98 V70 Tail light bulbs - where to buy?

[QuirkySwede]

Cheapest pace for bulbs: the junkyard! You'll pay pennies on the dollar, some places give them away for free, and if you are confused about what to buy you can be pretty sure what's in there was the right one ...

Actually, that's where I've seen a LOT wrong bulbs, like 1156NA (wrong pins) jammed into where a PY21W (7507). Many parts places say "stick a 1156 in there" to everything without reading anything, much less knowing why if "1156 is for everything," they why do they carry 7528 and other bulbs?

Further, a lot of bulbs in the yard are dead or dying. A lot of bulb filaments break in a collision. Those in the yard not due to an accident are often nickel and dimed along with whatever parts are handy. Junkyard bulbs, if they function, last about as long as junkyard tires but are much harder to tell how much "tread" is left on them. Just $4-6 for a PAIR of new bulbs makes more sense to me than driving out to the junkyard, paying a $2 fee, and a $1 for used dim bulb.

[erikv11]

Your reasoning is all sound, no arguments there. Except that It's easy to not put in bulbs with broken filaments, not sure what point you are trying to make there. And if you wouldn't visit junkyards for bulbs, then how do you know so much about the bulbs there!

But my main point is, consider this: between generous junkyards and a parts car, I haven't paid one cent for a marker light bulb in several years. I buy dash bulbs new, I don't want to use old bulbs there. YMMV.

[JRL]

You don't put used bulbs in a car, ANY car

[erikv11]

Actually I do. In all my cars. I can see where someone who buys and sells cars for a living wouldn't, but that's not most of us ...

So JRL, what about the used headlights I bought from you. They came with used bulbs, should I have thrown the bulbs away when the lights came in?

[abscate]

You don't put used bulbs in a car, ANY car

Ill have to walk home from the garden shop, alas....or give up tulips..

[erikv11]

Rent a flatbed truck and freight them home. That way you can buy in bulk, too!

[QuirkySwede]

And if you wouldn't visit junkyards for bulbs, then how do you know so much about the bulbs there!

Because I've looked at them out of curiosity while searching for other items like gearheads are apt to do. Many are just hanging out of the lens on the end of the wire loom when you peek in a trunk ("Hmm, was Erikv11 just here?"). Junkyards are a bit of an anatomy lab where you can see how stuff goes together or comes apart without having to tear into your vehicle. You can also spot how some were better taken care of than others. OEM bulbs and such are pretty uniform across the Euro brands (R5W, P21W, etc.). Seen many 7507 with paint flaking off or with 1156NAs stuck in their place (as in can not remove, pins are wrong), the good, the bad, the ugly...

While I'm sure all of us prefer a used bulb to no bulb or a dead one, I'm sure we'd also prefer to do something once and not worry about it again for tens of thousands of miles. I've used a translucent red candy wrapper and packing tape on a tail light that got damaged on a road trip so it wasn't showing white until I could get it replaced. Devils to get you across the bridge at times.

But, hey, if you promptly replacing bulbs and using the right ones, good on ya'. I've seen some cars out there with double bulbs for tail and brake lights on both sides (plus the center brake light) and only one works as tail and only one other bulb works as brake (so it's not fuses) -- eight filaments burnt out.

Ok, time to go by some tulips. Now if I could only decide on which color. Hmmm...

[precopster]

Isn't a bulb "used" the first moment it's switched on? The defining question is HOW used? Once the glass looks black and the lead contacts look flattened that's when I steer clear otherwise bring 'em on!!

[abscate]

There must be some interesting statistics on the duty cycle of bulbs based on the drive cycle.

Suburban highway commute...little braking, no indicating ( in NY) means the bulbs are rarely on whereas a city grind is constant brake lights..

I wonder if my 5 speed stick means my brake lights will last forever too?

Perfect project to research during my next 2 hour Finance meeting titled:

"recognizing revenue on leased space holding unfinished goods designated for international shipment"

I think I just read a P0666

[QuirkySwede]

Isn't a bulb "used" the first moment it's switched on? The defining question is HOW used?

Crapshoot, and some don't gamble with some things. I won't get into filament deterioration, though I'd always steer clear of certain indicators as you and I have both noted, including how unused bulb can fail (rattle). Tap a bulb lightly while holding it to your hear and you'll hear its tuning fork. I've also looked at bulbs (tail, brake, turn) on cars that were rear-ended and most are DOA. Now whether they broke due to being rear-ended, or were rear-ended due to being broke is . . .