higabyte

Hi guys,

I just bought a 2004 Navigator last weekend. This morning, my driver side headlight goes out. I search the internet and came across this forum and found some good info. Downloaded the Owners manual from a link provided by a member here and take a look at it and it says I need to take my Navi into the dealer to have headlight replaced.

So I call the local ford dealership and he sounds clueless and tells me I just need to bring it in. I ask how much it is he gives me an installation estimation and says hes not sure about the headlight and I tell him its the HID's and he's like oh, its gonna be much higher then. Then his tech in the background says something and the guy tells me his tech is standing there and says they need to diagnose it first. I asked how much that was and he said like $47.

Let me get this I have to pay you $47 to diagnose that my headlight is not working. Then pay you god knows how much for whatever, and then pay you an even more money to install it.

There's got to be a better way than this ....

Any tips or help would be greatly appreciated..

hurk

I would check the bulb & socket first. The Navigator owner's manual shows how to replace the bulb. If the problem isn't a bad bulb or poor connection or something then it seems logical to have to bring it in for service.

Eddie Bauer

Let's see, you want to play big shot with a Lincoln, but don't have 50 bucks to spend for diagnostic work - you must be one of those Gen-Xers that live big, but don't have 2 dimes to rub together! :) The reason they need to first diagnose the problem is that it may not be the HID lamp at all, it could be the wiring, or the ballast or about a dozen other things... throwing parts at it hoping that by sheer luck you'll fix the problem is a rather pedestrian way of doing things, a real mechanic wants to find the problem and fix it right the first time.

KStromberg

Easy Eddie Bauer. No one is being a big shot here. He just doesn't have enough vaseline on hand to take to the stealership with him. I wouldn't pay their outrageous prices either to have an HID issue fixed when there are so many cheaper options out there now. The D1R platform is no mystery to online vendors and kits with ballasts or just the ballasts can be had for much cheaper than what the dealer would charge.

Now onto the issue at hand. The first thing I would do is switch the ballasts around and see if the problem goes to the other side. If it does, the ballast is bad. That is usually the case or a bad bulb altogether. Either can be had for cheap online, such as ebay. I would still be cautious where you get your HID parts from. Chinese stuff is garbage.

Do the ballast switch and let us know what happens. Good luck!

__________________
-1992 Ford F-150 (winter truck)
-1998 Lincoln Mark VIII LSC (fun car)13.591@101.72mph

higabyte

My apologies for my ignorance Eddie Bauer ... This is my first time dealing with HID's, sorry I've not lived the life of luxury that you have. I didn't realize that it could be so many different things thus my gripe about paying a diagnostic fee for something that I thought was as simple as replacing a light bulb.

It wasn't about trying to find a cheap way to fix it, I just don't understand what all is involved and trying to figure it out prior to just throwing my money away.

And as for my lifestyle, not that it's any of your business, but I do live fairly well, but being in the Marine Corps, I'm by no means rich, therefore I don't feel like just throwing my money away ...

But thanks for the warm welcome, I appreciate it.

KStromberg

higabyte, you are welcome here anytime. Those ballasts should be in close proximity of your HID bulbs by the way. There is one for each side. I believe there are four mounting screws and an electrical connector at the ballast. Unplug both of them, remove the four screws and switch their locations. You can just keep them in there loose at this point since you are just testing. Now plug each ballast in and see what happens.....

__________________
-1992 Ford F-150 (winter truck)
-1998 Lincoln Mark VIII LSC (fun car)13.591@101.72mph

Hamfisted

Hig I guess you checked the fuse right? There is a separate fuse for each headlight. Whichever is easier for you, swapping the bulbs from side to side, or the ballast. Maybe you'll get lucky and it's just a fuse.


- Mike