intermittent headlight fix - can I buy new assemblies now or still soldering old?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by tangirl, Aug 30, 2015.

  1. tangirl

    tangirl New Member

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    hello, Ive been lurking for a little over a year now - I bought my 2008 Prius used last spring and you've all been so helpful!

    So I read a while ago about how to remove and solder in a new ballast, but since they fixed the problem with the recall (such bs that they can have an end date like that) I was wondering if after market headlight assemblies correct the problem and whether that is the better way to go nowadays.

    Thanks!
     
    #1 tangirl, Aug 30, 2015
  2. tangirl

    tangirl New Member

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    Bump
     
    #2 tangirl, Sep 1, 2015
  3. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    Sorry what’s your question? Do your headlight(s) have problem(s)? Soldering is (almost) free new headlight costs. How do you know it’s not the bulb problem?
     
    #3 valde3, Sep 1, 2015
  4. tangirl

    tangirl New Member

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    I think it's the water in the assembly issue - Ive gone through 4 pair of bulbs in the past year. Sometimes the lights stay on, sometimes they don't.
     
    #4 tangirl, Sep 1, 2015
  5. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    Water in the headlight would get the inside of the lens to fog. Do you have that? Or do you mean water in the ballast? How long after the bulb replacement when it starts to act up? Does it slowly get worst after bulb replacement? Or does it work perfectly for some time and then one day is similarly intermittent as the last bulb?
     
    #5 valde3, Sep 1, 2015
  6. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Water in the connector? Use dielectric grease to keep water from entering and affecting the connections between the bulb and harness.
     
    #6 xliderider, Sep 1, 2015
    valde3 likes this.
  7. tangirl

    tangirl New Member

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    Yes, probably water in the ballast. I'm thinking the problem/fix that someone posted here a while back. When I get home to my iPad I'll post the link to explain what the heck I'm talking about. ;-)
     
    #7 tangirl, Sep 1, 2015
  8. tangirl

    tangirl New Member

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    Oh, forgot to answer your question - pretty sure the time frame for the problem to start was all over the place. After one bulb change, it was a month or 2. After another change, it may have been a few weeks. This most recent change didn't do a thing. I have to turn the lights off and on constantly to get home at night.

    All summer, irs not too much of an issue, but it's going to start getting dark by 5 soon. Ugh.
     
    #8 tangirl, Sep 1, 2015
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