Headlight issues
 

So, first my driver's side daytime running light went out. That, I could deal with temporarily. I did try to check the fuses, but as I don't have an owner's manual I had to get a grid off the interwebz and try to figure out the little card in the fuse door. I didn't see any that were open, but I didn't pull every single one, because I didn't want to reset anything important. I think I can figure out which ones go to the headlights, but I'm pretty sure it's not fuse related anyway.

NOW, I have low beams on both sides that are almost non-existent. Brights work. Can't see anything with DRLs. Can't see anything at night with low-beams, they're on but might as well not be. They're like candles.

I don't have the cash flow to go through a bunch of crap...does anyone have any ideas? I have instructions for removing the headlight assembly but haven't tried it yet. I just want to fix this as cheaply as possible, because of the whole 'getting blood from a turnip' thing.

Oh, it's a VW: 2006 Beetle Convert...if that makes a difference.

Thanks for any help anyone can give me.

I didn't have time to read your whole post so my advice is based solely on the thread title.
First, I'd turn up the thermostat. If that doesn't work, try a padded bra, or you could just wear a baggy sweater.

Hope that helps.

When my tail light went out I took it to the dealer I bought the car from and the shop there replaced it for $5 or some other insanely cheap price.

That was after trying to fix it myself but my lights were under layers of housings and screws.

Oh man...come on, you have a more developed sense of humor than that don't you? (get it? developed?) That sounded like something a poster who shall remain nameless would say when they think they're really funny. But they're not. :facepalm:

;)

I thought about stopping at the dealer...I don't know if anything is covered or not. I don't understand all the warranty crap. I just don't want to get screwed if I can do it myself.

What I don't understand is how it changed. A simple bulb out (pricey little fuckers that they are) made sense...I don't know what happened after that.

Thanks! :)

I lol'd. OK seriously though. Are other lights and electrical things at full power? sometimes if everything is dimming it can be a bad alternator not recharging the battery or hopefully just a loose alternator belt.
that's all I got, except maybe corrosion on some wires not letting all the juice get to the fixture. different from a loose wire where you get intermittent connections.

Electrical stuff suxxors

Clodfobble's brain ate your brain, apparently. You were left with a merc-like sense of humor.

I'll just wait patiently for help from tw...someone will use it as an excuse to get a jab in, but small minds and all...

Well NOW you edit. You sneak. ;)

Hmmm, it seems that all other electrical stuff is working OK. The corroded contacts is a good thing to look for.

Thank you. :)

p.s. I didn't mean you with the small minds comment. You, I reserve my best shit-giving for, and it's never for real.

Weird that they are just getting dim and haven't burned out completely.

A fuse would either be working or blown out and not working at all. Same with a bulb. You have both bulbs being dim. Something fishy going on.

Does the other electrical stuff on the car work fine? Like does it turn over with a lot of gusto when you start it?

Yeah, it turns over normally. Brights work fine. The lid goes up and down fine.

It must have Shawitis. Everything I touch or get near turns to shit.

Is there another light or another component out somewhere else? My old Jetta used to have some pretty wacky wiring where you'd lose the ground when a different component went.

Hmmm...my brother said one of the little back-up lights was out. It's like a little rectangle. I wasn't too concerned about it, thinking I won't get pulled over unless I'm backing down the highway, and thinking it probably wasn't related.

Hmmm hmmm hmmm...thanks...that might be a good clue!

When did it start?
Have they been getting progressively dimmer over time or did it just happen all at once?
Does revving the engine make them brighter?
Is it sporadic or consistent?
Did the low-beams get dim AFTER you played with the fuses?

Off the cuff, it sounds like you have a bad ground or some type of short in the system or a bad switch. All are guesses of course.

Well, with the time change I haven't really been out much in the dark...so I just noticed it the other night. I do know it started being dim after I messed with the fuses, but I don't know if it was immediately after.

They don't seem to dim and brighten with engine use.

It's consistent.

Crud...this is starting to worry me.

All good questions. Thank you!

Since they were fine (assumption) BEFORE you messed with the fuses... maybe you got one that is only 1/2 in of not pushed down all the way - something like that. Maybe you mixed up the fuses or something. Perhaps another look there as well.
Its usually something stupid that takes time to find. Do you have the Haines manual on the car?

