sdg

Ended up researching OEM Phillips bulb on-line and bought two of them for less than $100. Watched a couple youtube videos on replacing the bulbs focusing on removing the air cleaner (passenger side) and wiper fluid neck extension (drivers side) to gain best access to the bulbs. Turned out to be a real simple procedure. Took less than 40 minutes to do both bulbs start to finish. Been working fine for over a month now. Did have a warning light come on afterward indicating bad 02 sensor. Checked connections at air filter and light cleared (again, with help from posts on this web site). Real happy with the result given dealer estimate for changing just one bulb with no diagnosis or assurance that it was just the bulb. This web site is invaluable. Not much of a "car aficionado" but am a nuts/bolts capable person. Also used web site to research tire replacement for my Michelins and ended up getting set of Continental Extreme Contact DWS. Good tire, good price, run great. Again, very happy.

XxGoKoUxX

glad you got the problem sorted out sdg

Yes, the dealer does kinda bite us in the butt when it comes to bulbs, HID systems, and headlights.....

I feel the same as you, as it is tough to pay someone in the upwards of near $100 for labor changing out a bulb that would take me 5 minutes.

IXI187IXI

iTrader: (3)

yes do not cheap on the bulbs as it will tend to do the same issue.

95% of the time this is a bulb issue, nothing more. get quality bulbs and replace the factory ones. problem solved

sxwk12

I just replaced mine. It was doing the same thing. I bought some from IDJMtoy.com and my driver's side still did it. Several guys on here told me it was cheap bulbs. And to get GARAX bulbs on eBay. They were like $80 for 2. Had them in for 3 days now and neither side have gone out yet.

Go with GARAX bulbs on eBay.

DavidPil

I have a similar issue... but its on the lexus IS 350.. But I replaced the light bulbs at first and the drivers side still goes out after a while of running.. sometimes after 5 minutes. I ended up replacing the ballast on it and It still did the same thing... I ended up switching the bulbs from left to right and it seemed to work for about a week. Than started doing the same thing.. I wonder if it is the type of bulbs I bought offline?? anyone have any thoughts.. I am not taking it to a dealer I refuse to pay them for this crap.

Bmore26

Well, after reading about 4,000,000 post about this I am still having the same issue.

The drivers side went out so I switched to passenger and followed bulb and nothing happened. So, I switched BOTH bulbs with OEM brand new bulbs and NOW the passenger side is going out. So, at first it was drivers side, now its passenger side with brand new bulbs. Anyone know whats wrong?

n00btube

Yes I’m late to the 3GS game now owning the car for a year,

but I have run into the exact issue as the million posts about these headlights flickering.

Initially the drivers side HID would flicker and would stay on after playing with turning it on and off.

1) replaced both bulbs with philips ultinon d4s

after 3 day’s drivers side stays on and passenger side does not turn on

2) replaced both ballasts with oem lexus.

after 3 day’s drivers side stays on and passenger side does not turn on

is this a wiring issue ?

ive spent so much money on labor already I just need a fix to keep these lights on

Propulsion

Replacing the ballasts should’ve solved the problem. I replaced my driver’s side ballast a few years ago and never looked back. While my tech was replacing the ballast I also took the opportunity to replace my HID bulbs (which were still good but I wanted a fresh set).

If the lights continue to fail randomly after your tech replaced both the ballast and the HIDs the problem probably is with the labor itself.

n00btube

thanks for the reply on this ancient thread lol. I had the failed ballast replaced again today. i am afraid that because the ballast is a used oem part, that it will is the same issue as the other one. *fingers crossed it’s a good *

i will update if the issue arises again, it’s working right now, but it hasn’t passed the 3 day test yet =/

n00btube

So this is the third ballast on the RH side now. It was installed yesterday and it worked.

Tried turning on today it failed. Spent over $1k already in just trying to get these lights to work and it’s really damaging Lexus as a brand for me.

At this point it has to be something with the wiring causing these lights to fail.

1) maybe too much power is being transmitted and burning out the ballast

2) faulty wiring on the RH side

i just can’t comprehend how the issue started with the drivers side, and since New philips ultinon bulbs being put on both sides causing the RH side to fail. New ballasts have been put on both sides now - right side having been swapped twice now on the third one.

this is really frustrating for this car even though I still like everything else about it

driver side: new bulb, new ballast
RH side: new bulb, new ballast, new ballast

i cant imagine all 3 ballasts failing all immediately, the probability is way too small. It has to be something else

Propulsion

I’m sorry to hear you’re having difficulty troubleshooting the cause. Most of the owners here (myself included) have replaced the faulty ballast and the problem is solved. I can’t imagine what in the world in going on with your headlights.

