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Headlights turning off by itself

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Background: I have a 2013 P85. I made two modifications: Added additional LED lights for the Frunk and the Trunk (it's getting power from the existing bulbs in the trunk and frunk). I also added a Blackvue two-channel dash cam (professionally installed).

Over the past 18 months i noticed that one of my headlights would turn off on its own. Sometimes the left one would go off. Sometimes the right one would go off. And most recently both would turn off. Needless to say this is very dangerous.

When this happens, I would turn off the head lights then turn them back on. This would cure the problem temporarily. Over that past 6 months I noticed that the problem has gotten worse. The intermittent problem has become more frequent. Almost 3-4 times in a period of 10-15 minutes.

I took it into Service and had them diagnose it. They said my frunk and trunk lighting is causing this problem. So to correct this, I completely disconnected all of the lighting. Well this didn't correct the problem.

I then guessed that the problem could be the dash cam. I took the car into where i had it installed and they moved the power source from rear view mirror area and it is now drawing the power from the USB/Center console area.

Guess what? Now the problem is now worse! To see if it would solve the problem, I disconnect the dash cam, pulling the power cord to the device. Well this didn't solve it either. So now i'm really stumped as nothing is connected.

One thing i observed is that when I'm driving slow, the lights would turn off more frequently. When I'm driving fast (60+ MPH), the problem would not be as frequent.

Any suggestions? I'm completely stumped and frustrated.
Thanks in advance.
 
Your lighting mods and dashcam have nothing to do with the headlight problem. Just a poor excuse of blaming something. Since your vehicle is a 2013, you most likely have regular 9005 headlight bulb units. The filaments in them seem to be intermittently making contact. Change the bulbs. If you have HID bulbs, then it gets more expensive to replace them.
 
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Your lighting mods and dashcam have nothing to do with the headlight problem. Just a poor excuse of blaming something. Since your vehicle is a 2013, you most likely have regular 9005 headlight bulb units. The filaments in them seem to be intermittently making contact. Change the bulbs. If you have HID bulbs, then it gets more expensive to replace them.

Thank you. I think I have the High Intensity bulbs. I'm going to see what it would cost to replace them.
 
Had my car into for this exact same issue 2013 just this week. Been having the same headlight issue for about 2 years and it never gets resolved. Multiple visits to fix this issue with guesses on the fix. Clean the wires, ballasts, etc, etc. There have to be more owners having this issue.
 
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Same issue here. It started happening just rarely and over time more frequent.

I would think it's just the light bulbs. I have the tech package so I have the HID lights. I will replace the bulbs first and see if that fixes the problem.

I'm stunned by the different stories here. I can't imagine the MCU needing replacement or the entire headlight unit.
 
Well, it's not just 2013's. I have a Model S 2015 and my headlights are doing the same thing described here. Left might go off, right might go off, they might both go off. I tend to lean towards it being the ballast although it certainly could be the bulb. The reason I lean towards the ballast is because sometimes they flicker badly before going out. Much like if you have a bad ballast with fluorescent lighting and it flickers, goes out won't turn on, etc.

Unfortunately I am out of warranty (>85k miles) and I would be more than willing to replace the ballasts myself. Does anyone know of any guides for where they are located and what needs to be removed, etc?
 
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Well, it's not just 2013's. I have a Model S 2015 and my headlights are doing the same thing described here. Left might go off, right might go off, they might both go off. I tend to lean towards it being the ballast although it certainly could be the bulb. The reason I lean towards the ballast is because sometimes they flicker badly before going out. Much like if you have a bad ballast with fluorescent lighting and it flickers, goes out won't turn on, etc.

Unfortunately I am out of warranty (>85k miles) and I would be more than willing to replace the ballasts myself. Does anyone know of any guides for where they are located and what needs to be removed, etc?

I'm in the middle of moving so I can't work on my car right now. Once I have a day I will replace light bulbs and see if it helps. The lights are accessed through the wheel well. It's probably easiest if you remove the wheel first, then remove the covers. Maybe it works by just turning the steering all the way one way.
 
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Just wanted to post an update. I finally got time to replace my head light bulbs and the problem is gone. It was just the HID light bulbs that caused the light to turn off randomly. Charging $830 for a single light bulb is almost criminal! WTF? I got mine for $35 a pair from Amazon and they work great. I replaced them myself and everything is fine now.
I think it's just so messed up that Tesla owners get ripped off this way. If anyone needs help replacing their head lights, I'm going to edit together a little video how to replace them.
 
That would be awesome. My other headlight is doing it as well. Sigh.


Just wanted to post an update. I finally got time to replace my head light bulbs and the problem is gone. It was just the HID light bulbs that caused the light to turn off randomly. Charging $830 for a single light bulb is almost criminal! WTF? I got mine for $35 a pair from Amazon and they work great. I replaced them myself and everything is fine now.
I think it's just so messed up that Tesla owners get ripped off this way. If anyone needs help replacing their head lights, I'm going to edit together a little video how to replace them.
 
Nice video, how much does one save by doing it yourself?

Tesla charges an outrageous amount for it. Someone mentioned around $1000 to have them replaced. Someone else said their service center said the random turning off is a problem with the main computer which is several thousands to replace. Seriously I don't mind pay for for good quality or service, but this is just a rip off.

AutoZone has them for $130 each, on Amazon you can find them for $34 a pair! Total time is about 45 min. If someone needs help replacing theirs in Orange County, send me a PM and I can help.
 
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