Replacing turn signal bulb

[Kelleytoons]

Okay, apparently now my signal light has completely failed, at least to *some* degree, which is to say that while it turns on (when the lights are on) the element that "signals" in the front bulb will not signal (there are at least two elements in that same bulb).

 

Assuming it IS just the bulb (for a long time it wouldn't work, and then would work again off and on) I'd like to replace this myself.  How hard is that to do?  Anyone have a video link somewhere on how to remove the turn signal lens and replace the bulb themselves?  And I assume I can just go to an auto parts store and get this bulb, but I'm speaking as an old man who is used to the old cars and easy bulb replacement.  Anyone know if this is a highly specialized bulb or something Pep Boys would carry?

[Kelleytoons]

Ah, nevermind -- just needed to do a search on the interweb.

 

Off tomorrow morning to Advance Auto Parts to get the part and then make the replacement (which is INCREDIBLY more complicated than it used to be on my (old) vehicles).

[Bill-N]

Ah, nevermind -- just needed to do a search on the interweb.

 

Off tomorrow morning to Advance Auto Parts to get the part and then make the replacement (which is INCREDIBLY more complicated than it used to be on my (old) vehicles).

 

Alas, everything is incredibly more complicated than it used to be.  :-(

[Kelleytoons]

Yep, that is correct.

 

While I WAS able to do it (and all is working) I had an issue with one of the torx screws fitting into some weird sort of plastic nut thing that came off underneath, with almost no access to it possible.  I did (finally) get it back into position using some angle nose pliers, but I fear if I ever have to replace a bulb again I will have to let the service folks do it just to fix this issue (either that or try and figure out another way to secure that screw).

 

It's also WAY more complicated than it needs to be -- as with most engineering things (as a PC specialist I was always amazed at how engineers didn't think through the process of designing something to make it easy to work on.  Nowadays things have actually gotten much easier, as opposed to cars, and you can open up a PC without needing any tools for the most part.  Why cars have gone in the opposite direction I don't understand).

[scottwood2]

Thx for the post.  I think I will let the dealer do mine.  Still under warranty so I think this should be covered.  Too bad it is so difficult to change.  I thought they were getting better at thinking these things through. 

[Kelleytoons]

I'm not sure a burned out bulb would be warranted -- I guess it depends on what kind of warranty you got (most standard warranties don't cover such items, but I suppose it's possible...)

 

I'm glad I did it, though -- taught me a lot about the car and made me confident I can change all the various bulbs there (there are a lot of them in that assembly).  Plus I found a lot of leaves and crap that I needed to clean out.

 

Oh, and anything you read that *I've* done you might as well take as "if he can do it, ANYONE can do it".  I'm NOT a mechanical person by any means, and changing the oil in my (old) car was about the highest form of car maintenance I've ever felt competent to do (I'm a software engineer -- and the old line about "how many programmers does it take to change a light bulb?  None -- that's a hardware problem" was never truer than in my case).

[SnowStorm]

Well, don't belittle yourself for "only" changing your oil - you're ahead of perhaps 99.9% of the drivers out there!

 

As to the classic light bulb joke, how about:

 

1. How many C-Max drivers does it take to change a light bulb?

       ONE, anyone smart enough to buy a C-Max can change a light bulb!

 

2. How many Prius drivers does it take to change a light bulb?

       NONE, they never burn out - because they never get used - because they're trying their best to save more gas!

 

       (above is based on personal experience where I saw this Prius cruising along on a 65 mph divided highway with NO lights,

         and it was almost pitch dark.  Absolutely nuts!)

Edited August 30, 2016 by SnowStorm

[stevedebi]

       (above is based on personal experience where I saw this Prius cruising along on a 65 mph divided highway with NO lights,

         and it was almost pitch dark.  Absolutely nuts!)

Or could have just come back from the dealer. They always turn my auto headlights off because the car is in the bay. And I generally forget to set them back on until it gets dark enough to notice.

[jestevens]

The Gen 2 Prius initially had an issue with the lights and to get Toyota to replace a headlight was like $325 -for one- because their official shop manual said you need to take off the front bumper cover, take out the entire headlight assembly, then change the bulb (something like a $200 part for Xenon HID) and reassemble. 

 

With enough googling you can figure out Amazon sells the bulb for $80 and if you had small hands, a mirror and a lot of patience it is possible to replace the bulb "by feel" without removing the headlight assembly. 

 

But when they go out, they go out - completely, You can restart them but each time the duration they burn is less.  If you keep trying to turn them on eventually you will wear out the starter mechanism which is even MORE expensive to replace. 

 

It is true that safety should trump everything else, but more than likely that is what you were seeing.

