sorted before I sold it.
So as far as proactive maintenance/repairs I haven't really thought of any. The Lamp Module was a little tough to find but in the end Welsh was able to get me one within a week. Can't say enough about how great those guys are to deal with.

 

Just 2 major repairs in 12 years sounds good. Like you said, ahead of the game in total costs. Bent rim on the same side as the headlight is interesting but if it's been a few years, probably not related. Did the new Lamp Module solve the problem? If it did, congrats. Cost? Nice to know that a brand new light isn't the only solution (if grounds/wiring doesn't solve the problem). For me, proactive means I'll replace valley hoses, thermo and mount. Keep the dash out of the sun. ATF on schedule. Nicest car I've ever owned. No tickets yet. Test drove a new F type V8. P450. Yeah it was fun. Storage space is room for Black AmEx in the center console. Any 5.0 XKR owners drive an F type V8 (or V6)? How do they compare in performance and handling? Based on my 4.2 ownership, an XKR is a much better "real world" car.

 

When it was scanned the diagnostic showed that the Lamp Control Mod was bad. Replaced it with a new one but didn't fix the problem. There were no other codes showing any other problems with the other modules. The only other weird issue was if you turned the hazard lights on, they flashed one at a time back and forth instead of together. That really made us think wiring/grounding.

 

You said you did a hard reset in the post above but did you do it after replacing the module?
May not help but couldn't hurt to try.

 

If hazard light alternating flashing is predictable, is it a grounding problem? Wouldn't a ground problem be either irregular or all the time? Did the diagnostic code clear after you replaced the module?

 

kongo1 - hard set was done after replacing new lamp control module. Battery power and power to headlamp checked as well.

CA Jag - I may be explaining that poorly. Light are in sequence one both rears and the r front. The left front flashes out of sequence (the same tire/side of the non-functional headlight.

 

I would open up the two round access ports of the headlight unit and check around with a mirror and light to see if there are any frayed or broken wires. I had a set one time that where nearly half of the insulation was laying in the bottom of the housing. I couldn't believe that it was still working and hadn't fried my entire system by that point. I rebuilt them with new wiring but that job is certainly not for the faint of heart or patience.

 

Glad you were able to solve the problem. Was the problem w/ failed insulation related to time car was in the sun? What did you need to do to rewire them? Damaged/worn gearing (and motor?) seems to be another problem. Probably another repair "not for the faint of heart".

 

I opened them up preemptively prior to installing them on a rebuild and saw what I had. I removed the lens and housing units to get decent access to all of the connectors. In my opinion, the condition of the wires was due to heat and improper(defective) OEM wire insulation material. It seems that not all of these lights had the same issues so I am thinking it may have been a bad batch from the headlight manufacturer for certain time periods. The ones I rebuilt were from a 2008 XK and were non AFS.

I chose to clip the wire lead coming out from connector at about 3/4" and strip the insulation off. I then slid on one of those combo heat shrink and low temp solder connections to combine the new wire length. It worked well enough to give it a new life. Just a word of caution to be very careful with the silver housings as the metallic coatings will be damaged quickly.