The Adventures of Cindy Li

Thu Jul 27, 2006 at 11.20 am

Cary Weinberger

Dear Cindy,

I followed your instructions and replaced the brake light and turn signal light on each side of my 1999 VW beetle.  It worked like a charm.  Thanks so much for your assistance.

Cary

Thu Aug 3, 2006 at 10.55 am

Gregg

These are great instructions, wish I had seen them earlier.  Do you have the same for replacing a brake light?Thanks.

Thu Aug 17, 2006 at 10.41 am

george

Thanks for your instructions, they worked perfect!  My daughter has a beetle and everytime she needs headlights it is a trip to the dealer.  Today both my daughter and wife were out so I searched google, found your instructions, and could not believe how easy it was.  I changed the bulb for $7 and bought a replacement spare also.  Thanks Cindy!

Sat Aug 19, 2006 at 12.56 pm

Donna

Wow!  It worked.  I struggled to remove the back of the light from inside the car for an hour. Then I looked on line for the instructions.  I’m not even a guy. :-)  Your instructions worked like a dream.  Took me five minutes.  Thanks a bunch.

Sun Sep 24, 2006 at 08.50 pm

Tom

Thanks. The pictures were a great help.  Now my air bag warning light came on.  Wonder if I hit something when I worked on the headlamp?

Sun Oct 29, 2006 at 01.37 pm

alicia

thank you very much your help was appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!

Sat Nov 4, 2006 at 12.34 pm

Nat & Eric

Dear Cindy: My husband & I also fell for the “must see VW dealer for safe replacement” the first time a headlamp went out. After the $70+ installation fee the “once bitten twice shy” feeling caused us to investigate an alternative. Searching the web for headlamp instructions brought us to your sight. We were soooo excited to see, not only instructions, but pictures!! Auto Zone and similar sites had no current info for VW’s.
Thx for your “technical support”. The other comments were great, too.

Tue Nov 7, 2006 at 10.10 pm

James

I was not able to push out the headlight after pulling up the handle. Any suggestions?

Thanks

Thu Nov 23, 2006 at 09.46 am

Steve

Thanks a lot!  You saved me $30-40 labor charge and the hassle of taking car into dealer/repair shop.  They’ve made Beetle headlight replacement a big secret.  I’ve been told “we have to remove parts of the car such as the air conditioner unit and battery, to change the bulb”. 
Well, not any more!  Thanks again!

Sun Dec 10, 2006 at 06.29 pm

Lydia

Thanks so much! I knew there had to be an easier way to change a headlight. My own mechanic said the battery and air filter had to be removed and was going to charge me at least $35 to do it. I just went out to my driveway and did it in 15 minutes total! Thank again!

Wed Dec 20, 2006 at 12.05 am

Mtxo

Hi Cindy - You have a great sense of instruction!  I have a 2003 and was worried that things had changed.  The important points about getting that little lever up so far, then wiggle the light, then push the lever, then wiggle the light.  That’s what finally got the silly thing out!  Whew - a little longer than 5 minutes, but still not 30 and saved the aforementioned trip and cost of the dealer.  Thank you for posting this.

Wed Jan 3, 2007 at 11.04 pm

dannyaguinaga

i have done this reading and i will let you know how this turns out. i am i a wheel chair so it sounds easy enough to try. see you with my story tomorrow it does look promising and i am hopeful.thank you so much for the information glad that you are here…........danny

Tue Jan 9, 2007 at 12.27 am

0ling7

Hey cindy
This is super, I found a couple of the website and it makes no sense to me.  But I have a problem loosing the headlight, it looks like the lever is up but it won’t come out, it feels like it is half locked, Do you know why?

Tue Jan 9, 2007 at 01.48 pm

stephanie Barksdale

How do I know which bulb to buy?

Mon Jan 29, 2007 at 09.01 pm

mike shannon

I spent an hour and a half, and was never so perplexed in my life.  I’ve rebuilt transmissions, motors, you name it, and this had me stumped.

then i read your instructions.

thank you sooo much.

