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Headlights bulbs blowing

HtheDON

HtheDON

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Location
West London
Car
2003 Accord 2.0 SE
This used to happen all the time. My headlight bulb used to always blow every few weeks. I tried every type of bulb possible. Mostly the drivers side blows. I finally changed them and got HID these have lasted a bit longer. but just this evening it's blown again. Anyone got any ideas what this could be?
I personally think they keep blowing when I turn the dual climate control on. I very rarely do it but when I do it's seems soon after I have a bulb go.
 
HasD, If I were you, considering your cars history with bulbs, I'd get a autoelectrician to do a health test on your alternator, but first make sure all connections to the battery are clean and solid, check the earth bonding strap to your chassis. Any connections that are loose can cause voltage spikes.

If you know someone with a volt meter, you can do a very basic check yourself. With the engine running expect to see circa 13.5-14.4V across the battery terminals.
If it's more, it can cause problems with voltage sensitive items i.e. bulbs not to mention your ECU etc.
As I said this is very basic, you need a proper meter on it (An oscilloscope) to look at the actual waveform produced by the alternator. This should only ever be DC but if you've a failing diode in your diode back, it can leak AC on your wiring = havac


HTH
 
HtheDON said:
Thanks. Will have to take it today if I can.
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It may be worth checking the fuses for your headlights, I had an issue with mine that was solved with changing the fuses. They are located in the fuse box above the battery in position 2 and 7 (on the right) i think., They are red 10amp fuses (one for each side).
 
Interesting - my Accord eats headlight bulbs too. I'd guess one every 6-8 months on average but more often in the winter when they are on more. I always put it down to the el cheapo bulbs I buy - local auto factors sells them for £3 each - but maybe something else looking at the replies above. By the way - if you want the ultimate cheap way to feed your car's bulb habit while you figure the problem out, The Pound Shop (think they are all over the country) sells 2 x H1 for £1! I bought a pair as emergency spares - yet to try them but at £1 for two, worth a go.
 
my friend who had an accord had the same problem, it turned out to be the bulbs he was buying, at the end he resulted to buying honda bulbs...ouch!!
 
sufian is correct i remember CJ saying something about this.Try Honda ones and see how you get on.
 
you could just stick a HID kit on your car. Probably cheaper than buying bulbs from Honda.


Edit: Just re read the first post. he has a HID kit installed.


Check your fuses as i stated above, Im betting its a fuse not the bulb.

My HID kit popped a fuse after about 2 months. I changed both fuses because the other was looking a bit shagged and they have been fine since.
 
Has your headlight lenses got condensation in them by any chance.
 
good thinking brett, it was a problem on the prefacelift's was it not...so even if you hac=ve honda bulbs or hids if condensation is prsent it will keep blowing the headlight...
 
Yes! Condensation - never considered that that's the reason. Supposedly 'fixed' by my dealer under warranty years ago, but still misted up. I think I spotted a bag of silica gel in there IIRC, so maybe it just needs changing!
 
this might be the answer guys even if you get a finger print on a lamp it reduces it by loads.so if its wet your asking for trouble and as well the cabling might be shorting out as well
 
Unless the condensation is mega bad it will not effect the bulbs, And im pretty sure its not a potential bulb failure issue on the halogen units. If i remember correctly from reading the Headlight TSB it states there may be issues with the Xenons with bulb failure but not on the Halogen lights.
 
Thanks for all the feedback. I got the HID checked and the bulb was fine, so was the ballast. The problem was a blown fuse. I think this blew because on of the positive wires was touching the metal in the engine bay. I hope that's the problem illhave to wait and see. I did have condensation in the headlights but that seems tohave gone a while ago. I also have I tiny crack on the actual projector lense in the headlight but never caused any problems.
The electrical guy advised maybe I should use a 20amp fuse rather than a 10 does this sound like a good idea? It seems a little dodgy to me and may cause other problems because the manual clearly states 10amp
 
no, I'd stick with 10amp is there for a reason. In fact your ballast should draw less current anyway so strictly speaking should be a 7 or 8.
The positive wire touching the chassis will defo blow the fuse, so circa 10amps flowed until the fuse popped. Putting in a 20amp then 20amp will flow if this happens again, depending on the gauge of wire it might not handle 20amps well and the insulation could melt, causing you big headaches.....
 
