Problems with 2006 Toyota Prius EXTERIOR LIGHTING

Toyota is familiar with the hid lights on their toyota prius' and even issued a tsb (t-sb-0030-08) and is still requiring the end user to pay upwards to $800 for the repair. within the last few weeks, i am having to turn my headlights on and off in the day or during the night so that i can have both lights on. it's an intermittent issue and many other owners are complaining about the same issue. it is a tremendous safety issue especially when driving at night. for the 2010 model prius, toyota has even taken out the hid lights. what is really going on here. i am not a happy consumer. *tr

My 2006 toyota prius uses high intensity discharge (hid) headlight bulbs. these bulbs are suppose to last 10 years. the same bulb has failed twice now in the past 12 months and there are many noted instances of this same thing happening to other prius owners, yet toyota has not found a way to resolve the problem. the dealership is the only authorized repair place to get the problem fixed with the cost ranging from $350 for just a new bulb to $1500 if the relay needs to be replaced. *tr

After owning my used 2006 toyota prius for a week, i had my 1st incident: i was driving down the road at night, and right headlight went out, while left headlight remained on. turned the headlight switch to 'off' position, and then to 'on' position. the headlight came back on for about 5 minutes, and then went off again. about 2 weeks later, i started having the same issue with both headlights. i used the same method as above in order to get the headlights to come back on. it does not seem to matter whether or not i have just started the car, or whether it has been running for a while... the bulbs go out when the car is 'cold' and when it has been running for a while. i took the car to my regular mechanic to see if it was the bulb, etc. ( as electrical problems will not be covered under my used car warranty ). i almost wrecked the car going around a dark curve in the road the other day, when both headlights went out. i have also been pulled over twice for improper equipment... but fortunately, i was not fined. i expect that i will eventually get a fine if this problem doesn't get fixed... or worse... i could have a wreck and be killed... as most of the driving i do is at night, and often... i drive on country roads that have no street lights... not to mention... deer running out in the road. *tr

I own a 2006 toyota prius and have a problem with the hid headlights. my hid headlights flicker and then one goes out. if i turn the headlights off and on, they work again for a short time, yet then one will flicker again and turn off. this happens to both headlights. it seems this is a problem with many 2006 priuses, however the toyota dealer says it is not anything covered by warranty, and wants to charge an outrageous amount to replace the lights. it seems obvious that it is a defective light, which poses a dangerous situation. *tr

Headlight goes out. later it comes back on and then goes out again unpredictably. this could be very dangerous depending on where i am driving when it happens. *tr

I have an intermittent driver's side headlight on my 2006 prius. i have been stopped by the police for safety reasons and i am concerned as it goes out, without warning, at night. the frequencies is every few minutes of so. i must continually switch the lights off and back on to get the headlight working for a few minutes. toyota knows of this problem but will not acknowledge it or fix it. the dealer knows of the problem but insists that i spend over $600 for a headlamp. (they later agreed to give me the lamp but want a $200 "deductible" to fix it.) i have been trying to get this fixed for over a year now but have had no results. *tr

Hid headlights fail during operation and the driver has to turn power to the lights off and then back on for lights to turn back on. this cycle has to be repeated every 0-5 minutes since the lights continue to burn out. *tr

The headlights on my 2006 toyota prius start going out on their own after about 18 months. i had both replaced in fall of 2007 and they both started to fail again in spring of 2009. they will both go out on their own while i am driving or one at a time will go out. turning the switch completely off and back on turns the headlights back on.....for awhile. *tr

Drivers side headlight goes out after being on for awhile turning the switch off then back on the light comes back on it has hid lights. *tr

