I just happen to have my old bulb laying right here on my desk and printed on it is:

Philips Germany
D2S 35W 85122
(E1)03V DOT E104

I believe that if you order the Philips D2S, you shouldn't have to worry about the color temperature.

I will look to see if I kept the information about the web site where I bought mine. You're in luck, I kept the emails here is the URL: http://www.autodirectsave.com/philip...enon_bulbs.asp

These are the same bulbs that Honda uses and this was the best price that I found in January 2004.

PS...pull the bumper and make this easy on yourself. I would make sure that you have the security Torx socket that you need to remove the headlight before you do anything else. The Helms calls it a tamper-proof T25 Torx bit. It looks like a normal Torx bit with a hole drilled in the end. I bought mine at Lowe's.

I would swap the headlight bulbs first, they are the easiest. You might want to check the grounds in the front area, especially since you mentioned that the side marker is dim. I would check the marker bulb and make sure that it is the correct bulb.

 

Well, I went overboard (surprise) and pulled the bumper and the wheel well liners (all the way out - for a good cleaning/dressing), detailed the stuff in the wheel well, scrubbed and detailed the hell outta the inside of the wheels (AIO+SG to keep 'em looking good), greased my brake shims (squeal!) and spot sanded and primered/sealed a couple little rust spots on the bumper brace...

Oh, and I swaped the bulbs

Guess what? It's not the bulb. Grr.
Both had a little "burn" or more like ash/crud looking bit inside the glass (that'd be the "salts" boiler referred to earlier").

I'll swap the ballasts next and check the grounds as suggested. Of course, the car's all put back together now... Gotta be able to drive.

To be honest, I didn't find the bumper to be a problem in accessing the assembly, just a PITA... I think I'll just jack it up, pull the wheels and pull the liners back tomorrow. Oh, and the right sized flat-headed jeweler's screwdriver works great for the low-torque T25 screws.

Thanks!

 

rule #1 When attempting to troubleshoot a problem, pay attention to what you're doing (so as not to put the bulbs back in the assemblies you took them out of).

I swapped the ballasts without touching the bulbs (for just the bulbs, I say go for peeling back the wheel well liner, for the ballasts - definitely pull the bumper!) and got the same drivers-side burn-out. Argh. Swap the bulbs. The burn-out follows the bulb across to the passenger side. Switch it back to make sure, yup. I'm a moron.

Oh well, I was able to clean up my rotors a bit. So much for that cadmium coating lasting...

I'll order a pair of bulbs tonight.

 

Don't be too hard on your self. You realized what happened and learned from it. This is how I learn, by making a mistake and correcting the error.

Good job. I think that your symptoms are a characteristic of these bulbs when they finally go bad. I just wish that they didn't cost so much.

When I'm working on something, rather than getting frustrated, I will remove anything in the way of doing the job. It makes my life a lot easier. I found that it was easiest for me to remove the bumper and then remove the headlight assembly and take the work to a work bench or table to actually switch the bulbs. It may take a few minutes longer, but it is soooo much more enjoyable for me.

 

Oddly enough, now that I've moved things around (still haven't ordered the new bulbs... local dealer wants $212/ea ) the light is staying on for quite a while, at least for short trips.

Thanks for the help again. I guess it was fun? Still gotta grease those rear brake shims

 

another new development - the suspect bulb flashing on/off rapidly... Just updating this thread in case someone else runs into a light problem... Thought I'd throw in more symptoms

 

These bulbs are similiar to the street lamps that we see everynight. One of the symptoms of impending disaster is the failure of the bulb/lamp to start an arc and maintain it. I have street lamps in my neighborhood that will start and then go out and start again, over and over.

 

This was an interesting read, guys. I would've bet on the ballast not the bulb as the source of the problem. I thought the bulbs were rated for some ungodly number of hours.

Learn something new every day.

 

Well, it's finally given out completely. It just barely sparks up when I switch them on and turns off immediately.

Chazmo: They are rated for some ungodly number of hours, but like I said, I drive with my headlights on ALL the time... Sort of wishing for daytime running lights instead, but hell, nearly 80k miles with the headlights on over 5 years is pretty good. I had to replace my GSR's bulbs at least twice in 35k, if I remember correctly.

Thanks again for all the input and help on this. Hopefully this thread will serve someone else in identifying their own light problems

edit: And to top it off, my "driver's side" monitor is on the fritz (3-display setup), flashing and changing color now (after 13 years)... I hope nothing else on my left side goes out!