Back in February I replaced the stock headlights and parking lights with the 6000K setup. Worked fine until last week when my passenger side headlight, but not the parking light, went out while I was driving. When I got home later, it "mysteriously" went back on after flicking the switch a couple of times. Didn't drive the car at night since then and took it to the dealer today. They say that the entire headlamp control unit was shorted out and it's possible that the 6000K's could've caused the short. She clarified possible, but definitely not for sure. She said she'd have them replace the whole headlight with a new one since the car's still under warranty. She almost sounded like she wasn't going to cover it under warranty, but how the hell can they blame it on aftermarket bulbs that are more efficient than the stock ones?!!?

Just out of curiousity, I checked and the dealer charges $900.00 for the whole assembly. Now I have one aftermarket headlight and one stock one..VERY ANNOYING. I don't think the headlights contributed to the short, but she did show me the bulb and it was burnt out.

Anyway..has anyone else experienced this? I'm deciding what to do...not in the sense of wanting to change to 6000K's again, but how to "cover" myself if this happens again and the control unit is found to be "shorted." I thought about chaging out the headlights again, and if another short happens, just put back the stock headlights before bringing them to the dealer; just wish it wasn't so hard to get to the lights. I know the dealer is full of it, but don't have the tools, time and setup to do the work myself.

Suggestions? Thanks all

 

LOL WUT?

Ok first of all, why are you trying to have a dealership service a non OEM part? Second of all, your dealership is playing you for a fool, and wants to take money out of your pocket. A bulb isn't going to short out a "headlamp control unit" wtf is that? lol

You just have a faulty bulb, all HID bulbs have at least a 1yr warranty, go to the place you bought it from and have them replace the bulb for you.

Headlamps have absolutely nothing to do with the actual wiring, lighting system. All the electrical parts on the headlight can be easily replaced, theres nothing that could happen electrically that could destroy the entire assembly, worst case scenario is you buy a new harness and HID ballast/bulb.

 

Can you tell us exactly which bulbs you are using?

 

6000K HID's

 

What brand....

 

The burnt out bulb doesn't have any markings and the receipt doesn't have the name either. Trying to find the box...

Imma hit up the shop that put them in. Just in case...what's a good brand?

 

We can get you McCulloch HID bulbs, they're a well known brand. PM me for prices and details.

 

Another question, did you jump start the car at all during this time period or did your battery die?

 

who/which vendor did you buy the bulbs from?

 

I really hope you guys dont think that a bulb blew the headlight

 

What is everyone talking about???

If a bulb goes out, it can be replaced. If the bulb is fine, but not igniting correctly, it may be your ballast.

You can test the bulb by switching sides, if it ignites consistently on that side, the bulb is fine and it is most likely the ballast.

Why would the dealer replace the whole headlight assembly??

Oh, and people who think that aftermarket HIDs are anywhere close to OEM quality are smoking crack. With the exception of a few pricey European brands, everything else is made by the lowest bidder in China.

 

to the OP,

I have 8K bulbs from eBay and I've been having the off and on again issues for a couple months now. My driver side headlight would turn on sometimes and won't most of the time. I've had these bulbs working fine since January. I've since gotten new 8K's from HP Auto last month but havent had the time to replace them.

Gyoza: do you think it can be the ballast? would it be covered under warranty?

 

Your dealer is beyond stupid.

 

Agreed with Igor. Why would you bring your car to the dealership concerning a faulty aftermarket part? Isn't that like shooting yourself in the foot? Everyone should know at this point that most, if not all, service departments of dealerships are trying to get out of covering anything under warranty, even if it's clear that your aftermarket part is not a direct cause of the problem. Plus, why wouldn't you just try another bulb in the headlight to see if that would fix the issue?

 

Same thing happened to me. My driver side headlight was flickering and acting up. I too have 6000k aftermarket bulbs, but they were definitely not faulty. My dealership knows that I changed out my bulbs but didn't question me. They replaced my entire headlight assembly because the ballast was faulty. Strangely enough my battery was acting up too and died several times, so I don't know if that had anything to do with it. The dealer replaced my battery because it had a "leaky seal" and they charged me 20 bucks to replace it. If my car wasn't under warranty right now I'd probably drive my car off a cliff because of all the stupid little problems. Nevertheless, I am obsessed with my car.