My 2006 toyota prius has one headlight going out at irregular times. it can be turned on again if the headlight switch is turned completely off, then turned on, but that does not make the headlight stay on. i have had the headlight switch replaced, but that has not corrected the problem. it is mainly the left headlight, but after the switch replacement, very occasionally the right headlight goes out as well. very rarely, both headlights go out. i have consulted the dealer and they want about $1000 to correct the problem, but give no guarantees that this amount will fully correct the difficulty. i am concerned about the safety aspect of this problem, especially if we drive at night. my wife and i are both retired and we need all the lighting from these headlights to see safely. i also understand that if the problem shows up on state inspections, my car will not pass this inspection. the problem did not show up for the first year or so we owned the car, but has become more frequent over the past year. there seems to be no pattern to the failures. *tr

Passenger side headlight intermittently fails. starting when the car had approximately 69,000 miles, i would notice that the passenger side headlight would intermittently fail while driving. turning the headlights off and back on again would cause the passenger side headlight to start working again for a time. sometimes the headlight would fail again the same day. sometimes it would be weeks between failures. dealer diagnosed a defective hid capsule and said they would need to be replaced at a cost of approx. $510. *tr

2006 toyota prius, passenger side headlight goes out intermittently. turning off and back on seems to correct. *tr

Headlight goes out intermittently... turning off all lights for several seconds and then back on turns the light back on.... dealer said bulb needs to be replaced for about $300..... internet forums indicate this is a problem with the prius over several years... and does not fix problem... others have replaced controller boards, bulbs, wiring, all to no avail... there should be a recall to fix the problems.... i have also purchased the extended 100,000 mile warranty. *tr

Toyota prius hid failure. *tr

For the second time in the three years that i have owned my '06 prius i am having headlight failures that start intermittently before completely failing to operate. it starts with one light going out and coming back on after momentarily turning off the lights. the first episode ( at 30,000 miles) resulted in being pulled over and ticketed by the police ($70) the dealership arranged for a one time manufacturer replacement of the entire light assemblies (bulbs lenses and ballasts) although the bulbs were fine -- at a cost of nearly $800. now at 69,000 miles (17 months later) the problem has returned. a week ago pass. side light began flickering while driving, two days into that the light would go out and upon turning off and turning on lights it would illuminate at a very low intensity and then go out. two days ago that light fails to illuminate. last night the driver's side light went out leaving me in total darkness on a dark road. terrifying! turning on high beams did not help. after turning off and on 2 times, drivers side light came back on. going to dealer monday, is there a recall for this? *tr

My 2006 prius has the intermittent flicker/fade/failure problem with both headlamps as i have seen reported by other prius owners. i had an auto repair shop replace the drivers' side headlamp in march, 2009, but it resumed the fade/fail pattern within a couple of months. dealership wants over $500 to replace one unit, with no guarantee that this will cure the problem. it is hard to think the bulbs are the problem when they are at normal brightness most of the time.*tr

Drivers side headlight failure. on briefly then turns off. *tr

Both headlights started to go out intermittently. turn the headlights off, then back on, and they would work for a while, then one or the other would go out again. finally, the left headlight went out and would not come back on. my wife was traveling out of town at the time, and fortunately found a dealer open on saturday. we subsequently had to replace the right headlight as well. *tr

I wanted to add my experience with premature hid headlight failure on my 2006 toyota prius. this appears to be a very common problem with the 2006 model. since this is the first year the d4r hid lamp was used in any automotive application i am surprised there has not been a recall required. my headlights have "intermittent" failure and have been behaving as such for the last 6 months. as noted by others who have had this problem cycling the headlights and hitting the plasma with the initial high voltage charge will allow them to work for a period of time but not always. sometimes they will work for an entire evening and sometimes not at all after several "cycling" attempts. it is generally my driver's side headlight that fails but i have had the passenger side fail as well and just recently at times have even had both fail. as you can imagine this is very dangerous at night and requires me to pull over and "cycle" until my lights are restored. through extensive replacements and postings on www.priuschat.com it is generally acknowledged that the problem is with the d4r itself and not the ballast or any type of wiring issues. at as much as $300 each through toyota these bulbs are extremely expensive to replace. it is ridiculous that the consumer should be burdened with this considering the problem seems readily apparent to all 2006 owners. although my vehicle has very high mileage (144,000) 70-80% of those miles are driven during the day and i do not run the headlights during the day. also since my vehicle was purchased in march 2006 it is still less than 3 years old. my other vehicles are 5 or 6 years, have standard headlights and never have needed replacing. i ordered 2 d4r hid lamps today and will be replacing them myself. hopefully these new bulbs are manufactured better than the ones from toyota and will last longer than the originals. *tr

