DuoDSG

Background: Flew home for Christmas (in Ohio) and I left my TL with my aunt in Salt Lake City. No problems.

I have a date that night in SLC, and the next night I need to be driving 2+ hours north where I live and go to school.

Problem: Aunt calls this morning saying that my passenger-side headlight is out. No pink-eye on the light before it died or anything. Cops give tickets for lights like crazy, it's not safe to drive in the snow and canyon with just one, and it's looks stupid to roll up in a TL with one light out for a date.

How do I get this fixed ASAP within four hours of flying in without emptying my entire wallet?


Limits: Flight lands in SLC next Wednesday morning around 10:30-11am. This gives me 4-5 hour window to get this done until I leave to pick up the girl at 4:15-4:30pm.

My TL is an 04, so I can go anywhere (out of warranty), but I need to go to a shop in the area, even if it's a Honda dealer. I have neither the space, time or tools to replace these on my own. If I was back home in Logan, there would be no problems.

I know I should buy both bulbs at the same time for uniformity in color and such, but I'm not tied to the OEMs. I can get anything else, as long as it's pretty white and the output is the same or better than the OEM. No ricer blue or anything.

The OEM bulbs are $150 each, so that's $300 right there, plus whatever labor they screw me over with. So probably around $450 if at the stealership.

My aunt will send a picture ASAP so I can diagnose this problem as much as I can for being half a continent away, but if I do need a new bulb I need recommendations on:

• Bulbs (brand, price, how the output and color compares to OEM)
• Good places to take it to in SLC area (for those of you who are in that area)

Yes, I did search, but I don't have time to read through nine pages of threads and do in-depth research and price hunt all day. I need to get these bulbs ordered so they are waiting for me when I get off the plane, and this is going to be difficult because of the holidays and how stores are closed and shipping is weird as a result.


I don't mean to come off like a 16-year old freaking out, and I'm not usually one to cry wolf, but I really do need help on this since I am pretty much screwed either way you look at it.

Merry Christmas to all.

DuoDSG

I'm looking at these (they look like a tremendous deal), but the question is would I need to get new ballasts as well?

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/pro...roducts_id=148

nfnsquared

First of all, you're assuming it's bulb and not a fuse or ignitor...I'd have someone check fuse #5 and #6 in the under hood fuse box.

Are both beams out (high and low)?

Any foglight/headlight/led mods?

IIRC, the passenger side bulb can be done without removing the bumper (actually, both can, depending on how small your hands are and how insensitive to scrapes your skin is). Look for the DIY in the Garage (Service Dept).

$150 labor to remove bumper and replace both bulbs?? Maybe....

I'd probably just replace the one bulb (if it is the bulb) myself using the DIY and mess with the other one later...

If you really don't want to DIY, I'd go to a Honda dealer and have them replace both bulbs. I doubt it's any more expensive labor wise to just have them do both at the same time....

Alternate idea: rent a car/borrow a car for the date. Fix your car the next morning.

Edit: Here's the DIY for replacing without removing the bumper:

https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-2004-2008-93/diy-hid-bulb-change-w-o-bumper-removal-3g-garage-g-004-a-598853/

I hate cars

Since your TL is an '04 you can probably solve the cop problem by driving with the fogs on. It will look kind of wierd but at least you will have a light on that side with some usable light.

I'm not an expert on HIDs but I can tell you that mine had pink eye for a few days that turned into a dark purple before failing. You may want to check on the ballast and ignitor as it was mentioned above. Unfortunately I have no idea how to trouble shoot it other than process of elimination by switching the left and right side components.

DuoDSG

Thank you both for the prompt responses.

I just talked to a few service departments at various Acura dealers and they said the same thing- it could very well be the igniter or some other part of the ballast assembly. I'm tempted to think this could be the case, especially since the light wasn't failing beforehand and it just refuses to turn (according to what my aunt says).

I'm also getting quotes from some dealers saying that the diagnostic fee will run probably in the neighborhood of $100. Bleh.



