xenon beam pattern and mot

[carlos-1975]

ok the s class passed its mot yesterday but the tester said " i coukld of failed it as you have them silly blue lights (xenon)" but they are factory fit and genuine he said they take 5 minutes to warm up and he cannot get a beam pattern. now my question is should i retro fit the latter clear headlights as i have the opaque ones???

 

[Troon]

Pics? Sounds like your lenses are scratched / faded and your HID burners are past their prime. The former can be fixed with a bit of elbow grease; the latter via about £100 for a decent pair of new burners.

 

[carlos-1975]

will add some pictures the headlights do look kind of dark so it looks like the 2003 upgrade for me them lol

 

[Doodle]

the tester said " i coukld of failed it as you have them silly blue lights (xenon)" but they are factory fit and genuine

I'm rapidly coming to the conclusion that a fair amount of the MoT testers actually have no bloody idea what they're doing

 

[andy27168]

I'm rapidly coming to the conclusion that a fair amount of the MoT testers actually have no bloody idea what they're doing

You might be correct, but if as the O/P says the could,nt get a beam pattern pattern then that should be instant fail, regardless of what type of lights, bulbs are fitted. My MOT station failled my C230K last year for exactly that (standard Halogen headlight), saying that he thought it was caused by condensation in the headlight, it was,nt it was a faulty bulb.
If I was THE O/P I would polish up the headlight lens's and fit a new pair/set of lamps in there, they can be bought off of E-bay for less than £20 delivered.

 

[Nthkentman]

Headlight condensation etc

You might be correct, but if as the O/P says the could,nt get a beam pattern pattern then that should be instant fail, regardless of what type of lights, bulbs are fitted. My MOT station failled my C230K last year for exactly that (standard Halogen headlight), saying that he thought it was caused by condensation in the headlight, it was,nt it was a faulty bulb.
If I was THE O/P I would polish up the headlight lens's and fit a new pair/set of lamps in there, they can be bought off of E-bay for less than £20 delivered.

My SLK when I purchased it had "Condensation". It wasn't *actually* condensation but the seal between the lens and the reflector was perished and letting in the rain etc.

Remove the lamps completely. Remove any retaining clips that hold the lens to the back. Ease apart using a stiff plastic rod/bar or the like the lens from the backing.
Dry thoroughly the lens. Use hair dryer to dry the reflector (DON'T use rag or paper towel)
Using fish tank silicone sealant provide a bead about 4mm thick around the lens edge and wait for it to semi set.
Re-attach the lens to the back and clip up. Refit to car and have aligned properly.
Done.

Scratched lenses can ge slowly and carefully "Polished" up using very fine wet and dry initially with washing up liquid in water as a lube, then finer grades until you get to reasonable finish. There are kits available on eBay as well.

 

[Doodle]

You might be correct, but if as the O/P says the could,nt get a beam pattern pattern then that should be instant fail, regardless of what type of lights, bulbs are fitted.

No, I absolutely agree, a genuine fail is no question - if you can't get a beam pattern then it's a no go.

But "i could of failed it as you have them silly blue lights (xenon)" when they are factory fitted smacks of incompetence, and it's something I'm seeing more and more of late.