Ricecake

I bought the TT in February 2022 and the sidelights were working perfectly fine. In July I had a message on the dash telling me that the drivers side sidelight needs replacing, so I replaced it (Halfords own brand), then the other side died a few weeks later, so I replaced it with another Halfords bulb. A few months later the drivers sidelight message pops up again, so thought I’d replace it with the higher quality ‘Ring’ branded bulbs, but as went to pull the little arm thing out which holds the bulb, I noticed that the bulb had melted the surrounding plastic within the whole sidelight fixture hole, and the bulb was stuck and wouldn’t come out. After some forceful pulling I eventually got the little arm socket out, leaving the glass part of the bulb still stuck in the now set melted plastic lol. Out of curiosity I looked at the other sidelight, and it was also beginning to Melt the surrounding area of the bulb, so I changed that as well. Now less than a week goes by and the drivers sidelight message pops up again, but now the plastic around the whole fixture where the little arm pushes into, is completely melted away and the bulb and socket is hanging in there, but the wiring and socket that the bulb goes into look normal. But now the whole headlight needs replacing because there’s no fixture to put sidelight bulb in. I’m seriously getting fed up of this. The bulbs are 12v 5w and Halfords told me that those bulbs couldn’t get so hot to melt plastic, and suggested it was a wiring issue, but they worked fine for months and they look fine. The only thing I think it might be, is that the bulb in its socket arm thing, hasn’t been pushed in far enough to clear the surrounding plastic, but then again it shouldn’t be able to get that hot.

(After I get some new headlights) should I use LED bulbs and what are your opinions on them.

Please help, I’m seriously getting fed up with this and even debating getting a different car.

Vegas-roadster

Corrosion on tail light sockets is a chronic problem on the Mk 2 and can lead to socket meltdown if not attended to. Yours is the first I've ever seen posted on side lights however. Before you replaced the bulb with the Halfords, was the side light out or just dim? If dim, that would indicate a corrosion or ground issue rather than a bulb issue. If it was out, the I would suspect that the replacement bulb wattage is too high or that the bulb was not properly inserted.

Ricecake

Hi, thanks for the message.

I can’t be sure that the bulbs were getting dim because I didn’t check it every time I used my car, but when the error message Came up, the bulbs were totally dead. I’m wondering if the two new bulbs died due to them overheating with the surrounding melting plastic heat. I don’t understand how the existing bulbs that came with the car, didn’t do this, if the faulty wiper theory was correct, so for me this eliminates it being a wiring or connection issue. The little pull-out arm which the bulb fixes into, doesn’t click in when you push it back into where it needs to go.

Vegas-roadster

I'm only guessing here but if the bulb did not seat correctly but still lit, then it is possible that the improper connection represented a resistor in series with the bulb which acted as a heater. I've been following this and other Mk 2 forums for over a decade and your problem with side lights has never been posted before,

Ricecake

I’ve just thought, what’s the chances that these headlights use xenon bulbs? And the halogen bulbs I’ve been putting in are getting completely fried and causing the plastic to melt?