Car has Pink Eye
11-21-2017, 05:51 PM
#1
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Car has Pink Eye
Hey Guys,
Last night I noticed my right main headlight looks pinkish instead of white like all the others. Service adviser said it sounds like my bulb is on its way out. Interesting since they just replaced all the front lights 2 years ago due to that V burn-in issue. I had my E55 for 15+ years and those Xenon lights never went out once. He said the bulb is only about $165ish. But then they add ripoff labor to a likely simple job.
Any of you guys see this pink symptom? I would think it would either work or not work. Maybe the Xenon bulbs do this?
Last question is if any of you have replaced one yourself? Fairly easy? or do I really need the dealer to do it? I am former mechanic btw. Put myself through college working on Volvos. Ugh. So unless special tools are required I should be able to do it.
Thanks in advance for any tips.
Cheers,
Last night I noticed my right main headlight looks pinkish instead of white like all the others. Service adviser said it sounds like my bulb is on its way out. Interesting since they just replaced all the front lights 2 years ago due to that V burn-in issue. I had my E55 for 15+ years and those Xenon lights never went out once. He said the bulb is only about $165ish. But then they add ripoff labor to a likely simple job.
Any of you guys see this pink symptom? I would think it would either work or not work. Maybe the Xenon bulbs do this?
Last question is if any of you have replaced one yourself? Fairly easy? or do I really need the dealer to do it? I am former mechanic btw. Put myself through college working on Volvos. Ugh. So unless special tools are required I should be able to do it.
Thanks in advance for any tips.
Cheers,
11-21-2017, 06:20 PM
#2
Member
My old bi-xenon E500 had a bulb turn pink and get VERY dim. I replaced BOTH bulbs at the same time with a set from ddmtuning.com with lifetime warranty for like $20 or something stupid. They work great!! My co-worker bought the car from me and loves the lights even today.
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CerBErusM113 (12-06-2017)
11-21-2017, 08:57 PM
#3
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Steeler just quoted me $214 for single bulb. This to me seems ridiculous. Can anyone confirm this to be reasonable?
Thanks.
Thanks.
11-22-2017, 11:22 AM
#4
Senior Member
I have a 2010 E63 with Bi-Xenons, so it should be the same for you.
Jack the car up, pull the wheel off, unfasten the fender liner, and pull it out of the way to access the back of the headlight. Pretty simple from there. Just dont touch the bulb itself when doing it
11-22-2017, 11:33 AM
#5
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Same thing happened on my car. I replaced the bulb myself, took about an hour. I bought the bulb from here for $71: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I have a 2010 E63 with Bi-Xenons, so it should be the same for you.
Jack the car up, pull the wheel off, unfasten the fender liner, and pull it out of the way to access the back of the headlight. Pretty simple from there. Just dont touch the bulb itself when doing it
I have a 2010 E63 with Bi-Xenons, so it should be the same for you.
Jack the car up, pull the wheel off, unfasten the fender liner, and pull it out of the way to access the back of the headlight. Pretty simple from there. Just dont touch the bulb itself when doing it
I saw the Youtube of the pulling the wheel access method. I also saw a video where the guy just moves a couple of things out of the way to reach it from the top. Did you consider this method? My bad bulb is on the passenger side. Easier to get to than the other side. Which brings me to my next question:
Should I order 2 of the bulbs to ensure that they match in appearance when lit? Or did you replace just the one and not notice a difference? I might order 2 anyway at that price just in case. But if I don't have to perform the extra labor, then bonus.
Thanks Again! Your reply was very helpful.
11-22-2017, 11:44 AM
#6
Senior Member
Thanks Dinman! This is good stuff. I will indeed order it through Amazon.
I saw the Youtube of the pulling the wheel access method. I also saw a video where the guy just moves a couple of things out of the way to reach it from the top. Did you consider this method? My bad bulb is on the passenger side. Easier to get to than the other side. Which brings me to my next question:
Should I order 2 of the bulbs to ensure that they match in appearance when lit? Or did you replace just the one and not notice a difference? I might order 2 anyway at that price just in case. But if I don't have to perform the extra labor, then bonus.
