I claim no credit for what follows, it was gleaned from another marque's forum, but would appreciate comments as the lights on SWMBO's car, not JLR, and those on my D4 seem to be loosing power.
Quote:
One may think that HID bulbs have an infinite life, or are difficult to replace so best left to main dealer’s technicians. Not so !.
Although HID bulbs generally last longer than Halogen bulbs, but over time, rather than just fail like traditional filament bulbs, HIDs tend to fade, it's a gradual process that you probably wouldn't notice, until you drive a newer car and suddenly realise "my headlights are not up to scratch”
So, when to change?
I would suggest every 5 years, particularly if you notice that the light doesn't seem to have much "reach" and maybe has a purplish tinge.
A visual inspection should confirm it.
Bulbs are not cheap, usually expect to pay £35-£55 and as a general rule, avoid Amazon and Ebay, there are a lot of fake Osrams and Philips out there.
A final note. Main dealers never routinely change these bulbs at service time, and may pretend it's a huge job to do (5 minutes?). Plus cars will pass their MOTs even when the bulbs are knackered, so it really depends on us.
And, the plastic dust covers tend to stick, particularly if they've never been off since the car left the factory, a little spray silicone just on the plastic thread (not the electrics) makes fitting and removal so much easier next time.
Comments most welcome.
30th Jan 2024 8:04 am
Martin Site Admin and Owner
Member Since: 06 Nov 2004
Location: Hook Norton
Posts: 18573
This has been mentioned on here too, the HID bulbs age and dim over time.
Buying from Amazon is fine, if you make sure Amazon themselves are the seller, not a third party.06 D3 SE / 15 LR D90 XS SW / 88 LR 90 Td5 / 68 BMW 2000 ti
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30th Jan 2024 8:35 am
Brian Considine
Member Since: 05 Dec 2022
Location: Nr Margate
Posts: 280
Re: Changing HID bulbs from time to time
NJSS wrote:
Comments most welcome.
I would agree.
One of my professions is an electrical engineer and I spent a lot of time looking after retail display lighting that used a lot of HID's. I also attended a few seminars/courses run by Phillips who demonstrated the light beam differences between "branded" lamps/bulbs/globes & "unbranded" - the differnce was noticeable with mains lighting so I imagine that it would be more so in automotive use.
The output of the HID's would deteriorate in time until they would take on a blueish tint shortly before failure. One of the storechains we looked after would routinely replace all the lamps at intervals even if they all looked OK by eye - after relamping the difference was noticeable by the naked eye & IIRC often more than 10% more using a light meter.
So, if you think your headlamps are not very good then check the glass, reflectors, dustshields and then change the bulbs/lamps/globes with verified branded ones & stop messing about with unbranded ones or silly LED "conversions".
Also, make sure that the mkI eyeballs are up to spec' & that any glasses perfect with no tiny scratches, don't forget the windscreen inside & out - check for scratches too.
There is still the option of driving withing the limits of whatever lights you do have.
Just think how good the lights of today would be if the lighting engineers had been allowed to keep the lights round & a decent size instead of being contrained to the whimms of stylists.
30th Jan 2024 12:30 pm
Gary_P
Member Since: 03 May 2016
Location: Kent
Posts: 1679
Must admit I get confused between Halogen, HID, Xenon and combinations, Xenon HID for instance. It’s my understanding that I have Xenon in the D4 (MY2016). Any clarifications very welcome so I can get my knowledge straightened out and improved. Thanks in advance.Gary
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Discovery 4 HSE 2016MY
30th Jan 2024 4:22 pm
pwheeldon
Member Since: 14 Jan 2020
Location: West Yorks
Posts: 1509
HID stands for High Intensity Discharge, it works in a sort simikar way to a fluorescdnt and thats why it has tge high voltage warning, which is the type of lamp. Xenon relates to the gas used in the lamps. I would imagine your D4 has Xenon, but mist sites, like Halfords, will tell you which lamp you need from your reg.
