On my 2010 Panamera Turbo, the 4 LED daytime running lights in the main headlight housing is not working.

I've yet to take the headlight out and check everything but if anyone has any suggestions on what to look for it would be really appreciated.

Also is there a replaceable part or do I need to replace the whole headlight if it is broken?

 

Took the headlight out today and inspected it. No obvious issues around. Connector and socket looks in good shape.

Been looking for a replacement headlight assembly. There is a part code for US and another for Europe/ROW.

The only cheap used units are all US parts. Is there any real difference between the headlight units between US vs euro?

Otherwise another method I am looking to repair this is to take the assembly apart and see if I can transplant a working LED array from a broken US unit.

 

Can you post pictures? In the US my daytime running lights are in the bumper

 

Here is a picture showing what I mean.

On the turbo there are four LED spotlights integrated into the main headlight housing. These are only on during the day and switch off once the beams come on.


Left side DRL not working

 

On my Turbo, the lights in the bumper also come on.

 

Over the past few days I have put in many hours of research into 970 Panamera Turbo headlights, differences between DOT vs ECE approvals and understanding the markings on the headlight label.

So I am sharing this information to save someone else the headache of having to go through what I did.

Firstly, yes there is a difference between US and euro spec headlights, specifically it is DOT vs ECE approval. Depending on your country it may or may not be illegal to use the wrong version headlights. In general ECE headlights are considered superior to DOT headlights. For me that rules out sourcing a cheap used unit from the US.

Secondly, the ECE markings on the headlight tell a lot of information. E1 is approving country, XCERT seems to reference the type of headlight (bi-xenon) the double headed arrow means it can be used for both left and right hand traffic (an important consideration for me), K means dynamic cornering light approval and RL means it is has approved daytime running lights.

Thirdly, trying to unseal the Panamera headlight is considered "challenging" according to another user on 6speedonline. As I have absolutely no experiencing with HID modification it seems trying to transplant a working LED array into my housing is not going to be viable. Given it will cost me almost 1K USD to buy a used unit anyway and there is the risk of me breaking something and then having to source a totally new assembly.

So my plan now is to double check whether there is an issue with the control module first by swapping the module from the right side into the left and see what happens. Is there anyway to check the wiring to the headlight is good?

Otherwise it is looking like I will have to order a new left headlight. I am thinking of upgrading to the black trim while I am at it.

 

This is great information. While I didn't specifically try it when I had the headlights out previously the connector between the right and left looked in the same. So in theory you could do the same thing you are trying with the control module and put the right headlight into the left connector. It won't sit in correctly but it should be enough to at least confirm there is something in the headlight unit itself rather than wiring or anything upstream. Of course, the risk is if there is a electrical problem you could wind up damaging the good light but that seems relatively low likelihood. You could also use a multi-meter to test the electrical signal you are getting on the right connector and see if it its the same on the left.

 

I've only noticed that both comes on when I'm parked at a dim spot or inside the garage with the light switch on AUTO and the ignition or accessory ON without the engine running. As soon as the engine starts, the bumper lights stays off...or depending if it's dark/dim enough and if you have it on AUTO. I assume the AUTO will force the headlights and bumper lights to come on instead,..without the 4 dot led. So in my case...it's either or

 

In today's update I got some good news and some bad news.

The good news is I found the issue and was able to temporarily work around the problem. I checked the headlight service manual and there is a section for removing and installing the daytime running light relay. Weirdly in the parts guide it lists this as the high beam control module.

I opened up the cover to this module and found all the wires around this part of the housing had lost much of its insulating sleeve. I poked the wires, separating them and then decided to test it.

Here is a picture of my daytime running lights working in both headlights

LEDs working!

The bad news is I broke some tabs while trying to dis-assemble these lights. I've learnt 10 year old plastic is super brittle. Now I need to plastic weld the tabs back and figure out how to insulate the wiring inside the left headlight housing.

 

Unfortunately, after insulating all the exposed wires with electrical tape the LEDs stopped working again.

So I am back to square one with troubleshooting the issue. At least I know the LED array is not dead and replacing that part would of been futile.

Still not sure if this is an actual headlight issue or something wrong upstream.

 

Sure sounds like an electrical connection issue - it seems you were able to get them working temporarily and it may be worth revisiting the exposed wires and determine why they became exposed. You may be closer than you think to resolving this issue - best of luck!

 

In the USA we have this spray electrical tape:

https://www.usplastic.com/catalog/it...x?itemid=34639

It does a good job of insulating if you use it carefully. I try to slide paper behind the wires before spraying and spray lightly, let dry, and then spray lightly again, then keep doing that until satisfied.

 

So today I started off by fixing one of the plastic tabs I broke. Bought some epoxy glue and joined it back. Is holding up well.

Then I started taking apart the left headlight again to look for whatever I was missing. Did some testing by plugging in the right side headlight into the left side and confirmed no issue with upstream wiring.

I then took the back cover off the left headlight and started poking around checking out how the wiring is laid out. The wiring on this side of the unit was in really good shape, so it is a bit of mystery why the wiring near the side cover has lost all its insulation.

Unscrewed the module on the side cover and looked up the part number printed and confirmed this was indeed the daytime running light module. I then traced the cabling in detail to and from this unit.

I discovered I had made a mistake with my electrical tape insulation. I had mistakenly taped together two exposed wires that were next to each other and were on the same connector. Once I undid the electrical tape and reinsulated each wire properly I tested my work and the DRL LEDs worked.

I guess the initial issue was, these two wires lost their insulation and because they are basically next to each other running the same path they were shorting out the signal from the main control module to this module.

 

Glad to hear you found the culprit - perseverance paid off!

 

Agreed, great work!