Burning Through Headlight Bulbs?

So about a year ago, my left headlight went out. No problem, i replaced it. However, a few months later, the right one went out. I was told i should replace both at the same time, so i replaced both bulbs. Now, about 6 months later, my left bulb is out again. Does anyone else have this problem of going through headlights way too fast? It doesn't make any sense to me, as bulbs should last much longer than just 6 months.

 

What Bulbs are you using and how often are they on? If they are Sylvania Bulbs I got away from those as I was always lucky if they made it a year. Not sure if it matters either, but do you put Bulb Grease I believe they call it on the new bulbs?

 

Yes-replace your bulbs in matching sets/pairs. If one goes out, you know the other is also on its last legs, why wait for it to go out at an inconvenient time?

Bulbs going out "frequently" is up for discussion. Do you always drive with your headlights on? Does your vehicle have "automatic" headlights, which may turn on and off more frequently than you would choose them? Vehicles with day time running lights that use the headlights can also cause premature failure of the bulbs.

Then there is the bulb type itself: a higher performing halogen bulb is going to have a shorter lifespan than a lower performing bulb. A bulb that sees higher voltage (e.g. you have installed a relay harness to bypass the OEM circuit, or you have an AGM battery and have boosted the alternator charging voltage to charge it properly, or both) is going to pyt out more light, but also produce more heat and fail sooner.

Did you touch the bulb with your fingers while installing them? Oils from your fingers on the glass/quartz bulb can cause uneven heating, which will cause the bulb to fail early.

"A year" or "six months" doesnt really mean much when it comes to bulbs. A person who never drives at night and doesnt turn their headlights in frequently will get a longer period of time between bulb failures than someone whose vehicle is equipped with headlight bulb DRLs, automatic headlight switching/activation, and/or drives frequently when its dark.

 

could be the bulbs, some brands just suck ass. I had Osram nightbreakers and they died in like 2 months. Changed to silverstars and been going over a year strong.

 

Thanks for the helpful information. I think my conclusion here is that it is my fault they died soon. I pretty much always kept my lights on just due to ignorance. I thought it wouldn’t make a difference so I pretty much never turned them off. I’m sure that is what caused them to burn out so quickly. I guess this time I’ll be more careful. I also used a decent quality sylvania bulb and made sure not to touch the bulb itself.

 

I think my problem was leaving them in all the time, even in the daytime. I was just ignorant to the fact that could be a problem. Also, what’s wrong with Sylvania? I haven’t done much research but I thought they were the go to headlight brand. If not what would you recommend? Thanks!

 

If you are buying any kind of Sylvania 'performance' bulb, aka their Silverstar's, they have lost a class action lawsuit over short bulb life and false marketing claims their bulbs are brighter. If you are buying the standard bulb, nothing is wrong, but I would not recommend their Silverstar bulbs. Leaving your headlights on all the time with a shorter life performance bulb will cause them to burn out about as often as you describe. Everything you could want to know for 2nd Gen headlights is here below. Including if you scroll down, performance comparisons for real stock wattage performance bulbs.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/the-ultimate-headlight-upgrade-h4-not-led-or-hid.398066/

 

Thanks!

 

Whatever halogen bulbs you go with, make sure you clean the glass of the bulb with an alcohol wipe right before you install them. Any residual oils from manufacturing and handling before and after packaging, as well as oils from your hands, seems to significantly shorten bulb life. Bulbs that have been cleaned right before install last 2-3x longer in my experience, even if they are fresh from the packaging.