Sat Feb 3, 2007 at 11.07 am

Bob Shaffer

Cindy.  Thanks so much.  Almost gave up, after first thinking that I could do it without instructions.  Just like a man, huh?  Went to the web and found your posting.  Worked perfectly.  The local automotive store had the bulb for the 1999 VW at $20 with tax.  Still better than the trip to the Dealership, wasted time waiting, and the $80 or more that they would have charged me.  Thanks for taking the time to make your post

Bob

Tue Feb 13, 2007 at 02.42 am

ituanakire

Thank you for your great advice on headlight replacement. The photos helped a great deal especially for those who aren’t very VW-mechanically inclined. I was wondering where I can find that same exact beetle service manual. It doesn’t look like the Chifton or Haynes service manuals that you find in auto parts store. Can you please tell me where I can find that same exact one? Have a nice day.

Sun Feb 18, 2007 at 04.39 pm

Trisha

Thanks for the 411. Would not have succeeded if we didn’t find your Web site. If anyone has trouble re-inserting the bulb and getting it to click in, the WD40 worked wonders. There was also a plastic wire thing next to the lever (at least on a 98 VW Beetle) that we also pushed up, and that seemed to help too.

Mon Feb 26, 2007 at 09.20 pm

Leah

Thanks so much for this information! It was really helpful. But there was one little piece missing ... there is a black corrogated button right next to the lever that is the release for the lever itself. Otherwise, it won’t move. But thanks again for the info!!

Sat Mar 3, 2007 at 11.31 am

H&R

A goddess, indeed!  If ever in Austin, we’ll buy you a drink.  You saved us much effort and $$.  Thanks for sharing, H&R

Thu Mar 8, 2007 at 10.48 pm

LAS

Cindy, THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! I made an appointment this morning with the VW dealership to replace yet again the same headlight I had replaced less than a year ago (5th time for this headlight) and to fix the AC for the 3rd time on I guess my super duper lemon ‘99 VW beetle. I found your site and thought why not save myself the yearly $90 expense and do it myself. I put on a pair of gloves and with a $15 double bulb halogen pkg began looking for the lever. I couldn’t find the lever to remove the headlight. I was very confused!  ?:/  I printed out your photo of the lever and realized the VW service specialists had BROKEN the lever off!!!! I easily slid the headlight out and replaced the bulb in less than 5 mins. I was furious!!!! (Over the $90 and broken lever) :mad:...  I even did the other side. (It did have a lever.) The back of the headlight was just sitting in the headlight compartment. The black clip was BROKEN!!!!!  The VW service people and I will be having some VERY strong words when I arrive for my appointment.

Tue Mar 13, 2007 at 06.26 pm

Mr Seabury

Well, imagine how happy I was to find your well crafted instructions.  I brought my car back from the dealertoday with one bulb to change on each side, thinking there is surely a method I can find to spend £82 on beer or books rather than on swapping bulbls.  My German engineering mates will be happy to claim credit for a complex but workable design, you get the credit for community spirit and altruism - I hope you get a warm feeling from the recognition.  All I have to do now is do the job without breaking the lever, wish me luck.  yours Cousin Tom

Sun Mar 18, 2007 at 05.13 pm

Mr Seabury

Update to this the most ontologically specific part of the whole internet:

1/ The button must be pushed, no iffs or buts.

2/ for clarity - the lever is part of a collar (about 270 degrees of ta circle) which wraps around the removable part.
This collar slides around its centre point in a track, and the track does get grit in it over time making the aformentioned jiggling necessary.
2a.1/  After a bit of jiggling, if necessary, is most effective if the removable unit is held diametrically oppostite to where the lever is, so if the lever is at 10 O’clock at the back (inside the car) then hold the unit at 4 O’clock from the front, i.e. underneat the glass and towards the ouside.  This posture gives your lever operating force the best chance of spinning the collar, and do juggle at the same time.
Time to change a bulb this way after learning the technique = 2 minustes or in main dealer speak £41 (i.e. $60)
Do have a new bulb ready (H1 55 Watt most likely)
Next time I do this fine acrobatic operation I shall think of you all. I expect it will be another 4 years though. Bye

Tue Mar 20, 2007 at 11.57 pm

Cyndi

Hi Cindy,

I have a 2003 Beetle and my airbag light is on and won’t go off… do you know how to fix this?  I went to VW today, but they want to charge me $140 just to look at it.  Any help you can give would be appreciated!

