2003 HID headlight problem/question, please help!
 

My passenger side HID headlamp will flicker or go out sometimes if i hit a bump or hit the headlight housing with my hand. If i turn the headlights off and then back on, the passenger one comes back on every time.

The light always turns back on by just turning them off and on. Once its out, tapping the headlight or wiggling the wires won't do anything. the only way to get it to turn on again is to just switch the lights off and back on. Makes me think its not just a bad connection, but i dont really know too much about this type of stuff.


Anyone know what is wrong or have any suggestions?

Thanks!!

Check the connectors to the ballast. If it looks ok, you may want to consider replacing the ballast. Aftermarket ballasts are really cheap.

when you say check connectors to the ballast, is the ballast part of the HID control unit box thats mounted on the bottom of the headlamp assembly or the silver bumb socket thats behind the plastic cap?

if it is a bad ballast is this control unit the part that needs to be replaced?

http://media.photobucket.com/image/0...3/DSC07125.jpg

Any other thoughts?

I dont really want to start spending money on replacing parts until i have a decent idea of what the problem is. An impact on something related to the xenon lamp is causing the light to stop working, but it always comes back on when the lights are turned off and back on. I wish i knew more about how exactly a xenon lamp works...

same thing happened to me .
i thought/hoped it was the bulb ..
in my case it was the ballast ..

i bought an oem used one from ebay .. replaced and no problems since then .

So the headlight seemed to be fine for a couple weeks, but yesterday it went out again (the same way, flickered once and went out when i hit a bump) and now it won't come back on at all. I really don't have the money right now to get this fixed, so i guess i'm going to try to find a cheap used oem ballast and replace it myself if i can. Is the only way to replace this part to remove the front bumper and pull out the headlight housing?

Replace the headlights first. Most common cause of flickering.

usually that is the sign of a bad ballast. But like the OP said it could be a headlight...Replace the headlight first and see if it still doing it.

from what Ive ready you can pull the little plastic tabs from the insides of the fender, and peel the plastic fender flaps back to expose the headlight connections. You just have to turn your wheels all the way to the inside depending on which side your working on.

Headlight not working
 

I've had similar problems. First my HID on the driver side went out, and I slammed the hood once and they came back on. Now they are both not working and NO light will come on unless I have the fog light on or the high beam. I've been driving with my fog lights for 2 weeks. I'm a girl, not too experienced with the lighting and all. Some people told me to check the relay, I pulled it out, but I have no idea what I'm looking for. Any suggestions? I don't want to order bulbs with that not being the problem. It's just funny how one went out, came back out, then they both went out. Also hit eject all on my cd player (stock 6 disc)..and all the cd's literally tried coming out at once, so now my cd player is jammed and I don't know how to fix that either. Once I hit 100k it was one thing after the other, nothing too costly except for a coil pack, just nit pickin stuff.

Thanks!

If only one side is going out, swap the right and left bulbs and see if the problem persists.

i am having the pretty much the same problem. A week a go when i shut my hood while my lights were on, didnt slam it or anything, but my driver side headlight flickered then shut off. everytime i turned it on and off it just flickered and went out, but now it just doesnt turn off. a couple days after this the passenger light has also gone out. I checked the fuses and they were fine. Im not the take it to the dealership and have them deal with it kinda person so im up for any suggestions thanks a lot.

... also my cd player is jammed :icon43:

Cheapest fix is replacing the bulbs first. You can order them online for $15 a pair.

Best access is to remove the front wheel and fender well.

http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/HI...lacements-Pair

I did this and it fixed the problem.

Thanks hopefully the bulbs both just decided to go out together haha

they're 2DR's right?

My passenger headlight has this problem and the dealer said I needed a new headlight module for $500. I have no idea what that is, but I didn't have them fix it. I was thinking of getting aftermarket headlights, but I'm not sure if those replace the right parts.

I still have no solution, but I'm considering taking it to a local mechanic to see if they have a cheaper fix, such as non-OEM parts.