C4 brothers

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Cutac
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by Cutac »

When third DRL burns out in a month and a half.


Yeah, original DRL's did 6 and a half years and then left one started burning out every two weeks, both DRL and sidelamp(P21/5W). Not cool c4, not cool.
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by GiveMeABreak »

What's Blue Oyster Cult got to do with DRLs :?:

Apart from that, are you using those el cheapo Ali Express things? :-D

If so, get some decent ones to start with - I have LED DRLs and they are still perfect after several years - they weren't cheap, but you get what you pay for I guess. Mine were about £25 for a pair, but are dedicated DRLs with HP24Ws.

I also have adaptive cornering lights, but these needed special modification as they are HP19Ws and I had to wire in resistors for these, despite the CAN bus LEDs having resistance built in - it wasn't enough.
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Marc
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Cutac
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by Cutac »

GiveMeABreak wrote: 13 Sep 2018, 12:36 What's Blue Oyster Cult got to do with DRLs :?:

They're(DRL's) burning up burning up burning for me :mrgreen:
GiveMeABreak wrote: 13 Sep 2018, 12:36
Apart from that, are you using those el cheapo Ali Express things? :-D

Nope, Osram bulb, bought Hella now to replace them.
GiveMeABreak wrote: 13 Sep 2018, 12:36 If so, get some decent ones to start with - I have LED DRLs and they are still perfect after several years - they weren't cheap, but you get what you pay for I guess. Mine were about £25 for a pair, but are dedicated DRLs with HP24Ws.

I also have adaptive cornering lights, but these needed special modification as they are HP19Ws and I had to wire in resistors for these, despite the CAN bus LEDs having resistance built in - it wasn't enough.


I believe it's got to do with the socket. Left light got dim and I've just sprayed the socket a bit with a contact cleaner and it worked again. I'll post a picture of the contacts in the socket, they'd oxidized so I believe that's the problem. I'll clean them with an accumulator grinder and hope for the best :-D
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by GiveMeABreak »

Ok, sounds like a plan.
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Marc
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xantia_v6
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by xantia_v6 »

The pre-facelift 308 uses the 21/5 DRL/sidelight bulbs, and I found that the 21W filament to have quite a short life. These bulbs are usually used as stop/tail bulbs, so the big filament is not designed for continuous operation.

I bought a bag of 10 Chinese LED bulbs (very cheap), and have not had any subsequent failures.
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by GiveMeABreak »

That would be my thoughts exactly - continuous operation. Much better to have a dedicated DRL with a proper bulb designed for that purpose and long life. That's why the HP24Ws are about £45 each for the filament ones! As they are such a pain to get to and change, hat's why I opted for a good quality LED - they are rally good in the daylight too.
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Cutac
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by Cutac »

It too has P21/5W, I've got standard halogens inside.
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Cutac
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by Cutac »

All done, they are working now. This bulb in the photo is 15 days old. I hope it's gonna be OK now.
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by GiveMeABreak »

Didn't quite get that last bit - 'Made in .... :-D
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Marc
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Cutac
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Re: C4 brothers

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Taiwan :-**
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by GiveMeABreak »

:rofl2: Oh well, at least the sockets are getting a good clean out too - I think that was a bit of the countryside I saw in the close up picture of the holder :)
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Cutac
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by Cutac »

Yeah, I can't think of a reason for the contacts to be that dirty. :-k
Ah, well, I just hope it'll be alright now. :)

Just one thing, take a look at the burned out bulb above my thumb. It looks like metal got burned/electrocuted. What could cause that?
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by GiveMeABreak »

The blue on the bulb? That looks like paint for the 'blue xenon effect' that has started to burn / flake off. If you mean the small brown marks on the holder - that could just be the heat of the bulb causing some residue to burn. If that is some bulb-paint on the bulb for the blue effect, then it will likely cause the bulb to overheat as the heat can't dissipate as well as a clear bulb and gets trapped, which can cause early failure.

If it's not bulb paint, and is actually black and burned, then it has overheated - that's the sort of thing I've seen leading to fires if the bulb gets too hot and the parts around the bulb start melting.
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Marc
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Cutac
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by Cutac »

Hehe, it's not blue, it was perfectly clear 15 days ago :mrgreen:
That you see is smoke, not colour.

I was asking about that brown mark. What would cause a bulb to overheat?
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GiveMeABreak
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Re: C4 brothers

Unread post by GiveMeABreak »

I don't know about that brown stuff, but when you are replacing / handling bulbs, NEVER touch the bulb with your skin - the oil on your skin can leave a fine residue and when the bulb is on it causes a hot spot in that area and overheating / shorter life. Always use latex gloves if you can.

Also making sure the bulb holder contacts are making good contact - use a little fine emery cloth or sandpaper to clean the contact might help.
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Marc