Everton

Just finished replacing the valve cover gaskets as well as the camshaft tensioner seals. The driver's side camshaft tensioner seal was a real PITA; I had the locking carrier in the service position, so that did afford me a few more inches to get the job done. (did not unplug any connectors since I was not swinging locking carrier open just forward. After putting everything back together, the left HID (Xenon) low beam suddenly had a pinkish tint to it. After restarting a car a few hrs later the dash was indicating I had a bulb out. Wiggled a few connection (that you would normally disconnect to swing locking carrier to the full open position), and the pink tint returned. Can some wires be pinched/shorted with my reassembly, or is this just a coincidence and I just need to replace 11 year old HID bulbs?

nm3210

It's not a coincidence because they were moved around so much during the repair job and the older they get the more sensitive they are going to be. Definitely just replace them. I had to replace mine for the first time after 11+ years so it sounds about right.

The fact that the system worked properly (bulb wouldn't turn on [pink/low light counts as "not on"] then dash reports that a bulb is out) sort of gives me the impression that there's nothing wrong. Obviously this might not be the case, but it definitely doesn't reek of anything more than normal bulb failure.

jcman

....for that. Do check your ground wires along with the ballast connections.

MP4.2+6.0

the bulbs lose brightness too. Over a few thousand hours it's material if you look at some quality specs. Early owners reported color matching problems (assuming OEM K) when replacing just one. Consider changing both if you have the $ and they are that old. They aren't nearly as expensive, even for name brand bulbs, as they once were.

Boston Driver

I had a bulb turn pink one day. Next day it was dead. Replace both. You can find OEM spec HID bulbs on eBay for about $80/pair. Look for the Philips D2S bulbs, which are a bit more "white" than the Osrams (both are OEM suppliers of bulbs for Audi/VW).

mithrilG60

HID capsules turn colour shift to pink as they begin to die. The bulbs in your lights right now are likely the one's that came from the factory, it time to replace them. HID capsules last infinitely longer than halogen bulbs but they're not a lifetime part, 11 years is a pretty good run

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/pro...roducts_id=148

You can sometimes find better deals on eBay but the $95/pair is constant at that link.

Everton

Picked up a couple Sylvania Xenarc bulbs last night and put them in without any problems. Pink-eye cured.

tester123

That's strange. To my understanding thus far, they should continue to light although with reduced output... but turning pink all of a sudden is something I have not heard of. Could it be loose power / bulb connector(s) making poor contact and delivering less voltage? I have observed similar of behavior when retro fitting my bro's passat with HIDs and tweaking the bulb and it arced around the base due to loose connection.

mithrilG60

Nope, that's just the way HID capsules die. You're right that the bulbs also emit less light over time, however because it's so gradual you don't really notice until colour shifting begins. The colour shift is the result of the salts contained in the capsule breaking down. Those salts are excited by the high voltage arc produced by the ballast and that excitation is what actually emits the light.

Different chemical compositions in the salts are what allow companies to produce different bulbs with different colour temps. The better the chemical quality, and the larger the physical volume, of the salts the better the bulb and the longer it's life. That why the cheap eBay bulbs and even cheaper ghetto retro-fit kits generally don't last very long, no matter how much the sellers want to try and convince you that their products are the same as the much more expensive OEM quality bulbs. They cheap out on the less noticeable but far more essential aspects like using good quality materials in the bulbs which in turn affects output and longevity.

A good quality bulb should not require any tweaking and it should produce 2000 - 3000 hrs of use before it needs to be replace. That's 5.5 - 8 years of constant 24/7 use.

SloopJohnB@mac.com

I can see math is your strong suit.....