DWPC

I've tried three different bulbs in my front turn signal lamp socket and apparently one or both lamp contacts in the housing are worn so it won't make contact. Any ideas on a fix short of replacing the whole $$$ headliamp housing would be welcome.

kraeburn

The socket itself is replaceable, part #955-631-133-01-M100, it is $9.25

I just got one a couple weeks ago. There are posts about how the contacts in the socket can be bent up and cleaned to make better contact, however.

EDIT: If you are talking about the contacts between the socket and the housing, I am not sure, other than cleaning. I have the same issue although mine is intermittent.

ScootCherHienie

If you decide to try repairing the existing socket, if you spray the socket and bulb with Caig Labs DeoxIT Red D5 when the repair is complete, it will prevent erosion of the contacts. Heat in the socket tends to soften the spring/grip of the electrical contacts in the socket and as the contact surface between bulb and socket gets weaker, you get arcing across the contacts and that slowly erodes the center contact surface, making a rough surface where the tip of the bulb contacts the center electrical contact and that accelerates the erosion of the socket. Severely eroded contacts really have to be replaced. Any repair you attempt won't last long before you have trouble again. But if the pitting isn't too bad, you may be able to use a spring hook tool to pull up on the center contact from the edges so it is "bent" higher to contact the bulb better. Once the contact is back where it should be, spray the bulb and socket with Caig Labs DeoxiT Red aerosol to protect the contact from future arcing. You can get Caig Labs DeoxIT Red D5 on Amazon and elsewhere (usually $16-$20 and is good for electrical contacts anywhere. It's not conductive, so you can spray it anywhere and it won't short-out electrical connections. DeoxIT D5 Red is a contact cleaner and preserver that dissolves corrosion first, then bonds with the metal conductor surfaces to seal-out air and dust that lead to degraded contacts over time. It lasts a LONG time, 23 years on my 911's fuse block which suffered from loosening screw/bolt terminals from heating and cooling cycles as the car was driven then parked. It is used by the Navy and in commercial shipping for keeping electronics operating reliably in spite of the salty air.

nodoors

+1 on the DeoxIT. I use it on all sorts of electronics. Most recently it helped bring the dashboard back to life on one of my classic cars that I have been restoring. Hardly a single gauge or light worked before hand and a little bit of sanding and some DeoxIT made a world of difference.

Also, another tip. I have repaired contacts like this in the past by putting a blob of high quality solder on either the bulb or the spring contact to fill the gap where they were arcing or had bad continuity.

oldskewel

Here's a completely different angle to consider ...

I recently got a 2004 S with all kinds of weird stuff on both headlights, dropped beam, turn signal not working, high beam not working, driving light not working (different problems on both sides, but it was all of these).

I figured I'd need to debug it first (expecting to find burned out bulbs, the wiring harness issues common to these trucks, etc.) so I took the headlights out carefully, and found things in pretty good shape except that a previous mechanic (it had some body work on the front bumper previously) had taken them out, and everything mechanical in there was loose. This caused the plugs to not plug in fully when the headlights are installed. Easy to test - separate the plug from the housing and plug it directly into the headlight, and everything was perfect for me. So I knew in my case it was just mechanical. So I tuned that all up (not especially easy - luckily I have almost every tool there is) and it's all perfect.

user 83838290

Same thing happened on my 06 CTTS. I took a piece of tin foil, lined the contact and put the bulb back. No issues whatsoever since about a year and a half.

DWPC

I was thinking of doing just that (wit AL foil!). Can't hurt. If it doesn't work, I'll see about the replacement contacts.

user 83838290

If it's stupid and it works, it ain't stupid ;-)

DWPC

I pulled the contacts in the bulb holder out to for better contact but it didn't help. The foil trick didn't work either. The upper TS contact button in the headlamp housing looks like it has a hole burned through its center. Still looking for a fix short of a $400 headlamp assembly but I don't think the assembly comes apart for access to the internal wires. Can anyone provide an exploded part diagram for the assembly that shows the bits and how they go together? Replacing the whole headlamp assembly for something like this is nuts; I may resort to wiring hardwiring the bulb holder contacts to the headlamp plug. I'm a sitting duck for a traffic ticket.

DWPC

I wonder if the similar failures others had were with Valeo units or OEM. My headlamp unit is marked "Valeo", so maybe a replacement. There are disturbing signs of heavy arcing at the bulb contacts; not only burned through the too-thin contact tab but the plastic in the bulb holder is melted. Can anyone suggested sources for good used OEM replacement instead of another Valeo copy?

big-boss

I just went through this, took headlights out cleaned all contact areas with brillow pad then used dielectric grease then problems resolved. The way the headlights come out is cool but the connection is an engineering challenge.

ScootCherHienie

Dielectric grease can be problematic on auto light bulbs. It is used to lubricate rubber seals in electrical connectors (the rubber seals weather-proof the connections in the connector) where o-rings or other waterproofing rubber-like gaskets keep water from entering the connector. Dielectric grease is an insulator, so it will make the connection between the light bulb and the electrical contacts worse, not better. Since dielectric grease is an insulator (usually made from silicone, though Vaseline is technically a dielectric grease, it doesn't last as long around the heat in an engine compartment).

Conductive grease is entirely different. It does indeed conduct electricity... not as well as copper wire, but it's a pretty good conductor. The problem with conductive grease is that it can migrate (i.e. spread over time, getting to places you don't want it). If the grease migrates somewhere where positive and negative are close together, as in a light bulb socket, the grease can bridge the gap between positive and negative and cause a short circuit. So conductive grease would be a bad choice to use on light bulb sockets.

The correct treatment for a light bulb socket would be Caig Labs DeoxIT Red (not the Gold variety, that is for new electrical connections, Red is for older electrical connections that need to have contaminants dissolved and removed). DeoxIT is non-conductive and non-flammable. It bonds with the metal surfaces on the bulb and socket and when 2 surfaces touch, it seals air out of the connection to keep the connection from degrading over time. This product can last 20 years or more after application and still be doing its job. Usually $17-$20 for a 5.5 ounce spray can holding a 5% solution of DeoxIT Red in a carrier that evaporates without leaving a residue... so it goes on wet (much less surface tension than water so it migrates everywhere nearby before the carrier evaporates). By keeping oxygen and dust out of the places where the socket and bulb touch on a microscopic level, the connection is preserved over time. DeoxIT completely stopped the problem I had with the fuse block in a '78 911 SC because a lot of the connections were hex nuts that had to be tightened. The heating and cooling as various circuits were turned on would cause the hex nuts to loosen over time causing electrical connections to get marginal causing heat to build up getting hot enough to melt insulation on the ends of the wires. The DeoxIT stopped all that for the last 23 of the 25 years I owned that car.

big-boss

I understand your reasoning and I am sure you are correct. The thing about dielectric grease is that when one connector rubs onto the other (male into female) if you have them right - then the grease gets wiped off and there is no chance of moisture or future corrosion. That is why it is used in Heavy Civil Engineering Systems- They are built for 60 years plus with no attendance. If the connectors are not good then you are right the grease is an insulator. On the same issue if you use conductive grease and you do not have a tight connector it will arc and whip out the connector blade or socket. I have seen the DeoxIT you mention- my guys use it on more delicate connectors and electrical parts not sure it is heavy enough for under the fender environment. Always another way to skin the cat- Again thanks for information.