Xenon genuine part Retrofit

[jules-d]

I know this will bring on howls of anguish and cries of 'use the aftermarket stuff, but I am sure that someone somewhere will have paid for this.....
How much does it cost to walk into a dealer and get the factory xenons fitted to a mini 2 - 2009 Model?
I am tied into a Clubman that was well spec'd for a city car but not quite so good for out of town stuff and no-where can I find a price for the work to be done.
Cheers everyone, and YES! I am sitting down!!

[DaFlake]

Actually it won't cause that reaction. This is one mod that needs to be done right. Sadly I don't have any idea on the cost for your generation car but they will need to auto level and have the washers as well. It will likely cost quite a bit.

[jules-d]

I am happy to take my time and do it the right way to the extent that if needs be I will source the parts from breakers or whereever over time then do as much as I can before hand the car over for programming as I assume this will be needed. (most cars being made to take most options in the first place) I just need to get a price to go for the walk in fix, and then to look at options. Believe it or not, the main driver for this is not so much the lights as the washers!!!

[jules-d]

P.S. Sorry about the spelling.... It's late

[timp]

You say the main driver is the washers - may I ask why? I'm not convinced they do much other than satisfy a legal requirement. Something to do with preventing muck causing stray reflections from the high intensity xenon beam. Personally I'd have thought that at speed the washer does little more than create an impressive explosion of spray that gets blown off quicker than it got put on!

[IanT]

I fitted xenon bulbs to my car and they did make a difference (not sure the +90% claims are justified, but noticeably better). I live in the very dark countryside and they give me much longer, whiter beams - cost £25 and took 10mins to fit. Worth trying first?

[adam_Randell]

xenon retrofit is NOT possible on the r56 yet.

the wiring harnesses are different. the only thing that works is the indicator.

[DaFlake]

Quote: Originally Posted by timp (original)

You say the main driver is the washers - may I ask why? I'm not convinced they do much other than satisfy a legal requirement. Something to do with preventing muck causing stray reflections from the high intensity xenon beam. Personally I'd have thought that at speed the washer does little more than create an impressive explosion of spray that gets blown off quicker than it got put on!

It makes a huge difference and works very well at cleaning the lenses to keep the beams pointing the direction that they should. Having tons of salt and sand on the roads right now I can testify that it is worth having them.

Quote: Originally Posted by IanT (original)

I fitted xenon bulbs to my car and they did make a difference (not sure the +90% claims are justified, but noticeably better). I live in the very dark countryside and they give me much longer, whiter beams - cost £25 and took 10mins to fit. Worth trying first?

The claims are dead on and has actually been proven. Putting bulbs into the housing that was not designed for them will not create a beam pattern that keeps oncoming traffic from being dazzled. There was even a video put out that showed the difference between the two. The washer is needed to keep the lenses clean so that the beam is not redirected and the auto level keeps the beams from jumping up into peoples eyes when you speed up or go over bumps. All of this is a necessity as the beams are much brighter and sharper than halogens.

[wisey113]

Xenon retrofit is possible, but definitely not worth it. I asked the same question at my dealer a while back and compared to the 450 i think it costs to spec it on a new car, its 350 for the new wiring harness at least 500 for the actual headlights (ebay) and its about a 1000 for the labour. So again its possible but weather you can justify the cost is your choice!!

