RhinoLT

Couple days ago while i was driving my E320 I6, LAMP FAILURE warning sing appeared,when i came back home,stoped the engine and started again LAMP FAILURE sing was gone.Anybody knows what it means???

ccmbduong

I think it's the indication that one of your light bulbs is on its way out. Check your side "yellow-covered" light bulbs, if one of them is out you can replace it in less than 2 minutes

BenzVince

LOL, you must be new to Mercedes. That lamp failure or Lamp Defective message, telling you that one of your exterior light bulb is out, it can be anything from tail light to signal light or a Headlight, even fog light if you had it on.

RhinoLT

Thank's for help

Yeh after i got that LAMP FAILURE i checked all bulbs every single bulb,all lights works,even interior lights works.I have no idea what else it may be.

d2Benz

don't worry too much.
You will know which bulb to change soon. Once the light is out, the warning light won't go away until you replace the defective bulb....

I think the filament in the bulb is on its way to brake, so when its short-circuit that's when U get the warning lamp.....

cheers!

Top Jimmy

As has been explained MB uses a "loop" to monitor the status of the electrical lamp (and many other) systems on an on going basis. But it may or may not be a bad bulb. The warning system simply indicates that there is a short in the system keeping the "loop" from being completed. THe bulb is a good place to start, but it may be something different...

About 6 months after buying my '96, I too got the dreaded "Lamp Failure" warning. Being a Simpleton, I thought I would easily locate the problem when I found the offending bulb. Ah, the brake light on the LH side. One bulb installed. Problem solved. Well, not really. "Lamp Failure" returned the next day with absolutely no regard for the new bulb.

Over the next few weeks, we became best friends. I took "Lamp Failure" with me everywhere. When I started up, it greeted me welcome, and never failed to say goodbye right as I exited.

Eventually I had the Stealership take a look at it while in for an oil change. The official diagnosis was the connection where the bulb snaps in was corroded. And, while the very knowledgeable and professional looking technician was able to "repair" the seat where the bulb rest, he did warn that another "repair" would be impossible and the entire tail light unit would need to be replaced, if it failed again. He quoted me some price, but I am sure that by then the glaze had come over my eyes and I cannot recall what it was -- stunned and wondering when this might come up again.

I was not held in suspense for too long. 3 days to be exact. My buddy was back... "Greetings", Lamp Failure flashed cheerfully.

One week, $55, a bid war on E-bay, and it was over. The drama came to an end with the 5 minute install of a used tail light unit. My friend was gone, at least for now, and I returned happily to driving secure and confident that MB technology was watching over me every mile.

Suffice it to say, there is more than one way to get the "Lamp Failure" warning. It may be a bad bulb, or it may be the beginning of an adventure.

Good luck!

yugger

I narrowed it down to the right rear brake light. After using some sandpaper on the connections and changing the bulb, it seems to have gone away...for now.

The weird part about it is that my center brake light hadn't worked since I bought the car...even with new bulbs. When I took the car in for my last service, they fixed the center light. A week later, the lamp failure warning kept coming on. Initially, I thought it was the center, but then figured out that it was the right brake light that was out and causing the warning. With the new bulb, I now have all three brakes lights working...first time in 2 years!

stevehilde

For me it was the plastic bulb-holder thingy for the right rear brake light; the metal connectors lost their "spring", and would bend back far enough that they did not make a good connection with the corresponding connector in the taillight assembly. Every third time or so that I stepped on the brake, I got the dreaded message.

I put a dab of silicone caulk behind the connector to hold it in the proper position and restore the springiness, and haven't had a problem since.

JLLG

I believe you are referring to the socket. I had a similar problem with the metal contacts in the socket (rear driver's side). My metal contacts were flattened out therefore not making a good contact. I removed the metal from the socket and bent an arc at the contact surface. I think brand new sockets come like this. It has worked fine since.

nathanso

Melted lamp socket contacts in the tail light housings are a common and well-known problem. Unfortunately, it's not the only cause of the Lamp Defective problem, as my 97 E420 has recently had both tail light assemblies and all lamps and related sockets replaced with new MBZ parts. This had no effect whatsoever on the Lamp Defective problem.

Any other suggestions would be appreciated! My car has been to three local independent repair shops and none have been able to fix this problem.

somapusher

I have a 2002 230k.....how do i f'en remove the the rear left light bulb housing so i can swap out the burnt out brake light!!!!

help....