I'll answer the points you raised with the info I have right now:

1. Both high and low beam is out (again, only on the passenger side)
2. No light mods of any kind. I have zero mods on my TL apart from my backup lights (which are PIAA bright white lights)
3. I found that DIY earlier, but again I don't have any tools with the car in Salt Lake City so doing it myself would involve finding the tools and a place to work on it. That's a problem considering that I don't know anyone in SLC that could provide either.
4. Labor quotes I've gotten would be about $70-80/hour, but that's at a stealership. I expect other smaller shops to be significantly less.
5. I would be ok with replacing just one, but I will still buy the set of two since I'll have a week of free time to do it after New Year's.
6. Honda dealer is where I'm leaning towards at the moment...
7. I would borrow a car, except again, I don't know anyone within an hour that could hook me up like that.


IHC, I considered that with the fog lights and that might just work. It's definitely bright enough to get the job done, even if it looks weird.


Seeing as my aunt and uncle are both in their late 60's and know nothing about cars, this will be interesting to see if they can even find the fuse box and such. I will ask them to check the fuses tonight (hopefully they can), and I'll let you know what they find, if anything.

Otherwise I might just have them take it in to the dealer on Monday to get the diagnostic done since I know there's no way in heck they'd be able to do anything DIY. Plus, no offense to them, but I don't really trust them with driving my car, much less working on it. I left it with them out of necessity.


Thank you again, I really do appreciate it tremendously!

I hate cars

I don't think it's a fuse. I admittedly have never looked at the TL's fuse box but I've never seen a car use a separate fuse for left and right headlights.

The TL does not have a separate bulb for the brights, only a reflector that moves to change where the light is pointed.

nfnsquared

With no pink eye and both beams being out, I'm guessing it's not the bulb. Don't know much about the igniter/ballast...

Hopefully it's just a fuse (#6 which controls the igniter), but then you gotta wonder why did the fuse blow?

Not to scold, but the perfect reason why i keep a $50 survivor tool set in my trunk...when someone asks you for birthday ideas, now you have one....

Yep, good idea. They are every bit as competent as acura techs for something like this....and cheaper!!! (usually)

Enterprise delivers!!!


A great idea for the open road, but not sure how folks in city/close-in traffic will appreciate the fogs....

If they are willing to do this, be sure they use the fuse puller (yellow) that is in the same box to actually pull out the fuse and check. My guess if it's a fuse, it's fuse #6...

If you need me to post a scan/diagram of the fusebox, let me know...there is also a diagram in the owner's manual and the fusebox lid




good luck!!!!

tc5280

have them try flicking the lights on and off, right before mine went out one side would not come on unless you turned them on and off a few times. thin but maybe?

DuoDSG

nfnsquared, thank you tremendously yet again.

Let me clarify: I do have a tool set that I use for working on my car, but it lacks the Torx bits and specialized tools I need to accomplish anything like this. Problem still remains that I have no place to work on it since it's sitting in outdoor (albeit, covered) parking. It's supposed to be colder than a witches' teat when I get back, not to mention snowing like crazy.

If you could send me that diagram that would be tremendously helpful so I can forward that to my aunt and uncle for tonight (since they'll need all the help they can get). I'm hoping I can get them to fire up Skype so I can help them through it.

Thanks again for the help, I really can't say it enough. I never stress out, but apparently I'm antsy enough about it that my parents suggested that I go out and buy a bottle of Jack or Vodka to drink my troubles away.

And that's a big step, even if it's in jest, since none of us drink or smoke or anything.


On that last question (if it happens to be the bulb), as before, would I need to get a new ballast if I got the set of bulbs I found on the website I posted?


Merry Christmas, your help has certainly made mine a lot smoother

millarduck

Be careful, Honda delalers do not carry the bulb if they don't have Acura as well. Honda doesn't offer HID lights in their cars, so why would they stock the bulb for a 3rd gen TL? Call before you try a Honda dealer.

tc5280

^yep.


option number 2, stop off in colorado i have an extra set of bulbs, sell em to you real cheap.......

nfnsquared

Yeah, each side has two separate fuses (total of 4 fuses). #1 and #3 control left igniter and switching solenoid, respectively. #6 and #5 for the right side.

