Rhys Goodwin

This is/was one of my blogs. Just a few bits and pieces - IT, woodwork, metalwork, electronics, DIY, technology articles and anything else I might be currently interested in and get around to documenting.

There might be some broken things because this site was converted roughly from Wordpress to jekyll.

My main area of interest these days is political party innovation which I’m building a project for at oneaction.nz

2 minute read

**Update Feb 2016 – Right side bulb failed!!!! **
Replaced with these genuine Philips bulbs from Amazon:

**Update July 2015 – Cheap bulbs still going strong**

**Update July 2014. – Cheap Bulbs still going strong**

Lamps – Don’t touch the glass part of the lamp
I only discovered today when I went down to Repco to get a replacement lamp for my dead headlight that my car takes HID lamps. Both Repco and SuperCheap Auto gave me a cost estimate of around $250 NZD per lamp! And if I wanted the colors to match I would really have to replace both lamps at the same time.

$500 for 2 lamps!? No thanks! So I looked on TradeMe and found lamps for $49/pair. I’m not sure if this is a “get what you pay for situation” or an “HDMI cable scam” situation. Either way I thought it was worth a punt so I picked up a pair. Here’s what I got:

The box indicates D2C but the seller assured me that they were a suitable replacement for my D2R lamps and of the highest quality!

Old and new (Left and Right)

I’ll report back in a few months as to how well they’re going/lasting.

Replacement

Well this is basic stuff but if haven’t done it before and you were expecting it to be a 5min job requiring no tools then this will really help. Having said that, if you’re lucky this might still be a 5 minute job.

The HID lamp is behind the gray cover. Try to turn it anti-clockwise to release it. If you’re lucky it will turn and come off, and you can proceed to the lamp replacement section. If it won’t turn (as mine didn’t) then it’s because there’s a security torx screw at the bottom of the gray cover preventing it from turning and unlocking. The easiest way to deal with this is to remove the headlight unit which is fairly easy.

Disconnect the 2 accessible cables/plugs at the back of the unit. Remove 3 bolts as shown and wiggle the headlight unit out. When it’s out disconnect the other 2 cables.

Remove the screw and rotate the gray cover anti-clockwise

Press the metal tabs on either side to remove the metal cap.

Unlock and remove the high-voltage cable to expose the lamp.

Unhook the wire spring clip to release the lamp.

Carefully install the new lamp. Don’t touch the glass with your fingers.

That’s it. Now just resemble everything.

Updated: