Second dipped light bulb gone in just 4 months

Zheiko

Zheiko

Octane Boostaholics
Hey,

Got the car in november, and now this is a second time my left side dipped light bulb is gone... last time I bought them, I bought these 125% more halogen lights, and in halfords, they had 2 for 1, so I changed both of them at the same time...

Any idea what may cause it? Should I go through fuses maybe? any other idea? btw there is no water in the headlights, so that should not be the cause, and I am parking 95% in garage(either at work or at home) so possibility of water getting there is pretty slim...
 
Well, I didnt try ti do it with my mouth :D yes I used fingers and rubber gloves

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk
 
[quote author=Grahamo spec c link=topic=41137.msg470655#msg470655 date=1394865807]
Never touch the glass!! Rubber gloves or your mouth!!
[/quote]

I am very positive that I havent touched the glass... and since its the same side of the car that the bulb had blown, I am afraid there might be something wrong - maybe more output than the bulb is able to take?
 
my old sport was a tramp for blowing bulbs , never found out why but it never really bothered me 2 much , cheap to fix like
 
I used to have a merc s class that kept blowing bulbs I was buying from the dealer
I started buying bulbs in a BMW garage and it stopped
I always figured the bulbs where obviously crap in the merc garage and that the BMW garage had a different better brand
 
As dec said you need to check the voltage with a few heavy consumers switched on.
I.e. Headlights, rear demister....
See what voltage the alternator is reading with engine at idle.

It may well be over charging.
 
[quote author=Grahamo spec c link=topic=41137.msg470710#msg470710 date=1394885039]
As dec said you need to check the voltage with a few heavy consumers switched on.
I.e. Headlights, rear demister....
See what voltage the alternator is reading with engine at idle.

It may well be over charging.
[/quote]

Well, I am no electrician, basically self-learner... could you advice how to do that, and what values I am looking for?

I bought the same bulbs again, the more expensive in box rather than in plastic cover - Its H7 if I remember correctly. 120% more light(and yes they are brighter than the ones that I had there when I got the car) they are selling them 1 for 29euro, and still 2for1 price... so I got a couple again.

Now the weird part, so I have taken out the bulb, and exchanged it for one, I have believed to be healthy, well, it either wasnt, or it blew as soon as I turned it on. So I decided to swap them, and found that the other one, even tho it was working fine, was actually smoked inside... like it had caught in fire inside, but it didnt damage the lining of it, so it still works. I kept it in there.

One thing I suspect may cause it, that sometimes I forget to turn lights off and when starting engine, the lights are on - that way the bulbs are way too much used imho, and that may cause overextensive use? maybe?

Since basicaly both of them got damaged, it might be it, but it may also possibly be as you say the Alternator, so I would like to check it. I should have all the tools I require, if you hint how to do it, I will post the values measured here and we can investigate further
 
29 euro for a bulb !!!
I drive with mine on all the time night and day and they last years
 
get a voltage meter and put the red wire to + on the battery and get the black to - on the battery.start the car and let it idle turn on lights ,rear window heat etc and see what voltage you get it should be between 12.5 and 14 volts any higher you could have a faulty alternator
 
do as above but what make are the bulbs buy a set of philips bulbs should sort it out if its not the alternator
 
Everything the lads said is right...

1. check voltage between 12.5 and Max 14 volt when charging
2. don't handle glass part of bulb with bare skin as contaminants will create hot spots and blow the bulb premature
3. better make / quality lasts longer (in Halfords the higher output ones last less than the specialist long life they also sell under their own brand)
4. bad roads, potholes, vibrations etc kill halogen bulbs too - hence you are seeing the left / passenger side blow more often as that side of the road has more holes than the middle of the road :thumbsup:
 
[quote author=Zheiko link=topic=41137.msg470803#msg470803 date=1394929094]
[quote author=Grahamo spec c link=topic=41137.msg470710#msg470710 date=1394885039]
As dec said you need to check the voltage with a few heavy consumers switched on.
I.e. Headlights, rear demister....
See what voltage the alternator is reading with engine at idle.

It may well be over charging.
[/quote]

..... 120% more light(and yes they are brighter than the ones that I had there when I got the car) they are selling them 1 for 29euro, and still 2for1 price... so I got a couple again.
...................
One thing I suspect may cause it, that sometimes I forget to turn lights off and when starting engine, the lights are on......
[/quote]

not saying the lads are wrong about the alternator, but I too bought those extra bright bulbs for my RX, same as your car, and they blew after a few weeks, so soon that the shop gave me replacements for free. The original set set me back something like €35 for the pair and the second set that they gave me for free would have cost €48 per pair. They also blew after a month or 6 weeks.
I brought it to a different guy who put in HIDs for me and he told me that those extra bright bulbs have a tendency to blow because the bulb is not able to dissipate the heat fast enough.
All I can tell you is, the old regular bulbs never blew like that on me, and the HIDs havent blown either since I put them in.
(I'm not sure if I posted at the time but I did manage to buy a HID kit with dud ballasts which blew on me in less than a week, but since I replaced them, all has been fine and that's ages ago, it's that long ago that I can't remember when.)

I think you're right about starting the car with the lights on, it definitely shortens the bulb's life.
 
I.v always left the light switch.s on in all subaru.s i had and never an issue 144000 kkm and 1 brake light and a number plate bulb in 6 years . Its the bad bulbs man :thumbsup:
 
I have had several Volvos which have their lights on all the time, so also during starting... same had 3 Imprezas and the Hyundai Tuscon again the same story... and no issue with blowing more bulbs than usual - hence not convinced it has any real influence on bulb life to have the lights on when starting the car (only draw back is in cold weather as is hard on the battery).

The bright ones just don't last as long and extra vibrations on passenger side combined leads to shorter life span.
If your voltage is correct then try the Halford long life ones - or else Osram or Philips and go for the long life version rather than brighter ones... try them and see how long you get out of one of them, as should make a big difference.
 
I had this problem on a Focus, H7 bulbs blowing every few weeks. Was told to get a set of Osram bulbs that came with a 3 year warranty. 7 months later and I've not had a bulb go since the Osram went in.
 
As above mine were popping every few weeks, bought a set of OSRAM Night Breakers just under a year ago and still working prefect and only cost 6 euro more then the cheapo's
 
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