Halogen Headlights

[DADoES]

My car (2001 Infiniti I30t) has halogen headlights. I think one of them is going bad, it's an odd color compared to the other. Anybody know if they're consumer-replaceable or must it be done by an "authorized" service tech? Would AutoZone or other auto parts outfit have them, or only Infiniti? I *hate* going to the dealer.

 

[oxydolfan1]

I don't know but I happen to be passing an "Auto Zone" store tomorrow, so if you want me to stop in and check, let me know...

 

[westytoploader]

Hi Glenn,

I believe they're consumer-replaceable though I'm pretty sure the lens has to be removed from the inside (raise the hood) as I don't see any visible screws from the front. AutoZone or any other parts house should stock the bulbs, whether or not they're OEM I'm not sure about. I'm going to have to do a lens job on my dad's soon as one of the lenses is discolored so I'm curious as to how difficult the lens assembly really is to remove.

Speaking of Infiniti dealers and parts, one of the coil packs for the DIS (Distributorless Ignition System) went bad on the 2000 I30, causing it to rough-idle occasionally at stops to the point of nearly stalling out, and he took it to the dealer for repair work. VERY simple to change out from what I was told, but they overcharged him for labor. Can't remember what the final charge was, but it was high; not cool. Seeing as how it still rough-idles from time to time, another coil pack is probably going bad, so I'm just going to bring it in to shop class and do it there. It will be interesting to see if they carry those at Big A...

--Austin

 

[westytoploader]

Almost forgot...

I guess that could be another thing to look at during the next fix-in...;-)

 

[danemodsandy]

Don't Get the HID Ones

Just in case your auto parts store tries to sell you any, please do the world a favour and say "NO" to those blue bombs known as high-intensity discharge (HID) headlights. You know the ones I'm talking about- those glaring blue ones that burn holes in your retinas.

They may be great for someone driving out in the middle of nowhere, but on the road where there are other cars, they're murder on the eyes of other drivers, especially older people, whose eyes don't recover from being light-blinded as fast as those of younger people.

I know one older driver whose vision is otherwise excellent, who was involved in an accident after being blinded by an oncoming car outfitted with HID's.

Sorry for the soapbox, but those things should be against the law, instead of approved by the government.

 

[exploder3211]

Depends on the headlight Glenn....
If it's the regular composite head light, it's about $9.00... Word of cautioon: Never touch the bulb part of the glass, or the light will burn out very quickly

http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiB...iredQuestion&Parameters=|~Low+beam&PageSync=5

 

[exploder3211]

Hit enter before i ment to..

They don't have the HID lights for you're infiniti and i would not recomend changing those on you're own...

BTW-Those blinding lights that Auto Zone or Advanced Auto parts sells are called blue stars or silver stars or something else... They're about $40 a pair... I have a set in the explorer, but never ever use them on high beams..The lenses in my explorer are discolured due to age and i can't find those wipes that supposedly clear this up

Also the NDIS parts are dealer only (or at least here) my boss lady has a 2000 maxima (twin to the I30) and two of her's whent bad.. I actualy got brave eairler today and decied to try and replace them, which i did sucessfully... Not a hard job at all... But you do need the book and you probably will need to re-flash the pcm as well.. Also if you're in it that far, you also might as well upgrade the MAF sensor ($115 dealer only part)

I am great at replacing sensors and such on cars now.. After all of what i went through at christmas with the explorer and now with my stupid pos ranger, i bought a hand held scanner and such for my cars and it was well worth the money.. I am going to replace 3 sensors on the ranger tommrow, that would have cost me over $1000 at Ford to replace.. Sensors cost $330 total for delaer parts... Savings Huge

http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiB...=Auto+Store|~REGULAR+PARTS+LOOK+UP|~Headlight

 

[DADoES]

I dunno if mine are considered HID. They were OEM equipment on the car, not added aftermarket, but they are normally kinda bluish. Nobody has complained of being blinded in the 5+ years I've been driving the car, but I suppose I wouldn't hear about that from anonymous drivers passing by.

I know how to handle high-temp bulbs, having changed the xenon projection bulbs at the theater many times over the past 22 years ... but if proper replacements are available only from Infiniti then there's no choice.

Wonder how long it'll last 'til it goes completely dead, or explodes.....? This is a serious irritation in my get-along, being as majority of my driving to/from work and around town is at night.

 

[exploder3211]

The bluish kind are the Xenon lights, otherwise would have a yellow cast... If you bought it new, the window sticker should say... I would take it buy infiniti and have take a look... I think you can buy the bulbs at the parts desk... If i recall on the Acuras i sold they where around $125 a pop... I know one BMW (or Mercedes Benz) i sold had $330 a piece lights..