Correct, certainly still could be the bulb. Owner's manual is a bit misleading the way it labels the fuses as controlling high beam/low beam....

nfnsquared

Wow, didn't know that. No HIDs in any Honda? Well, they can still order them or the OP could PM Kaleb (WholesalePartsGuy) to have them shipped from CA to UT.

Just to point out, a flat blade screwdriver will work, per the DIY. Also, a torx screwdriver set can be had for less than $20 at Wallyworld. You could buy it out east and throw it in your suitcase...

http://techinfo.honda.com/rjanisis/p...404O00242B.pdf

Page 247....




Here's where I'm confused. I think folks are using the terms "ballast" and "igniter" for the same component. The service manual calls it "igniter". And no, you don't need to replace the igniter when you replace a bulb. Here's a parts diagram:

http://www.acurapartswarehouse.com/P...gPicture=False


P.S. Is she HOT?

DuoDSG

Honestly, guys, I can't thank you enough. The odds of you ever passing through northern Utah are slim to none, but you can bet that if any of you show up I would take you to the nicest restaurant in town or bow at your feet and shine your shoes (or perhaps both).

I actually thought about the HID at a Honda dealership thing too. I would've been ordering from somewhere OTHER than the dealership since that would be more cost-effective.

Which brings up another point: seeing that the dealer will probably be servicing Acuras (all of them in Utah do, at least), would they be able to properly diagnose if it IS the igniter, seeing that they don't have it on any of their dealership's cars OEM? If not then I can take it to the Acura dealership which is about 10 minutes farther away, but of course the diagnostic (and service) fees go up with that.

I will PM Kaleb right now to see what kind of info he can give me price-wise to get this. The link I posted is for a place here in Ohio, but I don't want to drive a ways just to get this and then stick it in my luggage if it's no cheaper than just ordering and shipping it straight to Utah.

On the Torx bits, I've heard conflicting info: some things I've read say that a security Torx is different than a regular Torx, which is the main reason I haven't bought a set yet for myself. If there's no difference, I'm hitting up Wal-Mart tomorrow and getting it while I'm here for good measure.

I know that the ballast (the control unit) and igniter are separate components, I just see a lot of places that sell the ballast as bringing everything else (including the igniter) with it. My apologies, as I am using it to refer to the whole set without the lens and bulb itself.



As for the last question, she certainly is Why do you think I haven't canceled the date?

crxb

s2000 didn't they have HID lights?

pohljm

lemme get this right.............your gonna send your late 60 ish aunt and uncle out to your unfamiliar to them car in sub freezing weather with a downloaded diagram for a fuse box to have them trouble shoot a single headlight that is out so you can pick up your date with a car that has both headlights working? you can get by easily with the fog lights, quit trippin

nfnsquared

There is always the possibility that any dealer will not install parts bought elsewhere...

As far as I understand, all Honda dealers have access to the HDS (Honda Diagnostic System) which will spell out the troubleshooting procedures. Someone correct me if that's wrong.

They are, the bits that is. Security torx bits have a whole in the center to fit over the "teat" of a torx security screwhead. A decent set of torx bits will have both regular and security bits.

However, for this job, it's just a regular torx screwhead.

Ah, so I guess the control unit = ballast??

DuoDSG

If you had to drive through the kind of snow that we get in northern Utah, you would understand. You need all the light you can get. And while the lights being fixed for the date would be nice, it's the bigger safety issue that I'm concerned about.

I turned on my fogs just before I left on my last day of work and I had to turn them off because they actually reflected MORE light from the falling snow than the regular HIDs. Which meant I couldn't see while driving. Logic would say that it would be the opposite, but because of the increased spread of the fogs, it caught more snow in the beam for some reason.

And doing that in a canyon is neither smart or safe.

