OEM Xenon headlights

[kakashi169]

Hi

I was wondering where do you guys buy your replacement bulbs for the main projector headlight. Mine starts to flicker a bit and I suspect its the bulb going out.
I shopped with auto goody before but I forgot which bulb I got.

Thanks.

[danewilson77]

Philips D2S from www.theretrofitsource.com


Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S4

[midlandtech]

Philips D2S from www.theretrofitsource.com


Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S4

X2

Sent from my Nexus 10 using Tapatalk 2

[kakashi169]

these ones?

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?products_id=148

[JupiterBMW]

Hey man, if you want a cheap alternative, I've got a bunch of Philips 85122 OEM xenon bulbs, removed from various headlights I've taken apart/repaired...

If you want one, $25 shipped and its yours. I've got like 4-5 of them... Lemme know.

Otherwise, I went with mine at the retrofit source also.

[az3579]

I don't think flickering is a sign of a bulb failing. Could be a ballast or ignitor issue? A friend of mine had this issue and it actually turned out to be the LCM.
Yours are standard Xenon, right? Not Bi-Xenon? Is yours a D1S or D2S setup? If D1S, Joop's bulbs won't work for you.

[terraphantm]

I don't think any E46 comes with D1s (not that hard to convert an AL setup to D1S, and I've been thinking of doing so myself... but that's another story).

Flickering could be anything really. Trouble shooting is as follows: Switch bulbs (left to right). If issue follows bulbs, it's the bulbs. If not, switch the ballasts. If it follows the ballasts. If it doesn't follow the ballasts, it's likely the ignitor

That said, sometimes it's something stupid. In my case, my flickering was caused by the ignitor pins being bent outward slightly too much. I bent them inward, and now my lights never flicker. The red herring was that the issue only manifested with my CBI bulbs; I think their rings are manufactured a hundredth of an inch too small or something

[kakashi169]

Damn, thanks for the tip on how to trouble shoot the headlight. I believe I used d2s.

Anyone got a pictorial diy I can refer to? I want to try and trouble shoot it ASAP.

Thanks.

[danewilson77]

these ones?

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?products_id=148

Yes.

[derbo]

I don't think flickering is a sign of a bulb failing. Could be a ballast or ignitor issue? A friend of mine had this issue and it actually turned out to be the LCM.
Yours are standard Xenon, right? Not Bi-Xenon? Is yours a D1S or D2S setup? If D1S, Joop's bulbs won't work for you.

I agree with BP and terra on this one not being the bulb.

My driver side headlight flickered on startup and sometimes didn't even start up. For my issue, the ignitor needed to be replaced. At least confirm its not the bulb since its the easier to switch out. I would swap the bulbs from left to right (I am assuming one bulb is flickering) and then confirm it is not the bulb flickering. If it does flicker, you were right and BP and I were wrong. IMO, it sounds like ignitor or ballast problem.

[Burrogs]

I had a similar issue, predicted it was the ballast since the bulbs were less than a year old (TFX upgrade). Turns out it was the bulb after all. Mine went all the way out though after about a week of flickering. If it is the bulb buy and install a new pair, not just one so they match. Should be about $100 for a pair of Phillips D2S.