Thanks Again! Your reply was very helpful.
I saw the Youtube of the pulling the wheel access method. I also saw a video where the guy just moves a couple of things out of the way to reach it from the top. Did you consider this method? My bad bulb is on the passenger side. Easier to get to than the other side. Which brings me to my next question:
Should I order 2 of the bulbs to ensure that they match in appearance when lit? Or did you replace just the one and not notice a difference? I might order 2 anyway at that price just in case. But if I don't have to perform the extra labor, then bonus.
Thanks Again! Your reply was very helpful.
Mine was on the passenger side too. I saw that method as well, but for me pulling the wheel off was easiest. i didn't want to mess with that stuff in the engine bay unless i had to. It also allowed me to inspect that wheel for cracks/bends and also look at the suspension
I had people tell me to replace both bulbs, i only did one. There is an extremely minor color difference, honestly it wouldn't be noticed if i weren't looking for it. You have to flip your eyes back and forth between the two lights to notice it. Plus my car has 145,000 miles so im sure my driver bulb will fail sooner than later. It's so minor that i can't even really pick up the difference on camera.
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Vrodman (11-22-2017)
11-23-2017, 02:28 PM
#7
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2014 E63S; AMS 100 octane ecu tune; edok tcu tune; BB intakes; dyno tuned
Vrod - hope you and the family are well, happy thanksgiving!!
hope Elenor is well too
anytime I changed xenons I did both at the same time to match the temperatures
hope Elenor is well too
anytime I changed xenons I did both at the same time to match the temperatures
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11-26-2017, 01:40 AM
#8
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2008 E350 4Matic, 2011 E350 4matic
Thanks Dinman! This is good stuff. I will indeed order it through Amazon.
I saw the Youtube of the pulling the wheel access method. I also saw a video where the guy just moves a couple of things out of the way to reach it from the top. Did you consider this method? My bad bulb is on the passenger side. Easier to get to than the other side. Which brings me to my next question:
Should I order 2 of the bulbs to ensure that they match in appearance when lit? Or did you replace just the one and not notice a difference? I might order 2 anyway at that price just in case. But if I don't have to perform the extra labor, then bonus.
Thanks Again! Your reply was very helpful.
I saw the Youtube of the pulling the wheel access method. I also saw a video where the guy just moves a couple of things out of the way to reach it from the top. Did you consider this method? My bad bulb is on the passenger side. Easier to get to than the other side. Which brings me to my next question:
Should I order 2 of the bulbs to ensure that they match in appearance when lit? Or did you replace just the one and not notice a difference? I might order 2 anyway at that price just in case. But if I don't have to perform the extra labor, then bonus.
Thanks Again! Your reply was very helpful.
11-27-2017, 12:36 PM
#9
MBWorld Fanatic!
Thread Starter
You can get them cheaper even at Home Depot/Rockauto.com. They're just D1S bulbs and around $60 each. You change them both at the same time. As bulbs get older, the light output decreases. So if you have a new and an old bulb the output of both will be different. I wouldn't have gotten those on Amazon. They had a problem with fakes in the past and may still have that problem. Basically what they do is get all the inventory from their 3rd parties and lump them all into one bin. So even if the vendor is Amazon, you may end up with a fake from some other vendor in the same bin. You can get cheaper/fake ones on Ebay that are $10-$20, but they will flicker and burn out quicker. You're supposed to get about 2500 hours out of Xenons so maybe the replacements were fakes.
Update:
I replaced the bulb over the weekend. Tried doing it from the top and was able to get the old bulb out pretty easy. But it became clear that my hand was just too big to properly install the new bulb from the top without risk of damaging it. So off the passenger side front wheel came along with the inner fender well liner. Once that is out of the way, it was indeed MUCH easier to access. Everything went back together easier than it came apart. Whole job took about 45 minutes. New bulb looks spot-on the same as the existing other headlight. So currently I see no need to change out the other bulb. I think the one that went bad was just a bad luck defective bulb.