I don't have any manual.

I did open the fuse door and make sure they were all pushed in snug, yesterday.

Get the one for your car. This s a virtual Must have

Or try here

I've looked at them before. Just never got one. Right now, I'd probably spend more on the manual than the fix...but I know I need one, and will probably get one at a later date.

Thanks! :)

Shawnee, are you remembering to remove your sunglasses when it gets dark? :cool:

Did you try putting your tongue on it? That's the first thing I do when I have an electrical problem of any sort.

That manual will let you find and trace the electrical circuit.

Headlight for post 2006 Beetles is an H7 bulb. Two separate bulbs in one glass envelope. That means high beams and low beams are powered by separate wires - separate circuits.

If a fuse caused a failure, then the headlight would be out. Dimming is another (different) problem. And complicated by Daylight Running Lights (DRL). DRL means something lowers voltage - some kind of black box that could be a resistor or more likely some electronics. When headlights are powered on, then something bypasses that black box. Puts all 12 volts to the low beam filament – one of two lights inside that glass envelope.

When you switch to high beams, then that low bean filament is powered off. 12 volt then connects to the other filament - the high beam.

Unusual for the typical halogen bulb to just dim. Either it works or it blows out. And therefore that is about as far as I can go since I do not have schematics for the headlight circuit.

Traditionally, the Chilton, et al manuals do not provide those facts. Chilton does not write their own manuals. Manual is written by VW. The VW manual would have information necessary to further diagnosis. Chilton simply copies selected passages from the VW manual and puts a Chilton cover on it.

Meanwhile, the owners manual would list any useful information such as fuses or unique behavior.

Well, you could try replacing the bulb. But from what I read (and what would be in that owner’s manual), the VW bulb requires a 5 mm wrench. Most all light bulbs (including the tail light) are easily replaced by hand - no tools. But this VW bulb apparently requires a 5 mm wrench. An exciting challenge to me. You don't want to try it.

Furthermore, never touch a finger to glass of a headlight bulb. Oils from a finger can cause the glass to crack or explode. Just another reason why you are encouraged to replace your own tail light bulbs. But should consider assistance (training) before replacing a headlight bulb. I do not see any recourse other than a mechanic for this problem. Hopefully it is only the light bulb - sold even in K-mart. But that usually means the bulb completely fails – does not just dim.

A light dimming implies a failure in the DRL circuitry - probably a 'bypass the DRL circuit' failure. I could be wrong. But your failure does not have the typical symptoms of something easy to fix - headlight bulb failure.

All good points except...re: schematics
Dunno about this - all mine did/do. That's why I directed her to get it. She is certainly smart enough to follow it.

The DRL circuit uses an electric eye to know when it's dark enough to go to full headlight power. That eye is usually on the top of dashboard near the windshield. Make sure you don't have it covered with anything.

call a vw dealer and give them the VIN...ask them to run it for recalls and to see if you are still under warranty. did you buy a service contract when you got it?

Thanks jim. Yes, I do have a service contract but I wasn't sure what it covered. I will do this calling thing. There is a VW dealer on my way home from work.

Oh, by the way...I stopped at an auto parts place today. He said that it didn't make sense for it to be a bulb or fuse.

He also admitted he didn't know much about VWs.

Thanks to all of you for your advice.

tw...you pretty much got the gist of what Auto Parts man said. He thinks there's a module, nothing else would make sense, as far as what the lights are doing. I will have to look into that.

Luckily, a good ole friend gave me a ride home after my parents party. Great time. :)

Which is the way it was done even in the 1960s. However that changed when marketing got its teeth into it.

Essential to human safety is headlight on at least an hour before sundown and for an hour after dawn. Headlights primary purpose: so that others can see you.

In WWII, to get onto submarines before they could dive, allied airplances put headlights across the wings. Those headlights in the daytime made it harder for submarines to see the airplane. Same applies to cars. Headlights during the day do not make you easier to see.

But if your car had the 'new' DRLs, then Mr Jones would know Mr Smith had a new car; then need same. DRLs that are always on were a sales gimmick. So the photocell was eliminated.

