Beetle tail light socket melting

RoundHouse

Veteran Member
Joined
May 23, 2001
Location
Ga USA
Am I the only one that has constant problems with the Beetle tail light socket melting?

Mrs Roundhouse drives daily in Atlanta traffic so the brakes are on alot when sitting in traffic, but Ive owned dozens of cars over the years and never had brakelight sockets melt

Ive replaced the sockets several times,
tried to switch to LED bulbs but that freaks out the on board computer,

anyone know exactly which resistors I need to use to keep the computer from freaking out with LED bulbs?

Im planning on drilling a hole in the back of the tail light and installing a universal metal socket, with an LED bulb, and maybe use the incandescent bulb in the new metal socket and put the LED in the VW socket that melts.

Or maybe just let the incandescent bulb dangle behind the housing in the empty space and splice on a LED bulb to go in the tail light
 

Rembrant

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2014
Location
Canada's Ocean Playground
TDI
2013 Golf TDI DSG
Am I the only one that has constant problems with the Beetle tail light socket melting?

anyone know exactly which resistors I need to use to keep the computer from freaking out with LED bulbs?
I had to replace the drivers side tail light assembly on my 2000 Beetle when I had it, and it was melted...but it was also cracked. I can't say what happened first, the crack or the melted plastic...but the problem I had was water getting in when it rained, which made my lights do funky things (of course). I only noticed the melted portion after I removed the tail light housing when chasing down the lighting issue.

Anyway...as far as the LED's go, there is one of the forum vendors that sells the error-free LED lights. Link below. I don't have them myself, so I can't comment much...but I wouldn't bother wiring in resistors, etc if I could buy the correct LED that was plug-N-play. YMMV.

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=443449
 

eddieleephd

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 27, 2012
Location
Battle Ground, Wa
TDI
2002 jetta Wagon
You would have to solder any resistors in a place that heat will not affect anything else.
As Rembrant said, it's much easier to install bulbs with built-in resistors.
I'm not sure that would fix the issue though.

Resistors create heat to dissipate the excess energy.

You can get a flasher relay designed for the led bulbs instead. They expect less resistance in the circuit
 

eddieleephd

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 27, 2012
Location
Battle Ground, Wa
TDI
2002 jetta Wagon
Seems like you have to find a model with LED from the factory and get the emergency flasher unit from it for that fix to work.
This is the most annoying thing about VW, they always re-invent the wheel. :mad:
 

RoundHouse

Veteran Member
Joined
May 23, 2001
Location
Ga USA
I had to replace the drivers side tail light assembly on my 2000 Beetle when I had it, and it was melted...but it was also cracked. I can't say what happened first, the crack or the melted plastic...but the problem I had was water getting in when it rained, which made my lights do funky things (of course). I only noticed the melted portion after I removed the tail light housing when chasing down the lighting issue.



Anyway...as far as the LED's go, there is one of the forum vendors that sells the error-free LED lights. Link below. I don't have them myself, so I can't comment much...but I wouldn't bother wiring in resistors, etc if I could buy the correct LED that was plug-N-play. YMMV.



http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=443449


Apparently they don't have them for Beetles




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

RoundHouse

Veteran Member
Joined
May 23, 2001
Location
Ga USA
Seems like you have to find a model with LED from the factory and get the emergency flasher unit from it for that fix to work.

This is the most annoying thing about VW, they always re-invent the wheel. :mad:


No kidding
And it's dangerous
The computer stops the hazard lights or turn signals from working at all if it thinks one bulb is out

So you're broke down on the side of of the road and the flashers won't work at all
Instead of a normal car flashing whatever bulbs are not burned out


Is it the flasher or the computer that causes all the problems ?

I've got working right now with LEDs and resistors on the signals and LEDs and a small marker light jumped across the brake light and parking light on one side to make the computer think there is still an incandescent bulb in it

I had to hack something together so the car can be driven
The cops around here are nothing but revenue collection officers
It's a $350 ticket for a non working tail light



I can't believe there has not been a recall or class action lawsuit about the brake light bulb sockets melting




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jetlagmech

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 1, 2009
Location
Toledo, WA
TDI
2010 jetta
melting means heat. heat without enough amperage to blow a fuse means arcing. That would be from loose or corroded connections or not tight crimps on connectors. replacing the socket and several inches of wire should solve the problem.