Thanks!
Cyndi

Tue Apr 3, 2007 at 12.27 am

Sandy

Thank you so much for your beautiful instructions complete with visuals! Love that.  It worked like a charm on my 2004 Beetle.  The whole job took about 10 minutes.  The only B*tch was getting the headlight back INTO the hole…because the plastic collar (that the lever is attached to) was off track in two places…took 2 HOURS to get the flippin’ thing back in there. GRRRRRR….BUT that had nothing to do with your instructions for which I thank you profusely.  However, I will never buy another VW.  I’ll stick with Toyotas!! They’re so much easier to do this type of maintenance on!

Sun Apr 15, 2007 at 11.07 am

Rich In Kenosha Wisconsin

WOW WEE!!! I Love YOU! You saved me some big bucks! XOXOXOX
Rich

Thu Apr 26, 2007 at 07.09 pm

Mr Seabury

Hmm a moral conundrum?
Give your friend clear instruction to ask you before ever paying a main dealerto change a bulb, as you are sure you can find a way to do it cheaper. Nothing else.
Does that work?
Tom (btw, I’m not blonde female nor in my mid-20’s, but glad to hear they still exist)

Sat May 5, 2007 at 12.15 pm

Kin

I am OLD.
I am an old WOMAN.

My ‘mechanic’ has changed my headlight many times, each time whining, each time having to pull other guys off of other jobs in the shop to ‘help’ him and each time charging me at least $40.

The first time, they went into a coma because they ‘broke the tabby thing’ which is, apparently,the highly technical term for the lever that needs to be raised. It took over an hour for them to figure out what to do from there. It DID get done. But everytime since then, they whined because there was no ‘tabby thing’ and it was ‘haaaarrrrrrrddddd’ to do, justifying another $40. They bite.

Last month, the headlight went out again. It wasn’t so bad at first because of the ‘pididdle’ effect (any of you over 45 might know what that is) and I got kissed alot, but eventually I had to get it fixed.

I went to my local parts emporium and paid $7.49 for the bulb.

This morning, in the pleasant warm salty spring air, in my very own driveway by the sea, I took the leap.

Yep. They had broke off the ‘tabby thing’ alright.

However—being a determined old woman, I persevered, lifted everything that needed to be lifted, slid what needed to be slid, wiggled and prodded, reversed the prodding, wiggling, sliding and lifting and VOILA~~~!!!!!!

We have lights!!!!

>>dancing all around my office<<

I am woman, hear me roar
In numbers too big to ignore
And I know too much to go back an’ pretend
‘Cause I’ve heard it all before
And I’ve been down there on the floor
No one’s ever gonna keep me down again

Oh yes, I am wise
But it’s wisdom born of pain
Yes, I’ve paid the price
But look how much I gained
If I have to
I can do anything
I am strong (strong)
I am invincible (invincible)
I am woman

You can bend but never break me
‘Cause it only serves to make me
More determined to achieve my final goal
And I come back even stronger
Not a novice any longer
‘Cause you’ve deepened the conviction in my soul

WHOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!

I don’t need no stinking men!!!!!

PS: Thank you, really. This is a huge accomplishment in more ways than I can tell you!!!

Thank you thank you thank you
xoxoxoxoxo

Sat May 5, 2007 at 02.45 pm

Mr Seabury

And glad to hear of the singalong crew too. Regards the undisputed demand for red-headed 50 year olds If this were a long distance dating site I’d say I was in the line.
X
Tom

Wed May 16, 2007 at 10.11 am

rick taylor

Thanks for the information. It cost ne 6 dollars the bulb and about 10 minutes to fix.  I never would have figured it out without you.

Sat May 19, 2007 at 05.19 pm

Matt Combs

Thank you very much.  Local VW dealer said it would take 2 hours of labor and you needed special tools.  With your instructions I did it myself in 20 minutes, plus time to go to Walmart to pick up the bulb.  We have a 2002 VW Beetle, so the instructions worked for that year.  I had to push a little bit hard on the back and do a little jiggling, but it worked great.  You saved me $65.  Thanks a lot.

Sun May 20, 2007 at 12.23 pm

Carol

Woo-Hoo!! My dad and I just changed the bulb in my 01 beetle ourselves - thanks to your directions and photos. Ooooh, the photos - soooo helpful!