If you have the Infiniti I30t (touring) yes you have the HID lights (better known as Xenon Gas)It was a $500 option on regular I30's, however it was unavailable if you don't have a sunroof... A good way to tell the plain I30 apart from the I30t is if your's has 17" tires and wheels...

Can ya tell i sold cars in south florida?

 

[exploder3211]

Glenn,
I have a copy of the 2001 Consumer Guide in front of me if you need any other info bout your infiniti... which is one of my most favord cars

 

[washendry]

HID headlights

Hi, I work as Paramedic, and we Hate those Blue headlights, especiallly when we're on accident scenes, (they just don't give other drivers a chance) Enjoy the New Year
Be Safe
Kim

 

[Cybrvanr]

Xenon HID headlamps are a totally different technolgy from halogen headlamps. You cannot just replace a halogen headlamp bulb with an HID bulb. HID headlamps systems are a form of arc lamp. They need electronic ballasts and other special equipment that costs lots of money. The nice thing however is that most will last the lifetime of the automobile. Those bluish bulbs that you buy at the auto-parts shop? Well, they are probably filled with xenon gas, but they are NOT H.I.D. If it's got a filament, it's not HID.

It is also not recommended to mix bulb types, and I recommend replacing both headlight bulbs at the same time. Halogens usually have a very predictable life, and the other bulb is probably not going to be too far behind in failing. For most cars, like my SAAB, you can just pop the hood, and then reach in behind the headlamp, unplug the bulb, and then unscrew the retaining collar. After that, the bulb should slide right out. Reverse the procedure to re-install

 

[jonv112]

HID bulbs do not cause any more glare than standard halogens if they are aimed properly. Most factory-installed HID systems have an automatic or manual-leveling system to reduce glare. Glare is usually caused when an aftermarket HID is fitted into a halogen reflector, and the light is not aimed properly, like on those rice-cars JasonL hates. It is normal for halogen and HIDs to have a difference in colour when you replace them, because the bulbs have to go through an initial burn to change to the proper colour temperature.

HTH

 

[danemodsandy]

jonv:

No matter how they're aimed, HID's cause problems for older drivers whose eyes are exposed to their light. It's that blue colour and the intensity of the light that causes the problem. Proper aiming helps in many situations, true, but there are many other real-world situations where people get an eyeful of HID lights, such as a car approaching in the other lane on a curve. An older driver's eyes take twice as long to recover from the effects of HID exposure as a younger one's, even if that older driver's vision is otherwise perfect. For the amount of time someone's eyes are recovering from HID exposure, they are unable to spot road hazards at all, making the net effect of these lights less safe, not more safe. Yeah, YOU can see great, but you stand a very good chance of blinding others, rendering THEM unsafe.

Here's an article about the problem:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2002-07-17-hid_x.htm
There are quite a few of us boomers who are working on getting these things outlawed. Anyone who is overdriving conventional sealed-beams or halogens is driving too fast at night anyway.

 

[jonv112]

True, I guess I never really saw the effects an older person might have because I'm only 14. I still think that HIDs are a must-have on any car, but thats just my opinion.

 

[kenwashesmonday]

What we have here is "Light Wars". They keep coming out with brighter headlights, which means the guy coming the other way also needs brighter headlights. I could see making the high-beams brighter, but low beams that are too bright is just stupid. Even when aimed correctly, when you come over a hill you're blinding the other drivers.

Here's another headlight fact: Back in the late 1930s the new "Sealed Beam" headlights came out. No more changing the little bulb inside. Now we're back to changing the stupid little bulb inside. Sure they're supposed to last longer than sealed beam headlights, but in real life they don't. Too much dirt and moisture in real life.

 

[bobbyd32l]

If the car says that it needs to be taken to your local dealer for replacement then you have the HID headlights. The bulbs ARE NOT cheap. They will run about 150 bucks at AutoZone and more at the dealer. I have High Intensity Discharge headlamps and love them. My headlights are in projectors which have a very sharp cutoff and have less glare then any halogen reflector design. Most of the horrible blinding light is from young kids putting them in their civics and blinding everyone in their paths.

Like in this picture. All the light is focused lower then the oncoming drivers eyes. The reason they are so bright is because of their kelvin temperature and lumen output. They are also brighter when the driver car hits a bump and bounces the oncoming driver see's the "light show" from the projectors shield and lens.

 

[bobbyd32l]

This is a picture of my headlights shining on a wall showing the sharp colorful cutoff that the projectors give you over reflectors:

 

[oxydolfan1]

Yes, those are the ones.

In the smaller cars, they seem even more sweeping in glare.

Ken...if you are familiar with Route 15 in Sussex County (very hilly four-lane divided highway, you know how, even from the other side of the median, the oncoming glare can (quite dangerously) drive you or a nearby driver off course or even out-of-lane....in a drizzle things can get dicey.

