2006 Audi A3: headlights failing or too dim

10 of the 123 complaints about the 2006 Audi A3 describe headlights failing or too dim.

owner complaints: 10
of this car's complaints: 8%
typical mileage: 80,000
recalls: 0

Is there a fix? 17 service bulletins cover this area of the car. See below

Headlights failing or too dim by model year

2019
1
2017
1
2015
1
2011
4
2010
2
2009
1
2008
1
2006
10
2004
1

What owners say

Filed Jan 16, 2017 · Lights · 50,000 miles · NC

Headlight internal coil that is reponsible for headlights highbeam to come on goes bad to cause the headlight to stop coming on. Known problem in audi a3 2006 headlight assembly

Filed Apr 18, 2014 · Lights · 120,000 miles · CA

Right headlight flickers and goes out. Console message: right headlight dipped.

Filed Nov 24, 2013 · Lights · 115,000 miles · WA

Front light headlight flickers and then goes off. Can come back on by manually turning off and on the lights. Goes back off within 10 seconds. Have gone for repair multiple times and have been pulled over and warned by police. Help us-if you google this problem thousands of owners have the same issue and have dumped huge amounts of money into the vehicle without repair.

Filed Sep 24, 2013 · Electrical · 94,000 miles · CA

This car was purchased used - so it may have been a previous issue. However, initially, the dashboard panel indicated that there was a "right dipped headlight." then the headlight issue would switch to the left and it would happen intermittently. For a short period of time if I toggled the headlight switch on the dashboard back and forth - the lights would go back to normal for a short period of time. However, now the issue does not resolve itself by doing this. And, on occasion in the dark - both headlights will go out completely. I have researched public forums and it seems to be a community issue with some audi vehicles. This is a huge safety problem and someone is eventually going to get hurt or worse. Please investigate. This is a forum listing years of complaints from several audi drivers: http://www.audizine.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-332613.html

Filed Nov 15, 2011 · Electrical, Lights · 40,000 miles · CA

The problem started with an intermittent right headlight tilt message. The right bulb was replaced per tsb 2013829/6 on 4/15/09 by the dealer under warranty. We have been having this problem on the left side for the past year or more. The left headlight now turns off intermittently after the dip warning light comes on. When the lights are turned off and on again, the light turns on. This is a safety issue as the left headlight shuts off randomly. We are out of warranty now and feel both headlights should have been repaired under the original tsb while the car was under warranty. The bulbs are xenon and very expensive. This problem appears to be a common problem with audi's based on the service order and internet discussion groups.

Filed Sep 13, 2011 · Lights · 40,000 miles · WA

Headlight intermittently fails to come on. "right dipped headlight" or "left dipped headlight" warning message appears on dashboard. Audi replaced the "right control igniter" on 9/30/09, but problem continued. Audi replaced the right headlight bulb on 10/2/09, and the problem was much reduced but not totally eliminated. Both these repairs were done under warranty with no charge. On 5/16/11, after car was out of warranty, I stated that the problem persisted, but audi could not duplicate the problem, so no repairs were done. The problem continues to get worse, but the repairs that audi performed so far have not corrected the problem.

Filed Feb 10, 2011 · Lights · CA

My left headlight has been dipping for no apparent reason. Sometimes if I turn the car off then on again it will fix itself.

Filed Jan 31, 2011 · Lights · 92,100 miles · TN

2006 audi a3 2.0t. About a minute after turning the headlights on, the left headlight flickers and the goes out. I have been unable to determine the cause so I searched the internet and found thousands of people with the same issue. This is a safety hazard because there seems to be know way to get a permanent fix and audi will not recall the vehicle for a fix. Even the dealerships have several tsb's about the issue.

Filed Mar 3, 2010 · Lights · 80,000 miles · MD

Left dipped (low beam) headlight intermittently goes out. Spoke with dealers and other mechanics. It does not seem to be the bulb. May be the ballast, but maybe not. Dealer has no indication of problem. Many incidences of the problem reported on internet forums. Very expensive repair for a trial fix. Balalsts are 400+ and bulbs 300+. Many people have spent the money and had no good results.

Filed Feb 2, 2010 · Lights · 64,380 miles · MI

Intermittent headlight malfunction. Over the course of a year of ownership, the right headlight has malfunctioned (turned off), with no consistent cause apparent. Just recently the left headlight has started to malfunction as well. While driving both headlights have gone out! This condition is both unsafe, and illegal - as many states will issue a traffic violation for driving with a non-functioning headlight. The right like malfunctions every time I use the lights and the left has malfunctioned 4 times in the past month, the headlight flickers, then goes out, but will come back on when the lights are turned off then on again. But the flickering occurs with in minutes of switching them back on. The dealership has been notified of the problem and has claimed that everything is fine and they can not reproduce. They have suggested I wait until both go out to replace them. No parts have been repaired or replaced, however they have claimed to perform a visual inspection of the electrical connections. Annecdotal evidence (conversational, and via internet owners' forums) suggests that the problem is widespread among a substantial portion of audi's model range and years.