xenon to led

[michaelburrows]

i have a 62 plate titanium x with factory  bi xenons.  i wasnt that impressed with the original xenon bulbs so replace with osram lasers.  in all honesty you can hardly tell the difference over standard oem xenonon bulb.   is there a led replacement for my car. and would it be a plug and play .

[Comares2001]

Unlikely to be anything that's UK road legal

[michaelburrows]

i somehow thought there wouldnt be.   and yet there are kits out there for headlamps without projectors

[JW1982]

There are aftermarket LED Bulbs with a D1S socket so installing a LED bulb into the projector of the original HID headlights should not be a problem.

The biggest problem will be the bulb check system. On a Focus MK3 with the original HID headlights it is not possible to disable the bulb check system by configuring the headlights as "Aftermarket HID" because this will also disable the DRL lights, cornering lights and automatic beam height adjustment.

I suspect that the poor light output of the HID headlights is caused by corroded projectors. It is a known problem that during time the chrome reflectors inside the projectors corrode caused by the HID light. Many older vehicles with factory HID lights have this problem. Once the chrome reflectors inside the projectors are corroded the light output will be affected significantly. If this is the case installing higher output HID bulbs or LED Bulbs will not bring much.

[Luke4efc]

My ST has really dim xenons as the projectors are burnt out. Unfortunately you have to split the headlights to replace them

[michaelburrows]

ouch thats a big problem then.  im not sure then iff my projectors are  burnt out.  when i took headlamps out to replace the bulbs i looked inside them and they looked just fine.  can you also tell from the outside if you look at the lamps.    im rather hoping this isnt now the case

[erictcleric]

A dirty projector will look like frosted glass, but can be tricky to see unless you compare a clean and dirty unit side-by-side.

You may be able to clean them using a long stick with some microfibre cloth on the end. Remove bulb, insert stick and see if it will clean up. Don't use a screwdriver, and don't press too hard. The lens can scratch at which point you have to renew the projector.

It won't be as good as taking the headlight apart, but you may be able to improve it a bit. 

[michaelburrows]

thank u for that. mine appear to look spot on.  i  have looke at other cars projectors and mine look exactly the same.  so thinking that my headlamps will remain pretty hopeless and i will have to put up with ot.

[JW1982]

Usually the glass of the projector is not the problem. The problem is the chrome reflector inside the projector. If the projector reflector becomes corroded / dull the light output will decrease by approximately 30 to 40%. The original Focus MK3 HID headlights are known to have a pretty poor light output as standard. If the projector reflector becomes corroded / dull the light output will be even worse. I have seen original MK3 HID headlights that performed even worse than original halogen headlights.

Corroded / dull projector reflectors are not visible from the outside. To inspect the projector reflectors properly you have to remove the headlights and HID bulbs and take a close look at the inside of the projector using a small mirror or endoscope camera. 

[Luke4efc]

Here's what a burnt out projector looks like (not my pic). You can't see the condition without stripping the headlight down.

[michaelburrows]

i cant even 

[michaelburrows]

i cant even work out what im looking at there unfortunately.  but sure looks more complicated than i imagined ot would look.   thanks for youre input tho.  

[Frowma]

That is the reflector bowl, the projector lens sits in front of that, the bulb goes through the hole in the center into that bowl, the bowl is supposed to be bright chrome and shiny but it is all dull.

Have a look at this video, the part he pulls out at 7:06 is the part in the pic above.

 

[StephenFord]

16 hours ago, Luke4efc said:

Here's what a burnt out projector looks like (not my pic). You can't see the condition without stripping the headlight down.

If Jimmy in his garden shed had designed such a poor product, you could understand, but for a major car manufacture, unforgivable...

[michaelburrows]

does anyone know where i can purchase replacement projectors that fit in to the tit x headlamps. iv just read an article about them and it seems this may be the answer to my problem.

[JW1982]

Retrofitlab is a well known supplier for projector kits / upgrades / replacements for original headlights.

https://www.retrofitlab.com/vehicle/ford/focus-mk3/92#cardetails

 

[michaelburrows]

does anyone know where i can purchase replacement projectors that fit in to the tit x headlamps. iv just read an article about them and it seems this may be the answer to my problem.

[michaelburrows]

has anyone on here done this.  i just watched a you tube vid from this company and it looks horrendous. everything from heating up and splitting the headlamp seal to taking it all apart to change the projector. or is it actually easier than it looks