So the driver side headlight will randomly not turn on when I turn on my lights, but if I like fiddle with it turning the lights on and off it will turn on.

Anyone know what is wrong, and how I can fix it?

 

pull up to a wall, turn headlights on
does the bad one have a pink or purple tint at startup = bulb death warning

Or does it die while driving? but come back on if you cycle the switch off and back on?

Its past time for most of us gen2s to replace the HID low beam bulbs, they lose coloring and lumens/brightness..supposed to last 2500 hours,,but not really~

some ziners are having ballast problems,,especially if there is moisture inside the housing lens--ballast gets dripped on-not waterproof,,,

you can verify its the bulbs by swapping them left to right sides-
or for the labor involved- buy a set of bulbs and install..if that doesnt fix it--aftermarket ballast will
Always replace bulbs in pairs- they get the same use and there will be a major differance in them with the age

 

if you are on a tight budget and need light now--hidextra, one of our sponsors, has bulbs for prices too low to post here--see their threads in sponsored sales
and a full 2 side kit-ballast, bulb, adaptor wire,,$80!! and often on sale or coupons around

cant say how good they are but may be trying the kit to fix my alternate side failure

Question- who else has 1 side goes out while driving, but headlight switch cycling turns it back on,,then another time its the other side goes out?
it sounds like power not solid to them,,relay issue, something loose? some report happens on hard turn
its happening to members in different parts of the country including fsttyms and myself

anyone have a real answer beyond `throw a kit on it and hope?`
a real cause-- or is it just age, 10 years is a long time in car life anymore,,thank you electric gurus

 

It doesn't have pink/purple tint on startup, and it has never died while driving if it comes on it will stay on until I turn it off. I guess ill buy two new bulbs and try them out, thanks

 

its ur ballast, not bulb.

my headlight did that before and i swapped the bulbs and the bulbs worked. when HID bulbs go out first they start to turn pink/purpleish before they fully turn on.

 

based on OPs description, I'm inclined to agree = needs ballast
aftermarket is the way to go on these

 

I had the same problem on 2 sets of Kaixen bulbs. 3 weeks ago I replaced them with Philips bulbs and haven't had problems since. Though it could just be a coincidence. I'm still monitoring it.

Could the combo light switch be failing?

 

I dont think its the switch, that only sends out the power -it gets split by the relays for each side

Anyone NOT on kaixen have this problem? on OE bulbs or other aftermarket?
I have approx 1000 hours on mine- they expect 3000 hours, but the roads here are like driving on the moon- vibration shocks bumps may be a player in it

what did you pay for the phillips- 4300k 5k 6k?? seller? thanks

 

eBay seller, akinaboy (HID Concept) has pairs of 4300k for $50 shipped.

 

The very first time one of the bulbs turned off on me was when I drove over a pothole. I noticed bumps triggered it a lot, but not always.

Also, when I removed my first pair of Kaixens the insulation around the electrode was cracked in the same spot on both bulbs. I'm not sure if that is related or if it was improper installation, or maybe the bogeyman. The second pair showed no damage.

EDIT: Id like to express what a curse this has been. Twice I have been pulled over for having a headlight out. The second time I got a ticket. Then they always stay on the rest of the way home.
Maybe they turn off in the presence of police.

 

Having almost the same issue. Sometimes the passenger side will come one, sometimes it doesn't. Most of the time it doesn't though. I replaced the bulbs and they worked perfectly for a day. Now it's doing the same thing, always passenger side..mostly not coming on. After cycling the headlight switch a few times, it would come on and stay on...

 

that one sounds like ballast~

 

Oh yeah its the ballast I did every kind of swap I could think of, so I just ordered a new kit from hidextra just gotta wait for them to get here You should do the same as well mestizo

 

How do you guys figure? It has trouble starting, it works just fine once that side gets going....seems to me like it's an igniter problem, right?

added: also if it is the ballast, how do I replace with aftermarket ballasts and retain factory switch? Do they come with a factory type plug that would normally plug into the factory ballast?

 

def your ballast....unfortunatley mine just started doing the same thing today

 

at last a professional opinion--thank you tech1

310- the ballast has to keep making power to operate the lights
the ignitor is the wire from the bulb to ballast

see the website of hidconcepts and hidextra for pics of the actual unit supplied for your year TL..mostly if not all plug and play

anyone with personal experience care to verify that?

 

My passenger side started with the intermittent problem of not coming on but if I turn the headlight switch on /off a few times it might get the light to come on. I replaced the bulb with a new one and the problem continues the same. Checked the igniter according to service manual and it meets specs. Like others have said must be the ballast. Planning on upgrading to HIDextra but would like to know if their unit is a plug and play. Does anyone know for sure?

 

Had the same issue just over the weekend. Originally thought it was the bulbs, but wasn't. Turned out to be igniter cable.

"lucky" for me when I was getting my car diagnosed, another TL was in the shop for the same thing and they had gotten a spare assembly, bulbs, ballast, ignighter cable.. turned out his was just the bulb, so we split the cost of the spare parts lol

but if it's anything other than bulbs, i agree, you should just get an aftermarket HID installed instead of fixing or buying new oem parts. Only reason I didn't go aftermarket was the parts were already there, otherwise I'd be looking for new HID kit.

