C5 Xenon bulb replacement

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Lighty
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C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by Lighty »

Any of you guys done this ? I have to do one tomorrow, and wondering if the light needs removing or if it can be done in situ ?
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by cachaciero »

Well depends which side, battery side you could maybe do it in situ on the pump side I can't see anyone doing it, though I could be proved wrong, in my case I gave up even for the battery side and took the front off and the light out.
If you decided to remove the bumper the first thing you will need to remove are the washer covers which are click on plastic and this means pulling the washer jet piston out and securing while you warm the plastic up so that you can unclip it without fear of breaking the plastic, covers are £20.00 unpainted and the jet assembly if you break that is another £25 so care is worthwhile. There is in the jet shaft a convenient groove which I used to slide a very big slotted washer into to hold it out. The cover clip that needs releasing is on the top it hinges on the bottom. After that it is relatively straight forward.

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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by KevMayer »

I've done it on my 2002 C5.

The bulbs change just like a normal bulb apart from needing to free off the fixings for the LDS tank on the driver's side to get enough room and, maybe remove the battery for the passenger side. Definately no need to remove the headlamp units.

The bulbs on my '02 are D2R type. A brightness of 4600 Kelvin will give good bright light. I tried some 9000 K Xenons and they were very blue but you couldn't see the road. They were too dark (too blue). Above 10000 K are ilegal for road use in the UK.

EDIT: I posted this at the same time as you cachaciero. It looks like I'm critisising you, but, I hadn't seen your post :roll:
Last edited by KevMayer on 26 Feb 2012, 20:04, edited 1 time in total.
Cheers, Kev

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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by Lighty »

Its the battery side, I will let you know how I get on , Thanks
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by cachaciero »

KevMayer wrote:I've done it on my 2002 C5.

The bulbs change just like a normal bulb apart from needing to free off the fixings for the LDS tank on the driver's side to get enough room and, maybe remove the battery for the passenger side. Definately no need to remove the headlamp units.

The bulbs on my '02 are D2R type. A brightness of 4600 Kelvin will give good bright light. I tried some 9000 K Xenons and they were very blue but you couldn't see the road. They were too dark (too blue). Above 10000 K are ilegal for road use in the UK.

EDIT: I posted this at the same time as you cachaciero. It looks like I'm critisising you, but, I hadn't seen your post :roll:
No probs Kev, just knew that someone was going to say they had done it :-) I couldn't do it and bore the scars on my hand for a weeks :-) I reckon by the time you have got the battery out and slackened of the pump and tank it's just as quick to take the bumper of.

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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by Lighty »

Ok fulfilled this task yesterday :mrgreen: It is very easy once you know how.
Turn the big silver connector a quarter turn (its a bayonet fixing), and wiggle it free, the connection is reasonably tight. Then undo the spring clip, this is just like any other bulb clip.
Pull the unit out and fit new in reverse order. took me half an hour with the battery out, reckon I could do the next one in 10 mins now I know what to do.
Got the bulb from gsf.
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by dnsey »

Bearing in mind the fact that HID lamps run at several hundred volts, and that C5 ECUs occasionally take it upon themselves to switch things on unexpectedly, it's probably a good idea to disconnect the battery, even if you don't need to move it.
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by Lighty »

Good advice, didn't add that as battery was removed to change this side, but if doing the o/s , still a good practice.
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by Jeff »

Use a small mirror and torch to see how the bulb is clipped in.
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by Arthritic Toe »

OK - I've just replaced these bulbs without bumper removal. Here are a couple of thoughts to throw in the mix:

The passenger side is easy once the battery is removed - loads of room. Do this one first so you know what you're dealing with before tackling the drivers side, which is really tight.
Take off the plastic cover by rotating anti-clockwise a few degrees then remove.
The connector comes off easy enough, again rotate anticlockwise to release it, the swing it out the way as far as possible.
Good advice above to use a torch and mirror to have a good look at the clip. As said above it is a standard clip - same as most car bulbs. Push the top of the clip in and down a bit and to the left to release it, then swing it down and out the way.
The bulb will now come out.
Put in the new bulb - note that there is a keyway at the top. Its a bit fiddly, but once you've got the keyway lined up it'll go in ok.
Secure with the clip and put the connector on again and rotate clockwise to lock.
Replace plastic cap.

Now tackle the drivers side.
You have to accomplish the same as above, but this time using a flat hand and finger tips. It can be done with patience and/or a lot of swearing.
There are 2 ways you can get at it:
From the top you can just about get fingertips to it. You can also get slightly better access by planting your face in the centre, by the radiator and forcing your left hand into the gap between the plastic tank and the bulb (now is no time to not be ambidextrous). That give you a bit of fiddle room.
I did both in about an hour.
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by Stickyfinger »

LOVE IT LOVE IT......on my next doors Volvo, he un-locks a clip and the whole headlamp unit slides forward and out.....what great design to need a hour to change two bulbs...LOL....and I know MANY cars from MANY makes suffer this....but still....LOL....can't wait to change mine with my clip breaking history (50% I think)
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by myglaren »

Stickyfinger wrote:LOVE IT LOVE IT......on my next doors Volvo, he un-locks a clip and the whole headlamp unit slides forward and out.....what great design to need a hour to change two bulbs...LOL....and I know MANY cars from MANY makes suffer this....but still....LOL....can't wait to change mine with my clip breaking history (50% I think)
Why can't they all do that? All the fancy and expensive crap they load cars with and simple and effective measures to replace bulbs - something required often at the worst of times and required by law almost everywhere - gets overlooked.
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by Stickyfinger »

myglaren wrote:
Stickyfinger wrote:LOVE IT LOVE IT......on my next doors Volvo, he un-locks a clip and the whole headlamp unit slides forward and out.....what great design to need a hour to change two bulbs...LOL....and I know MANY cars from MANY makes suffer this....but still....LOL....can't wait to change mine with my clip breaking history (50% I think)
Why can't they all do that? All the fancy and expensive crap they load cars with and simple and effective measures to replace bulbs - something required often at the worst of times and required by law almost everywhere - gets overlooked.
Yep, its great. the headlamp slides into a cage, which is the thing that is adjustable, so you do not even knock out the alinement....neat people the Smurfs
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Re: C5 Xenon bulb replacement

Post by THELABMAN »

I personally think any vehicle requiring tools or the removal of bumpers etc should have a safety star removed from these tests ... it's ludicrous making a car so called super safe if a pedestrian or an other vehicle misses seeing you because you've no lights working
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