new guy here trying to help out a friend he has a 2005 i think rl and the hid low beams have been giving him problems ... for a few weeks they would start up fine but like 40secs later one would flicker then the other then one would go out ... and then come back on a few mins later and still flicker some anyways im thinking maybe the ballast's are going out ? if so what would those cost and are they hard to replace trying to avoid taking it to the dealer to save money

 

If it is a 2005, and under 50k miles, it should still be under warranty. There's no excuse for there to be any headlight problems with a relatively new car. My eight year old RL has had no headlamp problems--it has the same bulbs as when it was bought new and no problems with the components.

Take it in--there's no sense replacing the ballasts without knowing for sure (besides--Acura should eat the cost).

 

dealer in avon fixed it . it was the igniter. it is a known problem in 2005 rl. if you can call chris at service at acura of avon his team will fix it right.

 

this car was bought used and has over 100k miles so the igniter maybe to blame ?

 

did some searching and notice that it could be the bulbs too

 

I put some aftermarket HIDs on my old car and after 4 or 5 years my lights started flickering too but only when i hit bumps. Found out that the connection was going bad..maybe you might wanna check out the connections...

 

yea may check those connections too if i can figure out how to get to them

 

I had the problem with my 2005 RL, the dealer found the control box (ballast) to be the problem.
If the problem is in the bulb, it would come on at all.
Your looking either at a bad control box, or igniter.

 

took it to the dealership ill report later on price and what the problem was thanks for the ideas

 

Elton,
If your car is out of warranty, the dealership will porbably kill you with the parts price and labor.
Put is this way, just wait and find out what the problem is, and you can get the part from Ral Lakes Acura, who will sell you parts at manufacture price, not dealer price with mark up.
Whether its the igniter or control box, both are easy to replace.
Let us know whats up

 

if you need parts...go for ebay...much, much cheaper, ...and almost as reliable as new from my experience.

 

As Larrynimmo said, Ebay is an option as well.

 

like i said this is my friends car and he's gonna eat the bill just wish there wasn't so many things that could of been wrong i could of fixed it my self

 

well i guess we will never no the problem was he traded it in for a diff car that had lower payments

 

Isn't there a service bulletin that addresses the flickering light issue?
Conclusion: replace the bulb, not the ignitor. A lot less expensive.