I paid good money for that car, I wouldn't want to get into an accident by just winging it with fogs if I could've just taken care of it.

pohljm

my point is let the aunt and uncle enjoy the holidays and you will be fine dont worry about it. one hid output is equal to most cars anyway, quit stressing and enjoy the holiday

millarduck

Yes, but they are so rare and the last few years had the HID that I would worry that dealers would stock that bulb. It is the only Honda that had HID until this year's top line Odyssey. The S2000 was made in Japan with a D2S HID bulb, so it is the same as Acura, so I stand corrected.

I hate cars

That's crazy, a fuse for each headlight. Must be a hid thing. Good info.

DuoDSG

Well no real updates (I didn't have my aunt and uncle do anything since them checking it two days ago or tomorrow morning would make no difference).

Here's the plan:

My uncle says he can take it in for a diagnostic tomorrow morning at 9:30am MST (remember, I'm in EST since I'm in Ohio). Not a big deal, since I can call whatever dealer he will take it to and tell them he's coming in. I'd need to do that anyway since the car is under my name and all that jazz.

I've got two things I can do:

1. Have him take it to a Honda dealer, and they call me with the diagnosis. From there I would have to order the part (igniter, bulb, etc) and have it shipped so it's there on Wednesday morning. Wednesday I would go to the dealer myself and sit around until it gets done. No more than an hour.

2. Take it to the Acura dealer just a few miles farther away, but I can have them replace the faulty part right then and there since they'll definitely have stock of what I need.

Pros and cons

• Option #1 runs cheaper parts and service-wise, but I have to make two trips AND do it when I get there on Wednesday.
• Option #1 means I'll overnight the part, which will not be cheap. Not to mention the dealer might not install stuff I buy elsewhere. The overnight shipping might make me break even price-wise.
• #2 will obviously be more expensive, but this way I don't inconvenience my aunt and uncle more through having to make repeated trips and such.
• #2 isn't that big of a deal, since my uncle is retired and doesn't do much all day anyway. My aunt has said that this might be a good thing to get him out of the house and such (but as I pointed out to her, sitting in a waiting room isn't really "getting out of the house" in my opinion)

If it was you, what would you recommend?

(Also, I don't want my aunt and uncle to pay for it since I don't ever let my family feel obligated to pay for my stuff. So I'll talk to the dealer and hopefully they can just bill my card over the phone, if that's even possible).


Also, the question has come up about why the rush and I think I should clarify a bit more. Although the date is great and such, it's also because I've already purchased tickets for some things after dinner that are non-refundable and non-exchangeable.


Thanks again to all of you, and I hope you had a very Merry Christmas.

ml3456

If you can, why don't you try what might be the bad pu;b in the working headlight. This would either confirm the bulb is bad or not.

nfnsquared

Dude, you obviously didn't read his original post....

My Honda dealer gets Acura parts from an Acura dealer. Even though the Honda dealer may not have the parts in stock, it's quite possible they can get them same day from the local Acura dealer. I'd call them today and ask about this...

There's no guarantee they'll will have it in stock....but then if they don't, then the Honda dealer is also probably SOL...

DuoDSG

All right, here's what is (hopefully) the last update on this ridiculous saga:

My uncle took it this morning to the Acura dealership just 10 blocks from his apartment, which was way nice of him. I called the service department to fill them in on the situation, and they said that if it's the igniter then they'd have to order it from Portland (Oregon, I assume) and it would be there tomorrow. The guy who would be working on my car when my uncle got there told me he would give me a call to fill me in on the situation and then we'd go from there.

I get a call back probably about two hours ago saying that it's not the igniter (whew), but rather the control unit (ballast) itself. Sucks, because it's just as expensive, but the guy was cool and said "if you do the work here with us, I would rather just have you keep our car here so we can give you a returning customer discount. Plus since we had to remove your bumper and all that to do the diagnostic, this will save you over half of the cost of labor in having to tear down the front end again just to replace the part since we don't have it in stock".

Sure, I might be getting worked somehow, but I thought that was pretty classy of the guy to understand my situation and to offer to leave it there instead of ripping me off more and making my uncle drive all the way back. So they are ordering the part (for just a bit under full price) and it will be there tomorrow. In the meantime, they're giving my uncle a loaner until he picks it up tomorrow.

