Crazy Xenon!

[cooperS_matt]

Hi All,

Was out last night in my mini, switched my headlmaps on after filling up with shells finest petrol, and noticed one of my xenons wasnt working..

Had a look at the unit, all seemed fine, switched it on and off, still no luck. So drove home very sad that my little mini was a bit broken...
Spoke to a mate and he said it may need re-gassing or a new bulb?

Went out to see the car in my garage this morning, switched the headlights on and.. lights alive! It all lit up just perfect! Made my day

Has this been known to happen before and shuld i get my headlmaps checked out?

Thanks in advance.
Matt

[duncanbanana]

I had something similar happen to mine
I took the bulb out to look and a metal end cap which was soldered on wasnt soldered on no more and had come off , had to get a new bulb

[ALD0]

Mighe be a loose ballast or the connection wire may be working it's way out, if it happens more regulary get it checked out by dealer (hoping it's still under warranty for you)

[cooperS_matt]

Grr, used the car last night, the zenon worked for about 5 minutes and then went out :-(
Got an extended warranty so will give them a call today... was reading the warranty pack though and it says it does not cover bulbs or anything like that :-s

[paulteix]

hi matt,

what is it?? facelift or prefacelift???
i have a prefacelift copper with xenons and this prob is well known. my xenons have benn changed now for 5 times since i have the mini (didn´t have to pay for it though there is no warranty anymore. i told them to change the old xenons into facelift as the costs are the same, but bmw didn´t want to make fore whatever reasons the last change was half a year ago and until now there was no prob any more. just visit your dealer and tell him about it.

greets, paulo

[118]

I had the same problem with one of my xenons too (04 pre faceleft MCS) - it was one of the igniters that was the problem and my dealer did fix it, but they replaced them both for me anyway for their own peace of mind!

[cooperS_matt]

Ah, its a pre facelift JCW. I keep have an extended warranty on it so I should be ok!
Thanks for the advice!

Matt

[Martin F]

It sounds like igniter failure to me.

[118]

Quote: Originally Posted by cooperS_matt (original)

Ah, its a pre facelift JCW. I keep have an extended warranty on it so I should be ok!
Thanks for the advice!

Matt

good luck!

[cooperS_matt]

Well, the car is booked in for inspection tommorrow at my local dealers.. they have said they will not cover a bulb under warranty Anyone know a good place for a new bulb for my xenons?

If its the igniter unit as Martin said this should be covered...

[ALD0]

Quote: Originally Posted by cooperS_matt (original)

Well, the car is booked in for inspection tommorrow at my local dealers.. they have said they will not cover a bulb under warranty Anyone know a good place for a new bulb for my xenons?

If its the igniter unit as Martin said this should be covered...

The lamps units itself should last for approx 7+ years, if you have not had the car long, I would be kicking up a stink to get the whole lot done f.o.c, if you do want bulbs though see here:

HIDS4U Ltd, Leeds, UK for all HID and Xenon lighting kits and conversions

[Aberdeen Al]

This happens to my 03 MCS on a intermittent basis!

[cooperS_matt]

Thanks for all the help and advice guys, turns out is was the igniter, dealer has fixed it temporarily, and got me booked in for a repair under warranty next week....

Next thing to look at is the strange gearbox rumble on idle... Oh well!

Matt