Last time I looked at my mother's Audi A6 (it's a 2008, I think), I saw that one of the HID low beams was dim and purplish, and the other was totally out. Apparently, the dead on comes back to life (but also dim and purple) when fiddling with the switch. Before it goes to the dealer, I'd like to have some idea of what's going on, and if it's something I can fix relatively easily. I know nothing of HIDs, so use small words. Thanks.
When HID bulbs die, they get dim and purple.
Sounds to me it needs new bulbs. Amazon is probably the cheapest to get a pair.
Gotcha. That's likely the best possible failure mode, as in cheapest and easiest to deal with. Thanks.
I would just replace the set as they'll also be different colors if you replace just one.
The sylvania bulb guide says it's a "D2S" bulb. Amazon and eBay are your friends for cheap replacements. Look for "4300k" or "5000k" bulb temperatures to keep it looking normal/OEM.
The completely dead one could be the ballast (kind of like a power inverter). But I would start with 2 new bulbs
Two new Philips OE bulbs are on order. Dealer wanted $190/side - the service advisor told her to buy them on Amazon.
In the '80s and '90s, one headlight dim and the other intermittent was pretty much the standard operating condition for Audis.
Start with bulbs. If one is still dead or having issues, try swapping the ballasts left to right and that should help narrow down the problem.
Hopefully bulbs, but the ballast on one side on my old one died. Unfortunately its built into the headlight. But aftermarket ones can be hacked in.
java230 said:Hopefully bulbs, but the ballast on one side on my old one died. Unfortunately its built into the headlight. But aftermarket ones can be hacked in.
This is true. It's a PITA on VWs of that era. There are two gray wires for "power" that go into the headlight module. One is for the ballasts and the other the turn signal. Don't ask me how I know; but, if you cross them up, your headlights might blink in the turn lane.
In reply to DirtyBird222 :
I LOL'ed
I hooked my brake lights to the reverse lights once....
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