I always pay attention to how tight things are when plugging them in. if connectors slide together too easy then might need to squeeze the female side of the connector so it grips tighter. a little grease on the bulb base helps fight against corrosion also.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
First, there is no "computer" on the NB's lighting system. The CCM does tie into the flasher circuit for arm/disarm functions, if enabled, but that is it, and normally it is just a pass-through circuit. It still has a conventional flasher that is integral with the hazard switch. Nothing special about the tail or brake lights (or reverse lights, for that matter).

High heat is from high resistance, which on a light circuit is typically from a poor connection. LOTS of Volkswagens get incorrect bulbs put in them, too. Most parts stores will not even have the correct bulbs for your car on the shelf. Also, as mentioned above, if water gets in there somehow, it will cause all sorts of problems.

What I find is sometimes the little tangs down in the sockets need a careful tweaking to make better contact. But again, the correct bulb is key. The OEM supplier is OSRAM/Sylvania, and the bulb numbers are 7528 and 7506. They have a nickel base for better contact, and over time that base eventually wears down, and the bulb needs to be replaced even if the filament has not failed. This is where all too often the incorrect bulbs from a parts store find their way in there, like an 1157 or something, which is not the correct one. I fix these all the time. Not sure there is cause for a class action lawsuit for people putting the wrong bulbs in their car and causing damage to the fixture.
 
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RoundHouse

Veteran Member
Joined
May 23, 2001
Location
Ga USA
First, there is no "computer" on the NB's lighting system. The CCM does tie into the flasher circuit for arm/disarm functions, if enabled, but that is it, and normally it is just a pass-through circuit. It still has a conventional flasher that is integral with the hazard switch. Nothing special about the tail or brake lights (or reverse lights, for that matter).

High heat is from high resistance, which on a light circuit is typically from a poor connection. LOTS of Volkswagens get incorrect bulbs put in them, too. Most parts stores will not even have the correct bulbs for your car on the shelf. Also, as mentioned above, if water gets in there somehow, it will cause all sorts of problems.

What I find is sometimes the little tangs down in the sockets need a careful tweaking to make better contact. But again, the correct bulb is key. The OEM supplier is OSRAM/Sylvania, and the bulb numbers are 7528 and 7506. They have a nickel base for better contact, and over time that base eventually wears down, and the bulb needs to be replaced even if the filament has not failed. This is where all too often the incorrect bulbs from a parts store find their way in there, like an 1157 or something, which is not the correct one. I fix these all the time. Not sure there is cause for a class action lawsuit for people putting the wrong bulbs in their car and causing damage to the fixture.


The inside of the hazard switch looks like a computer circuit board to me


It's definitely not a normal thermal flasher like every other car has
 

UhOh

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 24, 2014
Location
PNW
TDI
2000 & 2003 Golf GLS (2005 Mercedes E320 CDI)
I'll add to Oilhammer's note about contacts...

There's also the NEGATIVE contact to be concerned with. The wife's car recently experienced a fast blinking signal- bad connection. We had stopped for a coffee and I quickly tweaked that positive tang. Felt that I'd saved the day (once again!):D Fast forward to a week or so later and, once again, the same turn signal was fast-blinking.:eek: I pondered things a bit and then realized that there are bendable ground b its in the sockets as well, so I stuck a small screwdriver behind the metal ground loop and gave a bit of a twist to push it out further toward the inside of the bulbs docking area. I'm 99.99% positive (and here I'm being quite grounded!:D) it's resolved this long-running issue (I know that it's popped up in the past, but I'd thought that it had been due to moisture issues and the positive contact).
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
The inside of the hazard switch looks like a computer circuit board to me


It's definitely not a normal thermal flasher like every other car has
Define "every other car", because I think you will find that is an incorrect statement. Old school flashers have long since gone away. I think my 1996 F150 probably still has one, and that is probably only because Ford was still using everything they could from the 1980 truck on which it was based.

Also, a circuit board does not equal a processor. My garage door remote has a circuit board in it... but there is no processor or "chip" of any kind. :p
 

JB05

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 20, 2005
Location
Il.USA
TDI
Golf,2005,anthracite blue
My right side parking lights blew fuse #22 a few weeks back, and sure enough, the rear socket had signs of rust which I cleaned out with a brass metal brush and some DeOxit. The brake light was slightly corroded where the base had separated from the light itself; replaced that with LED's
 

Lightflyer1

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 13, 2005
Location
Round Rock, Texas
TDI
2015 Beetle tdi dsg
I had to replace my left side brake light yesterday. The housing was old and brittle and broke the tabs that hold the bulb holder in.

Going to have to find a replacement housing soon.
 
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