HID headlight replacement on 2008 Prius

There shouldn't be an issue with electric shock when you replace a bulb

 

Did you ever get your headlight replace? I have the same problem too.

 

So, how did it go? Was you replacement easy? Any snafus?

I just ordered replacement bulbs from Amazon and will (attempt) to do the repair in 2 days. Looks easy enough. Hope I bought the correct bulbs. There seems to be several D4R bulbs to choose from. I bought "Philips D4R Standard Xenon HID Headlight Bulb, 1 Pack
by Philips". The bulbs run $50. each. About 2,400. people bought this product, far and away more than any other D4R bulb on Amazon, so I hope I chose wisely.

 

I have replaced the bulbs with the Philips D4Rs, and the only tough part was unscrewing the black cover (my son had to do this for me). I watched the Youtube videos. It helps to have gloves once you start to take the new bulb out of its package to make sure you don't touch the glass.

 

mjt---you should go ahead and replace it now and keep the old for a spare. The reason I say this is because you don't know for sure if its the bulb, ballast or both going bad. If you need a ballast also there will be another few days order/ship time. You will spend longer gathering your tools than it takes to replace the bulb.

I got pulled over Friday for a burned out taillight and the cop told me he thinks he pulls more Prius owners over with burned out headlights or tails or plate lights than any other car. He wouldn't let me out of the car to check my taillight but when he was done with me I pulled up 50ft and got out and banged on the taillight with my hand and it came back on. Nevertheless I made a trip to the auto parts store and bought 2 new taillight bulbs and put them in right there at Napa. I hate getting pulled over!

 

I got pulled over Friday for a burned out taillight and the cop told me he thinks he pulls more Prius owners over with burned out headlights or tails or plate lights than any other car. He wouldn't let me out of the car to check my taillight but when he was done with me I pulled up 50ft and got out and banged on the taillight with my hand and it came back on. Nevertheless I made a trip to the auto parts store and bought 2 new taillight bulbs and put them in right there at Napa. I hate getting pulled over![/QUOTE]

My 20 year old son got pulled over in my 2009 Prius for a burned out tail light last month. He had pulled into a vacant lot to text a friend, and got pulled over when he exited the lot. The cop took his license, and spent 15 minutes searching the database for outstanding warrants or something. That'll teach him. He should do all his texting in his lap while driving, like normal people. We figured he was being profiled, what with all the meth dealers driving the 2009 Touring edition, plus his friend checked and said that the tail light was fine. But maybe it came back on after a pothole. I spent the big bucks and got the $8.12 LED one from NAPA, so that the next time one of my kids leaves the lights on, at least that left tail light will not have drained the 12v battery.

 

hi all
another source i found to get the D4R is home depot online, $50 each, and several buyers noted that the philips authentication system confirmed they were legitimate. i read many reviews of the amazon seller that said they were fake... go to the 1 star reviews
also i figure home depot is everywhere so i have some recourse if things go wrong... amazon guy isnt anywhere except an email address...
good luck!

 

This is one of the best items I've read. Thanks lextoy!!! Who would have ever thought Home Depot and Philips D4R would be in the same sentence. Alas, the two I purchased were $51 each, and arrived in about 4 days. Yes, they verified as authentic on the Philips website. A couple YouTube videos and 45 minutes later, both HIDs were replaced. The covers were a total PITA, but steady pressure wins the game for getting them to move. Put the old bulbs in the Philips boxes and marked as spares in case I ever need them. What a difference between the ones that were in the car (4 yrs old? Harison brand?) and the new ones. Only one was flickering after about 20 minutes of driving, but well worth replacing both to keep them at the same lighting level.

I think the only thing I have left to do now is to acquire a gray leather/pleather center console lid to complete the interior swap. Anyone have one at a reasonable price for a Gen 2?

 

I have a 08 Prius. In January, I replaced both bulbs (purchased Phillips from Amazon about $100 for both). In February, passenger bulb when bad and Amazon replaced the bulb at no coast. This week (March 18), the passenger bulb when bad again and stopped working. Before, I do anything else, I would like your feedback. Do you think is the ballast or the intermittent issue? Should I do anything else before attempting to replace the passenger bulb? Your assistance is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

Fred,
There's another thread on the site titled something like....HID lights not all created equal. It's a very good read. Very enlightening about HID bulb quality control and manufacturing quality. Apparently there are a lot of Chinese "fake" Philips bulbs on the market. Were you able to verify yours as authentic on the Philips website?