freemansteve

I read the sticky article on bulbs, but it wasn't too clear.

I have an Octavia 2.0 Tdi Ele. This is the most irritating car I have owned for changing main beam, dipped beam lamps or side lights.

I can change the dipped beam (H7) lamps (it's fiddly), but cannot see how to get to the main beam (H1) and sidelight bulbs (W5W's).

Does anyone else offer advice on this ?

Can anyone show any pictures of how to get to each of the bulbs? Would you normally remove the entire lamp assembly to change bulbs?

Any tips appreciated.

Hedge

I have done this and you do need to remove the complete light assembly.
Not too difficult really but the connector on the back can be a bit of a pain. Once the unit is out though fairly straightforward.
Can also be a bit awkward removing the sidelight bulbs especially with Xenons.

Makefish

This might help a bit.....

Headlight Removal

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freemansteve

This is all excellent. Thanks to all who responded.

The removal of the assembly is much easier than on my Mk4 Golf GTi, but if you don't take out the assembly, changing the bulbs is far harder; even the wire clips securing bulbs are of "inexpensive" design and so are fiddly. I conclude that it was intended that you remove the entire lamp.

LenK

Removing the light assembly was a piece of cake, but how hard I pulled I could not detach the wireconnector. Is it that tight or is there a trick to detach is.

Without detaching the cable you can pull out light assembly so far that you get a litte workspace behind the light assembly to change bulbs but it is almost impossible to do it like this.

Makefish

There is a knack to disconnecting the wiring but it can be done fairly easily once you know how. There are a couple of clips which need squeezing before you pull off (have a look for yourself, it should become clearer).

__________________

VRStu

Thanks to Hedge we now have a guide -

Octavia-vRS.com - Changing Front Lamps - Octavia II

__________________
Stu - Freedom Pimp

Stu's Websites - http://www.fabia-vrs.com & http://www.octavia-vrs.com

Stu's Car - 2007 Octavia vRS, Race Blue, Xenons, Columbus Navigation, Rear Parking Sensors, Maxi Dot, Light Assist, Jumbo Box, 18" Alloys, Stu's Cruise Control & OEM Integrated Bluetooth Telephone.

SWMBO's Car - 2008 Seat LEON TDi Stylance, Black Magic, Sports Pack, Rear Parking Sensors.

Something for Weekend - 2002 Lotus Elise RaceTech, Gunmetal, Radio, Carpet Mats.

LenK

Very nice pictures but as I remember my unit looks a little different (I don't have Xenon).

The plug on the picture is much bigger than mine seems to be.
In my unit only the oval part is black and looks removable, just like in the user manual page 294 (in Dutch manual) front indicator lights.

bosnjo

Mine has Xenons. I've already changed turning signs bulbs to Philips Silver Vision to avoid that yellow effect from the beams (did it on the lights on the back too). Changed sidelights too but they are not blue enough to match Xenons, I still have to look for other ones (more blue, but not too much, just to match Xenons).
My owner's manuals explain how to change bulbs in headlights and how to take whole unit out. I found it pretty ease. Here is my question. Owner's manual says that people with Xenons need to go to dealer to change Xenon bulb if it needs to be changed.
- Is it true? I may not change it by myself?
- What is the price (aprox.) for one Xenon bulb?
- How long they last?

Thanks

__________________
Octavia 2006 2.0 TDI Sport (equal to L&K in UK)
- 17' wheels, Sport suspension, Xenons, Audience with Sound System, Bluetooth, Front & Back Parking Sensors -
- VAG COM -

swing

Normally, that's the advice. If you need to ask, you don't want to know Not cheap would be a good answer - I don't know exactly for the Octy, but they are generally £100-150 A nice long time I've run cars with Xenons for a few years (and it wasn't new when I bought it) without needing to replace the bulbs.

stumpy1

They are supposed to outlast the car, but can fail. My mates were covered by warranty (BMW)

Fabia 12v

[quote=freemansteve;743580]

The removal of the assembly is much easier than on my Mk4 Golf GTiquote]


With you on that one!!! Jeeeze having to remove entire front bumper etc... nightmare!!

__________________
First Car: Skoda Fabia MK1 1.2 12v Comfort
Replaced with: Volkswagen Golf MK4 GT 1.9TDI
Replaced with: Seat Ibiza MK4 Sport 1.9TDI
Replaced with: Volkswagen Polo MK5 Ltd. Edition Sport 1.4 16v

freemansteve

There is a certain amount of confusion about headlamps and bulbs....

First off, the the pictures seen in the link above refer to replacing standard halogen bulbs in a standard headlamp unit with Xenon equivalents. The bulbs shown in the pictures are H7 (dip) and H1 (main) and possibly W5W sides. Philips and Osram make these, sold under various names, but generally claiming to offer 50% more light.

At the end of the day, they are 'ordinary' bulbs that use very pure Xenon gas inside to enable higher filament temperatures. This tends to shift the emitted light to higher frequencies - hence making the light bluer rather than looking yellowish. This is a higher "color temperature" and is usually measured in K (Kelvins). Daylight is around 5500K. I have fitted these and they do seem "whiter", but not blue, which in any case could irritate other road users. A 50% increase in light output is only just noticable - it works sound volume in dB's if you follow what I mean. I would expect these bulbs to have a shorter life than the standard bulbs which are quartz-iodide (the iodine being the halogen gas in the bulb, the quartz referring to the special high temp glass envelope).

