front bulb gone on A4. Any reason I can't change this myself?

JackieChan

Display on my car(01 Audi A4 TDI) is telling me that a dipped headlight is out.
I went to manual to check what type bulb I'd need but it said that it should be done at a workshop. I haven't even looked at headlamp yet to see how it is removed. Is there any reason why I would not be able to make this change myself?

alias no.9

Is it a conventional bulb or a HID unit?

Zorba

You should be able to change it yourself, try searching the net for an audi a4 forum, there should be at least one out there that'll tell you how to change it and what type of bulb you need.

It's not as if your going to void the warranty by changing a bulb or anything.

biko

You can prob change it yourself, if you're confident how to
Just don't touch the bulb with bare hands.

MercMad

Unless its like sevral new cars requiring you to remove the road wheel, drop the wheelarch liner, then remove the entire front bumper, before removing the headlamp and changing the bulb !!

Yes its true.

My FIL just bought a new Alfa GT and this is the procedure. Quoted time 1.5hours, cost from dealer = € 175.00 !

Nice !

Stephen

^^ LOL. That's bloody ridiculous.

gafarrell

I changed the bulbs on my old 03 A4. There are 4 torx screws you need to remove. If its on the passanger side its easy enough but on the driver side its ore difficult as you have to remove some hoses in the way. 2 of the screws are on the top of the light (easyto spot) an the other 2 are at the bottom of the light (need to dig a little deeper for these). The bottom ones you only need to unscrew a little to remove the light (1 or 2 turns)

Cheers

tossy

there are 2 shapes for 01 is it the old shape or the newer facelifted shape? also which side is gone?

Beekay

It's crazy that they make recent cars so difficult to work on! €175 for a lightbulb change:eek:

SuperGrover

I have an 01 A4. Had to get the bulb changed by my mechanic. Got all the front ones doen while I was at it because the front end had to come off the car. I couldn't believe it. €120 and that was a decent price.

JoeA3

I attempted to change a sidelight bulb on mine recently (MKV Golf) and while it was no where near as daft a procedure as MercMad's Alfa, it was still a major pain! In the end I gave up after scuffing my knuckles and effin and blinding at it, and I asked the dealer to do it. Did it free of charge, which makes a change

zilog_jones

MercMad wrote: »

Unless its like sevral new cars requiring you to remove the road wheel, drop the wheelarch liner, then remove the entire front bumper, before removing the headlamp and changing the bulb !!

Yes its true.

And I thought having to remove the grille and take out the entire lamp cluster in my '98 Fiesta was convoluted! The only other car I've changed a bulb in was my grandad's '91 Corolla - open bonnet, take the rubber seal off the back of the light and just pull out the bulb. Those were the days...

...There are 4 torx screws you need to remove...

Yeah they seem to like Torx screws these days. A lot of big screws are T-30s in my car anyway - the light cluster screws could take flatheads too but it was much easier with the Torx head. I'd highly recommend a screwdriver set with the attachable bits for this kind of stuff.

Mailman

had to take off the wheel to change the headlight bulb on my Rover yesterday.
Luckily bulbs don't go that often so don't have to do it too often.

PauloMN

gafarrell wrote: »

I changed the bulbs on my old 03 A4. There are 4 torx screws you need to remove. If its on the passanger side its easy enough but on the driver side its ore difficult as you have to remove some hoses in the way. 2 of the screws are on the top of the light (easyto spot) an the other 2 are at the bottom of the light (need to dig a little deeper for these). The bottom ones you only need to unscrew a little to remove the light (1 or 2 turns)

Cheers

That's exactly it. I've changed the passenger one twice in my A4, never had to do the driver side one, but it's still doable, just the bottom screws are a bit harder to get at.

The last line is very important - only loosen the bottom screws a couple of turns, and when sliding the headlamp unit back into place, make sure that the bottom slots are correctly aligned between the screw washer and the mount.

I had an excellent doc with step-by-step photos which I'm looking for but can't find, if I find it I'll pm it to you.

Zorba

MercMad wrote: »

Unless its like sevral new cars requiring you to remove the road wheel, drop the wheelarch liner, then remove the entire front bumper, before removing the headlamp and changing the bulb !!

Yes its true.

My FIL just bought a new Alfa GT and this is the procedure. Quoted time 1.5hours, cost from dealer = € 175.00 !

Nice !

And i thought the Fabia rs was bad, remove the bumper to change the spotlight bulbs !

