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2005 Headlights, already new ballasts :(

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by byhi, Aug 21, 2013.

  1. byhi

    byhi New Member

    Joined:
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    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    II
    I have been lurking for quite some time and the forum has been a super great resource.

    My driver HID went out on my 2005 so I bought 2 new bulbs since it's recommended to get both. Replaced but the driver side still didn't work. Did some research and read all about the ballasts. Then the passenger would shut off after 30 seconds to 1 minute. Cycling the lights brings it back on for another minute or so. So I got 2 ballasts and replaced both headlight ballasts (not cheap).

    It does the EXACT same thing. I was hoping new bulbs and ballasts would be the end of this. I also checked the fuses obviously and that wasn't the problem. Now what? I can't drive at night. This sucks. I love this car and do a lot of driving. It's got around 150k miles. I really want to fix this. What to check next?
     
    #1 byhi, Aug 21, 2013
  2. Zedhomme

    Zedhomme Member

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    Three
     
    #2 Zedhomme, Aug 25, 2013
  3. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

    Joined:
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    What bulbs did you buy and from where. Can you post the exact link?

    For all we know, you bought the wrong bulbs (e.g. D4R instead of D2R for your car) or you bought crap bulbs instead of genuine bulbs from a reputable manufacturer.
     
    #3 cwerdna, Aug 25, 2013
  4. Zedhomme

    Zedhomme Member

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    Three
    Right up front let me say I'm not necessarily saying you did something wrong to cause recurring problems, but there are several things you may have done that have caused the new parts to fail.
    The lamp shutting off after 30 seconds to a minute is usually indicative of a just bad lamp.

    First, Did you buy a name brand like Sylvania or Phillips HID-D2R replacement lamps for your 2005 Prius?
    Were you careful not to drop or touch the lamp with your bare hands or anything oily when installing or clean the ECU connector contact with ANYTHING?
    That can really shorten the life of the lamp.
    Recycling the power without waiting at least 2-3 minutes will get a dying lamp to come back on, but it is also a healthy lamp killer, so if you did this a lot to get one bad lamp to come on it may have killed the new too.
    If in your nighttime driving you turn your headlights on and off frequently with short interval this may be the cause.
    Did you at least deactivate Smart Key, if not disconnect the 12-volt battery negative terminal cable, before beginning any work on the lamps and not turn the power on to check them until COMPLETELY reassembled?

    You said you replaced the ballast. There is not part called a ballast on the HID system. Did you mean the Headlight Light Control ECU Sub-Assembly? The box with the silver connector that attaches to the lamp.?
    The original parts, Right Side 81107 was replaced by 81107-30D31, probably because the originals were a problem. Original Left side ECU 81108 as far as I can find was also replaced by 81107-30D31. If you recently bought those original part numbers somewhere reputable, you should try to return them for the replacement parts.
    In most cases where dealers replaced the ECU along with a bad lamp for big bucks, there was a class action suit for Toyota to reimburse people for the ECU which was not defective in the first place.
    Hope you get it fixed.
    I suffered with one or other dying lamps for several months around 60,000 miles before I replaced them, but you have to do it right.
     
    #4 Zedhomme, Aug 25, 2013
  5. byhi

    byhi New Member

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2013
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    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    II
    I know there's not technically a part called the ballast on the HID assemblies, however thats what it's called on the forums and whenever you try to buy another one online. So I just went with that terminology.

    Long story short, the new bulbs I bought were no good. The long post about not all bulbs being equally really helped me out. What sucks is I bought the bulbs that were recommended on the priusdiy website. Everything else on that site has been very helpful. SO now everything is all good and I did properly replace the HID ECU's which is a relief bc now everything is working just great. I would like to go a little bluer in the bulbs as just a personal preference but these stock ones will do just fine for now.
     
    #5 byhi, Aug 26, 2013
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