Why the fancy electronics? Reducing voltage to the makes bulbs dimmer exponentially increases life expectancy. Far more intelligent is it restore that photocell so that lights need not be on during bright midday.

No, the photocell was not eliminated. DRLs run at reduced voltage and the photocell tells them when it's getting dark and to increase to full power for night operation.

I don' think this will fix the problem because it's BOTH headlights. Both bulbs wouldn't fail at the same time.

Shawnee, I feel for you; since I'm having car trouble too, I can say with authority, it sucketh!

What????

:headshake

Thanks Cloud, I feel your pain too!

What? Does that make sense to you?

It makes sense to me, but I think it's total BS.

TW is saying that in WWII, airplanes would turn their wing headlights on so that they could sneak up on submarines in broad daylight. He's saying lights made the planes less visible. Therefore, daytime running lights on cars are not effective at making cars more visible. TW thinks daytime running lights are stupid.

I personally find it easier to see cars with their daytime running lights on, because cars today are mostly all the same basic invisible color. Some sort of silver/gray/tan. They blend into the road and the background. I like daytime running lights.

Agreed.

How did the lights make them less visible? This makes no sense.

Agreed.

If you're chillin' on the deck of a U-boat you scan the sky for dark dots against the bright sky, lights along the wing may mask that sillouette... [shrug] I think the running lights are effective as well.

Accidents in Canada went down 11% when DRLs were introduced.

When do most crashes occur? During that hour after dawn and hour before dusk. And during rainy weather when headlights are also necessary so that others can see you. That 11% number says why headlight on before dusk and after dawn saves lives. The reason why: because that is when the human eye is least effective at seeing other vehicles and therefore why the DRL is most effective.

What vehicles are hardest to see without headlights on? Red. DRL corrects a major driver mistake. Too many drivers October through February fail to always turn on headlight on every day when commuting to and from work (8AM and 5PM). Too many drivers foolishly think headlights are for you to see the road. #1 headlight function - so that others can see you especially when most crashes happen - dawn, dusk, and inclement weather. Headlights on a sunny mid day may actually make the car slightly harder to see. But that is not when headlights are required and critically essential to avert crashes. DRLs are only correct bad driving - people who think headlights are only for seeing in the dark. DRLs with photocell would be even better because headlights at dawn, dusk, etc would be full brightness - all 55 watts.

DRLs were just as effective when using a photocell as xoxoxoBruce described. That was how it was done in the 1960 before marketing subverted the function to increase sales.

I've described it elsewhere I but hold that the modern fashionable silvery-gray with a dash of brown is much, much harder to see than red. Just based on my personal experience.

The bit about the planes and U-boats is plausible. I've heard that some squid produce bioluminescence to prevent casting a dark silhouette when seen from below. I don't think it works for cars, though.

I remember hearing about this when I was in the military. I think it's called active camouflage, which, for aircraft, is probably most effective with pale blue lights.

The technique was not used long. Radar made it easier for planes to get on top of a Uboat faster and to do so in inclement weather and at night.

With Ultra, they knew where to look. With radar, the Uboats were found quickly even when Uboats resorted to snorkels.

Anybody want to sink a German car?

I always thought headlights in the daytime would make a car more visible...at first. Because, when only a few cars had headlights on in daytime they stood out, so you noticed them.

When every car has headlights on in the daytime, they all begin to blend together again.

For me, I am having a giant torch attached to the lid of my car, with sparks that shoot out, and lazzzzzzzzzzerrrrrrrrrrrs.

They'll see ME.

Shawnee, a serious suggestion if I may.
It seems very strange that the lights both work, but have become less bright.
Can you find someone with the same make and model car, park side by side facing a wall at night, and compare headlights? Just to check if yours are in fact dodgy. And what a pick-up line! Wanna see my high-beam?

I think it might be peer pressure. Maybe you've been associating with too many dim bulbs. :D

Oh my, ain't it the trute? :lol:

@ Zen: they're really dim, like candles. No comparison needed.

If that is your pickup line, I don't think I want to be near you.

Manly nipples just don't appeal to me.