HtheDON said:
Thanks for all the feedback. I got the HID checked and the bulb was fine, so was the ballast. The problem was a blown fuse. I think this blew because on of the positive wires was touching the metal in the engine bay. I hope that's the problem illhave to wait and see. I did have condensation in the headlights but that seems tohave gone a while ago. I also have I tiny crack on the actual projector lense in the headlight but never caused any problems.
The electrical guy advised maybe I should use a 20amp fuse rather than a 10 does this sound like a good idea? It seems a little dodgy to me and may cause other problems because the manual clearly states 10amp
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Read post number 8.

I had the same issue as you. Put new fuses in and it has been fine since. The fuse in your car would have been 7ys old so was probably weak anyway. That was the case on mine.
I also have a crack in the projector on the driverside but output is fine. I wouldn't worry about it.
Stick with 10amp, Its 10amp for a reason. Just keep a couple of spares in the car if it worry's you until your confident the problem is solved.
 
crespo said:
Read post number 8.

I had the same issue as you. Put new fuses in and it has been fine since. The fuse in your car would have been 7ys old so was probably weak anyway. That was the case on mine.
I also have a crack in the projector on the driverside but output is fine. I wouldn't worry about it.
Stick with 10amp, Its 10amp for a reason. Just keep a couple of spares in the car if it worry's you until your confident the problem is solved.
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I'd be interested to know if fitting new fuses has cured the problem for anybody. My 2003 Accord EATS bulbs, especially on the near side, most winters it needs changing 2 or 3 times. This year it was doing ok until 2 weeks ago, now the replacement has blown. They aren't cheap ones, they're Osram Nightbreakers.
 
snapper69 said:
I'd be interested to know if fitting new fuses has cured the problem for anybody. My 2003 Accord EATS bulbs, especially on the near side, most winters it needs changing 2 or 3 times. This year it was doing ok until 2 weeks ago, now the replacement has blown. They aren't cheap ones, they're Osram Nightbreakers.
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I went through a phase of blown lamps, but a change of supplier has put that right (for now, at least). It was always worse in winter and around 5 weeks lifetime before failure - I was fitting replacement H1 (apparently genuine) Lucas lamps from a nearby garage, but when I got some from Halfrauds (sorry) the problem went away. Also on the n/s, btw.

If the glass has cracked, resulting in the failure, then it could be a damp problem. If the filament has blown (but glass uncracked), then it could be a voltage spike/regulation issue. But it could just be rubbish lamps?
 
mine used to blow lamps almost every month. and only the bulb on the battery side used to blow. I was told by a technician at honda to add or install new ground cables from battery to body and engine of car.
So i put a new cable running from battery terminal to gearbox and another from battery to the opposite side strut brace bolt and ever since that ive never changed a bulb... :)
 
Had another one go today, an expensive Philips, so not a ***** one. Beforehand I've done 2 x Osram Nightbreakers and what was in it when I bought it.

I'm going to try the earth strap idea as recommended, and also swap the fuses. Anything to sort out having to replace a headlight bulb every couple of months!
 
tartje said:
Had another one go today, an expensive Philips, so not a ***** one. Beforehand I've done 2 x Osram Nightbreakers and what was in it when I bought it.

I'm going to try the earth strap idea as recommended, and also swap the fuses. Anything to sort out having to replace a headlight bulb every couple of months!
Click to expand...
So was it just the lamp filament that had failed, or had the glass envelope also cracked?
 
snapper69 said:
I replaced the fuses in January and I haven't had a bulb blow since. Thanks for the advice.
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Which fuses was it you replaced? Does it need every single fuse in the car doing, or just those relating to the headlights?
 
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