I don't know if anyone has had to replace the headlight bulb in their Eiger but one of my literally blew inside the light casing. Took an hour to get out all of the shards!

I any case when I went to get a new bulb the dealer said it was a special order from Suzuki and it would cost me $68.00 (Canadian) , I said just the bulb not the whole assembly. He showed me the part book which clearly showed just the bulb and the corresponding price in the Suzuki parts book. The bulb is NOT 12v as you would expect but 14v 30/30w with a P15d-1 base.

Now I know what you are all going to say, the manual says it is a 12v 30/30w P15d-1 base. But look close at the photo on the removal procedure in the book and you will see clearly painted on the back of the headlight casing 14v 30/30w . This illustration is on page 75 top right corner in my Eiger manual. Just to make sure I removed the working lamp from the other side and checked and sure enough it has stamped into the base 14v 30/30w.

I tried a 12v, however it lit up about as bright as the elements in your toaster. I switched my good bulb to the other side and put the 12v into the socket where the good one was as a final test, no change in lighting conditions. The original bulb worked fine and the 12v replacement was no brighter on the right side than it was on the left.

Has anyone had to replace the bulbs on their Eiger yet? If so did you pay this extortion price, if not how much did you have to pay? If you found an aftermarket bulb, where did you get it?

I am thinking about removing both headlights and installing 12v 30w offroad driving lamps into the empty sockets. I may not have hi/lo beams but I will have a middle of the road type of lighting, brighter lighting and best of all the replacement bulbs are between $7 & $10 (Can). Any help / comments would be greatly appreciated.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-shocked.gif[/img]

 

I have an Eiger also. It is a 2003 model that has 275 miles on it. I have not had to replace a bulb as yet. Your question is so interesting, I am going to check and see what the bulb cost here in Texas. If it is as high as you are having to pay to get one, I am going to write Suzuki USA a letter and tell them how disapointed I and others will be to have to pay such a price. And will ask them to advise why they needed a bulb that cost so much. We will see what happens.

Thanks for your post. I don't read this forum but every two or three weeks but I'll be posting what I find out in a week or so.

Regards,
W

 

I have found an alternate solution to my bulb problem. Everything I said in my first post is still true, however (always a however) it turns out that the previous owner of my Eiger had the rubber cover removed from my lamp that blew up. Moisture was allowed to get in and it blew. It also rusted the opening that the bulb sits in when inserted into the lamp casing. I used a Dremel tool to grind out the rust and then tried the 12V light the dealer sold me for $14.00 which then worked.

So the lessons are "I am a bit of an idiot for not trying that before I posted the first article!"

AND "Although Suzuki still wants a fortune for their 14V lamp, a 12V of the same wattage and case style seems to work just fine!"

 

That is good news! I still wonder why they have a 14 volt bulb in there if the 12 will do the job. Have they said anything about that?


Carpe Diem,
W

 

I have not bothered to try to find anyone at Suzuki Canada. The dealer is just as dumbfounded, he was quite happy to have an alternate solution presented. Although it is not his fault Suzuki installs such an odd bulb, it does become his fault by default that it costs so much, sometimes sucks to be the dealer.

At least I had a good excuse for the wife why I should buy some 55W off-road driving lights for $49.00 as they were cheaper than the dealer bulb. Won't tell her that I got the factories working though, I think riding after castration could really hurt!

 

Hey guys!

After about 1200km my right bulb has burnt out. They both work on low but on high only the left one works. And at $68 a bulb? What the $%^ was that dealer guy thinking? I guess that I'm gonna go with the 12V bulb. Thanks for warning me.