What happenend to Xenon headlights?

About 12 years ago, I was looking around for my first car. I wanted something fun, high-schoolish, and fast. However, I was also looking for something with a good headlights, as I couldn't see well. I had come across the Xenon (whitish/bluish) headlights on my uncle's $100K BMW but that was just a bit above my price range. Outside of that, there wasn't a big difference. I tried a Nissan, Civic, and finally settle on a used BMW 318ti. It was a tight ride, that they discontinued a year later due to poor sales. The headlights were decent but not nearly what the Xenon could do.

Fast forward to 2000. I was again looking for a new ride, as my sister would get the BMW. At this point I had a more reasonable choice of an Audi A4 or a BMW 3-series. Both sported the Xenon headlight option, and my night driving was made much easier. Despite the poor reliability records of German cars, I had the Audi for 7 years without a great deal of trouble.

Now, I'm not looking for new cars at the moment, but it is quite interesting that there are not that many more models with these lights. You still can't get a Civic or Corolla. About the least expensive car is a Mazda3, which will set you back about $25K. They offer a significant increase in visibility, but manufacturers just aren't offering it. Granted it is usually at least a $500 upgrade, and I'm assuming most people just aren't interested, if it doesn't come standard. Also, I've heard reports that the bulbs being a hot ticket in the black market, so a rash of thefts may also be a deterrent.

Navigation systems, iPod adapters, and MP3-ready CD changers can be found on almost all cars these days. Some are even sporting USB ports for music playback, which I have to admit is very very cool. But, there seems to be a dearth of new cars with the brighter headlights. Hopefully, some new technology will come about that will be cheaper and better. Actually, it's a guarantee we'll see it.