Need help with headlight ballasts

[gautam]

Hey guys,

I bought a used B6 S4 in October, she had 101,000 miles and everyone told me owning an old Audi would be painful and expensive. So far, they have been right, but I'm head over heels in love with the car; the smile I have on my face is worth the occasional pain.

I've been having one problem I just CAN'T seem to figure out so I thought I would turn to you guys for advice (I'm posting this in both the B6 S4 and A4 forum):

My right headlight (low beam) went out at the beginning of February so I thought I'd just get 2 new bulbs since the ones on were a bit dim anyways. Got 2 new bulbs, everything was fine but about 4 days later the left headlight went out. 3 days after that, the right one went out as well. I took it into the shop and was told the ballasts had gone bad. I checked them out myself and sure enough there was a voltage going in but no voltage out of the ballasts. So I got 2 new aftermarket ballasts with a 1 year warranty. The very next day the right headlight wouldn't come on again so I took it back in and it turned out to be a bad ballast. Since it was under warranty, I got it replaced free of charge. Its been 4 days since the fix and my right headlight has gone out AGAIN!! I'm taking the car back to the shop later today for a deeper look into the problem. Has anyone had something similar happen to their car? Any help would be much appreciated!

[Lucca M]

Check the voltage. Maybe its too hight or too low? Electrical issue. Or just bad luck with aftermarket ballasts.

[Mr.Wrong]

^x2 either electrical issue or really bad quality aftermarket ballasts. I'm guessing the only reason you went with aftermarket and not OEM is price. How much were they each?

[jvitelli17]

I use to use the aftermarkets on my 1.8T B6, every now and then a bulb would go out and it would be the ballast 9/10 times. I used to have a stack of them! I would say if you want reliability pay the $200+ and have working headlights with $150+bulbs. Otherwise, id buy like 3 kits of aftermarket and be on guard to swap out!

[BCsniper]

go buy new OEM ballasts



....just don't get them from Audi. Search for the Valeo part # on Chrysler and Mopar sites. The 300C used the same ballasts and they sell them for $100-120 vs Audi's like $400 or something

[Blackstallion]

go buy new OEM ballasts



....just don't get them from Audi. Search for the Valeo part # on Chrysler and Mopar sites. The 300C used the same ballasts and they sell them for $100-120 vs Audi's like $400 or something

^^^Beat me to it...

[Lucca M]

If you want i have 2 used ballasts for sale.

[gautam]

Hey guys,

Thanks for all the responses. @Mr. Wrong, the ballasts I bought were $350 each (Audi wanted $550 each so yes price was definitely a factor). I'm not sure I can return them but if I can, I'll look into the 300C ballasts (thanks BCsniper and Blackstallion).

Upon further investigation, it turns out I have not 1 but 2 problems:

1) The bulbs I bought are f**king crap. I didn't even notice that they aren't the same color, ones more diamond white than the other. Both were bought for $100 total, and don't seem to have any stickers or anything on them. Price was again a factor, and I am quickly learning that when it comes to old Audis, being cheap can cost you more in the long run.

2) I haven't seen this with my own eyes yet but the mechanic told me that the wires coming into the ballast are shorting out because their casing is badly worn out. The company that sold me the ballasts said that if another ballast went bad, they would not replace it unless I bought a whole headlight assembly (reflector and everything) so it looks like that's my only solution for now.

Once again, thanks to everyone for the replies. I'm sure I will be posting on the forum again soon, it seems like every time I fix one problem, another one pops up. Real quick, does anyone else have the "BRAKE" light flashing on the dash (with 3 beeps) when taking a right hand bend with a bit of vigor?

[Mr.Wrong]

The only reason I asked how much were aftermarket ballasts is cause I thought you got them under $100/ea. Otherwise you could have bought Chrysler ones for that much which is same as Audi without four ringed price tag. A bit too late, but I see you already seen the thread regarding those. Better luck next time.

[JayZ235]

OP - bringing this one back to see if you ever found a working solution? I'm going through a similar situation (although my headlight dies either in or right after I get a car wash) after going through new bulbs and ballasts (all OEM).

[bmwpower603]

I would try two brand-new bulbs. Make sure you wear medical gloves when installing.