Which makes me jealous, because it's a 2011 TL. They might be ugly as hell on the outside, but at least on the inside it's the smoothest thing ever. I would almost be tempted to sabotage my car more so I have it on my date come Wednesday. But it's the least I can do for my uncle, which took the time to do this for me while I was gone.



...which is a good thing I did it now while I was gone, because as soon as my plane lands an awful storm is supposed to hit the area so this would've been a mess and a half doing it after I landed. The date is going to be interesting, but then again, being trapped in a snowdrift with this girl I'm going out with wouldn't be something I will complain about


Total is somewhere around $450, which is less than it could've been. Labor @ $100/hr, diagnostic $100, and the part being ~$210...not bad considering they could've ripped me off WAAAAY more. I could've done it for less, but my circumstances kinda left me in a position to just go this one way.

AMUA6

iTrader: (7)

I don't even know what to say lol

dwb993

iTrader: (13)

Pics of the girl or it didnt happen!

Bwatson3

now we need updated on the date..was she hot? Like dwb said..we need pics of the girl..

DuoDSG

Well, you're both right on one thing: the date didn't happen.

The date is tomorrow night In the middle of the huge storm that's supposed to hit Utah. Hence my "trapped in a snowbank" comment

Updates (and hopefully, pics) to follow on Thursday

wantedTL/TS

wow. just wow.

DuoDSG

Sorry for no updates, I had no internet (paying for it on my enV Touch is a waste of money) and I was staying with some family and too busy to hop onto my laptop after I flew in.

So I went to Jody Wilkinson Acura as soon as I landed. They actually came and picked me up in an MDX which was pretty nice, and I walked in, they had my paperwork ready, and I signed and paid and then left.

Apparently it wasn't the control unit box (as they had stated on the phone) but it was instead the igniter, as I expected. Tech guys call the igniter the control unit and the electronics box two separate things apparently, so that was a simple miscommunication. I knew too much for my own good.

Anyway, I went on the date. Everything was fantastic, and the weather was AWFUL. Put the snow chains on the TL during the date since I was getting worried, and of course being a gentleman I kept the girl in the car and did it myself. Needless to say, she was impressed at my show of bravado in being outside in a 3 degree F blizzard putting these on. My hands were freezing, so naturally she grabbed my hand and it warmed right up.

Dinner was great, Tron: Legacy was off the hook, and I even had her back an hour before she needed to. She's a college student, but staying with her grandparents here in Utah for Christmas means she has to play by their ridiculous curfew rules. Originally the g-ma wasn't going to let her go with me (because "she [didn't] trust me" and "she didn't know me", etc) so I offered to meet her which put her at ease and she asked to have her back by 11:30pm (her exact words were "is 11:30 reasonable?"). I had her back by 10:30 and we got plenty of time anyway. Definitely scored points with the fam, I was apparently the breakfast conversation item this morning.


tl;dr version:

Car works
It was the igniter
Total cost: $453.37
Jody Wilkinson Acura did a great job and were classy about it
Date was perfect
She was smokin', as ever
...and we shall find out the rest in the future


Huge thanks again to all who helped, you all helped make it happen.

dwb993

iTrader: (13)

of her!
C'mon, man. You had to have taken one of those surreptitious-pretend-your-checking-a-text-message-type shots.
Glad everything turned out well. Drive safe in that snow!

DuoDSG

True, true. Alas, I did not take any nonchalant pictures during the date, but she did a photoshoot for one of her friends that started a photography business this Fall. She sent me a bunch of those pictures a while ago so here's one from that.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_0u8jT2duBOk/TR...0/DSC12831.jpg

dwb993

iTrader: (13)

YOWZA!!

natedoggydog

hottie.

Souljah

where are her legs brah?

I hate cars

lol.

DuoDSG

lol

Perhaps now my reasoning behind not canceling the date in spite of the blizzard is clearer

cjTL

iTrader: (2)

Damn. This thread is awesome. Haha.