One interesting thing I discovered doing all of this. This was the first time I removed a wheel on this car myself. I did it several times on the old E55. Anyway, once I had all 5 lug bolts out, I could not get the wheel off. Seemed like it was welded on! I finally used the weight of the car to my advantage and slowly lowered the car until just enough weight was on the wheel to crack it free. Then I raised it back up and removed the wheel. It seems that the center hub on the rotor has a light interference with the center hole of the wheel. I had not seen this before. Even in my mechanic days in a former life. Any of you guys run into this? Do you have a different way to pop the wheel off? My method is a bit dicey, I admit. I am wondering if the tire guys were supposed to be putting grease on the center hub to prevent this stiction from occurring.
11-27-2017, 12:40 PM
#10
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Yep. All is good. Family had a great Thanksgiving. You guys?
Not Elenor btw. lol Her name is Eva.
See my other update on the bulb replacement. New bulb matches the existing other bulb exactly. So I decided to forgo changing them both out. At least for now.
Cheers!
11-27-2017, 05:22 PM
#11
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2008 E350 4Matic, 2011 E350 4matic
The replacements from 2 years ago were not fakes. They were replaced under warranty by the dealer. It is strange that the bulb quit though. The new bulbs from Amazon do not appear to be fakes either. They look EXACTLY the same as the OEM bulb that came out. If they are fakes, they are very good. Decals and everything are exactly the same. And as mentioned below, it performs so far exactly the same too. Exact same color.
Update:
I replaced the bulb over the weekend. Tried doing it from the top and was able to get the old bulb out pretty easy. But it became clear that my hand was just too big to properly install the new bulb from the top without risk of damaging it. So off the passenger side front wheel came along with the inner fender well liner. Once that is out of the way, it was indeed MUCH easier to access. Everything went back together easier than it came apart. Whole job took about 45 minutes. New bulb looks spot-on the same as the existing other headlight. So currently I see no need to change out the other bulb. I think the one that went bad was just a bad luck defective bulb. Also new bulbs have some burn in time so the color may change after 10-20 hours of use.
One interesting thing I discovered doing all of this. This was the first time I removed a wheel on this car myself. I did it several times on the old E55. Anyway, once I had all 5 lug bolts out, I could not get the wheel off. Seemed like it was welded on! I finally used the weight of the car to my advantage and slowly lowered the car until just enough weight was on the wheel to crack it free. Then I raised it back up and removed the wheel. It seems that the center hub on the rotor has a light interference with the center hole of the wheel. I had not seen this before. Even in my mechanic days in a former life. Any of you guys run into this? Do you have a different way to pop the wheel off? My method is a bit dicey, I admit. I am wondering if the tire guys were supposed to be putting grease on the center hub to prevent this stiction from occurring.
Update:
I replaced the bulb over the weekend. Tried doing it from the top and was able to get the old bulb out pretty easy. But it became clear that my hand was just too big to properly install the new bulb from the top without risk of damaging it. So off the passenger side front wheel came along with the inner fender well liner. Once that is out of the way, it was indeed MUCH easier to access. Everything went back together easier than it came apart. Whole job took about 45 minutes. New bulb looks spot-on the same as the existing other headlight. So currently I see no need to change out the other bulb. I think the one that went bad was just a bad luck defective bulb. Also new bulbs have some burn in time so the color may change after 10-20 hours of use.
One interesting thing I discovered doing all of this. This was the first time I removed a wheel on this car myself. I did it several times on the old E55. Anyway, once I had all 5 lug bolts out, I could not get the wheel off. Seemed like it was welded on! I finally used the weight of the car to my advantage and slowly lowered the car until just enough weight was on the wheel to crack it free. Then I raised it back up and removed the wheel. It seems that the center hub on the rotor has a light interference with the center hole of the wheel. I had not seen this before. Even in my mechanic days in a former life. Any of you guys run into this? Do you have a different way to pop the wheel off? My method is a bit dicey, I admit. I am wondering if the tire guys were supposed to be putting grease on the center hub to prevent this stiction from occurring.
11-27-2017, 11:38 PM
#12
MBWorld Fanatic!
Saw your post the other day and now my passenger side headlights went pink today. 
