AudiWorld Forums - Watch your Xenons!!!!...from www.smh.com.au

Sigh...I knew it was going to come to this.....at least, the next time some stupid, low-riding "ricer" civic decides to try to sodomize my a4...I know now to do a emergency "brake" test, and at least, take out his/her/its "Xenon" headlights :-)

Going for the globe
First Published: The Sun-Herald
Monday, May 7, 2001

'Lights out!' is taking on a whole new meaning in the US, as the midnight spares specialists target a new
source of cashflow.

By BOB JENNINGS

In the US, car owners have added an unexpected item to the extensive list of stylish accessories that people will steal
- their headlights.

There has been a spate of thefts of airbags, of all things, although pinching headlights doesn't come with the same
explosive risk as tampering with airbag installations.

Airbags remain a target for thieves because of the high cost of replacement following crashes; stolen airbags find their
way into the hands of unscrupulous repairers who pay only a fraction of the price they would for new airbags from
conventional sources.

The new target is the distinctive High Intensity Discharge (HID) style of headlights, also known as xenon lights, which
are fitted to a range of luxury cars including certain Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Lexus, Audi and Honda models.

These lights use a high-voltage electric current which passes between two electrodes in the gas xenon. The electricity
causes atoms of the gas to emit energy in the form of light. The resulting electronic arc takes the place of the filament
in a normal light.

The HID lights have up to three times the light output of conventional lights, use about 30 percent less power - and can
cost three times the price of conventional halogen lamps to replace.

They are easy to pick: they have a bluish glow which quickly changes to a bright, white light, although some still
retain a slight, bluish tinge.

It's this stark light and the distinctive blue tinge on start-up that makes them desirable to fashion-conscious car
modifiers.

So far, authorities in Australia say they're unaware of any
significant numbers of the HID lamps being stolen, although in a
related activity, some owners of Subaru WRX and RX models
have had the entire front bumper, headlight and foglight assembly
stolen.

Anecdotal evidence is appearing in New York. The New York
Times recently reported the story of a motorist who awoke to find
two empty sockets in the face of his 2001 Acura (Honda) 3.2CL
where HID lights had resided the night before. One guard had
been bent by the efforts to pry them out.

The owner spent almost $9,000 replacing the headlights and
repairing the damage.

When he took his car for repair, another customer came in with
the same problem, and the body shop manager said the
company had replaced stolen headlights on more than 20 Acuras
in the previous two months.

John Watts, a Honda spokesman in New York, said the company had shipped as many as 75 HID lamps in recent
months to replace stolen units.

In New York it is suspected that the stolen lights are sold to "slammers" who like the high-tech look. Acuras might be
singled out because slammers are particularly fond of the Honda Civic and Integra, which they turn into low- riding,
high-performance street cruisers, as they do here.

Australian importers of cars with HID lights report that there has been no increase in sales of replacements, indicating
that thefts are not a problem - but owners are expected to be vocal if there are.

Prices are high. The option price for HID lights on a Mercedes-Benz, for instance, is $2,865 (including mandatory
washers and a dynamic adjustment mechanism).

But replacement costs are even higher. In Australia they range from a low of $1,073 each on a BMW 530i to $3,500
each for a Mercedes-Benz S Class.

FOOTNOTE: Industry suplier Bosch intends to sell after-market HID lights soon. They're expected to cost about
$1,400 to $1,500 each.