Gen3 2010 2011 Headlight bulb longevity - upgrade to HID?

Replacement part from TSB is $24 + shipping from 82114-47010 - OEM Toyota WIRE, ENGINE ROOM, N

Anyone know what this kit does other than change the wire?

 

And how does that make the bulb last longer?

Thanks!

 

Read through the TSB, it looks like the heavier gauge wire is just spliced onto the end of the original harness. The whole harness isn't replaced with thicker wires.

SCH-I535

 

I read through it several times. That is the worst written technical instruction I have seen. I would need to see the No. 4 wire harness to understand all of what they are talking about.

Anybody have a picture?

If its just a heavier wire, then that is easily accomplished in other ways.

 

Yeah, it seems like only one of the wires is taken care of, not both conductors, because only one wire is spliced/crimped.

SCH-I535

 

Our original bulbs are still going strong at 4 1/2 years

Perhaps there are some bad replacement bulbs around.

How does a heavier gauge wire make a halogen bulb last longer?

 

At 62,000 miles, I'm on my third set of headlamp bulbs. After my Gen 2 HID bulb debacle where the car ate six sets of very expensive HID bulbs over 220,000 miles; I specifically bought a Gen 3 Prius 4 because it had halogen bulbs. Toyota proved they were incapable of producing Gen 2 HID lamps that worked, and now they proved that they can't make Gen 3 halogen lamps that work either. Actually pretty pathetic.

 

One question, do you leave your headlight switch in the On position?

Starting your car with the switch in the On position subjects the bulbs to voltage and current fluctuations (surges/spikes) present during startup. Turning your headlights on even a few seconds after startup allows the current to stabilize and will be much better for bulb longevity.

SCH-I535

 

I use my headlamps as DRL's so I never switch them off. I've driven using this practice for over thirty years and only began experiencing premature bulb failure with Prius. If in fact the Prius electrical system is unstable during start-up, that tells me that the other cars I've owned over thirty years clearly had better regulated electrical systems.

 

The two DRL modules that I have links to in the first post of my highbeam DRL mod (link in sig below) are high quality.

I have the deluxe model, but the economy model should be the same, except it doesn't have a user replaceable fuse.

Comes on automatically by using "soft start" by sensing voltage change during startup. And it drives the highbeams at 1/3 power, so you'll be using only about 40w instead of the 110w for the headlights, not including the running lights you are using.

SCH-I535

 

FYI. I have almost 4.6 years and 156,000 miles on my gen III and have had to replace one bulb.

 

Bulbs dim with age, you should replace them in pairs.

SCH-I535

 

I just got my 2014 prius 2 and my low beams suck, the led drls are brighter than my lowbeams! Is retrofit hid the best and do they void the warranty?

 

A decent HID kit will make a big difference.

It wouldn't void the warranty unless you installed it with a chainsaw... a plug and play kit is fine as at 35 watts there is actually less energy used than with your standard 55 watt H11 bulbs. I'd stay away from the hotter 55 watt HID kits, marginal increase in light output, if any, and possible heat damage to your projector housing.

Roland

 

160,000 kms with 55 watt hids. No problems with projector housing. Same bulb. HIDs actually run marginally cooler than halogens.