mandyfig

Great for you. Took pics?

GadgetmanN

Well, I have a pic of the before, and I guess I could take one of the after. But all you would see in the after is (if you look real close), the white powder that was freed up during my dis assembly (the white powder was corrosion on the aluminum housing of the ballast). At first it bothered me pretty bad, but now I have come to accept it. The RX is 8 years old, so it will not be perfect, but it looks a whole lot better than condensation! And my new years resolution this year is to not sweat the small stuff so much

mandyfig

This reminds me of the bug in my rear tails. It does not bother me anymore.

nicholasRX

Did this repair on my 2004 RX 330 today. Thanks for the walkthrough, things went fairly smoothly. One of the fasteners for the ballast was rusted in and the head snapped off. Other than that smooth sailing! BTW no third bolt on step 5 on the driver side of my '04 RX330.

Thanks mandyfig!

Here are a couple of pictures of the ballast.

mandyfig

Great photos. Good for you. You are welcome. I hope Lexus-Toyota learned their lesson on this.

djcrx330

Followed the instructions in your post on this subject. I have the passenger side headlight assembly out of the vehicle without a problem. Poured an ounce or 2 of water out of the ballast compartment. Have dried it out (mostly) with hair dryer and allowing it to air dry for a day or two. My plan is to carefully lay in a bead of silicone around the entire seam where the black plastic meets the clear plastic. I have read about the existence of vent holes that are part of the assembly. I am assuming that the vent holes are in the black plastic housing. I have not been able to locate anything that appears to be a vent hole. I find nothing that resembles the vent holes described in the postings, i.e. holes with yellow foam in them. I have probed everything that looks like it can be a hole in the black plastic. I have used a tooth pick. Every hole seems to be a dead end. Even though my main mission is to seal the seam in the assembly, I think it must be important to have a "vent" or "breather" on the assembly. Since I am not finding one, should I drill a hole? If you don't recommend this, where is the "vent" or "breather" on my vehicle's headlight assembly? Would like to put the vehicle back together on Thursday. Hope to hear from you before then.

GadgetmanN

The vents are white plastic "caps" that cover the vent holes with foam plugs in them.

mandyfig

I would not worry about the vents getting plugged. Seal the leak, I say.

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

Noticed this last week...

djcrx330

Looked over every inch of the housing looking for white caps or anything at that could be a vent. None seen. I am a new member and not savvy avout how to attach photos, otherwise I would post a photo attached to this message. I will try to attach photos (3 of them). Anyone able to identify the vent holes (breather holes)?

mandyfig

What I found out when I did this repair is that the assembly consists basically of a double wall, look closely.

djcrx330

I have studied every inch of this housing, both halves. and all along the seam. I have read the descriptions of the "vents" that others have posted. I am not sure where you are suggesting that I look. Are you suggesting that I look for a vent that communicates between the inner and outer shell? Others have described a vent that communicates with the environment outside the shell.

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

Just spoke with the dealer....they said the headlights fall into the "Body" part and it will NOT be covered under warranty.....WTF???

GadgetmanN

I circled the two vents in your picture. They are not white on yours, but they pop off easily. But no reason to take them off. Just dry it all out and seal the seams along the edges of the housings.

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

same problem here....just spoke with lexus care and they told me I have to go to the dealer for a quote before they can do anything....how stupid is that???