I know it’s cheesy, but…

Bulb at Wal-Mart - $4.97
Soap to clean dirty fingers from changing bulb purchased at Wal-Mart - $.99
Clear instructions with pictures from Cindy Li so you don’t have to pay the VW Dealerto do it - priceless!!!

Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12.36 pm

david Termini

Dear Cindy, I can not thank you enough for the headlight information. My friend who is a mechanic (not VW) spent 3 hours and could not do it. I am buying the VW book you reccomend.Thanks again Dave

Thu Jul 5, 2007 at 08.41 pm

Bill

Thanks for the assistance.  It was fairly easy to remove and replace.  The tricky part is trying to get that casing back into the car.  I can’t get it to lock in place.  It appears a mechanic will be getting their hands in to this and my wallet after all.

Tue Jul 17, 2007 at 01.35 am

Pat Throckmorton

Cindy thanks for the info, used my Chilton book and figured out what I needed to do, but when I went to pull the lever down it would not move, tried the button and no luck> so Iwent to your web and founds others had problems so finally removed the 3 screws to take the part out what I refer to as the slide that holds the headlight in and finally got it to move, there was some dirt but also could be caused by the expansion of the plastic from heat. So i thought I pass that infromation on encase someone can not at all move the lever. If nothing else you can get the part number and go buy the part and save on the labor by installing it yourself.  Hope this helps someone.

Tue Jul 24, 2007 at 05.02 pm

Elizabeth

Cindy, I can’t tell you how great this was for me. I was so frustrated. Money is tight right now and I took my Bug to Pep Boys to change the light. They said they wouldn’t touch it. Well, I bought some torx wrench bits and came home to take a look at the light (I did need a torx bit to change my reverse light, which conveniently went out with my headlight). I was waiting for a WikiAnswer when I came across your site. WOW! How much simpler could you have described it!?
Also, for everyone talking about “pushing the button”—that is the passenger side headlight, and I believe is true for 2003 Bugs and newer. That button is a pain in the ass!
Thanks again, Cindy!

Sat Jul 28, 2007 at 11.48 pm

Kevin Armendariz

Thank you for the tips; it got me started. I ran into some problems with the casing releasing. I pulled the lever over and over. I drove up the street to the local sevice station and the mechanic could not release it either. After returning home and shedding some tears I decided to spray-lube the casing to death. I then put a screw driver into the hole on the bottom and lifted the front of the casing free which must have been stuck. It popped out and from there I was able to change the bulb. Thanks again! Kev
Tip: When purchasing the bulb make sure you read on the package whether its high beam or low beam.

Mon Aug 20, 2007 at 04.46 pm

Shawn

Hi Cindy
Thank you for taking the time to make these instructions.  This was exactly what I was looking for!
Sincerely,
Shawn

Sun Aug 26, 2007 at 11.41 am

GTheo

Thanks so much!!!  It was easy to do and saved me money!

Mon Aug 27, 2007 at 12.29 am

Sarah

Cindy,  I am SO relieved to find your website!!!  My heart SANK when I got in my bug tonight and the second headlight was out… I have been driving with just one headlight for about 2 months (everybody says they are at least $300.00 to replace) so my husband and I just limited our nighttime driving… But when the second one went out tonight, I wanted to cry!!!  I just found your page and we will change the lights tomorrow!  I can’t thank you enough!!  I even called the dealer, and they quoted me at least $300.  I just hope we are all talking about the same headlight (everyone here is saying no more than $70)  Anyway, we’ll give it a whirl tomorrow!  thanks agaain!!

Tue Aug 28, 2007 at 02.29 pm

Will

My 99 Beetle has gone through:
2-head lights
1-tail light
1-fiber optic bulb for the console($135.00)
1-mirror adjustment knob

The car is qute but the workmanship is lousy.Buy AMERICAN you will get a quality automobile,i did.

Wed Sep 12, 2007 at 10.28 am

Crystal

Cindy, You Rock! Thank you so much. I just changed both my lights in my buggie. Tip for 2004 owners—like someone else said there is a button next to the lever that you have to push to allow the lever to move. Also, for the driver’s side which is blocked a bit, remove the plastic black cover next to the lever area—there’s a cut-out allowing easier access to the lever. One more thing, spray lubricant on the lever and it will move up much easier (I was having a difficult time with mine!). Thanks, again. My dealer quoted me $93 for one headlight; Goodyear quoted $300! I went ahead and changed both even though only one was out.

