headlight problem

[Scanny]

a few weeks ago the nearside headlight blew so i bought a pair of replacements and changed it. no problem! on friday the offside headlight was out so i changed it at work this morning with the other bulb, still not working. i have been out and bought another set just in case it was a duff bulb. still not working! im assuming they both run off one fuse which rules that out so what else would cause one lamp to fail?

[BillHardy]

In my experience I have found with some cars each side is fused seperarely,did you check all fuses and what they are listed as relating to

[elnevio]

Yes, check EVERY fuse (even seemingly unrelated ones), including those in the passenger compartment. One blowing can sometimes have odd effects on other systems with these cars.

[Scanny]

i havent checked anything else and just assumed they both run from 1 fuse. i got a bit sidetracked. i havent even found the bulb in the glovebox yet (unrelated issue which is bugging me) even though i have worked out how to get the glovebox out. i noticed in the archives its a 1.4w which i guess is one of those tiny dashboard bulbs?

[Nick Mann]

Also check the connections - they can get corroded and the break in the circuit is the wire/spade connector, not the bulb.

[Scanny]

that was the first thing i did Nick. wiggled the wire to see if it was a bad connection or the inner core had a break in it. nothing happened! no work has been done so it cant be damage to a wire anywhere else. im going to check fuses tomorrow when its daylight again. failing that i will use the working bulb to confirm that it is not the unlikely situation of 3 duff bulbs. i might even check them all in the other side to confirm they are all working

[Scanny]

it seems i was mistaken. according to the (PFL) manual, they are on separate fuses (1 for each bulb low or high beam)so hopefully that is all thats wrong. i dont know what relays do so hopefully i will have 2 working headlights in a few minutes

[Gizmo]

Im pretty sure the headlights have seperate fuses, as once i shorted one out after changing the bulb and wondered why it didnt work. Check the fuse box under the hood. =)

[Scanny]

solved! sods law all the spare fuses i have dont fit so i had to buy some new ones

[Atik]

I had a spate of about 6 months this time last year where I went through about five H7 bulbs on the passenger side. Including two Philips Extreme bulbs! The cheapo local autofactors £1.00 bulbs I have in right now, have lasted nearly a year. No fuse issues, just seemed to blow out the lights for some reason!

[Gizmo]

Glad to hear its solved Richie!

That is weird Atik.... i dont understand why bulbs would blow prematurely unless being given too much voltage or over heating...or being rattled the crap out of!

[Atik]

I suspect just overheating for some reason, but yeah, I havent changed anything (fuses, connectors, wiring are all the same) but these bulbs have lasted ages.

[Scanny]

the bulbs i had in were in the GDI so they were a couple of years old. same with the indicator bulbs
i have just oiled the door plungers and noticed the lights on the front doors. gotta get the same LEDs i upgraded my number plate lights to. all my interior lights are LEDs and what a difference at night over conventional bulbs

[Gizmo]

I've done the same, all the interior lights and door lights are LED, got two 4" white cold cathodes in the boot and plan to buy an HID kit and replace all the other exterior bulbs with LED. But that wont be for a while. I tried some LED indicator bulbs i got off ebay for a couple of quid, just to try them out. But they musnt have enough resistance as once installed the indicators flash rapidly like you have a blown bulb. Will have to invest in some more expensive ones and see what they are like.