Changed the license plate bulbs on the GTI today, which is hardly worth mentioning, except for the backstory...
A few days before Christmas I got the dreaded FGC warning chime in the GTI. Took a look at the display, and it tells me that a license plate light is burnt out. Okay, no biggie, but then when I go back to check, I see that both bulbs are functioning perfectly normally. Uh, oh, have the FGC electrical gremlins finally woken up?
![Undecided :-\](https://www.autos.ca/forum/Smileys/CarTalk/undecided.gif)
But a quick check online gives me some comfort: apparently, it's normal to get that message with older bulbs, and it goes away when you replace them. Sweet. So I go buy two new bulbs at Canadian Tire (5 bucks) and forget about it for a while. It's not like license plate bulbs are my top priority.
![Roll Eyes ::)](https://www.autos.ca/forum/Smileys/CarTalk/rolleyes.gif)
So this morning I start the car, turn on the lights, and get the "bulb out" message as usual. I walk back to the hatch to load some stuff, and lo and behold, one of the license plate bulbs is burnt out! So the car can predict when a bulb will burn out and let you know in advance. Take that you boring-but-reliable-Japanese-car fanbois! German engineering FTMFW!
![Grin ;D](https://www.autos.ca/forum/Smileys/CarTalk/grin.gif)