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2010 Prius low beam headlight bulp inop

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by cbo111, Nov 29, 2012.

  1. cbo111

    cbo111 Junior Member

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    I have an inop low beam headlight on right side. Left headlight is fine, high beams both fine. I plan to replace the low beam bulbs on both sides. I see some how-to videos on youtube for 2006-2007 models. Does anyone out there know if the headlights are the same as the 2010 model? I like to do things myself and these videos are great. Also, these videos recommend using Sylvania H11 Silverstar Ultra lights. Does this sound right for a 2010 low beam bulb? I just want the standard replacement.
    Thank, Chuck
     
  2. somebody7

    somebody7 Member

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    I bought these. Amazon.com: Philips H11 CrystalVision Ultra Headlight Bulb, Pack of 2: Automotive and they look great and are really bright. I would definitely buy them again. To replace them, just turn them like youre unscrewing a bulb. Then just lift the tab and replace the bulb. The passenger side might be a little harder to get to than the drivers side. Just make sure youre taking out the correct bulbs, I think the the high beams are 9005 bulbs.
     
  3. stream

    stream Senior Member

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    Owners manual has bulb replacement instructions and bulb size.
     
  4. 2k1Toaster

    2k1Toaster Brand New Prius Batteries

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    On the 2010's your low beams are H11's I think? In that case, any H11 will work.

    The Silverstar or Sylvania "ultras" or whatever marketing word they use to say higher kelvin temperature and higher output lumens work great, but for shorter time and are more expensive.

    The cheap walmart H11 bulbs will last like the ones the car came with. If you want more of a "white" light (really a cool white with blue hues), you pay for it literally in dollars and in bulb life. Expect as much as a 3x reduction in bulb life, for a bulb that costs up to 3x as much. Meaning almost 9x more expensive over time. Up to you if it is worth it.

    Human eyes are great at picking up blue's, that's why they seem brighter. Things really do look brighter and nicer with these "ultra" bulbs.
     
  5. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Whatever bulb you decide to go with, make sure you don't touch the bulbs with your fingers. Doing so will get oils on the bulb, which will create a hot spot on the bulb leading to premature failure.

    If you do touch the bulbs, wipe them with a little rubbing alcohol to get the oils off the surface of the bulbs.
     
  6. cbo111

    cbo111 Junior Member

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    Thanks
     
  7. kithmo

    kithmo Couch Potato

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    To ease removal of the right hand bulb, remove the 10mm bolt securing the air intake hose and push the hose out of the way.
     
    mike587 likes this.
  8. cbo111

    cbo111 Junior Member

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    Yes. I did remove the hose off the radiator overflow and move the air intake tube out of the way. Not complicated. Getting the old bulb out was as simple as a quarter counterclockwise turn. Putting the new bulb in....not so easy. I could not get it to engage in the little clip to reattach. I finally realized the new Sylvania Ultra bulb I was installing had an orange rubber washer on it. The original bulb had no washer. So I removed it and finally got it on.
     
  9. sir_KW

    sir_KW Junior Member

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    Finally was able to change the low beam highlight bulbs on the 2010 Prius today. Had problems attempting yesterday. The trick for me was to knowing that the bulbs are in a 12 o'clock position when locked in. Also the other significant trick was inserting the bulb by itself without the wire harness attached first as this allows more free hand movement. Once the bulb is in the housing and locked (tighten by turning clock wise), then attached and clip the wire harness on. Fyi i got the Philips Crystal Vision Ultra and they look superby! Not blue at all. A nice gentle white 4000k look. Attaching a pic below in case anyone interested.

    IMG_1086.JPG headlight.jpg
     
    #9 sir_KW, Feb 14, 2017
    Last edited: Feb 14, 2017
    idohavemail, mike587 and orlywon like this.
  10. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Some 2010s and 2011s had a short-low-beam-lifetime issue from the factory; there's a TSB to fix it but a bit of a pain (front bumper off and wire harness mods). If the car has that issue and the TSB hasn't been applied, it's probably easiest to stick with the ordinary "basic" H11s. The extra-bright-but-short-lived "ultra" style would be just aggravating in a car that has the short-life problem to begin with (and anyway, the "basic" ones will be a little extra bright in those cars anyway).

    -Chap
     
  11. mike587

    mike587 Junior Member

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    i bought the sylvania silver star ultra and they are great! watch the youtube video on the install.
     
  12. spiff72

    spiff72 Member

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    I replaced my bulbs a couple of weeks back. I bought these:


    I ran into 2 issues:
    1. For the first bulb, I didn't notice that the rubber washer that was on the old bulb stayed on the headlight housing instead of coming off with the bulb. This meant that there were effectively 2 washers when I went to install the new bulb. Once I took the extra washer out, the 1/4 turn engaged.
    2. For the other bulb (passenger side), I installed the new one, but found the next day that the pattern was clearly wrong (it seemed like the passenger bulb wasn't even working). I went back in and found that only part of the 1/4 turn tabs engaged, so the beam was wrong. Reseating it properly got it working correctly.
     
  13. Wayne Bangert

    Wayne Bangert New Member

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    Had issue with 2012 Prius low beam headlights very dim after replacing bulbs. After reading many blogs and you-tube videos I came to the simple conclusion that the low beam lights are a system that uses a lenses to focus the beam. If the bulb is not seated correctly the beam will not focus and the beam will be very dim. In fact they were so dim I had to use my high beams when driving at night. Here is what I did. I bought the brightest bulbs I could find - sylvania silver star ultra. I installedthe new bulbs
     
  14. Wayne Bangert

    Wayne Bangert New Member

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    Had issue with 2012 Prius low beam headlights very dim after replacing bulbs. After reading many blogs and you-tube videos I came to the simple conclusion that the low beam lights are a system that uses a lenses to focus the beam. If the bulb is not seated correctly in the light bonnet the beam will not focus and the beam will be very dim. In fact, they were so dim I had to use my high beams when driving at night. Here is what I did. I bought the brightest bulbs I could find - sylvania silver star ultra. I installed the new bulbs and there was no difference - too low light. I then tried a suggestion from a blogger. Reinstall the lights. Do not attach the electrical harness yet. When installing place the connector tail at 9 o'clock position then place bulb into light bonnet. Seat the bulb assembly and turn CCW until the bulb will not turn. The connector tail should now be at 6 o'clock. Now connect the electrical harness to the bulb assembly. Now here is the important part. Check the brightness up against a wall or garage door at dark. If the lights are not close to the brightness as your high beams then you need to re-install the bulbs. I had to reinstall twice until the bulb was seated perfectly.
    My low beams are 90% as bright as my high beam lights. Good Luck
     
  15. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i also had to replace the passenger side low beam bulb. fortunately, it worked out, but i scraped the skin off my arm trying to work in there.