I found the low beam light was not working a few days ago. Today I removed the cover, unlocked the adapter and found the the plastic socket adapter had melted.



The white rubber piece in the center of the socket burned into black ashes. That explains why the electric connection is cut off. I haven’t heard this problem on 3GS before.

I am not sure this is the results of aging ballast. Since a new OEM is more than $200 bucks, I try to replace the socket alone as my first step to fix. I ordered a pair of aftermarket socket like this on eBay.




I plan to do some soldering and rewiring to make it work. In this way maybe I can solve the problem with $15 instead of $200.

Will keep updated once I get the job done next weekend.

 

@JasonShanj I have the same problem / connectors / hopes for my 2010 ES350. Have you done it yet? I was hoping to change the passenger side connector without removing the headlight, but that doesn't seem possible...

 

Yes, I fixed the issue. It was not easy job, but please let me explain.

I cut the original bulb socket and soldered original ballast output wires with the new D4S socket I bought from eBay. It was not very easy to use the solder iron in such a tight space. I had to remove the intake air box to make some room for it. It is lucky that the original ballast are both fine. I am really impressed by the quality of the OEM. With almost two days of cutting, soldering and warping the wires, I finally made both of my HID headlight work again. The new 4300k bulbs are much brighter than the original 6000k bulbs. I kinda like the warm white color more than the pure white 6000k since the road is full of crappy 6000k LED DRL.

The original Philips bulbs are fried. I also bought a new pair of DMEX 4300K D4S bulbs, which is $30 a pair, I think it is a bargain since it comes with 2 years warranty. Philips bulbs are insanely expensive, $100 a pair. I am very surprised that their manufacturer cost of the Germany Xenon bulbs hasn't been reduced a bit after almost 20 years of technology advancement. I am very happy with the DMEX bulbs so far.

In summary, if you are not sure the ballast is broken and you are in a tight budget and don't want to take the front bumper off, definitely try to replace the D4S bulbs socket first. With some basic electric wiring technique, it is totally DIYable.

 

I may give that a try. I was originally planning to keep the original wires and just replace the connector, but I doubt I have enough room to pry in that small space.

Thanks for the response!