 

The HHR you used to have to turn the wheels to pop some plastic rivets, reach up under and behind the wheel well cover to get to the bulb.

 

In my old Cavalier you could change the headlight in the 30 seconds or less just by raising the hood.

 

I think as headlight life has gotten better they make them harder to access, also easier for the shop to make some money.

Edited September 2, 2016 by jestevens

[Kelleytoons]

Yeah, I changed the headlights on our Durango in about 5 minutes.  Easy-peasy.

 

I now CAN change the headlights on the C-Max, but even with what I know it will take 30 minutes or so.  Not incredibly difficult, just a royal PITA.  The worst is that stupid screw there is no access for anywhere.  I know engineers don't particularly care how common folks will deal with things, but you'd think at least one designer would get it right.

[scottwood2]

Took the car to the dealer.  Turned out to be an open connection on my right front turn signal issue.  So it was covered by warranty.   Not sure where the open was but they removed the headlight to work on it.   Nice to have it fixed again.   Dealer did a nice job of taking care of my list.  :)

[raadsel]

Thx for the post.  I think I will let the dealer do mine.  Still under warranty so I think this should be covered.  Too bad it is so difficult to change.  I thought they were getting better at thinking these things through. 

 

This is one of the things that disappoint me with the C-Max. Many cars light bulbs are now quite easy to replace. The old sealed beams used to be something of a pain, as you had to unscrew it, and the screws were often "hidden" by some fixture that needed to be removed. I think my previous couple of cars had headlights where you'd merely turn the connector a quarter turn, which allowed you to pull out the light and easily replace. 

[jestevens]

I don't think the C-MAX is alone in this regard with modern vehicles.  The Prius bulbs are a nightmare, to change the headlight on my HHR you had to turn the wheel out, undo the wheel well cover and reach up under the wheel well from the outside to get to the bulbs inside the assembly, I let the dealer do that one lest I snap off one of the plastic rivets that hold the cover in place. 

 

I can see some engineer figuring that a lot of bulbs are "long life" these days, 7 years and they usually just get dim, don't go out completely right away.  Plus it helps out the revenue stream at the shops I'm sure.

 

Kind of like replacing the 12V battery in the Prius Gen II - they figure it's going to last 10 years in the trunk so they bury it, you have to take most of the stuff in the trunk out, disconnect the brake controller and the exhaust tubing for the HV battery fan vent before you can lift it out.  It also goes faster if the store gives you the right part with the correct size and battery terminals that actually fit the car..

 

I was amazed at the amount of screeching and flexing it took to get that headlight assembly out but it worked.  I'll probably replace the other side when it comes time but hopefully that won't be for a while yet.

 

On my '94 Cavalier you could change a bulb in 30 seconds just by lifting the hood.

[uxlr8]

Tried to replace front passenger side turn signal today, and when I replaced it the light would still not blink.

 

I noticed the old bulb had a burned mark on one of the connector strips, but the rest looked normal.

 

I was hoping to replace it with an LED one but, now I'm not sure if it's something else.  everything works except when using the turn signal, and the light on the dashboard still blinks really fast.

 

 

[homestead]

Sounds like there is a short in that circuit.  That is why it is blinking fast.

[Zathrus]

On 6/28/2018 at 5:10 PM, uxlr8 said:

Tried to replace front passenger side turn signal today, and when I replaced it the light would still not blink.

 

I noticed the old bulb had a burned mark on one of the connector strips, but the rest looked normal.

 

I was hoping to replace it with an LED one but, now I'm not sure if it's something else.  everything works except when using the turn signal, and the light on the dashboard still blinks really fast.

 

 

 

Had similar issue today with my original 2013 right turn signal (including burn mark on bulb connector strip as pictured in above post...you may need to expand above post to view picture). In my case however, replacing the bulb worked (and the fast dashboard blink went away). 

 

My concern is the burn mark on connector strip...has anyone else had similar burn mark as pictured in above post? Is this burn mark pointing to some other issue (with socket or wiring)?

 

Note: According to the following from the repair manual, fast blink is a designed in feature to notify operator of turn signal (bulb) failure:

 

The timed on/off cycle for turn lamps is determined by the BCM and is set to flash approximately 70 times per minute if both the front and rear turn signal lamps operate correctly. If a front or rear turn signal lamp is inoperative, the
BCM fast flashes the remaining turn lamp(s) approximately 150 times per minute to indicate a bulb outage to the driver.

 

 

Edited May 15, 2022 by Zathrus

[Lacienega]

Yes, exact same thing happened to me already 3 times. I now just clean it, lift the wire up a little, put some super glue with baking soda underneath it to fill in the gap and flip the bulb around. Should last another year since the lamp itself is intact. I don't know why it's getting so hot though

Edited May 17, 2022 by Lacienega