All makes my mazda 6 seem stupidly easy, remove cover unclip bulb, remove bulb and replace. And i thought that was bad because it's such a tight space to work in, won't complain the next time !

ssteve

totally crazy why are manufacturers allowed get away with this from a safety point of view it should be a simple procedure

JackieChan

The A4 manual states that there may be engine components that could make it more difficult. Mine is the later A4(01-05 model) and it is the driver side thats gone.
Like others have said its hard to believe that one of the most mundane tasks is made so labourious.

Paulo, I'd appreciate that step-by-step if you do find it,thanks

pete4130

ford focus....so simple. pop bonet, squeeze plastic clips, pull out light cluster, replace bulb, insert light cluster, push in pastic clip until clicks....job done.

worded

Im sure some of you have heard this one but ......


How many psychologists does it take to change a light bulb?

One, but the bulb has got to want to change .........

Alun

pete4130 wrote: »

ford focus....so simple. pop bonet, squeeze plastic clips, pull out light cluster, replace bulb, insert light cluster, push in pastic clip until clicks....job done.

Which model? On my Focus C-Max I have to remove a big Torx screw first. Also the "pull out light cluster" usually involves a lot of swearing, taking of deep breaths, and many repeat tries before it works. It's not helped by the plastic clips helpfully pinging back into place as soon as you let go of them, meaning having 4 hands would be a helpful thing in this instance. Maybe they got some user feedback from C-Max owners and made it a bit easier on the Focus.

As an aside, I wonder what would happen in a country where they take blown lights seriously and you got stopped by the cops and made to replace the bulb (from your compulsory spare bulb set!) on the roadside in the dark on a cold, wet windy night with no tools?

PauloMN

JackieChan wrote: »

Paulo, I'd appreciate that step-by-step if you do find it,thanks

Finally found it - here ya go:
http://www.audi-forums.com/b6-forum/41575-b6-front-headlight-tail-light-guide.html

(Credit to RickT for that, a moderator on the UK site.)

You'll need to sign-up but it's worth doing so IMO as there's lots of good B6 information up there.

The other thing I forgot to mention is that you'll need an extension for your screwdriver as the back torx screws are hard to access - you won't fit your hand down there.

Hope this helps!

gafarrell

I also have this document. I put it on rapidshare.
Here's the link http://rapidshare.com/files/98694278/Microsoft_Word_-_Removing_the_headlamps_FRONT_AND_REAR_1_.pdf.html

budweiserfrogie

02 A4 tdi. Quite easy after first time.
1. Remove 4 screws that secure headlight, 2 on top and 2 behind, 8mm head i think from memory.
2. Slide out headlamp a few inches.
3. Unclip bulb cover and swap out bulbs. (loads of room now)
4. Slide back in headlamp and replace screws.
Sounds bad but it really is just a 2 minute job!

ianobrien

Zorba wrote: »

And i thought the Fabia rs was bad, remove the bumper to change the spotlight bulbs !

All makes my mazda 6 seem stupidly easy, remove cover unclip bulb, remove bulb and replace. And i thought that was bad because it's such a tight space to work in, won't complain the next time !

I'm the same with the right hand headlight of a 05 Almera, the space is tight (I've got big hands although!) because of the windscreen washer tank, and I thought that was bad!

I once witnessed a bulb change in a Fiat Stilo, and it involved removing the battery, battery tray, moving the mass of wiring, and that was easier than removing the wheel and wheel arch liner, or trying to seal the liner afterwards!

pete4130

Alun wrote: »

Which model? On my Focus C-Max I have to remove a big Torx screw first. Also the "pull out light cluster" usually involves a lot of swearing, taking of deep breaths, and many repeat tries before it works. It's not helped by the plastic clips helpfully pinging back into place as soon as you let go of them, meaning having 4 hands would be a helpful thing in this instance. Maybe they got some user feedback from C-Max owners and made it a bit easier on the Focus.

As an aside, I wonder what would happen in a country where they take blown lights seriously and you got stopped by the cops and made to replace the bulb (from your compulsory spare bulb set!) on the roadside in the dark on a cold, wet windy night with no tools?

Alun,

Looks like I put the scud on myself. I noticed my passenger side headlight bulb had blown this morning! The simple job I was describing before was on my mk1 focus, I've got a mk2 focus now so I'm hoping its as easy as it was on the mk1 but I have my doubts if what you say about the C-Max is true.