Bulb failure indicator

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Technical Discussion' started by hlunde, Dec 21, 2011.

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  1. hlunde

    hlunde Member

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    Daughter just called (2010 Prius) and said that someone told her that a headlamp is out. Is there not a bulb failure indicator on the dashboard?
     
    #1 hlunde, Dec 21, 2011
  2. firepa63

    firepa63 Former Prius Owner

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    No indicator...
     
    #2 firepa63, Dec 21, 2011
  3. hlunde

    hlunde Member

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    Thanks!

    Last car I had without an bulb failure indicator was an 1976 Plymouth Volare. The half dozen cars I've had since then have all had indicators, until I bought the 2010 Prius.
     
    #3 hlunde, Dec 21, 2011
  4. mgb4tim

    mgb4tim Noob

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    Never noticed if any of my previous cars had them, Cadillacs, Buicks, and Fords. I guess I never lost a headlamp. Wouldn't you notice that it was kinda dark? Now, I can see a dash indicator as practical for tail lamps, but not headlamps.
     
    #4 mgb4tim, Dec 21, 2011
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  5. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    My last Ford, an '84, had it for taillamps and low beams, not high beams.

    None of my Japanese-branded cars have had it. For taillights, they all have/had multiple lamps on each side, so a single bulb failure is not a serious problem for operators who ever check their lights. Likewise, headlights are not a problem for an attentive operator.

    But I'm well aware that many operators are inattentive. A carpool partner didn't notice a headlight so seriously misaimed it was effectively out, and didn't fix it until I nagged for several weeks. And the number of vehicles with a single functioning brake lamp, or even none, is surprisingly large. And for some reason, pickups and SUVs seem overrepresented, though that may be related to the lack of high center-mount brake lamps on many of them.
     
    #5 fuzzy1, Dec 21, 2011
  6. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    Interesting. None of my cars had an indicator...

    1986 Jeep Grand Wagoner
    1987 Mustang GT
    1989 Chevy S10 Blazer
    1990 Mustang GT
    1990 Chevy 454SS pickup
    1998 Ford Expedition
    2000 Pontiac Trans Am
    2000 Chevy Camaro
    2000 Chevy C5 Corvette
    2001 GMC Sierra ext.cab Z71
    2002 Chevy Silverado
    2005 Toyota Prius

    Or maybe I just never saw the indicator light up? lol
     
    #6 F8L, Dec 21, 2011
  7. hlunde

    hlunde Member

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    Car was being driven in daytime the rain with the headlights on (as required by law) so the lighting loss was not obvious.
     
    #7 hlunde, Dec 21, 2011
  8. hlunde

    hlunde Member

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    Interesting that you never lost a headlight. You'll see a number of threads here about premature headlamp failures on Prius, so at least there's a need for an indicator on these cars.
     
    #8 hlunde, Dec 21, 2011
  9. hlunde

    hlunde Member

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    I still own two cars that have headlamp malfunction indicators (2001 Audi and 1995 Volvo). Volvo has DRLS so indicator might even allow you to replace the bad light bulb before you ever drive at night.
     
    #9 hlunde, Dec 21, 2011
  10. hlunde

    hlunde Member

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    Follow up: Bulbs and connectors types are very typical (H11 low beam and 9005 high beam) and it literally only takes a minute or two to change each one. Nominal life for H11 is 550 hours per Sylvania -- not that long, especially if you keep your lights on all the time. Sylvania also mentions performance degradation over the 550 hour lifetime.
     
    #10 hlunde, Dec 21, 2011
  11. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    Presumably the car is also driven at night on occasion, so a failed headlight shouldn't go unnoticed very long.
     
    #11 fuzzy1, Dec 21, 2011
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  12. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    Interesting. My only car to have these indicators was a 1984 Mustang LX, four cylinder. But they were part of a common option package, not standard equipment.
     
    #12 fuzzy1, Dec 22, 2011
  13. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    My Prius has bulb failure indicators on the front of the car, one on each side.

    Tom
     
    #13 qbee42, Dec 22, 2011
  14. tumbleweed

    tumbleweed Senior Member

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    A lot of European cars have a bulb failure indication, most American and Japanese cars do not.
     
    #14 tumbleweed, Dec 23, 2011
  15. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    I hope those are just headlight indicators, with separate taillight indicators on back.
     
    #15 fuzzy1, Dec 23, 2011
  16. wick1ert

    wick1ert Senior Member

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    I ended up behind a car with no functioning brake lights. Imagine my surprise when all of a sudden that car was approaching REALLY fast from in front of me. The second I was able to over-take that car, I did.

    I've also been behind vehicles with only 1 functioning brake light a few times. I was behind a friends Prius once, that both tail lights were out, but luckily the brake lights were separate (GEN 2) so those worked. I follwed them home, much to their surprise, to let them know. They replaced them the next morning, when they were able to go to the store and pick up replacements.
     
    #16 wick1ert, Dec 23, 2011
  17. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    A nice thing about all the household's Hondas was that they all came with spare brake/taillight and turn signal bulbs snapped into a clip inside the access cover. Dead lamps could therefore be replaced seconds after discovery, so the trip to the store the next day was simply to restock the spare storage clip.
     
    #17 fuzzy1, Dec 23, 2011
  18. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    Exactly. It does have brake light indicators in the back. There is also a convenient glove box light indicator that shows an LED failure by going dark.

    Tom
     
    #18 qbee42, Dec 23, 2011
  19. JGC61

    JGC61 Active Member

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    A 1990 Toyota Camry had a bulb failure indicator.
     
    #19 JGC61, Dec 23, 2011
  20. El Dobro

    El Dobro A Member

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    Older GM cars used to monitor bulbs using fiber optics. My VWs had bulb failure monitors. The bulbs were about the only things not failing on the VWs.
     
    #20 El Dobro, Dec 24, 2011
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