XENON...2 Bulbs, 2 Days, One Headlight (Solution)

Hi there,

I'm currently dealing with my headlights (Xenon). Yesterday, the left headlight was dark. It was basically 'game over.' Well, it's understandable after 150,000 km with constant lighting (day and night).
So, you can get it replaced (for 175 euros ) and be happy again.

The next morning: Get in the car and go. After 5 kilometers... 'Game over' for the front left tire! Again!

So, back to the workshop again.

Does anyone know of a similar phenomenon?

Can the light bulb be tested?

Perhaps it's an installation error made by the workshop?
Or is there a fault in the control system (ballast)?

Remove the pear and check if it's still intact.
If the glass has a slightly brownish tint, it's okay.
Wenn es Grau bis Schwarz ist . DEFECTIVE.

The ballasts and the bulbs are balanced in terms of how likely they are to break down.

Also, ich war dann in der Werkstatt....Lampe war zum Glück noch i.O.

Aber die Sicherung war durch....

I didn't realize that the headlights are insured separately (left and right).


Anyway... thanks for your help.

By the way, these ballast devices cost around 10 euros to manufacture (I used to work for a supplier company).

Okay, so you should have stocked up on some of those earlier... VW really wants to see a good supply available. By the way, if you're patient and have a lot of willpower, the "DS" (or whatever they're actually called) xenon bulbs are universal and can be found quite cheaply online. If the ballast is defective, you can usually identify that beforehand with a diagnostic check!

Guys... it gets even worse.

I had some free time today and decided to open up my headlight assembly.

After two more fuses blew last night, I...
fed up.

Okay:

Fuse removed, measuring against ground: 0 ohms for the left headlight, infinite ohms for the right headlight.
Okay, so disconnect the plug from the entire headlight assembly... Resistance is infinite... The cable is fine.
Then I'll take a peek inside the open headlight from behind... AHA!

A delicate yellow cable cheerfully rubs against a metal tab inside the headlight.
Awesome construction .
Hella deserves some praise for that.


I insulated the cable and added some padding (foam) for protection.
Everything assembled, but the resistance is still infinite... great.
Licht an......funzt!

Meine Vermutung ist nun, das die Fuzzies in der Werkstatt eine vollkommen intakte Birne in die Tonne getreten haben und ich 180 Euro bezahlt habe für eine neue...die ich nicht brauchte....


If you don't do everything yourself... grrrrrr...


But perhaps it will help you, as the construction should be similar in most A6 models.
Because it is still physically very unlikely for a shielded gas arc to break down. Also, the power supplies are actually quite robust.

When replacing bulbs or ballasts, you inevitably touch some wires (the short circuit disappears)... and magically, everything is working again.