I find this much worse than in urban driving, where your eyes are at least acclimated to a higher level of background illumination.

 

[DADoES]

Mine are xenon HID. I found an online source, AutoPartsWarehouse.com. $127.59 each, but I imagine that bests Infiniti by far. Trick now is if I can DIY (or DIM, LOL).

 

[bobbyd32l]

Its fairly easy, unless its my car! LOL You need to remove the front bumper to get them out. Which in a way is a good thing because HID are a big ticket item to car thieves...

 

[DADoES]

Remove the bumper??

OY!

Ohhh, you mean remove the bumper on *your* car.

My luck, it'll be the same......

 

[bobbyd32l]

yup....

After looking, it looks like the front bumper needs to be dropped to get your headlight assembly out enough to get to the bulb...

 

[DADoES]

The halogen non-xenon high-beam bulbs are accessible from behind, the user manual even outlines how to change them. There's a plate covering access to the xenon low-beams, which is obstructed by the battery and a bit of the fender frame on one side, and the windshield washer tank on the other side. I made an appt for Monday. I probed the service rep on whether the bumper must be pulled (he said yes) and what it'll cost (he wouldn't say) and whether both bulbs should be changed (he said not necessarily).

Other than the fact that I need to go there anyway to take care of a "check engine" emissions system situation, this is highly irritating to say the least. And likely the *last* time I'll buy a car from an out-of-town dealer.

 

[westytoploader]

Speaking of the check engine or "Service Engine Soon" light on Infinitis...since you said it was emissions-system related, I wonder if you got into some bad gas? I used my dad's car yesterday, and out of curiosity, pulled it into the shop and hooked the scan tool up to see what was going on. It was idling fine by then, but the error code readout said the problem was in the catalytic converter, and after I reset it, the shop teacher advised me to pick up some injector cleaner and add it before filling the tank up. Makes me wonder if those coil packs really needed to be replaced or not...

 

[cadman]

Do you know for a fact if the fault is the bulb or the ballast? In theory, an HID bulb should last longer than 5 years. A color shift could mean the xenon mixture has changed, or the voltage of the ballast has shifted.

Lens and reflector design is much more complicated than one might think. For example, the DOT requires a minimum cutoff angle for both beams which you can see on a dark night in the country. Your light stretches far out ahead and to the right shoulder, but not to your left. (Export lamps for the UK are ground in reverse.) Additionally, factory projector beam setups and HIDs are mounted on gyros to account for load shifts and braking. If they're in proper order oncoming drivers shouldn't be blinded. Throw a pair of xenons in H4 mounts on your Honda and now you've got a hazard.

 

[DADoES]

Austin, I can't say for sure about gas. This situation has been ongoing for the past 1.5 years or so, as you know. I took it in for a check back at the start, they reset the fault code, said come back right away if it happens again (being as the emissions system is warranted for 7 years). The "service engine soon" light comes on, stays on for several weeks, goes off for a few days, then the cycle repeats. At the moment, however, it is off and has been off much longer than usual. Come back "right away" has turned into more than a year being as I just don't have time to be running up to I10/Dairy Ashford every week, LOL.

Bulb or ballast, I can't say about that, either. The bad bulb comes on OK for a minute or so, then the color changes. Theories typically fall flat when they run into me.

 

[chachp]

Makes you want to sell the car...

...before the warranty runs out. Doesn't it?

I have the Xenon headlights and they are self leveling whatever the heck that means (or maybe they all do that I don't know). When I start the car and the lights come on they start out pointing down and in a couple of seconds kind of go up and down a little. Sorry for this highly technical description but cars are not my thing. I can't imagine what would be involved in changing those!! I don't know what these are like to the oncoming drivers but I don't recall any of them swerving off the road as they approahed me so I guess they don't bother them too much.

When it comes to cars, I just want to turn the key and go. If it doesn't work I want to pick up the phone. I don't have the patience to deal with all that mess. My dealer is about 25 miles from my house so I understand your situation. It's not really that far away but just far enough to be a real pain in the ass when you need to get to work, etc.

 

[DADoES]

Report

Replace one heated oxygen sensor.

Replace one bad xenon headlight bulb.

Replace cabin A/C filter (supposed to be done every 15K miles, 10K miles overdue, ha!)

Replace two engine belts (getting dried and cracked -- ugh, I know how they feel).

Replace wiper blade inserts.

Wheel alignment.

Complimentary car wash.

Cost? Four times more than total maintenance/repair (other than normal wear items) on my Mazda 626 for the entire nine years I owned it.

 

[exploder3211]

Ughhh... I know the feeling sears charged me 3 times more than i felt it was worth to replace both front hubs at a cost of $900... But the front end is still not right.. Whenever i head home, i will take care of it further