Secondly, true Xenon lights are generally Xenon HID lights. These have, AFAIK, different headlamp assemblies and associated electrical systems to support them.

HID is High Intensity Discharge. HID headlamp bulbs don't use 12V supplies, they need a high voltage ignitor. When the headlamps are switched on, the ignitor provides rapidly pulsed current at several thousand volts to initiate the arc between the electrodes within the bulb. Once the arc is started, its heat begins to vapourise the metallic salts within the arc chamber, and the ballast gradually transitions from startup operation to arc-maintenance operation at around 85v in conventional D1 and D2 systems, or 42v with Mercury-free D3 and D4 systems. HID headlamps' light output is not similar to daylight. The spectral power distribution (SPD) of HID's is discontinuous, while the SPD of a filament lamp, like that of the sun, is a continuous curve. The arc within an HID headlamp bulb generates considerable UV light, but little of it escapes the bulb, which has a UV-absorbing hard glass shield is incorporated around the bulb's arc tube. This is important to prevent degradation of UV-sensitive components and materials in headlamps, such as polycarbonate lenses and reflector hardcoats.

freemansteve

There is a certain amount of confusion about headlamps and bulbs....

First off, the the pictures seen in the link above refer to replacing standard halogen bulbs in a standard headlamp unit with Xenon equivalents. The bulbs shown in the pictures are H7 (dip) and H1 (main) and possibly W5W sides. Philips and Osram make these, sold under various names, but generally claiming to offer 50% more light.

At the end of the day, they are 'ordinary' bulbs that use very pure Xenon gas inside to enable higher filament temperatures. This tends to shift the emitted light to higher frequencies - hence making the light bluer rather than looking yellowish. This is a higher "color temperature" and is usually measured in K (Kelvins). Daylight is around 5500K. I have fitted these and they do seem "whiter", but not blue, which in any case could irritate other road users. A 50% increase in light output is only just noticable - it works sound volume in dB's if you follow what I mean. I would expect these bulbs to have a shorter life than the standard bulbs which are quartz-iodide (the iodine being the halogen gas in the bulb, the quartz referring to the special high temp glass envelope).

Secondly, true Xenon lights are generally Xenon HID lights. These have, AFAIK, different headlamp assemblies and associated electrical systems to support them.

HID is High Intensity Discharge. HID headlamp bulbs don't use 12V supplies, they need a high voltage ignitor. When the headlamps are switched on, the ignitor provides rapidly pulsed current at several thousand volts to initiate the arc between the electrodes within the bulb. Once the arc is started, its heat begins to vapourise the metallic salts within the arc chamber, and the ballast gradually transitions from startup operation to arc-maintenance operation at around 85v in conventional D1 and D2 systems, or 42v with Mercury-free D3 and D4 systems. HID headlamps' light output is not similar to daylight. The spectral power distribution (SPD) of HID's is discontinuous, while the SPD of a filament lamp, like that of the sun, is a continuous curve. The arc within an HID headlamp bulb generates considerable UV light, but little of it escapes the bulb, which has a UV-absorbing hard glass shield is incorporated around the bulb's arc tube. This is important to prevent degradation of UV-sensitive components and materials in headlamps, such as polycarbonate lenses and reflector hardcoats.

VRStu

The car in that picture is fitted with factory Xenon's mate. Check the washers on the bumper.

__________________
Stu - Freedom Pimp

Stu's Websites - http://www.fabia-vrs.com & http://www.octavia-vrs.com

Stu's Car - 2007 Octavia vRS, Race Blue, Xenons, Columbus Navigation, Rear Parking Sensors, Maxi Dot, Light Assist, Jumbo Box, 18" Alloys, Stu's Cruise Control & OEM Integrated Bluetooth Telephone.

SWMBO's Car - 2008 Seat LEON TDi Stylance, Black Magic, Sports Pack, Rear Parking Sensors.

Something for Weekend - 2002 Lotus Elise RaceTech, Gunmetal, Radio, Carpet Mats.

freemansteve

[quote=freemansteve;745833]There is a certain amount of confusion about headlamps and bulbs....

First off, the the pictures seen in the link above refer to replacing standard halogen bulbs in a standard headlamp unit with Xenon equivalents.

.... On second thoughts, I have not changed an actual Xenon HID unit myself, and I noticed that the article did not talk about replacing H7's, so perhaps the dipped bean lamps were genuinely HID units; sorry if this upset anyone. I was surprised that you would have HID dips beams but only standard H1 mains. I also noticed that Torx screws were mentioned and I realized my lamp units don't have any that you need to remove....

As for removing sidelight bulbs from a standard lamp assembly, I recommend buying some of those long medical-type forceps with the ratchet lock. The sidelights are in a long push fit, black plastic cartridge with two spring clips moulded into the cartridge body. All you do is clamp your forceps on the clips, squeezing them inwards gently, and then pull the whole thing out. Takes 5 secs doing it this way.

GAFF

Washers can be an option on their own , but I know what you mean

__________________
GAFF





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