2011 Prius Light Bulbs Burning Out
 

I like to run my tires at 42 lbs for more mpg, but it seems my headlight bulbs can't handle the harsher ride. I replace 2 or 3 bulbs per year. I've lost low beam, high beam, and fog light bulbs.

I've had Toyota dealership check the electrical system. Nothing found. I bought new tires a few months ago, and I left the pressure where Toyota set them, no bulb problems. Guess I could raise the pressures to 42, and see if I lose bulbs.
2011 prius

What bulbs are you using?

Do the lights sometimes "flicker" while driving on rough roads?

OEM and then what Toyota replaces them with.

No, but there have been times when a good swift slap on the fender brought one back.

Typical causes for lamp failure are (in order):
1) Mechanical failure, ie: filament breakage.
2) Thermal failure, ie: over-heating due to too high voltage.
3) Intermittent -- ie: sudden ON/OFF -- current surges.

Sounds like there's an "intermittent" (loose connection(s)) somewhere.

When a bulb goes out, and I can't slap it back on,Toyota finds filament breakage. I asked them what could be done to stop this from happening, and they suggested a different type of headlight that costs a couple of hundred for each side. Is there a plug inreplacement bulb that is less prone to breakage, and doesn't cost hundreds of dollars?

HID. I wouldn't recommend it though unless you have a projector style headlight. Reflector style don't have a sharp cutoff point, so you end up blinding oncoming traffic.

Sounds like I'm stuck with periodic $42 bulb replacements.

Who is charging $42 for a bulb? They should be like $10.

There are high durability bulbs, but they simply output less light. If you're ok with that, they will last a lot longer.

You could convert your lights to LED or HID, but to do that properly is a bit more expensive.