So this weekend my passenger side xenon headlight turned purple. It stayed that way for a few hours then died. Here is what i am wondering. Last year i changed the passenger side headlight because my original one literally blew up lol. So i bought an ebay used one because $180 dollars for a new bulb seems a bit much to me and that bulb has worked perfectly until now. Now that this bulb died i have bought another $15 used ebay bulb. I dont mind buying used bulbs since they are cheap and coloration works out to my original drivers side bulb. So here is the question...could the ballast be going bad? or just bulbs? thoughts?

 

It's more likely a bulb issue.

What might be happening is that the used bulbs you buy might be of dubious quality.

HID bulbs lose light output over time, and then at the very end of their lifespan, they will turn weird colors like pink or green.

See how the replacement used bulb looks when it arrives. If it has problems, then something might be wrong with your ballast.

But if it only happened once, sounds like you just got a used bulb.

IMO, I'd be extra wary of a used D2R bulb. D2R isn't really used anymore. It was used from maybe like 98 or 99 until about 2003 or 2004, then HID reflectors went out of style pretty much, to be replaced with HID projectors. a "Used, Unknown Hours" 85126 D2R bulb was very likely pulled from a 98-04 era car from the junkyard, and thus close to the end of its life.

D2S is somewhat safer for used bulbs, because it is currently still in use, and it's just as probable that a "Used, Unknown Hours" 85122 D2S bulb was pulled from a 2007, 2008, or 2009 model car.

IMO, if you have any more hassles, then just go ahead and buy a pair (so both sides match) of BRAND NEW 85126 bulbs. Here's an ebay seller that has them:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Pair-...Q5fAccessories

 

Wow. Nalc, that was an awesome response. Hope I can find it again someday should I need this info.

Well done, man.

 

that was an awesome response! thanks!

 

Like Nalc said, you can get new OEM ones on ebay for a decent price. I bought these a year ago and they work perfectly:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...SA%3AUS%3A1123