DIY: headlight removal

[JFB]

I did this a few weeks ago...So, there may be a few omissions in my procedure. I am in no way an expert nor a mechanic. Do this procedure at your own risk...

My headlights had been taking on some moisture, and I didn't think much of it. That is until a huge rainstorm hit when I drove around all day. I got a low beam malfunction and needed to swap out a HID ballast. How did I figure it was the ballast? I swapped the ballasts from driver and passenger side and the malfunction moved with the faulty ballast (hence, it was not the bulb)

I ordered a ballast from ECS Tuning (250$USD) and as you'll see from the picture, it's identical to the OEM (dealership wanted 850$CDN) that was in there... Also, I re-sealed my headlights with silicone and I haven't had moisture since...

To the procedure...

Time required for disassembly and reassembly: 1.5 hours taking my time
Time required for fixing headlights: on top of 1.5 hours

Tools needed:

Jack
8mm and 10mm socket and socket wrench
#20, #25 and #30 TORX screwdrivers
Stand for bumper

Steps:

1. Jack the front end of the car. Either one side at a time or both. I jacked the car from the centre jack point behind the oil pan and then used some jack stands to hold it there.

2. Remove front tires. Enough said.

3. Remove front wheel liners. There are about 10 or 12 plastic bolts to remove. Most are 8mm plastic bolts, but some at 10mm. There are bolts to remove at the bottom of the liner, next to the wheel arch, at the top of the liner, and behind the wheel assembly. You can see most of them from the pictures below, and you will easily be able to find one that you've missed as you start pulling the wheel liner... The liner comes out easily. The pictures are from the driver's side, and the procedure is pretty much identical on the passenger side.

[JFB]

4. Remove wheel well bumper screws. These screws hold the aft portion of the bumper to the front fenders. There are 2 screws per side, and they screw towards the ceiling. Very obvious. Remove all 4 of them.

[JFB]

5. Remove under bumper screws. There are 7 I think...

[JFB]

6. Remove 4x TORX screws on the top of the bumper. Careful though, once you remove those screws, the bumper may loosen quickly and fall to the floor as there are no more screws holding it in place... Grab your bumper and put it on a stand or somewhere where it won't get scratched or dented.

[JFB]

7. Remove 5x TORX screws holding each headlight (10 screws total). There are 2 next to the kidney grills, 2 on top of the headlight and 1 behind the headlight (hence the removal of the wheel liner). The TORX screws are screwed in to removable metal brackets (you can see the small brackets on the last picture with the headlight removed and pulled forward about 4 inches). You may break one or two brackets as you unscrew the TORX screw. They aren't expensive, so you may want a couple extra on hand before you start this procedure.

There is also a bolt underneath each headlight (3rd picture), holding it to a bracket... Not sure why that's there, but if you don't remove that bolt, the headlight isn't coming out. The driver's side is a little more difficult to remove and reinstall because the horn is in the way... See pictures. The passenger side is much easier. Ensure you take a good look (take a picture) at that driver's side bolt to make sure it goes back in the correct place... Also, take a picture of the whole front once the bumper is removed in order to replace the headlight washer fluid hoses in the correct areas once you re-assemble.

[JFB]

8. Compare the parts you need to replace to ensure they'll fit... Also, I suggest testing your headlights and turn signals thoroughly before screwing anything back in place... Once you are done working on your headlights, simply reverse the whole procedure.

Enjoy!

[8k3]

Just did this myself as I had my headlights upgraded with TJ Obeid at MER in Houston, they turned out awesome. Great write-up on your install btw!

[JsL]

Thanks for your helpful contribution!

[m3gustaAW]

Nice DIY. Just curious, can I remove the bumper without a jack stand?

[EJT86]

Nice write up. This will come in handy if I ever get around to custom headlights. I assume this would be the best time to swap angel eye bulbs too for those who haven't already

[JFB]

Originally Posted by m3gustaAW

Nice DIY. Just curious, can I remove the bumper without a jack stand?

If you are able to remove the wheel well liners without removing the tires (therefore not jacking the car) to access the bumper to fender screws (see picture 4 and 5), then you can remove the bumper.

If you turn your wheels towards the engine (i.e. PAX wheel turn left and DRIVER wheel turn right) one at a time, you should be able to remove the outside part of the liner to access the bumper to fender screws (although I would not recommend it as you may snap the liners...)

Maybe others have done it this way?

If you don't have a jack, just go buy a cheap one, use it and return it saying it doesn't fit... (a little dishonest, but I've returned 4-5 jacks recently finally finding one that kinda worked as none fit...)

Hope it helps.

[JFB]

Originally Posted by EJT86

Nice write up. This will come in handy if I ever get around to custom headlights. I assume this would be the best time to swap angel eye bulbs too for those who haven't already

Angel eye bulbs are easy(ish) to swap from the access panel on top of the headlight inside the hood. That's what I did.

[m3gustaAW]

Awesome. That helps. Thank you very much

[EJT86]

Originally Posted by JFB

Angel eye bulbs are easy(ish) to swap from the access panel on top of the headlight inside the hood. That's what I did.

Yea me too. But for those who have the headlight out may want to consider swapping them at the same time since I'd imagine they'll have a lot more space to put them in