2008 Toyota Avalon Lighting Problems

Because my instrument panel is alway illuminated, I was unaware that I was driving one night without my lights on. Now I know why I see more cars at night without their lights. Manufacturers need to fix this problem. Older cars would not turn on the panel lights if the headlights weren't on. You would think this would be an easy technology fix with since we have self driving cars now.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 TOYOTA AVALON. WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE, THE HEADLIGHTS WENT OUT SEVERAL TIMES. THE CONTACT RESEARCHED THE FAILURE ONLINE AND FOUND NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS WITH THE VEHICLE. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THEY WERE AWARE OF THE HEADLIGHT FAILURE AND ISSUED AN EXTENDED WARRANTY OF UP TO 75,000 MILES. THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE EXCEEDED THE MILEAGE REQUIREMENT; THEREFORE, THE MANUFACTURER COULD NOT ASSIST. THE CONTACT WAS ADVISED TO TAKE THE VEHICLE TO A DEALER TO BE REPAIRED AT HIS EXPENSE. THE DEALER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 93,000.

I HAD MY CAR INSPECTED IN DECEMBER 2018 AND WAS TOLD THAT MY HIGH BEAMS WERE OUT. I HAD THE BULBS REPLACED AND JUST RECENTLY HAD MY LIGHTS INSPECTED. CHANGING THE BULBS DID NOT CORRECT THE PROBLEM AND MY HIGH BEAMS ARE STILL NOT WORKING!

ON NOVEMBER 2018 I NOTICED THAT MY REAR DECK MOUNTED BRAKE LIGHT WAS OUT. I THOUGHT IT WAS A BULB BUT THE VERY NEXT DAY IT WAS BACK ON AGAIN. THIS CONTINUED FOR ABOUT A WEEK SO I TOOK IT TO THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP AND THEY TOLD ME IT WOULD BE ABOUT $400 TO TAKE OFF THE REAR DECK JUST TO SEE WHAT THE ACTUAL PROBLEM WAS. I HAVE SEEN MULTIPLE AVALON'S WITH THIS SAME UNSAFE ISSUE. THE VEHICLE ALSO WILL NOT PASS STATE SAFETY INSPECTIONS WITH THIS ISSUE.I THINK AN INVESTIGATION SHOULD BE CONDUCTED ON THIS HIGHLY UNSAFE ISSUE.

OUR HIGH BEAMS WENT OUT AT THE SAME TIME. SEEMS TO BE A RECURRING PROBLEM

WHILE DRIVING STRAIGHT AHEAD AT NIGHT ON A HIGHWAY THE HIGH BEAMS SUDDENLY WENT OUT AND WOULD NOT GO ON AGAIN. I SWITCHED TO LOW BEAMS. I LATER LEARNED FROM A MECHANIC THAT THERE IS A DESIGN FLAW OR INFERIOR MICROPROCESSOR CONTROLLING THE HEADLIGHTS AND THAT THE LOW BEAMS COULD ALSO SUDDENLY GO OUT WHILE IN MOTION. THIS IS A SEVERE SAFETY ISSUE. THE TOYOTA CORPORATION WILL NOT STAND BY THEIR PRODUCT AND HAVE REFERRED ME TO A TOYOTA DEALER THAT WANTS OVER $2,000.00 TO FIX THE SAFETY ISSUE. THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ON THIS. I BELIEVE IT ONLY AFFECTS THE 2008 AVALON MODELS. THERE ARE EVEN SEVERAL ARTICLES ON THE INTERNET RELATING TO THIS PROBLEM. I HAVE NOTHING TO DOWNLOAD AS I DID NOT GET A WRITTEN ESTIMATE, ONLY A TELEPHONE QUOTE, FROM THE TOYOTA DEALER.

WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY AT NIGHT BOTH PASSENGER AND DRIVER'S SIDE HIGH BEAMS FAILED TO GO ON. WHILE FUSES ARE OK, NEITHER HIGH BEAM WILL GO ON IN EITHER THE FLASH OR PERMANENT MODE.

PASSENGER SIDE HEAD LIGHT INTERMITTENT FAILURE. NOTICEABLE, OBVIOUSLY, ONLY WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT. FAILS AFTER A FEW MINUTES DRIVING, THEN WORKS NORMALLY FOR A DAY OR TWO THEN FAILS AGAIN WHILE DRIVING AT NIGHT. NO RHYME OR REASON TO THE FAILURES. ONLY OCCURS ON LOW BEAM. HEADLAMP IS NOT 'BURNT OUT.' AS I UNDERSTAND IT, THIS IS NOT A HEADLIGHT ISSUE BUT RATHER A HOUSING ISSUE AND THE ENTIRE HOUSING AND LAMP NEED TO BE REPLACED. WHY HAS TOYOTA NOT ISSUED A RECALL? THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE! CAR CURRENTLY HAS 115,739 MILES ON IT.

