When Superblack arrived here, her dome light for some reason was hanging out of the opening by the wires. I didn’t get a chance to check it out before I discarded her 6-year-old battery, so I don’t know if it wasn’t working or was pulled out for some other reason. I’ve looked at the bulb and it appears to be intact.
I forgot how these light assemblies work, but IIRC they are supposed to rock to the side to turn on, and then rock to the other side to turn off. I also thought they are supposed to make a faint “click” sound (and feel) whenever they do that, but this assembly isn’t doing it, if so. It does still roll to the sides, though. I recall there was some reliability issue with these assemblies, possibly something that snaps and breaks inside the assembly, which is apparently why Jag decided to go another route with the dome lights in '93 MY.
Given how good used units are scarce as hen’s teeth anymore, what precisely was the defect and, in the event my assembly has suffered it, how is it repairable, if that is even possible? Also, could someone please post a closeup pic of the underside of one of those assemblies (with the round shield removed). Maybe by looking at it I can tell what, if anything, is wrong with it. , or even a short video clip showing how they are supposed to operate.
Yes, the lens rocks on its lateral axis… you should feel a slight detent when rocking the lens on/off (push forward/upward on the lens forward edge to turn on, rearward/upward on the rear edge to turn off).
Thanks, Wayne. I found it strange that there is no mention of these lights and their issue(s) in either the Book or the Nine Lives CD … btw, the only difference I can see with my light and the one you posted a photo of is that where the wire attaches to the terminal there is something that looks like a bunch of melted wax, but harder, about the same color as the wire smothering the area around the terminal. I wonder now if something had broken there or gotten shorted out and a repair was done/attempted to it. btw, aren’t the lights on the rear pillars in front of the rear window the same type of lights? If so, maybe I can sub one of them for the dome light temporarily until I can get a working one again. I finally did find a source for them for $140.00, which is a lot less than the $200+ everyone else was asking, but I think I’ll still hold out for a good used one for (hopefully) a lot less $$.
Well, in partial answer to my own question, I took a peek at the rear interior pair of lights tonight and it looks like Jag did NOT use the same style as with the dome light for those two lights, but rather the same style as used in all the face-lift (and pre-face-lift?) lights in that same location. I wonder why Jag decided to make the Hella dome light a “loner” then, before dropping it beginning with the '94 MY?
That light seems designed not to be repaired. Once some part of it breaks there is practically zero chance of fixing it back to original working condition. I had to stump up the (uncomfortably) high s/h price to get a working light again.
Hmmm. Maybe THAT’S why Jag decided to go with them, at least until '94 …
Kirbert
(Author of the Book, former owner of an '83 XJ-S H.E.)
7
Maybe somebody can find a workable substitute. It’s just a light fixture, roughly rectangular, 12V, there should be zillions of similar critters out there. Most of them probably use common light bulbs!
Kirbert
(Author of the Book, former owner of an '83 XJ-S H.E.)
8
Can a 3D printer print a transparent plastic part? Can it hold up to the heat of being near a light bulb?
I ended up building up the broken ear on the lens with epoxy and wove tread into it to reinforce. Then shaped it and drilled for the pivot. I would find an alternative lamp of a slightly larger size and trim the headliner to fit it before I would do it again.
It’s difficult to 3D print completely clear parts, but it should be possible to produce a translucent part that would work in this application. Or even 3D print a frame that could hold a rectangle of perspex. Heat wouldn’t be a problem if you used an LED bulb.
3D printing is great, I just had some replacements made for the red tops on the seat belt buckles in my SAAB. Over time, the original parts had turned brittle and disintegrated.
Not a great picture of the finished article but it looks just right, except for the colour.
I wondered if one of the rear pillar lights would fit in the headliner opening. They look to be roughly the same size and shape, although it might look kind of “funky”. One problem though is that the Hella light has 3 wires going to it, whereas the pillar lights use two. I don’t really understand why the Hella has 3, including one that seems to “jump” to one of the other two wires.
The 3 wires are necessary to allow map light (feed always on) and door operations (switched by timer); other is ground. You could use just the timer and ground wires for any lamp.
I also thought they are supposed to make a faint “click” sound (and feel) whenever they do that, but this assembly isn’t doing it, if so. It does still roll to the sides, though. I recall there was some reliability issue with these assemblies, possibly something that snaps and breaks inside the assembly, which is apparently why Jag decided to go another route with the dome lights in '93 MY. 
, or even a short video clip showing how they are supposed to operate. 
btw, the only difference I can see with my light and the one you posted a photo of is that where the wire attaches to the terminal there is something that looks like a bunch of melted wax, but harder, about the same color as the wire smothering the area around the terminal. I wonder now if something had broken there or gotten shorted out and a repair was done/attempted to it. btw, aren’t the lights on the rear pillars in front of the rear window the same type of lights? If so, maybe I can sub one of them for the dome light temporarily until I can get a working one again. I finally did find a source for them for $140.00, which is a lot less than the $200+ everyone else was asking, but I think I’ll still hold out for a good used one for (hopefully) a lot less $$.