Hope that helps.Discovery 4 GS 2009 Auto Stornoway Grey
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I fitted HID units last year and, naturally, as MoT is due, 1 lamp died.
As I'm not expecting the disco to pass first time and hoping it's just expensive and not VERY expensive, I looked at budget replacement lamps.
I've previously used an outfit called HIDS-Direct, albeit not for HIDs, as they were literally just around the corner so had a look at what they had. (they've moved now and don't seem to offer counter service)
They were offering "D-Lumina D3S 6000K Xenon bulbs 12v 35w OEM HID Bulb Set +50% More Light, Pack of 2" but delivery of 3-5 days didn't suit so I found them on Amazon for the same cost - £25 delivered next day.
Bit wary of fitting them - "danger - high voltage" etc. - but when I read on here that DSL had managed it without losing fingers, had a go and it wasn't really any harder than swapping my old Halogen H7s ... apart from the cable being awkwardly short and space around the connector not being great.
Light-wise they seem ok so far ... and at £120 cheaper than Osram Nightbreakers, I think, they were worth a punt.
30th Jan 2024 4:42 pm
HairyFool
Member Since: 04 Jan 2023
Location: North Essex
Posts: 704
The only reason why it could be risky is if you tried to replace it when on.
The laws of natural selection then apply A visitor from the dark side, my other vehicle is an is still an EV. Strictly speaking its SWMBO.
30th Jan 2024 4:57 pm
Brian Considine
Member Since: 05 Dec 2022
Location: Nr Margate
Posts: 280
I don't know what the ignitor (start up) voltage on automotive HID's is but the mains ones is around 4kv - little current but enough to make you take notice.
30th Jan 2024 5:04 pm
HairyFool
Member Since: 04 Jan 2023
Location: North Essex
Posts: 704
Any particular thoughts about the colour temperature?
The one time I was able to sit behind 6000k bulbs there was absolutely no doubt they were brighter but also thought the contrast was a bit extreme, a bit like setting a TV too bright.
They were however (illegal) LED bulbs so that might have been the issue.
I do however also have slightly better than average night vision so struggle with high contrasts at night.A visitor from the dark side, my other vehicle is an is still an EV. Strictly speaking its SWMBO.
they must be a similar colour temp to the LED street lighting round these parts and as a result, it seems like they don't have as good a throw as previous halogens. But if you stand in front of the car, they are very bright and a good match to the LED sidelights (and the DRLs, which are meant to go off when headlamps are on but don't do that anymore - suspect water ingress) ... so look great and everyone will see me coming, so no issues.
If there are no streetlights, range seems better (but not phenomenal) but I just chuck the main-beams on then.
just had a look at another seller - HIDS-Direct, where i would have bought these from if delivery had suited - and they say "12 months Warranty", so perhaps my gripe should be aimed more at Car Part Hut as against the lamps ?
23rd Oct 2024 1:53 pm
defector
Member Since: 23 Feb 2009
Location: Greater Manchester
Posts: 1476
Bought a pair of xenon for my Volvo last year from Hids Direct, first nearside failed at 10 months and offside 3 weeks later.
I dropped them off in Eccles after contact and a new pair were sent quickly, so was pleased with their service.
Don't know how long the new pair would have lasted because a couple of months later a 23 year old moron on giggle gas driving a BMW went into the back of my Volvo at 80 (I was doing 40 in a 40 zone) and wrote my car off.
As you mentioned Eccles, I looked to see if HIDS-Direct had a shop there ... found this!
hids-direct.co.uk, Car Part Hut Ltd, UK Registered 13039569 VAT Number GB 365025020
Registered office 140 LEE LANE BL6 7AF HORWICH GB
So ... same firm, different warranty..
Dean
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2011 D4 XS - OBD port protection, RLD spare wheel protector, All LED interiors lights, Timed Climate enabled, iiD tool paired.
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2011 D4 GS - Stolen whilst at dealer ... All LED interiors lights, DRLs, Spare Wheel protector.
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... All LED interiors lights, DRLs, Spare Wheel protector.