2008 TOYOTA AVALON. LOW BEAM ON DRIVERS SIDE GOES OUT INTERMITTENTLY. HAVE TO TURN HEADLIGHTS ON/OFF QUICKLY. WAS PULLED OVER BY CHP ON HIGHWAY, TOLD HIM JUST HAD LOW BEAMS BULBS REPLACED. HE ASKED ME TO TURN THEM OFF, THEN ON AND BOTH LIGHTS WERE WORKING. THIS WAS IN SPRING 2018 APPROX 80,000 MILES. TOOK TO MECHANIC, THEY WORKED FINE. DID NOT HAVE A PROBLEM FOR ABOUT 6 MONTHS AFTER THAT, NOW AFRAID TO DRIVE AT NIGHT AS IT HAPPENS MORE FREQUENTLY AND AFRAID THAT LIGHTS WILL NOT COME BACK ON. SO MANY OF SAME COMPLAINTS ON FORUMS. I EMAILED TOYOTA AND ACTUALLY GOT A CALL BACK BUT GAL STATED THEY HAD NO RECORD OF ANY COMPLAINTS REGARDING LOW BEAM PROBLEMS. SHE GAVE ME A CASE #2008070658. ASKED IF I HAD TAKEN IT TO DEALER BUT THEY WOULD CHARGE FOR DIAGNOSIS, I TOLD HER I WOULD NOT BE DOING THAT. MY MECHANIC HAS REFERRED ME TO ANOTHER SHOP WITH A CERTIFIED A TOYOTA MASTER MECHANIC, WILL SEE WHAT HE HAS TO SAY. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY PROBLEM TO SAY THE LEAST AND DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY TOYOTA REFUSES TO RECOGNIZE IT AND STEP UP TO CORRECT PROBLEM. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS AND OBVIOUSLY I AM NOT ONLY ONE WHO IS VERY CONCERNED.

WHILE DRIVING, THE LEFT HID LOW BEAM HEADLIGHT RANDOMLY SHUTS OFF. WHEN I CYCLE THE ON/OFF SWITCH THE LIGHT COMES BACK ON, BUT WILL GO OFF RANDOMLY AGAIN. THE LIGHT DOES THIS IN DIFFERENT WEATHER AND DRIVING CONDITIONS. NO SET PATTERN. WHEN ADVISED OF THE PROBLEM THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP SAID THIS WAS AN PROBLEM WITH MY VEHICLE AND I WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE REPAIR. I DID SOME RESEARCH ONLINE AND DETERMINED THE ISSUE WAS NOT ISOLATED TO MY VEHICLE. MANY OTHER 2008 TOYOTA AVALON OWNERS HAVE HAD THIS ISSUE. A VERY SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE. TOYOTA DOES NOT WANT TO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE. GIVEN THE RANDOMNESS THAT THE LIGHTS TURN OFF, THIS IS DEFINITELY A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE. A RECALL NEEDS TO BE ISSUED TO ENSURE TOYOTA FIXES THE PROBLEM PROPERLY.

JUST ABOUT EVERY TIME I DRIVE THE VEHICLE AT NIGHT, ONE OR BOTH HEADLIGHTS WILL GO OUT. IN ORDER TO GET THE LIGHT OR LIGHTS BACK ON, I HAVE TO TURN THE LIGHTS OFF AND THEN BACK ON. THIS PRESENTS AN ONGOING POTENTIAL HAZARD, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY BOTH GO OFF AT ONCE. THIS MODEL IS THE TOP OF THE LINE (LIMITED) AND HAS THE HID LIGHTS. I HAVE READ ON LINE THAT I AM NOT THE ONLY PERSON WHO HAS EXPERIENCED THIS PROBLEM. I FURTHER UNDERSTAND THAT TOYOTA MAY HAVE AN EXTENDED WARRANTY FOR THIS ISSUE. THIS IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM THAT COULD RESULT IN AN ACCIDENT IF BOTH LIGHTS GO OUT AND I AM NOT ABLE TO GET THEM ON AGAIN WHILE I AM TRAVELING ON AN UNLIT ROAD. THIS LAST HAPPENED YESTERDAY AS I WILL INDICATE BELOW BUT IT HAS BEEN HAPPENING FOR MORE THAN A FEW YEARS NOW.

THE HEADLIGHTS RANDOMLY GO OUT WHEN THE CAR IS BEING DRIVEN. IT STARTED WITH ONE SIDE BUT NOW BOTH LIGHTS ARE GOING OFF AND HAVE DONE SO SIMULTANEOUSLY WHICH IS VERY DANGEROUS!

