Headlights...WHY so expensive...any alternatives?!?!?!

I've bought many things on amazon from 3rd party sellers, with good luck. Amazon is very strict on seller ratings. Just make sure the seller has lots of good ratings, and seems want to stay long term.

 

Yes, but genuine Phillips bulbs are not common in the consumer market. Very few sellers sell them, and there is a minimum price for them which is around $50. Anything cheaper is usually cheap junk. The problem is that you can buy crap that to the untrained eye looks just like a real phillips bulb, but isn't. So you order online, pay $30 and get bulbs in a box that looks real and a bulb that says "Phillips" on the base. Looks good and it works. You rate 5 stars and everyone is happy.

But it is not a true Phillips bulb, and the counterfeit market continues.

Here is one example of a FAKE bulb's base:



If you don't know what you are looking for, this looks pretty convincing doesn't it?

 

[quote="hence anything cheap looking attractive. I'll invest in the above headlight soon, as I'm going to start an awesome job tomorrow. Thanks for your help guys![/quote]
I'm with you!
I buy used tires for $20 each, with 80%+ thread left. So far so good.
My 12V battery is refurbished, cost less than $50 including conversion kit. 25k miles, keep going.
As the result, my maintenance cost of the 2004 at 174K miles is at $1/100 mile level. Still trouble free.

 

How many good ratings the seller has? In general, if he has 5K + good ratings, his account worth lots of money, and he will less likely cheat buyers. It all depends.

If you want 0.001% risk, you end up pay way more upfront. It is a compromise that buyer has to make. For example, I will not pay $250 to buy 3 year AppleCare for a MacBook laptop that cost $1200. The risk I took well worth the savings for past 20 year in digital products I bought.

As a matter of fact, I pay $750 to buy last year model on local Craigslist, much riskier than buy from amazon sellers. I'm happy with the result so far.

 

That's not the point. There are sellers on eBay with 5000 good ratings on HID bulbs that are 100% crap. Do you think every one of those people that rate the bulbs check in detail that it is not fake? Or even know they make fakes?

And the seller may not know they are fake either. You can buy from big stores in East Asia boxes that look really convincing. When you buy in bulk, you assume you will get a price break. But generally they just mark the cheap bulbs at the appropriate price to make it look true. Counterfeit markets are truly interesting, but makes for a bad market.

 

Well, this particular example maybe an exception, I tends to agree with you. Some smaller sellers probably don't know what they got, or there are a few bad apples who wants to make some fat profit, at the expense of couple bad feedback.

But I will not stop looking for good third party products. Of cause, if the price difference is not that much, I will buy original.

 

Ok. For me, what I'd look at is circled in red. If someone else comes up in that area, I'd then the link under More Buying Choices, then choose amazon.com itself. I'd avoid any 3rd party resellers listed, including "fulfillment by Amazon".

 

If you go to the dealer, toyota is warranting their bulbs for one year unlimited miles... About 150.00 a piece.

They say do not replace the ecu as it's the bulb. They have also bumped their original warranty to 60k miles for bulbs

Alan.. Sent with Tapatalk 2

 

While I'm no longer advocating ebay bulbs as there is just too much trash products in the Chinese counterfeit market, here is an install procedure I made some time back as to how to change the bulbs without fussing with the bumper.

My HID bulb replacement on my 06 prius | PriusChat
My HID bulb replacement on my 06 prius

Alan.. Sent with Tapatalk 2

 

Another issue is that the 2006 requires the D4R bulb.. As mentioned many are D4S with a slot added to still work in the D4R slots.

Problem is while all fire up fine with the initial high voltage blast of turning on the light. The resting voltage if some ballast will not work with any bulb.

If you under power it, as soon as the material ages in the bulb the low voltage just can't keep it energized without repeated refires by turning the lights off and back on.

If you overpower it, you prematurely oxidize the materials in the bulb and that too shortens the life.

I'm perplexed as too why toyota bulbs have to cost so much.

You would think by now they would have figured out a way to make them cheaply.... But they cost even the dealer over 100 bucks a piece.

Alan.. Sent with Tapatalk 2

 

Here is a genuine Toyota bulb below "new" , and an aftermarket D4R above "used but still works ok" .
Looks like better heat dissipation from the lower toyota bulb.


The bad bulb "not shown in the picture" appears to have heat burns on the metal exterior of the bulb leaving it a red/rusty color. It was turning off every few minutes and would need a restrike to get going again.

Alan.. Sent with Tapatalk 2