haris3344

Hey Guys,

I was able to find Mercedes factory Xenon lights through Ebay for my 2008 GL320 CDI. The swap was smooth, basically taking out old halogen and replacing with Mercedes GL320 OEM xenon lights.

The issue is, the headlights start to flicker after its stays on for 5 minutes. If I turn off the car and turn it back on, the headlights stays on fine for approximately 5 minutes and then it flickers again. Has anyone replaced Halogen with OEM factory Xenons? Any help will be appreciated.

Tranman

You'll need to get the dealer to use Star Diag to switch the headlight code to Xenon.

ddcha

wait a minute. I thought that this wasn't possible.

lkchris

Mistake.

StevethePilot

So it's just a bulb replacement? Everything else inside there is the same with xenon as it is with halogen?

thegeneraltso

I doubt that. True Xenon bulbs need ballasts to fire the filaments. This is why you see an initial flicker when first turned on and gets brighter in a few seconds. Moreover, MB and most cars with true Xenon have auto or manual headlight levelers.

If it is just a direct replacement, I am thinking these are so-called fake Xenon bulbs. They are nothing more than coated bulbs with a higher wattage.

ddcha

Folks here are talking about replacing the entire headlight assembly with OEM parts found on eBay. The ballasts and stuff are attached to the OEM headlight assembly (for the HID versions). I wasn't aware that they could simply be replaced and reprogrammed at the dealership. please give us an update.

MKW

On our recent Porsche 911s ( all 996/997s) the xenon assemblies can just be popped out using a wooden popsicle stick . Major issue with theft and then very profitable resale on Ebay .

I haven't looked , but I'm assuming our xenon assemblies are bolted on the inside. Nevertheless, how do these units show up on EBay - scavenged from wrecks , only,I hope, and not from thieves crowbarring hoods open.

StevethePilot

So I guess my question is, if I'm using "faux xenon" style bulbs right now (really bright, sharp ones) and I'm still having trouble seeing far enough at night, that's an aiming issue - yes?

Thanks very much!

iluvmys65amg

IMHO.....Buy a car with OEM Xenon's and you wont have this problem!

Just my .02!

haris3344

First of all, I bought these xenon headlights from Ebay Paid $350.00 Altogather (came with Ignitor and everything installed on the back of the headlight). They both came off a damaged GL450 with 1 tab broken on each headlight which I was able to fix easily.

This process involves unplugging the old Halogen and plugging back the new ones without any modifications. They are two types of Xenons for GL (DS1 and DS2). DS2 is self leveling headlight system in which the headlight turn in the direction your car is turning. If you have Halogens and you are converting to Factory Xenons I suggest going with DS1 because GL with halogen headlight does not come prewired for DS2. You still can use DS2 headlights but the auto leveling feature won't work.

Now the update....

Thank u so much Tranman. I took my 320CDI to the dealer. Atfirst, dealer was reluctant to do anything because of warranty issues. But when I told him that he only needs to run Dos program to switch the programming from Halogen to Xenon he agreed and did it. Cost me $100 but my Xenons are working perfectly.

Another issue...

Now, the issues I am having is the turn signals on both headlights aren't working. It was working fine when I first connected the Xenons but as the xenons were flickering, I started playing and must have burned something. I will take a look at it tomorrow and should be able to fix it.

FYI...to Iluvmys65amg...I bought my 08 GL320 in February 2008 brand new...The sticker on the car was 66k...I only paid $58k...That's a 8k saving. I don't think I am gonna spend 8k on xenon conversion.

vinceching

hate to say it but it sounds like you could have bought some stolen headlamps. reason i say that is because you mentioned on both had broken tabs. this was very common to find on the b5 platform a4's and s4's with xenons. there was one tab that was secured by a bolt that was hard to reach, so many times the thevies just yanked it out and in doing so broke the tab.

did the seller show you pictures of the gl450 in a wreck with the headlamps still intact?

haris3344

I bought it from two different guys at Ebay "Factory Xenon" and "Cheaper than After Market" waited about 4-5 months to complete the set. Both real nice guys deal in xenons mostly...It cracks me up how people jump to conclusion without knowing the facts...

ddcha

I have the faux xenons too (haha). I got the PIAAs that everyone recommended here and they are definitely brighter than the stock halogen bulbs and they give me more road visibility. While they are an upgrade, they are not comparable to true HIDs. Changing the aim will definitely help, but again, not comparable to true HIDs.

StevethePilot

Yeah, I'm just doing the Air Force thing with them (you know, "Aim High") and I hope I don't screw 'em up. It's really hard to get to the outer screw and I don't understand the "do them both simultaneously." That's nearly impossible.

The PIAAs are really excellent for brightness but that shows off the sharp cutoff so close to the car. I need to find a way to get level, 25 feet from somewhere I can mark off for headlight aiming. I had asked my dealership to do it but nothing changed, so either they decided it was aimed properly and they really do need to be aimed slightly higher, or they blew it off.

STP

am_beagle

I bought my 2 OEM xenon headlights on eBay too. One is from a body shop after they replaced a scratched one for a new one. I managed to fix the scratch, but not the broken tab. I plan to "bake" it to switch with my halo outer part which still have intact tabs.
I really don't think that someone could "yank" the MB headlight out to steal it. Just my 2 cents.

thegeneraltso

Funny you said that because there was an article a few years back saying how HID housings are a hot commodity and that some are easily removed from the vehicle with just the right bump on the fender/bumper etc. I cannot remember which vehicle was the most susceptible to the theft.

ddcha

Mostly Acuras/Nissans/Infiniti. This was more common in the early 2000s when HID/Xenon was still considered "big luxury". Now with all the HID kits out there and stuff, theft isn't as common.

vinceching

it was the audi's that were mentioned in that article and most of the thefts happened in new jersey. it was also easy to disable the alarm as all you had to do was drill a hole in a certain place into the side of the drivers door.

vladc77

I am wondering if you were able to fix the issues. I heard that you might need to add additional wire and once again do some magic in Star diagnostic. Please let me know. I ordered two XENON headlights and planning to do a swap. Thank you in advance!