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Thread: Bad ballast?

  1. #1
    Veteran Member Four Rings Mr.Audi's Avatar
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    Bad ballast?

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    So my right front headlight just started with going out (saying dipped on dash) after a few minutes of being on/driving.

    If I turn the lights “off” and back on it works again for a few minutes and then goes out.

    Is it safe to assume it’s the ballast?



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  2. #2
    Veteran Member Four Rings Jay-Bee's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mr.Audi View Post
    So my right front headlight just started with going out (saying dipped on dash) after a few minutes of being on/driving.

    If I turn the lights “off” and back on it works again for a few minutes and then goes out.

    Is it safe to assume it’s the ballast?



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    Xenon bulbs typically last 8-12 years, if they've never been changed start with a new bulb or even swap your bulbs to see if it follows sides. Stick with a quality bulb like sylvania/osram or phillips.

    Then move on to ballast replacement, B7s are getting pulled into U-pull junkyards, i grabbed 2x full AFS headlights with ballasts for 80 bucks just to have spare parts for when this happens to me.
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  3. #3
    Veteran Member Four Rings Mr.Audi's Avatar
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    Explain how the bulb can be bad but actually work normally for a short time?



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  4. #4
    Veteran Member Four Rings Jay-Bee's Avatar
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    Weak gas capsule, or internal circuit, could be heat related, sometimes there's a color change to the bulb before it's at end of life. Worth a shot.
    Quote Originally Posted by Mr.Audi View Post
    Explain how the bulb can be bad but actually work normally for a short time?



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  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mr.Audi View Post
    Explain how the bulb can be bad but actually work normally for a short time?



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    Most probably a ballast, but if you are not ok with spending 50$ for a used ballast without diagnostics, First I would swap the ballast from left to right and right to left. If the notification on the dashboard changes from left dipped headlight to right dipped headlight, you are free to change ballast


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  6. #6
    Veteran Member Four Rings Mr.Audi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jay-Bee View Post
    Weak gas capsule, or internal circuit, could be heat related, sometimes there's a color change to the bulb before it's at end of life. Worth a shot.

    Sent from my Pixel 2 using Audizine mobile app



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  7. #7
    Veteran Member Four Rings Mr.Audi's Avatar
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    Vagcom’d the car and found a bulb error.
    (Found issue for bulb , no ballast as thought)

    Replaced bulb and now I don’t have any high beams on the side the bulb was replaced in...
    Previous light not working issue resolved.


    Suggestions?
    Can not find out how to determine what is causing the no high beam to turn on...

    Tia


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  8. #8
    Veteran Member Four Rings Jay-Bee's Avatar
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    The high beam on bi-xenons is an electro-magnet shutter flap, can you hear any noise from it while flicking the highs on? Might have bumped something while you were in there.
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  9. #9
    Veteran Member Three Rings Ray1031's Avatar
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    I had issues with the blue plastic connector inside the light, I could flicker and get high beams but couldn’t get them on, the wire leading to the connector was severed and once I fixed that lights were working fine


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  10. #10
    Veteran Member Four Rings Mr.Audi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jay-Bee View Post
    The high beam on bi-xenons is an electro-magnet shutter flap, can you hear any noise from it while flicking the highs on? Might have bumped something while you were in there.
    I’ll check that next.

    Appreciate it


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