2006 prius having repeated hid headlamp problems. left side or right side will shut off, never both. not relative to climate or weather. dealer recommended both lamps be replaced, $420, plus $90 diagnostics fee. citation for light law infraction. reviewing internet chat rooms, apparent problem with the light system justifying an investigation. over 50 occurrences. *tr

I have a 2006 toyota prius. the right headlight went out around 20,000 miles. this was replaced by the dealer. at 40,000 the left headlight started working intermittently -- right after it was out of the official warranty. i asked the toyota dealer to replace it, but they said i would have to pay the full repair cost. the light works intermittently -- if you turn it on and off it comes back on but goes out pretty often. this seems like a serious safety issue and i know that many other priuses have similar problems (i see many with one light and i've read of many other complaints). *tr

I have a 2006 toyota prius. about 3 months ago, i began to have an intermittent problem with the right headlamp. it will turn off while in use. the problem is solved by turning off and turning on the headlights. it only occurs after they are already in use. as i said, it is intermittent. it also occasionally flickers while in use. toyota will only replace the entire headlamp, and charges around $500 per headlight to do it. the headlamps are hid, and from what i understand were supposed to last the life of the vehicle. *tr

Intermittent hid headlight. i've suspected this for many months, but an observer just confirmed it this am. one light will frequently turn off at highway speed, then will turn on again as i slow to a stop. *tr

Hid lights regularly fail despite being replaced. lights illuminate, then flicker and die, first the passenger side, then drivers side. if the lights are quickly turned off, then back on they will illuminate again for several minutes, then repeat the same failure. the fog lamps are unaffected. *tr

Right hid headlight intermittently working. repair > $200. please help resolve this safety issue. *tr

We purchased a new '06 toyota prius in 2006. while the vehicle was under warranty in nov. '07 the drivers headlight went out and the bulb was replaced by the dealer (texas toyota of grapevine). around november '08 we noticed that the headlight was cycling on and off without warning. sometimes turning the lights off and then back on turned the light back on but not always. the light also appears dimmer than the passenger side. during a trip to the dealer in feb. '09 to enquire what the problem was (warranty is expired(mileage)), the dealer admitted that the original issue was a computer chip and not the bulb. now the dealer has offered to replace the cpu chip under warranty because the repair was not done properly in nov. '07. however the dealer is charging me for replacing the bulb that the bad cpu chip ruined. *tr

I have a 2006 toyota prius and the driver's side headlight will intermittently shut off while driving. this has been occurring for several months, and the passenger side headlight had the same problem today. it's difficult to know when the light shuts off unless i'm driving at night or can see the reflection of the car in another vehicle. as it stands, the driver's side will only stay on for a short time now after i turn the lights on and off. *tr

Headlight stops working then restarts..never know when it is going to work..this happens now daily , started just every now and then. dealership replaced connection 137$ now 2 months later..out again. pulled over by police 3 times. *tr

Both hid headlights went out at the same time. fortunately it was just before mid-night, there was no traffic, and i was slowing down for a red light. i turned the lights and ignition on and off several times and eventually the lights come on and i drove about 200 yards to my apartment. i took the car to my dealer. the service manager was aware of the problem. he treated it as though it were fairly common. he replaced both bulbs at no charge to me under warranty. i not aware of any subsequent problems. *tr

I have a 2006 toyota prius and have to replace the headlights three times in the last 6 months. the dealer has advised that the replacement is very expensive - over $400. would like toyota to recall and fix this problem. *tr

