Exploding lights?

[CREWZIN]

Wow, first nobody ever had the blown bulbs problem, now 3 of you all experiencing the same thing.

TripleCat2002 you tested the voltage at the socket when someone stepped on the brake pedal and you say there's no strange voltage. How about the others; did you test the voltage at the socket?

We all agree if water was getting in, chances are it wouldn't affect both bulbs at the same time, each time you went to the car wash plus it just started happening after a year or more of ownership and dstarkey has had his since 2002.

I'm still leaning the way of an intermittant electrical surge but why it doesn't blow the high mounted 3rd brake light is puzzeling.

I searched the web and found these:

Dear NH,

We have had two incidents of a light bulb exploding in our bathroom light fixture. Both times, luckily, no one was in the room. I'm assuming that the light must have been on for some time, but I'm not sure.

Is this common? Is the problem the light fixture or the bulb? How can we prevent it from happening again?

CK from Northfield, MN

CK,

It's typically the bulb, not the fixture. Poor quality, off-brand bulbs are prone to failing in a spectacular fashion. It has something to do with the way they handle the surge of power that occurs at the moment of filament failure.

You could try using a "long life" bulb, which typically is a bulb rated for 130 volts instead of the typical 110 volts your home should be receiving. That will compensate for voltage surges if they are a contributing factor.

In my experience, you are always better off using only "name brand" bulbs, especially in critical locations. See if the results improve.

-----------------------------------------

..never touch the light bulb with your hands because the oils on your hand will make the bulb explode when used

[Triplecat2002]

Thanks for the response.

Both times when I took of the covers off, there was no sign of moisture at all.

I also think it is odd that a surge would only take out the tail lights and leave the third brake light and turn signal lights alone. May just be how it is wired. I also checked the light inside the trunk area and it is not affected. But that trunk area light was blown out when I bought the car.

Also the first time when both bulbs blew, I checked each and every fuse both on the inside and the outside with the meter and nothing was unusual. A blown fuse was my first guess before I checked the bulbs.

[Triplecat2002]

So this cracked tail light event happens to my 2003 GT about every 6 months. The bulb is always cracked and never just an intact light bulb that is blackened in the middle. Some times the inside of the bulb is coated with a pale yellow powder and sometimes it is not. Mostly it is the passenger side bulb. Hardly ever the driver's side bulb.

Now this morning, I was driving an a residential street and making a right hand turn when the check engine light came on. When I got home I checked and the passenger side bulb is blown again. Not sure if they are related but it seems odd.

This is the error code:

P0138 HO2S Circuit High Voltage Bank 1 Sensor 2

Looking at the forums, this code seems to indicate the o2 sensor.

It is typical when you get a Circuit High Voltage, to blow a tail light?

[CREWZIN]

Originally Posted by Triplecat2002

It is typical when you get a Circuit High Voltage, to blow a tail light?

Typical? I'd have to say no, but a spike in voltage could be the cause of your blowing bulbs. Most of the blown bulbs reported on the forum have been diagnosed as faulty wiring or moisture inside the taillight.

The P0138 codes that we've seen have never been associated with the taillight bulbs. At least nobody but you have ever connected the two. My guess is it was just a coincidence.

[slartyblarfast]

Originally Posted by Triplecat2002

So this cracked tail light event happens to my 2003 GT about every 6 months. The bulb is always cracked and never just an intact light bulb that is blackened in the middle. Some times the inside of the bulb is coated with a pale yellow powder and sometimes it is not. Mostly it is the passenger side bulb. Hardly ever the driver's side bulb.

Now this morning, I was driving an a residential street and making a right hand turn when the check engine light came on. When I got home I checked and the passenger side bulb is blown again. Not sure if they are related but it seems odd.

This is the error code:

P0138 HO2S Circuit High Voltage Bank 1 Sensor 2

Looking at the forums, this code seems to indicate the o2 sensor.

It is typical when you get a Circuit High Voltage, to blow a tail light?

The p0138 is a code for the o2 senor high voltage. It means the pcm is seeing high voltage caused by an open circuit. O2 sensor is supplied with either 5 or 12 volts and then the pcm monitiors the return voltage from the sensor and heater. Ironically an open sensor will cause a high voltage signal due to the voltage not being used. Your probably going to need to replace the downstream o2 sensor. I think there is a flash also but not 100% sure.

[cylinder3missfire]

Hi all, im new here as you can tell. Sorry if posting to an old thread upsets anyone. I was wondering if anyone found definite causes for this problem. My wife just purchased an 01 cruiser. As a mechanic I tend to be rather umm anal for lack of better words at 130 am about noises/vibrations/quirks in general of my vehicles. I noticed 3 days ago that she had no tail or brake lights(she works thirds). Upon removal of assemblies i found both bulbs had "exploded". I examined the assemblies and found no noticeable cracks or sealing problems however the drivers side had about 1/8th inch water in it. I cleaned assemblies and installed new bulbs. Today we had rain and the cruiser got muddy. We washed it this evening around 8:30 and voila! When she left for work at 10:45 the right tail/brake was non functional again. I will be checking this again in the morning and checking for moisture. The only thing in common with the problem seems to be rain/washing since thinking back the first time this happened was after a rain. Has anyone else came to this conclusion? Thanks for any info!

[CREWZIN]

Me again. Just answered your other question. You know the problem with the lights (water) so take each light off (1 screw and 2 clips) and examine it closely for breaks in the seal or lens itself. Make sure the rubber twist seals with the bulbs are sealing correctly. If the car sat for a long time, the rubber could be rotted. When you take the complete light out of the car you'll see that it's open to the road below. Water splashes up from the tires and gets into everything. Try some sort of material that will block that splashing water. My guess would be a bad seal somewhere on the lens itself.

[Knotsobright1]

when replacing the bulbs try no to touch the glass anymore then you have to. The oils from your hands can shorten the life of the bulb. Putting in LED bulbs is just a band-aid to a potentially bigger problem esp. if your a getting fault codes for other voltage issues. I noticed no where in this post nobody checked to see if they had a bad or corroded ground...

[quicksilverdon]

Originally Posted by Knotsobright1

when replacing the bulbs try no to touch the glass anymore then you have to. The oils from your hands can shorten the life of the bulb....

I believe that is only for halogen headlight bulbs - not taillight bulbs.

[Hooligan]

True, but with the trouble some are having, using a cloth or something to place over the bulb when installing won't hurt.