Replacing front park lights on MK4 R32

[balkanac]

Hi everyone
Park lights on my car are dead. i tried replacing them but it seems very tight and im not sure how to take the lights off, being xenons. they seem very complicated. I took my car to VW and they said that the front bumper needs to come off!! I don't think VW would do something like this, because there are airbag sensors and headlight washers in the bumper.
does anyone know a different way of doing this?

[quozl]

Hi everyone
Park lights on my car are dead. i tried replacing them but it seems very tight and im not sure how to take the lights off, being xenons. they seem very complicated. I took my car to VW and they said that the front bumper needs to come off!! I don't think VW would do something like this, because there are airbag sensors and headlight washers in the bumper.
does anyone know a different way of doing this?

Bumper needs to be loosened but not taken completely off, how to do it with pics is here, oh and skip the part about removing the hood latch just lift up the centre grill with the latch still attached to allow the bumper to be pulled forward.

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=1514265

Get yourself some Philips bluevision bulbs for it as well instead of the yellow ish stock replacement ones.

Cheers Al

[gpk_gti]

imo bar does not have to come off, he only wants to change the park globe!! clearly shown as the small globe on the inner light(high beam)...

it is just a very tight fit ,especially on the battery side.I have loosened the battery to get right in without any hassle.having a good flouresent light handy is very helpful.

[quozl]

imo bar does not have to come off, he only wants to change the park globe!! clearly shown as the small globe on the inner light(high beam)...

it is just a very tight fit ,especially on the battery side.I have loosened the battery to get right in without any hassle.having a good flouresent light handy is very helpful.

The problem with the R is the Xenon ballast is in the way, as I said in my post you don't have to take it off just loosen it and slide it forward. I know which bulbs he is changing and i have seen Graeme and Dave change them on their R's and the ballast was in the way.

Cheers Al

[gpk_gti]

ahhhhh,so sorry!!! forgot about ballast.

removing the bar is a sinch.10 min max to remove and 20 to put back!! haha

[balkanac]

looks like a big job for 2 little bulbs. I got some LED ones already, i wouldn't be doing all that for the standard ones

Thanks guys, much appreciated

[Langers]

looks like a big job for 2 little bulbs. I got some LED ones already, i wouldn't be doing all that for the standard ones

Thanks guys, much appreciated

Yea I've already gone through 3 sets of side / parking / city lights. Bumper cover (not the actual bumper, there is a difference) has to come off and headlights taken out. Quicker and less painful than stuffing around any other way, if you have a power screwdriver.

[balkanac]

Bumper cover? I have never seen that. i always thought that the bumper is 1 piece. Are there any photos anywhere?

[Langers]

The painted thing that you can see from the outside of the car is the bumper cover (referred to by most people as a bumper). When that is removed, you will be able to see the actual bumper bar, which is a great big piece of black painted metal.

[balkanac]

oh ok, i know what you mean. Thanks mate

[Dave R32]

You can replace the R32 park bulbs with LEDS without removing the bumper or lights......I have done it a couple of times.

On the drivers side you need to unclip the rear of the headlight which holds the ballast.........with the help of a mirror find the brown coloured bulb holder for the park bulbs and then reach in and pull it out.......be careful not to pull the wires out of the bulb holder. Swap the bulbs, test and then put it all back together.

On the passenger side, loosen the battery and push it back as far as you can, then remove the piece of the intake which runs along the radiator support panel. Then repeat the procedure listed for the drivers side.

Small hands are a bonus when doing it.

Also be sure all the wires are tucked back inside the headlight when you re-clip the ballast on the rear of the lights, if you catch them you can cut them.

If you get really stuck call me on 07 3325 1793 and I will talk you through it.

Cheers
Dave.

PS: if you follow this and break something........it aint my fault !!!

[balkanac]

Thanks mate, i'll try it over the weekend, i'll take some photos as well so we can have it the DIY section.

I have photos of when i was installing the CAI, maybe i could put that in there as well

[Treza360]

Get yourself some Philips bluevision bulbs for it as well instead of the yellow ish stock replacement ones.

Hi Everyone,
I've also had one of my parking lights go in my R32. Just wondering Al/Dave/balkanac, do you have any photos of the Bluevision bulbs installed? As these are the parkers I guess that these aren't going to be blinding people as you drive along like all the fullsik boys in their Civics?
Also do these bulbs have to be a specific type/wattage?
Cheers for your help.
Trent

[Treza360]

Just like to say at this point in time that this is an absolute **** of a job. Yes it is possible to change them without pulling off the bumper. However at the moment I have no battery so i can get to the passenger side lights and the coolant bottle is half pulled out and the windscreen washer bottle is also unscrewed and pushed back so i can pull the ballast out.
Now to top it all off I have the wrong f***'n bulbs and have to wait for the girlfriend to come home for lunch from work so I can swap them over.
I will post pics here and in my thread later on.

[ope126]

Just like to say at this point in time that this is an absolute **** of a job. Yes it is possible to change them without pulling off the bumper. However at the moment I have no battery so i can get to the passenger side lights and the coolant bottle is half pulled out and the windscreen washer bottle is also unscrewed and pushed back so i can pull the ballast out.
Now to top it all off I have the wrong f***'n bulbs and have to wait for the girlfriend to come home for lunch from work so I can swap them over.
I will post pics here and in my thread later on.

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