LEFT HEAD LIGHT GOES OFF AFTER ABOUT 15 TO 20 MIN OF DRIVING..THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM WITH TOYOTA FOR YEARS. WHY HAS THE NHTSA FORCED TOYOTA TO FIX THIS. IT SEEMS TO BE A SAFETY ISSUE THAT NHTSA HAS KNOWN ABOUT FOR A LONG WHILE. NHTSA REF# 10033406 AND 10037591. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE PASSENGER SIDE HEADLIGHT FAILED TO OPERATE. THE BULB WAS REPLACED NUMEROUS TIMES; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE WAS NOT CORRECTED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, BUT THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS UNABLE TO BE LOCATED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 130,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 TOYOTA AVALON. WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, BOTH HIGH BEAM HEAD LAMPS EXPLODED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT BOTH HEAD LAMP ASSEMBLIES NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 41,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 TOYOTA AVALON. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS BEING SERVICED, THE TECHNICIAN DISCOVERED THAT BOTH HEADLAMPS WERE NOT CORRESPONDING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT BOTH HEADLAMP ASSEMBLIES BLEW OUT AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 70,187.

THE HEADLIGHTS FOR THE AVALON ONLY WORK INTERMITTENTLY. THE LIGHTING SYSTEM WILL WORK WHEN THE VEHICLE IS FIRST STARTED AND AFTER A FEW MINUTES, ONE OF THE LIGHTS WILL NO LONGER WORK. IN THE DARK, THIS CREATES A SAFETY CONCERN FOR ONCOMING CARS AND LIMITS OUR ABILITY TO SEE PEOPLE AND OTHER ITEMS IN THE ROAD.

TOOK MY CAR TO THE LOCAL DEALER TOO HAVE HEADLIGHTS LOOKED AT BECAUSE A POLICE OFFICER PULLED ME OVER FOR "NO HEADLIGHT PASSENGER SIDE". WHEN I TURNED THE LIGHTS ON FOR HIM, IT CAME BACK ON. THEN I FOUND BOTH HIGH BEAMS BURNED OUT AND THE DRL'S ALSO DID NOT WORK. SO, OFF TO THE DEALER. THEY FOUND BOTH HIGH BEAM BULBS EXPLODED, AND COULD NOT REPRODUCE ANYTHING ELSE / FIND ANY OTHER PROBLEM. THEY REMOVED THE HIGH BEAM BULBS BUT NEGLECTED TO INFORM ME. NOW AFTER SOME RESEARCH I FOUND OUT THESE PROBLEMS ARE KNOWN TO TOYOTA. THEY EXTENDED THE WARRANTY TO 72,000 MILES, BUT, WOULD NOT COVER MY CAR THAT I BOUGHT FROM THEM WITH 82,000 MILES ON IT... MY CAR NOW HAS 97,000 MILES ON IT BUT NOTHING DOES ME ANY GOOD WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT CROSSING THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT... TALK ABOUT A AHA MOMENT. IT IS A COMPLETE SAFETY ISSUE WETHER THEY ADMIT IT OR NOT.. I HAVE BOUGHT MY 3 CARS FOR THE SAME DEALERSHIP / SALESMAN... MY LIFE AND THE LIVES OF MY FAMILY ARE WAY MORE IMPORTANT THAN A HEADLIGHT ISSUE. I HAVE REPLACED THE HIGH BEAM BULBS MYSELF, NOW WORKING ON THE LOW BEAMS BECAUSE I HAVE BEEN TOLD THEY WILL GO OUT SOON.

DISCOVER THAT BOTH HIGH BEAMS DO NOT FUNCTION. I UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS AN ISSUE WITH THE AVALON, AND TOYOTA HAD ISSUED A SERVICE BULLETIN, BUT HAS NOT ISSUED A RECALL. WHILE THIS ISSUE IS NOT AN DIRE ONE, IT IS A VERY EXPENSIVE FIX. I THINK THE NUMBER OF VEHICLES INVOLVED MY REQUIRE A RECALL.

WHEN COMING BACK FROM A SHORT TRIP I NOTICED THAT THE RIGHT SIDE LOW BEAM HEADLAMP WAS OUT. THEN ONE DAY THE LIGHT WAS ON AGAIN THEN THE NEXT IT IS OUT. NOW IT RARELY COMES ON SO I.CALLED MY TOYOTA DEALER AND THEY SAID IT WOULD BE AT LEAST $200 FOR NEW LOW BEAM LIGHT BULB. I THEN TOOK IT TO A REPUTABLE REPAIR SHOP AND THEY SAID THAT THE BULB WAS NOT BAD BUT THE BALLAST WAS BAD. THEY SHOWED ME A LIST OF COMPLAINTS FROM ON LINE AND THEY SAID THERE WAS A RECALL FOR THAT PROBLEM. TOYOTA SAYS THERE IS NO RECALL. IF THIS IS SUCH A COMMON AND EXPENSIVE PROBLEM THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL. I RESEARCHED SEVERAL WEB SITES AND THERE ARE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ABOUT HEADLIGHT PROBLEMS ON THE 2008 AVALON. SOME PROBLEMS EXACTLY LIKE MINE OTHERS A LITTLE DIFFERENT BUT ALL ARE ABOUT MALFUNCTIONING HEADLIGHTS.