As I'm sure you guessed based on the thread title alone, one of the low beam headlights on my '97 Mark VIII died. After waiting a month on the dealership to get the bulb, I'm left wondering if there's reasonable alternatives to spending eternity waiting on the backorder. Are there?
I'm spurred on by the fact that I have to drive to work at 4:00 AM, and the cops don't look kindly on driving around with a dead headlight for a month, regardless of the reason.
I hate to ask, but I'm also curious - is a new ballast truly necessary to replace the bulb? What actually has to be done to replace the bulb? I noticed on the guide you guys have (can't find the link now for the life of me) that the swap is fairly simple, but the guys at the dealership seem convinced that I need to spend $900 to replace it. This seems excessive by any reasonable person's standards. I noticed that there's several bulbs listed on Ebay that claim to be compatible, but they're extremely inexpensive, and I can't help wondering if they really can work with these cars. I'm guessing they're high beam replacements?
Basically, I'm asking for a general idea what's really necessary here, and whether there is an inexpensive alternative to what the dealer's proposing - and preferably one that won't take a month on backorder.
I realize this question has been asked time and again, and I apologize. However, I couldn't find more in-depth information, and I know you guys are the experts. Thanks in advance for any information you might be able to share.
EDIT: I apologize for my general lack of technical knowledge. My father is backing me up on this and can help with the swap. He's the expert, I'm just the one willing to ask what route would be best for this.
EDIT:
One of the auctions I saw. I take it these're just a high beam replacement?
edit: ebay link removed
I'm spurred on by the fact that I have to drive to work at 4:00 AM, and the cops don't look kindly on driving around with a dead headlight for a month, regardless of the reason.
I hate to ask, but I'm also curious - is a new ballast truly necessary to replace the bulb? What actually has to be done to replace the bulb? I noticed on the guide you guys have (can't find the link now for the life of me) that the swap is fairly simple, but the guys at the dealership seem convinced that I need to spend $900 to replace it. This seems excessive by any reasonable person's standards. I noticed that there's several bulbs listed on Ebay that claim to be compatible, but they're extremely inexpensive, and I can't help wondering if they really can work with these cars. I'm guessing they're high beam replacements?
Basically, I'm asking for a general idea what's really necessary here, and whether there is an inexpensive alternative to what the dealer's proposing - and preferably one that won't take a month on backorder.
I realize this question has been asked time and again, and I apologize. However, I couldn't find more in-depth information, and I know you guys are the experts. Thanks in advance for any information you might be able to share.
EDIT: I apologize for my general lack of technical knowledge. My father is backing me up on this and can help with the swap. He's the expert, I'm just the one willing to ask what route would be best for this.
EDIT:
One of the auctions I saw. I take it these're just a high beam replacement?
edit: ebay link removed