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Backup Light Out After 4 Months?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by MrGuardia, Feb 23, 2011.

  1. MrGuardia

    MrGuardia Junior Member

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    Hey guys, so my left backup light just went out on my '10 Prius after 4 months. I'm taking it in tomorrow, hopefully they replace it for free. Has anyone else had this happen to them so soon?
     
  2. J5A

    J5A Active Member

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    Haven't had any issues with my GIII, but that's what 3y/36k's are for thank goodness!
     
  3. MrGuardia

    MrGuardia Junior Member

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    so are bulbs included in the 3y/36k? you think they will do it for free?
     
  4. cproaudio

    cproaudio Speedlock Overrider

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    A bulb cost what? $2. Do you think Toyota would piss off a customer over a 2 dollar bulb?
     
  5. MrGuardia

    MrGuardia Junior Member

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    yeah but the labor is what concerns me, not the price of the bulb.
     
  6. cproaudio

    cproaudio Speedlock Overrider

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    Labor? really? It's harder to change light bulbs in the house than changing the reverse bulb in a Prius. If they're bitching labor, have them give you the bulb and change it yourself.
     
  7. J5A

    J5A Active Member

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    If I were you, I'd probably change it myself but if you really want the dealer to do it (which takes more of your time IME) it's covered under your warranty. A call to the dealer will settle it.
     
  8. GrumpyCabbie

    GrumpyCabbie Senior Member

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    If you're that worried just replace it yourself. Man it's only a blown bulb.
     
  9. Joe166

    Joe166 New Member

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    I hope they replace it for free too, but this thread is the ultimate in too much spare time.

    If the point is that nothing should ever break, that is what warranties are for.

    If the point is something else, my initial observation is operative.
     
  10. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    I think it's just a nervous new owner. We all get a little paranoid when we spend a large amount of money on something like a new car, and sometimes we seek reassurance that we haven't made a big mistake. The Prius exacerbates this, being a relatively new type of car with a new model.

    To the OP: No, it's not normal to have a bulb fail so quickly, but it's not unheard of either. It's just a common light bulb, and sometimes they die an early death.

    Tom
     
  11. adamace1

    adamace1 Senior Member

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    You should check out the lemon laws in your state. LOL but if your dealer is not out of the way call them and make an apointment it will be free. Also i have not heard of bulbs going bad on the 2010 prius, maybe a headlight or two.
     
  12. cproaudio

    cproaudio Speedlock Overrider

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    wow, lemon law for a blown bulb
     
  13. wick1ert

    wick1ert Senior Member

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    The main reason I can think of going to the dealer to get this done, is in the event it may re-occur after such a short period of time again. If it continues the pattern, it may be the result of a loose connection somewhere along the wiring. In reality, this could be the case currently, where the bulb isn't fully seated properly in the socket and just happened to burn out quickly because of it.

    Tom is right, this isn't unheard of, but it's not something that happens all the time, either. A pack of bulbs are your local Pepboys (walmart, kmart, target, etc) is probably $4-5 and it takes about 5-10 minutes (for someone really taking their time) to swap them both out. How much is that few dollars worth compared to you time going to the dealer, having an advisor write it up, wait for them to do it, etc? To me, I'll buy the bulbs and swap them myself. For me, time is money, and 30 minutes of my time is worth way more than $4-5.
     
  14. kbeck

    kbeck Active Member

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    Speaking as a EE type:

    Lightbulbs do burn out. There's the usual gaussian bell-curve on how long they last, but one also gets the the "bathtub" reliability curve. There's always some infant mortality. That usually gets flushed out when the car is first built (turn on a new lightbulb, it flashes and goes out immediately), but occasionally you'll get an early-death bulb that dies in the first couple of months of an expected, what, five-year lifespan?

    It's possible to get a light bulb to burn out early, usually by stressing the heck out of it with a lot of quick-on/quick-off cycles. So, a loose socket's a minor possibility.

    What I'd do: Go to Walmart/whereever, replace the bulb (instructions in the manual), then have somebody else sit in the driver's seat and hit the brakes, turn on the running lights, etc. Listen for buzzing, look for flickering. If you don't see or hear either, figure it was a bad bulb and go on with your life. If you do see flickering/buzzing, then head over to the dealer. Could be a bad socket, bad brake switch, etc.

    KBeck
     
  15. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    That's only for the yellow turn signal bulbs. This is a white bulb.

    :D

    Tom
     
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  16. jdimetal

    jdimetal New Member

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    Within the first year or 12,000 miles...whichever comes first - usualy everything on the car is covered without question. This has been my experiance with several automakers not just toyota. After that grace period, items like headlight bulbs or turn signal bulbs are not covered unless water is getting in there or something like that.
     
  17. twittel

    twittel Senior Member

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    Hmmm...of all the replies only 1 person answered the question about we've had this problem. I've not had a problem and I'll assume no one else experienced early burn-outs, though it happens. Actually, I wonder how many of us routinely check our brake, back-up and turn signal lights for blown bulbs and fuses. I don't check unless it's NC inspection time.
     
  18. MrGuardia

    MrGuardia Junior Member

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    Guys relax, I got it replaced this morning at the dealer for free. I know I could have done it myself but I didn't feel like it. Specially after spending almost 30k on my Prius. I want it to be on file just in case it's something that's going to keep happening (you never know).

    I have a Toyota dealer 5 minutes from my house so it wasn't that big of a deal. It took all of 30 minutes.

    Thanks for all the feedback :)

    Freddy
     
  19. spiderman

    spiderman wretched

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    You always get more information than you wanted here on PriusChat. :D