 

I got the slim matte black HID kit from HIDextra to replace my oem ones and they are most definitely not plug and play the plug that supplies power to the ballast is oem and will only fit into an oem ballast. The kit came with a plug that had two wires stick out, a black and a red, so what I did was just cut off the oem plug about an inch down and stripped the insulation and did the same with the plug that came with the kit and spliced them together I wrapped the splice with electrical tape afterwards.

 

I trust you used a crimp connector,, then wrapped in tape?

Wise to offset the wire splices too- so they are not right across from each other,
that helps prevent any potential --but rare--spark from the splice going somewhere really bad
ie: the other wire,,to body as ground...

if thats all you had to do- pretty simple coversion for most to undertake
how was mounting it???,,some gorilla glue,, or bolted to new location?

when in doubt before purchase-call the seller! they may have different units with special parts for specific models,,not everything makes it onto the website,,,
these are real people who answer their phone!... and are happy to assist ziners.
let them know their advertising dollars are well spent here (making azine free for us to use)

 

Actually I just braided the two ends together and tightly wrapped them in electrical tape, and I didn't think about offsetting the wire until now but I don't really know how to do that. As for mounting the ballast I just used some double-sided mounting tape and placed them on a open section below where the high beam bulb is. Yeah I probably should have called hidextra and asked about ballasts that can fit our oem connectors but oh well at least I can use any other aftermarket ballasts now

 

I'm hoping either HIDextra or HIDconcept has something w/ an OEM connector that plugs to the ballast. Not that I'm incapable of doing soldering/crimping, it's just I'd rather avoid the "hassle"....

 

even an inline crimp connector will do,,,are you allowed to operate pliers? maybe under supervision

call both places and ask if they have a `plug and play kit` for a few more $

 

Ok, I just ordered the slim matte black kit. They don't have a plug and play connector that would interface between the ballast and the wires coming from the switch inside the cabin...

Added: LOL and I was trying to have a completely plug and play install, but no dice. I can crimp and solder...sheeeeeesh =D

 

Found this on eBay, hoping that the plug on the left (female w/ the protrusion) can be used as a plug and play connector so I don't have to cut off the connector that plugs into the OE inverter. I just got my slim ballasts from HID Extra...

 

Ok, connectors #8 and #10 look to be the ones I need. Now, I need the mate to the
connector that would otherwise plug into the OE ballast. Seems #8 would be my part. Damn, and it's $27 each! I'm making a completely plug and play harness. Slim ballasts from HID extra are in and so far so good....

 

any reason you didnt get their wire with the ballast purchase?
I think its 10 with other purchase or 15 solo

 

radio shack has a good selection of connectors
or maybe NAPA, they have oddball stuff
what about some from the auto recycler-junkyard?

 

I had to pay the $15 extra to have the AMP to D2 connector adapter...the control wire has the spade ends and a 9006 plug on the other end.
Radio Shack might not have it, will try tomorrow. Don't have a NAPA in SoCal from what I can see. Just Autozone, O'Reilly (Kragen) and Pep Boys. I guess I can see if HondAcura Palace in downtown LA has them as well...I'm hoping they'll have it, to save me $40 bucks in the pigtails (only come in packages of 10) and then the connector I need is 25 a piece...

 

when do you reach a point of saying- this is installed fine and done with DIY ease,,
forget all the OE connectors, get out the soldering gun or just plastic connectors

for the total, you could have gone to a junkyard and got OE!

 

You're making replacing your ballasts more complicated than it is, when I ordered my kit it came with a plug that had a red and black wire coming off of it, and that's what I replaced the OEM plug with using splices.

If you're just worried about not being able to go back to OEM hids just snip the OEM plug a little further down to have more wire if you ever want to put it back on

 

I know I'm being really anal about it. But that's just how i want it. The control wires to the ballast are plugged in via those blue t-taps that accept those spade connectors. I have no clue why I'm trying to leave the oe connector alone since I'd probably never buy a new oe ballast.... **shrugs**

 

less frustration over small things--more driving with the new lights and tell us if the prob is fixed!

 

Yeah, I decided to just cut them off since I really doubt I'd buy the OE ballasts at all....And a few friends of mine suggested used, but...yeah...used ballasts, or electronics doesn't bode well with me....

BTW, so far so good. About a week and running strong. These slim ballasts are smaller than the palm of my hand...so I'm not sure how durable they'll be.

 

for the low price, I will replace them every 2-3 years if needed!

 

Wait, you'd really replace them that often?

 

mostly a joke,,, but 1000 for everything from dealer
or ~100 for another few years...

 

how long would brand new units last from the dealer?

 

I think about 10 years +/- depending how much you use it. Its not a coincidence many of our ballasts are beginning to fail in a car made about 10 years ago.

Yours lasted, nine years? My ballasts began acting weird last year in my '99.

 

I removed the control panel and dash board to replace my OEM HU. Now it my headlight won't turn on. Also the front orange lights near the ground are not on when turn the button. Am I missing something when I put the parts back?