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07 Prius headlight out

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Mike Dougherty, Feb 26, 2017.

  1. Mike Dougherty

    Mike Dougherty New Member

    Joined:
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    Pittsburgh, PA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Hi there, first time poster. LONG time reader. This is a fantastic forum. I have an 07 Prius that had started experiencing the infamous dying headlight ballasts. The bulbs would only fire after a few tries, etc. etc. I've read through these forums extensively and gotten a ton of great information but still can't seem to solve this issue. A friend and I just replaced the hybrid and aux batteries as I was getting the red "!" and after using a scan tool found all the issues were battery related so we replaced both of them, changed the oil, filter, air filter, etc. Anything we could think of to try to tune it up and get it back running and pass inspection. After replacing everything including both headlight ballasts the passenger's side main HID bulb still will not fire, as well as the lower fog light on the same side. Before I go replacing the bulb, is there possibly a fuse that controls both the headlamp and the fog light? It seems odd to me that both would not come on. As I've said I have replaced the ballasts already. Should my next step be replacing the bulbs themselves or try the fuses associated with these bulbs first (if there is one that is associated with both the headlamp and foglight) I guess my question is: is the ballast actually powering both the HID bulb and the fog light or just the HID bulb? It seems odd that both would be out like this, but I suppose it's possible it just seems unlikely but I'm sure there is someone on here vastly more. Thanks very much for any info on what to try next.
     
    #1 Mike Dougherty, Feb 26, 2017
    Last edited: Feb 26, 2017
  2. TWOPrius

    TWOPrius Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    III
    Check the feed for both with a volt meter. We many times bypass the basics. Also see where the ground wires connect.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  3. Mike Dougherty

    Mike Dougherty New Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I don't see where the grounds intersect. I have removed the front bumper assembly because it makes it easier of course to get the headlamp assembly out. I will look again. I'm sure this sounds like such a novice question but this is the first vehicle I've worked on with HID headlamps and I understand the voltage is extremely high, so I didn't want to go sticking my multimeter around in there and fry it. Where is the best place to check the feeds? I would think somewhere on the connector that comes from the ballast and snaps to the bulb correct? Should I check the voltage going to the ballast itself?
     
    #3 Mike Dougherty, Feb 26, 2017
    Last edited: Feb 26, 2017
  4. Jmack111

    Jmack111 Member

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    Location:
    Tacoma wa
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
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    N/A
    I had HID blubs the center pin was shorter they flash when bumpped then shut off had to turn on then off to get them to work bunch of off things
    I had to adjust the center pin on the plug so it would touch and stay that way

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  5. jzchen

    jzchen Newbie!

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    Five
    Did you try swapping left and right HID bulbs?
     
  6. jzchen

    jzchen Newbie!

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    Five
    The next question be swap ballasts if they are interchangeable...