Is it just me? The Protege5 goes thru headlight bulbs like its food

I just started reading this thread. I too have experienced the OEM GE bulbs burning out about every year or so. My previous 2 cars, both Pontiacs, went through lights maybe every 3-5 years (I really never noticed since they never gave me any consistant issues). The P5 has been noticeable now, and I understand how easy it is to remedy, but still a pain in the butt. I continue to buy the GE bulbs because they're cheapest, and relative to the Sylvania's, they last longer since they give off less light.

I have read numours posts about HID. What does HID mean? And has anyone every purchased them at Canadian Tire (Canada)?
 
I havent had to replace my light bulbs this year yet. One of them, or both usually go out once a year. Its a small problem but its getting annoying.
 
don't turn your lights on tonight then......everytime someone says that....wham
 
HID = High Intensity Discharge.

there are many places to get them

PM Protephile on here.

And yes, beware this thread is cursed!
 
Pro5x2 said:
don't turn your lights on tonight then......everytime someone says that....wham
Click to expand...

Not exactly sure what that means, but in Ontario, lights on a car stay on all of the time, as per our safety laws. Without removing them every day manually, I actually can't turn them off at will. And if I did, I would most likely get fined for it.

But beyond this, I think there's evidence enough to show that the bulbs used for this vehicle have a shorter life than most vehicles for whatever reason. I guess the information I was seeking was if there was a product beyond the OEM that can help with this issue. With the brighter halogens available, there doesn't seem to be, as the brighter lights seem to last even less time.
 
HID does mean longer life, cause they come with a ballast, that regulates the voltage cause they require less power. and they arent a filament like halogen bulbs. anyways, just do some quick google research on them. they are a kit, and if you have a p5, they are pretty much plug and play. Took me an hour and i am a wuss. and they are much brighter. wait, you are in canada, so there is some more to it, because of your daytime running lights.
 
Rockin03mp5 said:
HID does mean longer life, cause they come with a ballast, that regulates the voltage cause they require less power. and they arent a filament like halogen bulbs. anyways, just do some quick google research on them. they are a kit, and if you have a p5, they are pretty much plug and play. Took me an hour and i am a wuss. and they are much brighter. wait, you are in canada, so there is some more to it, because of your daytime running lights.
Click to expand...


Do the DRL mod and you're good to go with HID!
 
Holy wow! I installed the Philips Vision Plus bulbs ($27) yesterday. What a difference! They are noticably brighter. Took me 5 minutes to switch em out, thanks to the How To. Anyway, I recommend the Pilips.
 
Dunno, I've had my P5 for 6 months, and who knows how old the bulbs were when I got it. I was waiting for them to burn out.
 
i have had my sp20 (aussie p5 version) for about 2 months now.

i change all the globes to get even wear.
the wiring and connectors look really filmsy compared to a my old bg familia which were wired up with good gauge wire.

with previous cars that have burnt up globes reguarly, most of the times... it has been due to a the ground/earth wire not having a good connection.

I always tapped into the wire and find a suitable location and bolt it down to give it a extra and more stronger earth connection, and that has elimated burning the bulbs
 
If your P5 is going through a lot of low beam bulbs it's because the spring clip that holds them in has been deformed and is not holding them in place firmly. This allows the bulbs to vibrate on rough roads or when crossing something like RR tracks. Vibrating a bulb with a hot filament creates instant burnout. (If you are using Sylvania Silverstars, the problem is even worse because of their short lifespan).

The spring clip is easily deformed if you press down to hard when trying to release the clip. Easy to do because the clip is in an awkward location that makes it difficult to move them laterally off the hook. The clips can also be deformed when trying to unplug the wiring harness if you don't hold the bulb receptacle in place while pulling on the plug. But his is why burnouts seem to happen more often after replacing the OEM's.

To test to see if this is your problem, unplug the wiring harness and remove the dust boot, leave the bulb and spring clip in place. With the tip of your index finger lightly try to wiggle the bulb contacts from side-to side and up and down. If there is any movement at all, your clip is deformed.

To fix it you have to remove the clip and re-bend it so both sides of the clip evenly contact the back of the bulb receptacle when the end of the clip is still about 1/4" away from the hook. This is best done with two persons unless you are really good at working while looking in a mirror. A lady friend with small hands makes an excellent assistant. Make sure you have a good hold on the clip when you loosen the screw on the "hinge side" (you only have to loosen it, not take it all the way out, in order to slip the clip out). Otherwise it can fall into to pretty inaccessible places (personal experience).

This takes a little trial and error to get it right, but youll know when its right the instant you perform the wiggle test.

Whoever thought this retaining system was a good idea should have their head examined.
Whoever designs a bolt-on alternative will make some money.
 
There is no doubt this car has a problem with healights. This is the 10th car I have owned, and by far the most economical and reliable. My question is, why was there not a recall on this?
 
Damn it...... read this thread yesterday afternoon and my passenger headlight went out this morning! Can we revisit deleting this cursed thread?
 
headlight problems

Hi Guys,

My wife and I are a new Protege 5 owner, and last night I drove home with no problems at all ( with the headlights)

My wife started the car this morning and it had NO DRL, and then turned on the headlights and only one headlight would turn on.

The car had perfectly working lights when i got home last night...and 7 hours later they were not working.

When the lights blow on these cars, do they all go??? Seams kinda weird to me.

any help would be great.

Phil
 
Arrrrg bulbs!

My fiancee's P5 EATS bulbs alive. She alternates replacing the bulbs like every 2-3 months. Its the left, and then the right, wash, rinse, repeat. It's been going like this for the past probably 6-8 months. We are racking up quite a bill from $30 for 2 bulbs.

Just today her battery light came on. Could a bad alternator have anything to do with possible voltage spikes that would be knocking these things out prematurely?
 
milfriez said:
My fiancee's P5 EATS bulbs alive. She alternates replacing the bulbs like every 2-3 months. Its the left, and then the right, wash, rinse, repeat. It's been going like this for the past probably 6-8 months. We are racking up quite a bill from $30 for 2 bulbs.

Just today her battery light came on. Could a bad alternator have anything to do with possible voltage spikes that would be knocking these things out prematurely?
Click to expand...

This is why when a bulb goes out, you replace both at the same time. Of course the other will go out before the one you just replaced if you only do one at a time.

Also make sure you aren't touching the bulbs with your bare hands, I would wear doctors gloves to prevent any unwanted hand oils from getting on the bulbs as that can drastically affect the life of the bulb.
 
Maybe I should have prefaced the question with I'm 29 and have been changing car bulbs for over 15 years now....

Yes, its obvious they are going to alternate when burning out, that is not what bothers me. What bothers me is the frequency of these bulbs burning out, its honestly probably closer to 2 months per bulb. So every one month we are changing a different one. I previously owned a 2000 Protege who's bulbs lasted for years on end. And my MS3's high beams are completely fine as well. Changing them both at the same time will prevent doing it every month, but they are still going to burn out in 2 months time, which to me. is WAY too frequent.

I'm clear on the whole "welcome to owning a car, here is how to change a light. My question was regarding alternator and current, and the affect it might have on the bulbs prematurely going out.
 
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