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Intermittent Headlight - Bulb Or Ballast ?


branshew

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I have a problem with my right headlamp. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. If it is not working, turning the lamps off and back on using the control stalk will usually turn it on again. (i typicall leave the control stalk on 'Auto' mode.) When I cycle the lights, the bulb goes through the standard "warm-up" phase as if they were just turned on and then looks normal. Regular halogens will just burn out, but this is my first experience with HID bulbs. Is this a sign that the bulb is going bad or do I have an issue w/ my ballast? I would hesitate to spend $100 on a bulb to find out it's the ballast.

I have visually inspected the wiring harness around the headlamp and don't see any signs of fraying, loose wires, or water intrusion. My next step will be to switch the bulb to the opposite side and see if the problem follows.

Any thoughts?

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  • 2 years later...

I had the same exact problem and decided to change out the HID DS4 bulb, turns out that's all you have to do to fix the problem. I actually documented the entire process because changing the HID bulbs on a Lexus is not the easiest thing in the world.

BTW: I have a lot of How-to tutorials for Lexus cars on my Youtube channel, if you're interested in stuff like changing the brakes, resetting the oil light, etc...

Here's the video tutorial of how I repaired my intermittent headlight problems on my 2006 Lexus GS300 which is pretty much like every other late model Lexus and Toyota.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqVMf8uauhs

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