I was in a very minor accident with my 2005 Dodge Neon SXT. The idiot who failed to stop at a stop sign broke my right headlight. However, the bulb still worked so i covered that for a few days before buying a new headlight. Now that I have this installed, it seems a lot brighter then the other one. It looks to me like it's stuck on bright with a much wider field to see with. It's hard for me to tell, but it might get even brighter when I turn my brights on, which is very rare for me to do. A couple of times I had people flash their lights at me, which bothers me, as I don't like bright light either when I'm traveling.

I do notice the aftermarket light has a black bezel look and is slightly different from my original one. The black look is nice since my car is black, but anyway. The light was not bought at a dealer, but at a auto supply store north of Detroit. Not sure of the light company name, but the box it came in had three letters on it.

Anything I can do to dull the light a little without spending a boatload of money? The wattage is appropriate.

 

did you replace both bulbs or just one? if you only replaced one replace the other to see if its just the new bulb and if it is..if you dont like it.. get new bulbs could be a different wattage bulb then the original

 

It is always recommended to replace both headlight bulbs at the same time as the brightness does fade some with age. Another issue with brightness may be two different brands and or types of bulb. Then there is the head light housing, I assume this is what was broken, did you realign the lights after replacement? If people are flashing their lights at you, you are probably aimed to high or to far left.

 

Is the new housing/headlight aimed correctly?

 

Thanks everyone! I will check the alignment ASAP.

 

With help, I have found out the light does NOT get brighter when I turn on my bright lights. Apparently for whatever reason, my headlight is actually stuck on bright.

Unfortunately my knowledge of mechanics isn't that great.
How in the world could this be happening? Should I buy a new bulb that isn't as bright?

I'm still going to adjust it today either way. If I can be less annoying to the other drivers, that's all good to me. Besides, I don't want to get pulled over for using bright lights when I'm really not.

FYI: I only changed the one bulb. I have checked online on numerous sites and that is the right bulb to use. I'd rather not replace the other bulb if it's going to have that same problem.
Would it have made a difference if I accidentally touched the bulb or would it have just died out right then and there?

 

Does the other bulb (the one you did NOT replace) work normally bright and dim? Also, you said you drove it for a while with the broken housing, did the bright/dim still work OK on it?

I had a brief look at the wiring diagram and can’t see how only one side could be stuck on high. If there stuck on high both should be high unless the other high beam filament is burnt out. You could try swapping the bulbs to see if the problem is the bulb.

NOTE: if you touch the actual bulb clean it with isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol. Otherwise the oil residue from your skin will interfere with heat transfer and cause the bulb to run hotter shortening it’s life.

What is the bulb number on the new lamp? It should be a 9007. A 9004 has the same base but the pin out is different and so is the filament alignment.

 

Yeah, double check the bulb. There are bulbs with two filaments (high and low; what you need), and there are bulbs with only one that could be either low only or high only.