Lights out, Apparently Toyota isn’t home. (Prius HID lights fault)
Hello there. Are you one of the many thousands who have a Prius, or any Toyota vehicle with HID Lights which are supposed to last for 10x longer than standard bulbs, and had it last less than 1Yr’s time?
Then, you’ve come to the right place.
A few high level examples of information:
A typical Halogen headlamp has a service life of ~450-1000 Hrs.
A typical HID headlamp has a service life of ~2000 Hrs.
So, given that math. I would have to drive my car every day for ~6hrs in order for my bulb to start to fail within a years time. Sadly, I did not drive it that much. However it still did enter to a point of failure. Failure which was considerably unsafe resulting in both of my headlights turning off at a number of points while driving on dark roads, luckily no one was ever hurt.
Oh, did I mention this was my second set of HID bulbs to be replaced? The first time, replaced “Under warranty” at no cost to me. The second time, Toyota has advised they will replace “Parts+Tax” however, I will have to pickup the labor. While that sure is nice of them. I wish I weren’t the only of thousands experiencing this problem. This problem blatantly ignored by Toyota who only responds on an AdHoc, Opt-In basis, requiring US the consumer to do something about it – To reach out and contact Toyota on it.
This is very clearly a safety issue. An issue which forces the consumer to front money and services to pay for something which Toyota knows is wrong and is their mistake. This safety issue should be addressed as a Parts Recall and replacement, not having us figure out to call Toyota (800) 331-4331 and open a case in order to “try” to get this resolved. You most likely will be in contact with Heather, as a lot of us have.
It should also be noted, that if you’re experiencing this issue – Even if you’ve gotten it resolved whether under warranty or out of warranty (As I’ve had it fixed in both cases) you should file a complaint with the Office of Defects, so this is on record and our voices heard.
Hopefully you will be able to get your problem fixed and resolved in a timely and safer fashion, without having to resort to the extortion of paying out of pocket $902.88 (or more) and wait 2-3 weeks for a reimbursement of Parts+Tax, having to shell out the $137.80 (more or less) for labor, while paying for these HID Bulbs which are being quoted at ~$350 a pop, even though you can get an equivalent replacement for $175 for a PAIR. But I imagine my definition of extortion is completely off base. It probably has less to do with being sold something with an expectation it will work and actually getting it to work and not get screwed around when it in fact does not work as advertised.
Good luck out there with all your 2006, 2007, 2008 and beyond Priuses and other Toyota vehicles with HID lights which also suffered from this bad apple. Don’t wait to open a case, and don’t get screwed by your dealership either in or out of warranty about this. Toyota knows about this, and it is up to you the educated consumer to act on your behalf because they certainly are doing everything in their power to make sure that you have to jump through as many hoops as possible.