Dean2

Spot on. Light going out after being on for a while is the bulb 99% of the time. When the ballast fails it almost always fails completely. Order the EXACT same replacement bulb that was on the car and make sure it has the Phillips Authentication tracking number that you can put in online to verify they are in fact not Chinese knockoffs. You literally cannot tell by looking at them but they are crap. Lexus do not like bulbs that are not the originals. No idea why but I know this to be true.They are way cheaper on Evilbay just make sure they say guaranteed authentioc

n00btube

The passenger side headlight showed signs of condensation and water inside after taking the car to an intensive car wash. Tech had also said previously that one of the failed ballasts showed water damage.

Putting one and one together seems like the headlight seal is broken causing the each ballast to fail.

Update to come. Ty all for the replies

123go

So' was it from moisture, probably a leading cause for the real troublesome cars but idk?

If you see moisture inside your headlight this can help. Most assemblies are simply glued together with no actual seal so the glue fails over time and allows moisture in-between the sections.
I had an 07 4Runner and they get a lot of water inside their headlights whenever rains/washed and although they are projection style mine weren't the HID or moving headlights fwiw but it went through Halogen bulbs when I first got it due to moisture trapped inside. But' I read many reviews saying the new replacement headlight housings even leaked too not long after buying them so that made me look for online fixes? Anytime moisture is seen inside your lights housing it will in fact create bulb issues and even make the bulb burst inside. I had one do that on my old Nissan Maxima. No doubt water can get trapped inside a ballast and create havoc with it too I'm certain of that.
Being a diy'r I knew how basic headlights are made but' I never separated any before the 4Runner. Trust me don't just go to prying around ones edge with a flat tip screwdriver as the brittle Polycarb lens simply chips away and your lens edge will just be destroyed before ever separating even.
But' if there's a will there's a way & I found an owner who done a great write up (see below link) on tinting headlights and I used his directions to separate mine by heating them in my oven at 200 deg before prying them apart.

FAIR WARNING "NEVER" TOSS THEM IN YOUR OVEN AND TURN IT ON!! ALWAYS "PREHEAT YOUR OVEN FIRST" OR YOU WILL MELT YOUR CHIT!!!!
Electric ovens come on "full blast" to heat up fast "then" they'll level out and maintain the temp you set them at for those here who don't know ovens really well.
I have a cousin who learned hard way yrs ago, he melted (destroyed) a one off custom hand made dashboard for an Arlen Ness built Harley he was custom painting for a guy. Just went to bake the paint on its dash and got in a hurry. So always "Preheat" that oven first or it can be very very costly sometimes...lol

Anyway' I removed and separated both my 4Runner headlight lenses and just re-sealed them back together with Clear Outdoor Window Silicone and and it was still dry as a bone inside mine 4 yrs later when sold. This having moving parts inside (I never assembled this style) but' I'd just try to separate these lens with headlight facing up and do my best to just remove the clear lens without actually taking the internals apart any more than I had to but most likely its nothing too complicated for an average diy'r.
There should be other write-ups on this site or on other websites for similar headlights to use because leaking is so common for many cars/trucks. Separating the sections is the hardest part so as long as you don't over heat one & melt it you'll be fine imho. Honestly speaking if its leaking, the worse that can happen is you have to replace a part that is already bad anyway so nothing lost/nothing gained if you fail trying to repair them.
Great write up here on tinting 4runner headlights and shows how to separate. Be sure to clean the lens good inside before assembly, hold it up to a light in all angles as those who wear glasses know too well stains/smears can hide so darn well. Peace!
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-ge...sport-diy.html

PauloFR

If the only problem is the lenses lost their waterproofing, yes, resealing them will do the job just fine. The problem is there are very complex and fragile systems inside, and in some cases like for me, water made further damages. The AFS motors were stuck, the ballast were fried, there was a puddle of water inside the high beams which ate the reflector chrome coating, and the former owner put disastrous LEDs in place of the xenon bulbs and installed a ricer wiring to the headlight relay in order to bypass the ballasts, instead of solving the problem for real (you'll guess why in a minute). Needless to say they didn't light up anything at night because the projectors haven't been designed for them.

I ended up buying new headlight assemblies and new bulbs. The quote from my Lexus dealership, just for the headlights, was $4,200. "Fortunately" enough, I found genuine ones from reputable eBay sellers for $2,300 total. Chinese ones were absolutely not an option, you can rest assured they'll be awful.

Every 3GS I see on used car ads has at least fogged up lenses. At worst, water went inside. IS headlights often suffered the same disease. Lexus screwed up big time the design of these headlights.

So yeah, if you're on the market for one or you have one since brand new, you better watch regularly and closely how your headlights hold up over time in order not to skip the resealing step when it needs to be done.