Headlights

[Whoey]

Just noticed on my way back from a shopping trip one of my low beam headlights is burnt out. Looking around at different models and kinda interested in the Philips X-treme Vision +130  Seems to be legal here and looks straightforward to replace. Given that I've never actually had to swap any bulbs in the car since I got it, I suppose I should do both headlight bulbs if I'm going to put in something nicer?

I really have no experience with this stuff...

[Gareth]

Can't say what the Spanish Law is, but I'd be surprised if they'd be happy with notably differing headlights.  I'd change both just to be sure.

[gregozedobe]

I'd be doing both at once.  If one has burnt out the other probably won't be that far behind before it goes too.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Ditto with above. Get the best you can, and swap them both.

One other VERY important thing is to wear gloves when swapping them.  Do not handle the bulbs with bare hands.  The oil in your skin will cause the bulbs to blow prematurely when they heat up in use.

Otherwise they should be pretty straight forward.  Find the back of the housing, twist and pull the socket out, replace the bulb and put the socket back in and twist it into place.  Many are awkward to get to, but you should be able to get at them with some screwing around.

Def

[Whoey]

Those are some of the best I can get it seems supposedly the Philips X-treme Vision +130 is 130% better than standard lights, a similar popular alternative seems to be Osram Night Breaker which is 110%. I did look at Xenon options but it seems it's not EU legal without a bunch of other mods/upgrades I cannot do easily or without spending way more money than it's worth. As such a straight bulb swap seems the logical solution, and obviously if I'm going to uprated it makes sense to do both.

I've watched a couple video tutorials, and it's pretty straightforward from what I saw/read, one screw and a bunch of clips/fiddling about. Many comments seem to moan about how hard focus MK1 and MK2 are compared to the later mk2.5 on models, which I find hilarious... as how often do you really need to swap headlight bulbs apart from perhaps once a year if your set is not legal for the vehicle inspection. Some people suggested it would take 1h to do both headlights... somehow I doubt that unless you're really useless... I knew about the skin oil issue already, I've got gloves in the car already.

I suppose I could pull the existing burnt bulb to find out what it is before I drop money on new ones, but even if I do swap both I'll be sure to keep the old working one as a backup. In any case I'll hunt around tomorrow when the shops are actually open...

[lowtech]

Putting Xenon lights in headlights made for Halogen bulbs is not legal in the eu.
As long as teh bulbs you plan on buying (both Osram and Phillips do) show teh e-Mark of approval, you are good to go.
You don´t have to, but I would chage both for reasons mentioned above.

I´d stay away from "Xenon Look" bulbs, they do burn out quick and produce a tinted, uneven beam that is worse than having only one good bulb.
With renowned brand name bulbs you won´t make a mistake.

How "straightforward" teh job is depends on the make, model and yeaer of your car. On the Fieata of our parents, you have to remove the grille and headlight to get to teh left side bulb, for example.

[Whoey]

I was going off this which appears to be a mk2 Focus like mine:


vs this one which claims to be mk2 but is actually the mk2.5 which is much simpler apparently:


There is a Philips Xenon Look which is also likely an alternative, but I think the x-tremevision is better favoured in reviews.

From what I read it's not just the bulbs but to have legal Xenon lights require auto leveling sensor and washer jets...

[gregozedobe]

From what I read it's not just the bulbs but to have legal Xenon lights require auto leveling sensor and washer jets...

....... not to mention a reflector and lens designed for true gas discharge lamps.  Putting gas discharge lamps into regular headlamps designed for halogen (incandescent or filament) globes usually ends up creating lots of glare and dazzle for other road users, as the size and geometry of the light emitting portion is quite different.

[Whoey]

and in any case I'm not up for rewiring/modding, simple swap preferred...

[Whoey]

went to 2 different places, the first store completely removed their automotive section and they are listed as the authorized vendor for Philips. 

The second one only had all the Philips range and a regular Osram but not the Night Breaker so I got the Philips X-treme Vision +130 I was originally after... a bit pricey but hopefully will last and are good Should swap the burnt out one and see the difference with my old one...

[Whoey]

took about 30min total if that.

old bulbs are philips +30%, so I changed both for +130% and it's pretty obvious the difference...

crappy phone pic of 130 vs 30

[Whoey]

Oh in addition I found a potential reason as to why the bulb burnt, the back cover was not properly closed whenever someone changed the bulb previously. Sadly it also means the inside of that headlight is slightly dirtier than the other one... and no easy way to clean from what I'm reading... 

[Crow]

Oh in addition I found a potential reason as to why the bulb burnt, the back cover was not properly closed whenever someone changed the bulb previously. Sadly it also means the inside of that headlight is slightly dirtier than the other one... and no easy way to clean from what I'm reading... 

Just blow compressed air through light bulb hole. What comes out great, what does no,  nevermind it. Be sure that there will not remain any moisture inside...