Just like it seems the hundreds of other 2006 toyota prius owners. i have been having intermittent headlight failures for many months. initially it was only in the passenger side. now it also occurs on the drivers side or even more dangerous on both at the same time. this is happening with more and more frequency. the first time i had the dealer look at the problem, they found nothing, just recommended replacing a very expensive bulb. i took it back a few months later and they said they found something in the passenger side (not the drivers although it is now happening on both). once again they recommended replacing the bulb. they didn't give me any confidence that it would resolve the problem. it seems to me with this many complaints spanning that continue to come in, something should be done. does there need to be a serious injury or death before someone takes action to figure out what is going on and resolve this issue. i'm afraid to drive my car in bad weather, or in the dark because i never know when the headlights are going to go out. yesterday i didn't even make it out of the driveway before they went out (they would not come back on when i turned them off then on). *tr

hid headlamps self-extinguish while driving, requiring power switch to be cycled on and off to restart. the consequences are reduced visibility and the possibility of driving with no headlights at night. hid headlamps are well under their design life expectancy and should not be failing. replacement is expensive and time-consuming and according to other owners, the fix is only temporary. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2006 toyota prius. while driving 70 mph, the headlights failed. the contact turned the activation switch on and off and the headlights illuminated again. the failure has occurred on numerous occasions. the headlights will shut off without warning even when the vehicle is idling. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and they stated that the two front headlights would need to be replaced at the cost of $600 per light, plus labor. the vehicle has not been repaired. the contact called the manufacturer and was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer because there were no recalls. therefore, no compensation would be provided. the failure mileage was 52,000 and current mileage was 58,600. 4/01/09 *nj updated 04/06/09. *jb

Toyota has a major issue with headlamps failing intermittently on 2006 and new priuses rather than fixing the issue, they're charging customers upwards of a $1000 to replace (2) *defective* headlamp bulbs. it may not seem like a major issue, however i almost got in an accident with another prius owner on the freeway, who was driving both lights out. after experiencing the same exact thing in my own prius, it's a very scary scenario. there are thousands of documented cases: http://priuschat.com/forums/care-maintenance-troubleshooting/34584-headlight-problem.html http://forums.mercurynews.com/topic/roadshow-cost-to-replace-on-and-off-prius-headlights-can-run-950-mdash-or-nothing please do not allow toyota to keep screwing consumers into paying for $1000 bulb replacements. there are many people out there gambling with intermittent lamps due to the high replacement cost. *tr

Just a few hundred miles shy of the 36,000 mile warranty (just on the headlights), my left side headlight went out. when flipping the high beams on did not light the offending bulb (i did not at the time realize that hid headlamps do not have separate high and low beam filaments, but simply change the focus of the one hid capsule.), i immediately stopped into a parts store and bought a replacement bulb (non-hid). i did think it strange that the lights both went back on when i got back into the car, but i decided that i should replace it anyway. on the next day, i removed the offending bulb (not as difficult as some people seem to think) and discovered that it was some sort of rare-earth discharge lamp. because this type of illumination system should be very reliable (there being no fragile filament to fatigue and break), i figured that i just had the bad fortune to run into a rare case of infant mortality, or just a defective bulb to begin with. although the bulb can be relighted (by switching headlights off and on), it must be distracting to other drivers, not to mention: what if i turn off the lights to relight one and both decide not to reignite. what then? this is a serious safety issue! fortunately, i got both lights replaced (the right side went shortly thereafter) under warranty. (plus $80 labor) now, at 82k miles, here we go again. this time, i called toyota. i could get absolutely no commitment out of the representative, but he insisted that my local dealership must diagnose the problem before he could make a decision on a "possible reimbursement." i took the car in yesterday, with the headlight out. they cleaned the contacts and sent me on my way. before i arrived home, the light was out, so i drove right back. they looked and said: "yup, it's out." so i left. now the rep says i should have stayed! *tr

I have a 2006 toyota prius. the headlight goes off intermittently and i only can tell if i am looking at the reflection in the back of another vehicle. both the driver and passenger side headlights cut in-and-out. when i turn the lights off and on again, the lights come back on but they don't always stay on. they can go out again during driving at night -- it is very dangerous. the problem has been going on for over a year. toyota needs to step up and take care of this customer safety issue now. *tr

