I'm pretty new to this website and can't find if there's a place for Gen 1 Prii. If there is, please direct me to it, and I will delete this post and move it to there. I have a 2002 Prius, and I was looking to change out the bulb inside the dome light to a LED bulb. The previous stock bulb worked fine, but I just wanted to upgrade. While I was changing out the dome light, I also changed out the map lights and the ashtray light to LEDs. During this process, I burnt out fuse 17, which I then replaced. Now the ashtray light and the two map lights work great, but the dome light will not turn on. I've bent the prongs of the bulb holder, made sure the plug with the wires in it is snug in its housing, and so on. I get an occasional flicker when I'm moving the bulb around, but the bulb does not seem to stay on. The bulb that I bought is a DE3175 LED Bulb - 4 LED Festoon -30mm from superbrightleds. I can't post a link because of my newness to this site and lack of post history. I think the bulb is okay, but I'm not completely sure. Do you people know where to go from here? Thanks for any help in advance.
Although a festoon bulb will fit either way, and an incandescent bulb will work either way, a Festoon LED will only work in one direction. Try flipping it end-for-end.
Sorry about the delay, I had circumstances that prevented me from being at a computer for a while there. So, it turns out that the bulb works, but only occasionally. I have to whack the dome light to properly seat the bulb/have the contacts touch in just the right way to make the bulb turn on. It is still finicky, so does anyone know how to clean the contacts? There seems to be some white lithium grease or something on the main slider, but I think that's supposed to be there. If it's not a contact problem, what could it be?
A nice vigorous alcohol swabbing, or a rubber pencil eraser, ought to do nicely. Sanding or emery can remove not only contamination, but the plating on the contacts, making them more prone to get bad in the future.
