moisture in brand new headlight unit. help!!!

[anthony lawler]

Having just fitted brand spanking new valeo headlamps direct from audi/tps on behalf of my brother in law yesterday he messaged me this morning to say there is moisture in the bottom corner below the indicator on the main unit cover, i did not remove the rear cover etc it was as i thought a simple plug and play but i am now thinking is there something you do other plug and play. any help would be very much appreciated and what i would add is sunday was a very wet day where i live so could cold moist air have gotten into the unit somehow before plugging in the connector block.

 

[audifan]

I would check the foam seal is correctly routed and not twisted in the groove of the rear cover, and that the rear cover is properly fitted. I have seen several light units over the years where the seal has been twisted or not in the groove and trapped as the cover is fitted. While the rear cover is off to check run the engine and turn on main beam lights to heat the air inside the headlight for a good 15-20 minutes to fully dry out the inside. Before refitting the rear cover apply a thin smear of petroleum jelly to the seal. Hopefully their manufacturing standards have not slipped and there is not a void in the seal between the "glass" and the body. The connector is sealed so unlikely moisture got in that way.
An optional extra is to stick a couple of those small desiccant bags to the inside of the rear cover.

 

[anthony lawler]

Will do all above and thanks for the tips, what i didnt mention in my message was that i fitted 2 new units on sunday and both looked crystal clear as you would expect but once i switched on the lights on low beam the drivers side dish that surrounds the low beam h7 bulb looked "foggy"? then turning the lights off it went back to crystal clear? looked as though the mirror finish needed a de-fog/clean so when you looked at the car front on it really spoilt the look once the lights were switched on. i am going to ask TPS if it can be exchanged.

 

[PlasticMac]

Will do all above and thanks for the tips, what i didnt mention in my message was that i fitted 2 new units on sunday and both looked crystal clear as you would expect but once i switched on the lights on low beam the drivers side dish that surrounds the low beam h7 bulb looked "foggy"? then turning the lights off it went back to crystal clear? looked as though the mirror finish needed a de-fog/clean so when you looked at the car front on it really spoilt the look once the lights were switched on. i am going to ask TPS if it can be exchanged.

Is there a date code you can check? The units could be 10 plus years old, and have been sitting on a shelf in a warehouse.
Unless they are of recent manufacture, they may well have detiorated, depending on storage conditions.
Mac.

 

[a2sumo]

I know it’s not ideal but you could try adding a bag of silica get (little bags of Chrystals they add to packaging to keep stuff dry) camera shops sell them but I’m sure Amazon could pop some in the post. Also adding some vasalene to the seal may help it. Cheers mikec

 

[Jeff Sutcliffe]

Will do all above and thanks for the tips, what i didnt mention in my message was that i fitted 2 new units on sunday and both looked crystal clear as you would expect but once i switched on the lights on low beam the drivers side dish that surrounds the low beam h7 bulb looked "foggy"? then turning the lights off it went back to crystal clear? looked as though the mirror finish needed a de-fog/clean so when you looked at the car front on it really spoilt the look once the lights were switched on. i am going to ask TPS if it can be exchanged.

My advice is not to try any of the remedies that helpful members have suggested. The units are obviously not fit for purpose and the seller has a responsibility to provide a replacement. If the unit has been 'messed with', it will be difficult to argue that it was like that when bought.

 

[kp 115]

Having just fitted brand spanking new valeo headlamps direct from audi/tps on behalf of my brother in law yesterday he messaged me this morning to say there is moisture in the bottom corner below the indicator on the main unit cover, i did not remove the rear cover etc it was as i thought a simple plug and play but i am now thinking is there something you do other plug and play. any help would be very much appreciated and what i would add is sunday was a very wet day where i live so could cold moist air have gotten into the unit somehow before plugging in the connector block.

Hi Anthony,
On the back side of the headlight there is a small grey cap about 20 mm long x 10mm wide this is a cover over a vent to allow the hot air to escape from the unit, check that they haven’t got a tape seal over them .
Hth
Keith

 

[anthony lawler]

Thanks a lot for the replies it really is appreciated i will have another look at the lights this weekend as work is getting in the way of anything A2 related monday to friday other than asking the good folk of the A2OC for help/advice after working hours.