Both of my hid headlights needed replacement after less than two years (first the passenger side, then the drivers side). the lights went out while i was driving. if i flicked my headlight switch, they came back on. the longer i waited, the more frequently they turned off, so i'm forced to replace them.. these are extremely expensive replacements (in excess of 400 each). there is apparently a pattern of these problems with this make / model. *tr

Intermittent headlight problem. light comes on and goes off. very dangerous situation. taken to dealer, charged for repair, problem persists. this seems to be very common on many toyota prius cars. now have 80,00 miles and problem is back. internet shows this is common problem? *tr

2006 toyota prius both head light (bulbs) burned out, one the first year and now the other (2) total first cost $300.00 the second one the price has dropped to $150.00 this is not acceptable. *tr

Hid headlight on 2006 prius goes out intermittently. turning lights off and on can make it go on again. dealer is not motivated to find the problem. this is primarily a safety issue. it is not safe to have a headlamp that fails intermittently. *tr

I have a 2006 prius. while under warranty, my passenger headlight began to go out. if you cut the light off and back on it would work again. eventually, the driver's lamp would go off as well, which happened at night. turning the lights off then back on would get them both back working. the dealer replaced a computer to fix the problem. i do not know if they changed the bulbs also. my car now has 55,000 miles and the passenger headlight is doing the same thing. *tr

Hid lights turn off independent of vibration, heat, duration of time on. occasionally both turn off at the same time. turning brights has no affect. turning lights off and then back on fixes the problem. dealership has replaced entire headlight assembly, computer, and bulbs and then began to re-occur after 10,000 miles. *tr

I've been having problems with my '06 (94k miles) for a couple of months. the headlights seem to go out intermittently. it was always the drivers side. it will work just fine when i start the car. if i make a stop (to get gas, etc.) and then turn the car back on, the light will work for a few miles, then it just cuts out. yesterday (1/21/09) morning when i left the house, both headlights were working. i stopped and got gas. when i left the gas station, the lights were working. at some point about 10 miles down the road, i realized i had no headlights!! i was on i-66 at 5am (in the dark) with no headlights!!! luckily i had fog lights b/c i still had another 25 miles to go to get to work. i was able to get to the dealership later in the morning and they replaced my bulbs ($318 for the pair............and $147.15 for labor). i am not happy to say the least. my husband found a website (priuschat.com) and showed it to me. i find it quite interesting to see how many others are having this problem. i found out my mom had the same problem with her prius. she fought it and toyota paid for the bulbs and the labor costs. my boss had the same problem with her '06 prius, too................and toyota paid for it. *tr

Passenger headlight would periodically go out. had to have it replaced at the cost of $250.00 not covered under full warranty. toyota needs to make good on this problem. *tr

Right headlight failure and also intermittently flickers off and on. it occurs completely at random. new part has been ordered, but hasn't arrive yet and old part is available. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2006 toyota prius. while driving approximately 60 mph, the contact noticed the passenger side headlight failed. the contact replaced the bulb and the headlight failed three more times on both the driver and passenger sides. the failure recurred intermittently. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was unknown.

Hid headlight failures both sides with intermittent outages. *tr

2006 prius hid headlights are failing, they just go dim and then turn off. turning them off and on will cause them to run for a little while longer, but eventually they fail again. *tr

2006 prius hid headlamps go out but can be recovered by turning switch off and then back on. sometime just 1 light will go out and other times both will go completely off. very dangerous when it happens at night time, you will be driving down the highway and all of the sudden both headlights go out. have taken to the toyota dealer 3 times. they have replaced bulbs and switch but it did not fix the problem, headlights still go out while driving. i have read hundreds of other complaints about the same problem on the 2006 toyota prius, something needs to be done. this problem could cause a serious accident especially when it happens at night. *tr

Intermittent lose of headlights that can be either the driver's or the passenger's lamp. system can be restored by recycling the headlight switch. *tr