D9 Headlight Removal Guide

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FarmerPug
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D9 Headlight Removal Guide

Post by FarmerPug »

Was cleaning the car today as you do, noticed condensation in the headlight and decided to take it out so here goes a guide on getting it out and a number of failed attempts at removing condensation.

So to begin open the bonnet if you don't know how to do that you should probably read a newspaper instead.
With the bonnet up remove the plastic rivets holding the grille in place. I tried the screwdriver method first:
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But I personally prefer the pliers method for pulling their centres up:
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Once they are like that the pull out easy if not a pull on the top of the grille gently will move them out:
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STOP don't try and pull the grille off now its still held in place with 2 tabs located down these holes:
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Put a long screwdriver down there, push the tabs down and push the grille out, it should be possible to see the tabs while pushing at them:
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Here is a better view of these tabs:
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Lift the grille out past the bonnet catch:
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Now you can take out either headlight, but the most difficult one is the drivers one so its the one getting done, start by removing the top bolt:
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Then the bolt down beside the radiator, use a socket extension bar here, this requires switching to a quality socket set:
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And now the difficult bit the 3rd bolt mounted behind the wing, I needed 2 extension bars:
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It looks harder than it is, unscrew the screen wash reservoir filler tube:
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Now things are much easier, get the socket over the bolt and undo it, try not to drop it, if you do one of them telescopic magnets is the job:
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Now gently pull and work the light out:
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Unclip the wires one for the height adjuster and one for the wires to the bulbs, its a bit tricky but put a small screwdriver in behind it pry it and pull it out:
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Now the headlight is out, for those of you who just wanted to know that goodbye. For anyone looking to know about the condensation stay tuned as I try a number of terrible ways in dealing with it.



Ok so now the headlight needs the bulbs taken out, unclip things twist things pull pry and they should come out (vague but If you have the headlight out you should know how to take a few bulbs out) don't touch the glass of the headlight bulbs or your finger will fall off (only joking its just not good for the bulbs to touch them):
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Clean out the wee rubber tube:
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At this stage I tried pasta to try and dry out the condensation:
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F**king balls the pasta just went all pasta soft and I had to fill the unit with water to get it out.
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After a while I tried rice, just as bad:
I then tried a hairdryer sat it facing the light and left it.
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Come back, no condensation:
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But there was still bits of rice. So I decided to take the plastic part away from the glass part. I don't have many pics of this but all I can say is its a bitch to do. Heat the light in hot water, then work your way round it and eventually it will pry off only took me 2 hours.
And that's the light taken apart only really worth it to get out bits of rice and to cure your curiosity of how to do it but I can't stress how unpleasant it is to do and there is no real point as you can swirl water in the light then use a hairdryer to dry it.
So refitting is the reverse of the removal except It got dark and I didn't refit it yet hence why my car looked like this:
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here is the lights back in:
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So that's that I put the headlight back together, not sure if it will solve the condensation issue long term but now you can take a headlight out. Go on ahead and discuss how to keep the condensation out, the fog lights also fog up, discuss that as well, taking into consideration the rice method of drying stuff is no good, a hairdryer is all i can think of as reliably demisting the lights.
Last edited by steve_earwig on Wed Oct 20, 2021 11:30 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Pics moved to imgur
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