NHTSA Complaint #10144777 — 2002 VOLVO S40

I BOUGHT A 2002 VOLVO S40 FROM AN INDIVIDUAL IN JANUARY OF 2004. IN A MATTER OF 3 MONTHS IN 2005, I HAD TO REPLACE MY PASSENGER HEADLIGHT 3 DIFFERENT TIMES AND MY DRIVER HEADLIGHT 2 DIFFERENT TIMES. I CALLED THE VOLVO DEALER AND THEY SAID THAT A BULB SHOULD LAST AROUND 2 YEARS. IN THE NEXT MONTH, MY PASSENGER HEADLIGHT WENT OUT AGAIN. I GOT UNDER THE HOOD TO REPLACE IT AS USUAL. WHEN I PULLED THE BLACK PLASTIC PIECE THAT CONTAINS THE MALE PART TO THE WIRE CONNECTION AND ACTS AS THE BULB SOCKET, IT WAS MELTED. IT WAS MELTED TO THE POINT THAT I COULD NOT GET THE BULB OUT UNTIL I USED PLIERS. I TOOK MY CAR TO THE VOLVO DEALER AND THEY SAID THAT I WOULD HAVE TO REPLACE THE WHOLE HEADLIGHT COMPARTMENT. SINCE VOLVO HEADLIGHT COMPARTMENTS ARE "FACTORY SEALED", THEY WOULD NOT BREAK THE SEAL. I WOULD HAVE TO BUY A BRAND NEW ONE @ $500. I DID NOT DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT, BECAUSE I AM NOT PAYING FOR A WHOLE NEW HEADLIGHT COMPARTMENT FOR A PIECE OF PLASTIC THE SIZE OF MY THUMB. TWO DAYS LATER, THE DRIVER SIDE BULB WENT OUT AND IT DID THE SAME EXACT THING, MELTED. THIS LEFT ME WITH NO HEADLIGHTS! WITHOUT $1000 TO SPEND ON TWO NEW HEADLIGHT COMPARTMENTS (INSTALLED), I DROVE DURING THE DAY. I FOUND, MYSELF, THAT THE WIRES (POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE) THAT ARE CONNECTED TO THE BLACK PLASTIC SOCKET ARE FAIRLY CLOSE TOGETHER AND ARE NOT SHIELDED FROM ONE ANOTHER. SO, WHEN THE WIRING HARNESS FOR THE HEADLIGHTS WAS PUT TOGETHER, THEY DID NOT PLACE THE WIRES NICE AND NEAT IN THERE TO WHERE THERE WAS NO WAY THEY WOULD TOUCH. WHEN I CAME TO THIS CONCLUSION, I PUT BLACK ELECTRICAL TAPE AROUND THE TWO WIRES (POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE) IN EACH HEADLIGHT COMPARTMENT SO THAT NOTHING ABOUT THE WIRE WOULD TOUCH AND OBVIOUSLY HAD TO PUT NEW BULBS IN. THIS HAPPENED DURING THE SECOND AND THIRD WEEK OF AUGUST 2005. SINCE, I HAVE NOT HAD ANY PROBLEMS. I HAVE ALSO REPLACED BOTH LICENSE PLATES BULBS, THE REAR FOG LIGHT BULB, AND ALL FOUR BRAKE LIGHTS. *NM