2003 Polo, changing headlight bulb.

[jimcornwall]

You should read Laughing Man's reply to this posted 18-1-08.
He explains how to do it there.
You may need a mirror to see the spring and how it is located in the retaining lugs
Good luck!

[koogs]

You should read Laughing Man's reply to this posted 18-1-08.
He explains how to do it there.
You may need a mirror to see the spring and how it is located in the retaining lugs
Good luck!

Thanks. I did exactly that and managed to successfully remove & replace both the H7 & H1 bulbs.

[Dancer]

Hi, If you have difficulty replacing the Dip Headlamp bulbs because you can't get your hand into the space behind the headlamp. I have found the way to do it.
The Fuel Filter is held in a cylindrical holder fixed to the body with one Torx (T45) screw at the top and two Torx screws lower down. Remove these and you will be able to move the Fuel Filter without having to mess with the rubber tubes going to and from it. There is now plenty of leeway to allow you to put your hand in and remove and replace the new lamp. This one differs from the Main Beams which are held in place with a ring. These are removed by turning the bulb anti-clockwise. Note where the metal tab is when you remove the blown bulb, so that you can replace the bulb easily, by inserting it and turning it clockwise to lock it. Finally push the wiring plug onto the lugs on the back of the bulb.
If you are really stuck, Halfords can fit the bulb for you but they charge £4.99 to do it.
I was able to buy a heavy duty set of Torx Drivers (which look like Allen Keys but with circular stems and fluted ends with a hole in each end for 'security Torx screws' for £4 including shipping on eBay. I will keep these in the car along with the Emergency set of bulbs. Then I will be able to change a bulb at the roadside if the situation ever occurs.
Happy Motoring
Brian

[iftiml]

Someone can please expalin me how to change Rear bulbs , stop and reverse bulb? thank you

[Nick Horne]

I don't know if this helps, but on my late-2005 Polo, all you need to do to get at the back lights is to gently peel back the thin carpet-type trim at the side of the rear door, i.e. inside where the lights are, and then undo and remove a plastic wingnut which is near the door opening and a bit more than halfway up the light cluster. My wingnut has a sort of rubber-band safety strap to keep it from getting lost, and this also makes it easy to find (and a pain the butt to rotate). Once the wingnut's off, push gently on the bit of bolt that it was on, while pulling gently from the rear, so as to get the bolt out of its hole. Now STOP pulling!!!! Before you can do any more, you need to LIFT the cluster a few millimetres: I've found that there's a bit of moulding in the grey plastic part, which you can get a couple of fingers under, just above where the cable connector fits on. A bit of a lift here, assisted by a slightly desperate, climbing-wall-type grip on the outer bit of the light, will do the trick. Once it's been raised a little, the cluster will come out (gently!! everything's plastic!!!) rearwards, and you will then be able to see how the lifting process has worked (which will hopefully help you to avoid breaking anything when you get to putting it all back together again, or the next time you have to take it apart). You should be able (within the limits of the reach of the cable) to extract the cluster a bit, and you will see four places, a bit like the catches on a house door, where the grey inner part of the cluster clips into the outer bit. Gently squeeze the top two in towards each other, to get the top to come free, then ease the bottom ones out. Now you should have two halves (the translucent outer bit and the grey inner bit with the bulbs in, but hopefully not two halves of either of these individual bits...) and possibly also a floppy bit of rubber gasket in your hand too, or perhaps it has made a quick escape and is by your feet, because this usually falls out too. This will need putting back in the groove in the grey moulding. Now find your problem bulb, replace, check it works, and THEN put everything back. While I think of it, the "grey" bit may not be grey all over the world, maybe it's one of those things that varies with the local plastics industry...

Anyhow, as you will have gathered, the time to have the beer is AFTER attempting this job and not before.

Also, does anyone have any advice on how to adjust the beam angle (vertically) on the dip headlamp on UK-issue 2005 Polos? I think the nylon allen-key adjuster does horizontal, but what about vertical? Whenever I have managed to replace a dip bulb, with the consequent bruised veins etc on my hands, I have had to wait for a slot at my VW dealer to have the beam set properly.

And is it true that "proper" VW practice for changing and aligning bulbs is in fact to remove the BUMPER??!!
Does anyone really know?

And isn't the headlamp-bulb-replacement problem actually a rather dodgy issue of road safety? If most owners can't replace one, presumably they have dealers do it. Most employers won't let employees be away for long enough to get this done in the week, so it'll be at the weekend. If there's as big a queue for this as I think there must be, maybe it won't even be the first weekend after finding the fault, but the second or third. For all this time, the car will be a safety hazard after dark. And don't think that the average English driver will stop using the car just because it's unsafe in this way, that's not 2009 behaviour. Perhaps people have been injured, or worse, already. Perhaps it's actually a matter for legislation in the various countries of the market for these cars, something a bit meatier and more fundamental than the mere £100-ish roadside fines for the poor sucker drivers which apply around Europe; surely not impossibly hard to outlaw the selling of vehicles with this hazard built-in...

[pjstack]

Hi Volition, or Jim

Could you run me thru the headlight bulbs? Does the clip come out, or does it twist into an open position (then insert/remove) before closing? or is it a case of turning the bulb to get it out? After a small bit of fiddling I managed to get the old bulb out, set the new bulb up, checked it was working but cannot get it to "clip" into place securely as it was. I can wedge it, but it s not in straight, and do not want it coming loose and breaking when driving...

Ended up trying to take a picture with my phone, but still cannot see clearly (confusing me more as it looks like the (plastic??) clip is attached with screws)
thanks for the pic .. it really helped.
I thought it was going to be more of the same as my 01 polo, but once you know how, it's really simple

Cheers;

mullins

ok, got it!! Here's how. after readin my own post I had a look again at the picture I took. The clip is indeed a black plastic clip, and doesn't come out. You click into an open position, insert bulb, then turn clip back into closed position to hold the bulb in place.
See picture
How to change the headlight bulb in a VW Polo

thanks

[pjstack]

thanks for the pic.!! i thought it was going to be more of the same as my 01 polo, but once you figure it out it's quiet simple.

[vwcabriolet1971]

The worst model to change N/S headlamp bulbs is the post 2003 1.9TDI . On this model you have to remove the battery ! Arrrrrrg !

[vc-10]

Changing the sidelight bulbs is a pain too...but nothing on the Mk.2 Renault Megane!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZWqU9X6PR4

What I find ridiculous is people who drive around knowingly with dead lights- I remember passing a 206 who had no dipped beams and was using the high beams until right by oncoming traffic. Some cars, including the Golf 5 and I guess the 6 too, even tell you when a light goes.

[dickt]

Thanks to all for the instructions and the picture. Saved me a visit to garage with car!! Great.

Hi Volition, or Jim

Could you run me thru the headlight bulbs? Does the clip come out, or does it twist into an open position (then insert/remove) before closing? or is it a case of turning the bulb to get it out? After a small bit of fiddling I managed to get the old bulb out, set the new bulb up, checked it was working but cannot get it to "clip" into place securely as it was. I can wedge it, but it s not in straight, and do not want it coming loose and breaking when driving...

Ended up trying to take a picture with my phone, but still cannot see clearly (confusing me more as it looks like the (plastic??) clip is attached with screws)

Cheers;

mullins

ok, got it!! Here's how. after readin my own post I had a look again at the picture I took. The clip is indeed a black plastic clip, and doesn't come out. You click into an open position, insert bulb, then turn clip back into closed position to hold the bulb in place.
See picture
How to change the headlight bulb in a VW Polo