S3 Bi-xenon help required please!

fchana786

fchana786

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Hi,

Driving to work this morning and got the "right dipped headlight" error message on my DIS, gave Audi a call to check the price for the bi-xenon bulb which will cost £242!!!

Is that how much it really costs? That price Audi gave is for the bulb and fitting.

Does anybody know where I can get it cheaper and what bulb I should be looking for?
 
The cost will be due to the front bumper needing to come off to fit it.

If your brave you could buy one off of ebay & fit it yourself LOL
 
Lol mate I can just about the wheels when I have a puncture!! I don't think I'd attempt on taking the front bumper off what bulb should I be looking for as I'd rather just buy the bulb and get an independent garage to fit it?
 
Hi there fchana786 and how often do these bulbs need to be change as that is one expensive bulb change,hope they have a good life span:scared2:
 
And do they last longer than a regular bulb,:uhm:
 
microfly said:
And do they last longer than a regular bulb,:uhm:
Click to expand...

not sure fella, my aftermarket set have lasted so far but i have only had them in around 2-3months. The philips ones should last a while being oem but at the end of the day bulbs are bulbs.

Also apologies i was on my ipad and accidentally hit dislike on your post. I did click like to make up for it :)
 
fchana786 said:
Lol mate I can just about the wheels when I have a puncture!! I don't think I'd attempt on taking the front bumper off what bulb should I be looking for as I'd rather just buy the bulb and get an independent garage to fit it?
Click to expand...

Honestly it's not as hard or as bad as you think it is to be honest just need a socket set and star key set.
Buy the bulb and ask a garage or if you know anyone defo not audi lol.
 
Last edited:
fchana786 said:
Hi,

Driving to work this morning and got the "right dipped headlight" error message on my DIS, gave Audi a call to check the price for the bi-xenon bulb which will cost £242!!!

Is that how much it really costs? That price Audi gave is for the bulb and fitting.

Does anybody know where I can get it cheaper and what bulb I should be looking for?
Click to expand...

Had the exact same happen to me this morning.

Research a DIY on VW Vortex on how to remove the bumper, it doesnt take that long.
 
i understand what you are saying but on my last car it was buy the bulb £29-40 pop the bonnet remove rubber cover twist old bulb out and then replace ,time taken 5mins .
And this being a part that has a tendency to blow or foul and need replacing i have never heard of the need to remove the front bumper to replace a bulb,i would call this a bad design .I thought bulb replacment is something a noob like myself could under take .
I have just had a great idea Halfords do a fitting service for bulbs and such like so go to Halfords and pay the £2.50 or £5.00 and let them fit it .
£242 thats what you call a money maker:notme:
 
mate the front bumper is held on with about 6 bolts-screws and easy to takeoff, then another 4-6 (cant remember of the top of my head) to get the lamp out, i can get my front end off in 25-30 mins tops on my drive...

bulb will cost you about £70 from a motor factors, do it yourself its easy :) you'l have a much greater satisfaction of doing the job yourself-save a shed load of money-and gain the knowledge of how to do it next time :) you cant break anything and your not up against the clock so why not give it a go?? there's plenty of ppl with knowledge on here if you get stuck at any point, gotta learn somewhere, thats how i started and now im pulling out engines and doing all repairs myself :) i wouldnt pay main dealer prices for anything!!!
 
microfly said:
i understand what you are saying but on my last car it was buy the bulb £29-40 pop the bonnet remove rubber cover twist old bulb out and then replace ,time taken 5mins .
And this being a part that has a tendency to blow or foul and need replacing i have never heard of the need to remove the front bumper to replace a bulb,i would call this a bad design .I thought bulb replacment is something a noob like myself could under take .
I have just had a great idea Halfords do a fitting service for bulbs and such like so go to Halfords and pay the £2.50 or £5.00 and let them fit it .
£242 thats what you call a money maker:notme:
Click to expand...
xenon bulbs arent quite as easy as that.... and as for letting halfords fit it!! i would not let them touch my car let alone pay them to.. i see them trying to fit some womans wiper blades one day, what a sight that was, there was 2 of them on it and one asked the other which way it went round... lol, thanks but stick to the till lol
 
I wounder if bulb replacment is covered by the warrenty?Its just a few bolts,about 30 minutes to do ,well when one goes i know now who to get me out of any problems with it cheers mate .You are right in what you are saying it just makes me nervey that i could make a pigs **** of it and cause a load of agg,but if its as easy as you make it sound then i should have no problems.
 
Halfords wont fit it, Most probably they would attempt to come out and try but firstly they wont stock the OEM bi xenon bulbs so they wouldnt take on the fitting either. The moment they realise they cant replace the bulb because of the terrible access, If its a bumper off job they will refuse and refund you for fitting.
 
I knew it was a long shot lol ,so don't tell me to change a fuse i will have to take the dash out.lol
 
microfly said:
I knew it was a long shot lol ,so don't tell me to change a fuse i will have to take the dash out.lol
Click to expand...

Nope luckily fuses are either in compartment under the bonnet easy access or at the end of the dash with a removable cover your okay on that one lol.
 
What year did Bi xenon's come in ? arnt they under 3 years old and in Warranty...I know audi will kick up a fuss about consumer parts but i would fight that given the ludicrous replacement cost.
 
ok so if its a pre-fecelift (03 - 08) then its a D1S bulb you need
D1S HID Xenon Replacement Bulbs - Xenon HID Headlight Upgrade Kits from HIDs DIRECT Ltd

if its a facelift (58 plate - ) then you need a D3S
D3S HID XENON REPLACEMENT BULBS - Xenon HID Headlight Upgrade Kits from HIDs DIRECT Ltd

i think you might be able to access it through the front wheel arch liner, just remove the screws and reach in to change it. a bit fiddly mind you.
the front bumper removal and headlight removal is the safest way but its a fair job. I can do it for you if you want?
 
Thank you for the offer mate i will pm you if i have one go on me,the thing is i have looked in the mannual and it says nothing about taking the bumper off .it discribes replacing the bulb like i have said in a past tread ie popping the rubber cover off etc ,if my head is clear tomorrow i will pop the bonnet and have a look cheers mate
 
If bumper removal is needed Audi need to look at Volvo. My old V50 had a special peg to pull out and the whole headlamp unit came away from the car. Is the same required for halogens?
 
Thanks for all your replies! I have ordered the Phillips xenon bulbs from eBay which Farhan kindly put the link up for! I will attempt to fit them myself so as soon as I receive them I will be back on here asking many questions on how to fit them :)
 
Remove arch liner & remove bulb that way, still a royal pita tbh, but certainly a possible quicker option.
 
Found this thread buried away when needing to replace Bi-xenon bulb on facelift S3 - IME removing the wheel arch liners is a much easier way of changing the D3S HID bulbs vs front bumper removal.
Also would recommend the D3S Osram Night Breakers (4300K) from HIDS4u.co.uk.

Stuart
 
Last edited:
If you go the wheel arch liner route, be prepared for your hands to be ripped to shreds.

Also, it's advisable to change both bulbs as xenon's get darker with age.
 
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