[jules-d]

Well, the driver for the washers was amply proven every time I stopped to clear the grey congealed salt and mud mix off the lenses on the way home from Switzerland to London yesterday. Xenons would have made no difference as the spray dries or freezes on contact (just look at the stuff on the front / back of you car before washing next time.) Strangeliy dealers say all the stuff can be fitted but the problem is the programming. Is there really no othe car of the same spec as mine in the world?? Can I simply use halogens inside a xenon housing and put a manual switch in place to use the washer? Ah the joys of trying to do somnething different from the what the corporate focus groups within BMW have decided is acceptable )

[DaFlake]

Quote: Originally Posted by jules-d (original)

Well, the driver for the washers was amply proven every time I stopped to clear the grey congealed salt and mud mix off the lenses on the way home from Switzerland to London yesterday. Xenons would have made no difference as the spray dries or freezes on contact (just look at the stuff on the front / back of you car before washing next time.) Strangeliy dealers say all the stuff can be fitted but the problem is the programming. Is there really no othe car of the same spec as mine in the world?? Can I simply use halogens inside a xenon housing and put a manual switch in place to use the washer? Ah the joys of trying to do somnething different from the what the corporate focus groups within BMW have decided is acceptable )

My sprayer works fine and does not freeze on contact. If it does, then your mixture is not correct. I have never had to clean my lenses. On my wifes car I have to do it every other day.

As for the rest, be careful, as you could fail MOT if you partially install the xenon lamps. As for the focus groups, they are your legislation that made that decision, not BMW. Most countries have laws that require washers and auto level for xenons, it is not a BMW thing.

[jules-d]

I tend to do longer distances rather frequently.
Its the headlight washer unit, which is part of the Xenon light headlamp unit, I am primarily interested in. .....NOT the Xenon lighting, though I do understand the reasons why many people love them and will not get into the pros and cons of aftermarket kits
The Halogen equipped vehicles don't have washer units That was how the intended owner spec'd the vehicle, with Halogen instead of Xenon
This is about finding a way to wash my headlamps throughout the year, in all conditions without having to find a bucket of water which is clean and useable or use a stone-ridden and worn out sponge/scraper as supplied by most garages - if I'm lucky... Or carrying around a soggy thing in the car (kids, dogs or other animate objects excepted) with my own supply of suitable washing liquid
There is no aftermarket kit available in the UK to fit headlamp washers.
BMW/Mini can supply all the parts for fitting the xenon units which have the washers built in, but then say they can't programme them. My question to them was 'Why?' to which the answer has been 'We don't know' or 'the programme must be set to the vehicles specification'. My reply being, 'well find a vehicle somewhere in the world which has it all and copy that programme across'.
This falls into the ' customer is asking a question which does not have a menu answer so we can't answer' section.
My next question becomes 'can i simply purchase the Xenon housing WITHOUT the ballast units, xenon bulbs, and everything else required for Xenon lighting... Retrofit the housing with the stuff i already have - halogen. Add on the washer unit and use a simple manually operated switch with appropriate wiring/power supply/washer motor etc. Again BMW/Mini dealers seem unable/unwilling to even consider the question as the answer does not seem to be covered within the corporate answer book.
At This rate I may end up doing what I have done for Classic cars in the past and getting something fabricated by an engineer rather than stuck in by a fitter. I just wanted to keep the car as close to original as possible
Small challenges make life interesting Big ones just have to be dealt with!

[DaFlake]

What dealer have you spoken to? I would try a different dealer. The MINI can be programmed, it is just finding a dealer that is not afraid to do the work.

[Angib]

Quote: Originally Posted by jules-d (original)

... Retrofit the housing with the stuff i already have - halogen....

A manual operation system seems possible. However 'retrofitting the halogen stuff' sounds hard, as the reflectors and housings are different, so you would have to disassemble the new headlamps and try to cut and glue pieces of your existing reflectors into the new ones - not easy and it will look a botch job when done.

Andrew

[andrewcregan]

I asked a very friendly MINI dealership how much to retrofit to my R56.
Initially I was told they never do it because it is so expensive.
However, I pushed the subject and got a price for the work.
I do not recall the exact figure, but it was enough to make me say "forget it" instantly. It was certainly over £1000 and I think by a significant margin.
Also recall someone seriously suggesting it is cheaper to trade your car in, and spec a new one with the lights fitted!
I would love to have them, but the price is prohibitive (and I paid for the full JCW aero kit!)