I got a 2001 A4 about 6 months ago. It's running H7 high beams, and HID D2S low beams. Right now it has HID OSRAM XENARC #66040 bulbs. They also read 35W and have [E]1 on them, amongst other numbers that seem unimportant. I'm not sure how old the bulbs are, I'm assuming they were 4,300K when put it.

The right lowbeam is out, and i get the lighted warning and tone in my dash that says a headlight is out. I tried moving the bulb from the left lowbeam over to the right and that resulted with the left still lit and the right out. So I know both bulbs are still good, and that something else is wrong...

I'm a newbie here, all I know is what I've read about in these forums. What do I do now? Can I test if it's the ballast? Is it easy to move a ballast from one side to the other to test this? What other things might be wrong? It was working, and then one day it was just out and i was getting beeped at!

I really don't want to take it into a dealership and have them charge me $900 for a new housing or some crap if it's not necissary, but I really don't know what I'm doing here at this point. Any help, greatly appreciated.




Also, this might need to go into another catagory, but if I end up having to fix something serious, or get new bulbs, what would you all recomment as far as upgrades, bulb temps, etc. Should i just keep what I have and fix/replace, or should i upgrade while im stuck fixing this...?

Thanks!
-Matt

 

I'm assuming you already visibily checked all the wires so I suggest getting a multimeter and check for 12volts at wire harness connector, if no then its the wire harness take it to a shop. You generally want to avoid the stealership. If you do get 12volts then the problem is in the housing connection. Open the dust cover and connector cover then check connection to the lowbeam for 12volts or continuity. Most cases its just a bad ground or loose wire which is easily replaced. Good luck.

 

Swap the ignitor/ballasts to see the problem moves.

 

I've done some basic electrical work on my old nissan, but i'm not so sure I know what i'm doing on an audi. I'll try just swapping the ballasts first. Then maybe I will attempt to test for volts, but I'm not sure where to touch the leads to... Any danger of zapping myself if I do this wrong? (stupid question, but, seriously, can this be done with just common sense or should I beware of anything).

-Matt

 

There is high voltage from the ignitor to start current flowing. Don't check voltage.

 

^^^ thank you, yeah don't touch the wires coming out of the ballast or ignighters.

 

Ok, so I took my car in to a trustworthy shop and they said that the "ignitor" for the xeon bulb is dead. They said the part alone is about $450! Is the "ignitor" the same as the ballast? Should it cost that much? Is this something I can buy myself and swap out myself, or should I have the $$$ pros fix it?

Thanks.

-Matt

 

http://www.car-part.com/dealersaz.shtml

 

Ok, so the verdict is out. I have had two repair shops tell me that I need a new ignitor. They are saying this isn't too difficult to swap out, so I'm really hoping I can figure out where to find the part and how to swap it out myself.

Can anyone help me find a good place to buy the ignitor, and give me some basic instructions on how to swap it with the dead one? Some have suggested just looking to ebay the entire headlight assembly, used, which might in the end be cheaper than trying to buy a new ignitor. what would you all suggest? thanks!

-Matt

 

I am having a problem with my Xenarc over driver's side. I just got a brand new one out of Advanced AutoParts ($130 a piece), plug that in and intermittency is still there. So its either on or off with that German sign warning. My understanding that igniter is the=at box where the bulb is attached so it is not removable. I'll try to place it over passenger's side to see if the thing is working. After that what could be the next to look?
The reason I've purchased the bulb right away bc I've done break light and intermittency was the same on and off for sometimes.


Thanks to all