Bulb out warnings on and off...need help please

[Raus]

Sorry for the long write-up, I'm trying to be as detailed as possible.

Please folks, before you tell me to check the usual stuff, the bulbs are all correct and I've cleaned the connectors. I've cleaned the contact on the turn light connector as well. All of this started when I turned on the car without both headlights connected and began with a headlight auto-levelling warning which hasn't gone away ( I temporarily disconnected the auto-levelling fuse to get rid of it for the meantime)

All this is on the same headlight, for 3 weeks my city light has been off(bixenon e-codes) I figured it was burned out, I've been putting off changing it until tomorrow as I had other more important things to take care of on the car.
Then my turn light goes out and comes back (warnings on and off)sometimes on every other time I signal. Also the HID is flickering a little, all on the same headlight.

Then all of a sudden last night everything starts to work properly, even that city light which was gone for 3 weeks, no more warning but by the end of the night the turn light warning came on and off again.

I'm looking for input from someone whose dealt with something like this before.

[Raus]

Ok, I'm taking the headlight back out and completely cleaning the contacts inside and outside.

Any other ideas? Headlight controller? Would that be the comfort control module?

[drOopy]

You might want to replace the turn signal bulb holder, they are known to to go bad from time to time. See if that helps the situation first! then go from there.

[Raus]

That might take care of the turn signal...but the city light suddenly comes back on after 3 weeks, and the headlight flicker on a 1 year old bulb and ballast.

Where does the other end of the headlight connector go? I want to check for continuity on all the wires.

[drOopy]

All the wires are routed directly to the connection bus that the main connector at the back of headlight plugs into. Try the bulb socket first and see if it helps first. If that doesn't take care of the the rest of the lights you are going to need to start testing wires with a volt meter to see if you have a short.

[Raus]

All the wires are routed directly to the connection bus that the main connector at the back of headlight plugs into.

From where? From what I understand the control module is inside the car under the dash somewhere. I don't want to lose another ballast or bulb because of a faulty controller.

[fitch303]

I usually just smack my taillight housing when a light goes out and that fixes the prob. And people say our cars are hard to work on...........pshhh

[Raus]

I tried that, not sure if it's the proper servicing method but it didn't work.

I took the headlight out, scrubbed and cleaned all the connectors with sand paper and contact cleaner. Bent all the bulb tabs in the housing to make better contact. I ended up with the city light not coming back on but working turn light and no flickering of the HID bulb. Progress I guess.

[diagnosticator]

I tried that, not sure if it's the proper servicing method but it didn't work.

I took the headlight out, scrubbed and cleaned all the connectors with sand paper and contact cleaner. Bent all the bulb tabs in the housing to make better contact. I ended up with the city light not coming back on but working turn light and no flickering of the HID bulb. Progress I guess.

Some of the City Light sockets where forced to accept the wrong lamp base pin arrangements. For example, the correct base pins are at an ~270 degree angle with each other and the type often forced is with the pins at 180 degrees. You may need to try and find replacment socket for the city lights. But be assured that if the known good bulb doesn't work, then the socket contacts are to blame 99 percent of the time.

[Raus]

I did check that they are H6W bulbs as required and the pins of the bulb and the slots in the socket are both offset as you mentioned. I even bent the pins of the city light socket to make better contact with the bulb when inserted.

I only did a visual check of the filament, I should have actually tested it. But it came on for a couple of days after 3 weeks so I figured the problem was elsewhere. After tomorrow's snow storm, I'll test the bulb, check for voltage at the socket and I'll have a new bulb in hand as well.