Hello,

I am new to the forum and have very little experience with mini's so hopefully someone can help me out.

My gf has a 2009 mini cooper S. She hit a nasty pothole and the driverside headlight is now drooping down. When i pulled the back cover off it seems there is a white plastic bracket/arm that broke off. So i assuming the whole headlamp assembly needs to be replaced.

1) is this covered by MINI warranty?

2) If not, approx how much will mini charge for parts and labor.

3) i am pretty handy and cant imagine the headlight assembly is hard to replace. How many different headlamp assembly models are there?(regular,xenon,self leveling)

4) how can i tell the difference between the different models? the headlight looks like the one in this link
http://cdn2.autopartsnetwork.com/ima...1819765MRL.JPG

5)
is this model a good replacement, or do you recommend another brand?


Thanks in advance for the help!!

 

If you are handy, you can use some epoxy putty and just repair the broken mount. You pretty much need to use putty instead of liquid epoxy because of the stresses it goes through.

 

Well if a new headlight is only $150 that might be the better option since it may be more reliable than epoxy.

I just need to determine if the link above is the correct type of headlight

 

Man forget buying a new headlight assembly. That's gonna cost big bucks! Take off the headlight lens and take the headlight apart. A $5 tube of JB weld is all you'll need and also telling your GF to be more alert

 

My epoxy repair is over a year old with no sign of failing anytime soon.

 

This same thing just happened to me. Only, there was no nasty pothole involved. Got in the car to go to work and noticed the beam was angled too far down. Stopped at the gas station, took the back cover off and when I went to grab the bulb to check it out, the whole inside of the housing moved....more like an up and down pivot. Couldn't see where it was actually broken though.

Hopefully once I find the location, I can use jb weld or something to that affect. Really don't want to buy a new headlight.

 

Update....took my car to the dealership and it was not covered under warranty. They wanted to charge $385 for the light housing

So....I went on eBay and found one for $150 in great condition. Problem solved

 

You're spending too much money!

$25 heat gun
$3 screwdiver to pry open housing
$5 JB weld on bracket

 

Actually, I'm going to attempt to Joey mod the broken one. Already have the JB weld and the screwdriver

No heat gun but my oven should suffice :-)

 

I used the oven the first time. Boy that made my butt pucker.