11-28-2017, 11:36 AM
#13
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11-30-2017, 05:29 PM
#14
MBWorld Fanatic!
Hahaha yeah it’s all because of this thread. It’s jinx lol. Just kidding all good.
At least I am aware of an alternative price vs $220 bulbs from Mercedes.
I am am getting both switched out to OEM 4300k Philips bulbs. Supposingly they give off the brightest lux vs any other OEM bulbs.
At least I am aware of an alternative price vs $220 bulbs from Mercedes.
I am am getting both switched out to OEM 4300k Philips bulbs. Supposingly they give off the brightest lux vs any other OEM bulbs.
12-01-2017, 12:06 PM
#15
Senior Member
The replacements from 2 years ago were not fakes. They were replaced under warranty by the dealer. It is strange that the bulb quit though. The new bulbs from Amazon do not appear to be fakes either. They look EXACTLY the same as the OEM bulb that came out. If they are fakes, they are very good. Decals and everything are exactly the same. And as mentioned below, it performs so far exactly the same too. Exact same color.
Update:
I replaced the bulb over the weekend. Tried doing it from the top and was able to get the old bulb out pretty easy. But it became clear that my hand was just too big to properly install the new bulb from the top without risk of damaging it. So off the passenger side front wheel came along with the inner fender well liner. Once that is out of the way, it was indeed MUCH easier to access. Everything went back together easier than it came apart. Whole job took about 45 minutes. New bulb looks spot-on the same as the existing other headlight. So currently I see no need to change out the other bulb. I think the one that went bad was just a bad luck defective bulb.
One interesting thing I discovered doing all of this. This was the first time I removed a wheel on this car myself. I did it several times on the old E55. Anyway, once I had all 5 lug bolts out, I could not get the wheel off. Seemed like it was welded on! I finally used the weight of the car to my advantage and slowly lowered the car until just enough weight was on the wheel to crack it free. Then I raised it back up and removed the wheel. It seems that the center hub on the rotor has a light interference with the center hole of the wheel. I had not seen this before. Even in my mechanic days in a former life. Any of you guys run into this? Do you have a different way to pop the wheel off? My method is a bit dicey, I admit. I am wondering if the tire guys were supposed to be putting grease on the center hub to prevent this stiction from occurring.
Update:
I replaced the bulb over the weekend. Tried doing it from the top and was able to get the old bulb out pretty easy. But it became clear that my hand was just too big to properly install the new bulb from the top without risk of damaging it. So off the passenger side front wheel came along with the inner fender well liner. Once that is out of the way, it was indeed MUCH easier to access. Everything went back together easier than it came apart. Whole job took about 45 minutes. New bulb looks spot-on the same as the existing other headlight. So currently I see no need to change out the other bulb. I think the one that went bad was just a bad luck defective bulb.
One interesting thing I discovered doing all of this. This was the first time I removed a wheel on this car myself. I did it several times on the old E55. Anyway, once I had all 5 lug bolts out, I could not get the wheel off. Seemed like it was welded on! I finally used the weight of the car to my advantage and slowly lowered the car until just enough weight was on the wheel to crack it free. Then I raised it back up and removed the wheel. It seems that the center hub on the rotor has a light interference with the center hole of the wheel. I had not seen this before. Even in my mechanic days in a former life. Any of you guys run into this? Do you have a different way to pop the wheel off? My method is a bit dicey, I admit. I am wondering if the tire guys were supposed to be putting grease on the center hub to prevent this stiction from occurring.
You're not alone on the wheel situation. My rear passenger wheel does the same thing, every time i remove it. I usually have to give it a few blows with one of the other wheels to get it off. I've tried sanding the surfaces, checking the hub surface, honestly it has me beat. Every time i bring it to discount tire to get tires mounted the guys are scratching their heads.
Here is the color difference on mine. It's very minor. Sure replacing both is better but i'm OK with the minor difference and i think that's all that matters. Plus i have nearly 150,000 miles and im not sure if/when the bulbs were changed
ok it may bother me to an extent but not enough to go change the other one
Last edited by dinman; 12-01-2017 at 12:09 PM.
