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  3. Will low headlamp blow if driven with just one side (psgr) installed? click indash, #9007 Probs

Will low headlamp blow if driven with just one side (psgr) installed? click indash, #9007 Probs

I have a 1997 Escort which uses #9007 low/high headlamp bulbs. Soon (days/week) after the psgr side's low beam went out the other side went. The high beams were unaffected. So I bought and changed bulbs on both sides. Within a day or two the psgr side was out again and only the driver side regular low beam worked. To be honest I didn't notice if both sides worked for any short period of time when I first installed them because I didn't realize I had to release the parking brake. Then I took the good low bulb from working driver side and put in in the psgr side and it did work there. And the dead bulb from the psgr side psgr did NOT work at the same time on the driver side. So I then took the broken low bulb right out of the car and drove 1/3 mile to the store to get another bulb. On the way I guess it was a circuit breaker or some electronics that was clicking loudly like crazy under the psgr dash (first and last I ever heard it). I installed the third new 9007 on the driver side in the parking lot, and when I got home (2/3 mile total) that new bulb in the driver side was the only bulb working; the psgr was blown again. It could have blown on the way to the store.

If both the 9007 bulbs did work when I bought and installed them, then that could mean the car's electronics could be blowing the psgr side bulb, even if I blew one 9007 driving with just a single. If however I bought a bad bulb the first time, and then when I switched the good one over it blew because I drove to store with just that one side installed, then maybe I yet just have to buy another 9007 bulb and have both installed at same time.

AN ANSWER TO THIS ONE QUESTION COULD PROVIDE MY ENTIRE SOLUTION

If I drive with only one of the two front headlight bulbs installed is it >logical to conclude that the other side will typically burn out? >(psgr/drv)

OR IS IT:

Could it be a fuse or something else simple bad somewhere, or is there poss a problem with the electronics? My best case is if there is no problem with the electronics; no repairs/diagnostics.

Reply to
bent
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Given the symptoms you describe, my first inclination would be to check charging system... both at idle and at about 2000 rpm..... Overcharging is a distinct possibility.

There... now arent you glad you didn't have to page down a bunch of times to see my reply?

Reply to
Jim Warman

Reply to
Dan Wright

The headlights both are supplied with the same voltage and so the operation of one doesn't affect the other. You might want to check the voltage in the system. If voltage goes much over 13 volts when the engine is running your voltage regulator must be bad. Other than that, be sure your are using a good quality bulb of the right type. Water inside a light can break the bulbs though that doesn't seem to be your problem.

bent wrote:

Reply to
Moses

Well that clicking I mentioned was very loud and no one would ever drive like that. If generally there is no likelihood the bulb would blow if installed alone then maybe its electronics, but I'm telling you the car was freakin out !

Reply to
bent

Then every car on the planet must have a bad regulator. Since the basic chemistry of a lead-acid battery gives approximately 2.14 volts per cell, a fully charged "12v" battery should read about 12.8 volts. A normal alternator will put out around 14.5 volts when running.

Reply to
MasterBlaster

On Wed, 30 Apr 2008 05:15:02 GMT, "MasterBlaster"

Reply to
Bruce L. Bergman

Did you TOUCH the bulbs when you installed them? You MUST NOT touch the glass with your fingers.

Reply to
clare at snyder dot ontario do

If you touch the bulb glass with your fingers, it tends to shatter the bulb rather than just burn out a filament.

I would test the voltage at the battery. There's a good chance that the voltage regulator on the alternator isn't doing a good job of regulating the output voltage (should be about 14-14.5 volts max if the battery is fully charged). If it doesn't show a problem while parked, set up a connection so that you can observe the voltage while driving (or use a better quality OBD-II tester that shows system voltage).

The headlamps are on a circuit breaker, not a fuse. That's probably the clicking you hear under the dash. I would check the wiring near the headlamp for shorts or abraded insulation.

Reply to
Bob Bailin

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