Thu Sep 13, 2007 at 02.46 pm

paula carter

Thank You,Thank You,Thank You!!!! instructions were great.had a little trouble getting the whole assembly back in. You just saved me $50.00!!

Sat Sep 22, 2007 at 04.50 pm

Jayne

Thanks Cindy.  You are a lifesaver for all of us VW bug-lovers and dealer-haters.

Tue Sep 25, 2007 at 02.37 pm

Elizabeth

HELP!!! My husband and I have been trying for three days to get the lever all the way to the top on our passinger side headlight. We have jiggled, sprayed with tons of wd40, wiggled the headlight, over and over. We pushed the lever down, sprayed wd40, moved it back up…. many, many times… but it won’t go that last 1/8”. We have gotten it to where the headlight has moved out about 1/3 of an inch.

Arizona is HOT, DRY and DUSTY!!! We thought maybe there is sand/dirt compacted at the ‘top’ of wherever it is that we are moving up with that lever???

Are we missing something? (Of course we pushed in the little lock tab… it broke off)

Thu Oct 18, 2007 at 08.45 pm

Jenny Kreuczunas

HI,
  I have a 2006 Volkswagon beetle conv. The headlights on this model are different and I suppose they will be the same on the 07’ and future models. As all of us VW owners know, Workin on these cars is a nightmare!!! The space is small but it can be done, and will save you $$$. Now back to the headlights… the 06’ has a lock on the side of the headlight. if you shine a flashlight you will see the lock and unlock icon, Turn it to the unlock position and listen for the light to come loose. Now comes the tricky partor at least the part that took us an hour to figure out. In addition to the lock that needs to be turned, You need to push on a little silver lever(flimsy feeling peice of metal) that is still holding the headlight, Push down and pull out the headlight. The lever feels flimsy as if its going to break but it wont and that is the key to getting the headlight out. The second hedlight came out as easy as butter once we figured out you gotta push the lever down and pull or push if you can get in there behind it. Hope this helps….

Mon Oct 29, 2007 at 05.50 pm

Larry

Great article. Can you tell me if the battery is accessble. It doesn’t look like it ha.

Sun Nov 4, 2007 at 02.56 pm

Jerry

Thanks for the directions; what you didn’t say is that instead of pushing the lever up, you have to pull it towards you to release the headlight assembly.

Mon Nov 5, 2007 at 04.07 pm

Jerry

We changed the headlight okay, but a few hours later it popped out again, perhaps because we didn’t latch it firmly.  This is on a 2003 New VW Beetle Turbo.  Can anyone suggest the right way to put the driver’s side headlight assembly back and get it to latch?

Tue Nov 6, 2007 at 04.23 am

Cindy

larrh7@aol.com sent this message:I bet you didn’t get all the dirt and grime cleaned out good on the rail and latch. It went back in but not far enough to completely latch. Try cleaning it out real good. You can see where it slides back in on what I call rails. Mine was real dirty and gritty.

Tue Nov 6, 2007 at 01.51 pm

linda

would you know where to find the
maf sensor on a 2001 vw beetle?

Fri Nov 9, 2007 at 10.44 am

tom reko

Cindy , you are the best , you saved me hundreds of dollars. first I was told the bumper needed to come off to replace a headlight , then I was told the housings needed to be replaced , then I found your article and Voila , x did indeed mark the spot 20 min in and out new bulb. 14.00 spent, Fantastic. Thank you

Tue Nov 13, 2007 at 01.29 pm

nicole

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! this is probably the last place i would have thought to look for help on changing a headlight…but it is literally THE BEST RESOURCE out there! thanks again cindy…leave it to a woman to solve a problem! = )

Wed Nov 21, 2007 at 04.52 pm

Birto

Hi Cindy,
as you’re such an expert in lamp changing - i’m hoping you can help with reverse lamp replacement. My reverse lamp is situated in the bumper, and i’ve no idea how to access the innerds as it were! I have the bulbs from Halfords but haven’t a clue where to go from here…
any ideas would be really welcome…
thanks a million

Mon Dec 3, 2007 at 05.38 am

EC

Cindy,
Thanks for putting such great info up.
I manged the driver side but broke the passenger side (lever) and it still wouldn’t budge… any ideas on what to do to replace the lever or salvage the situation?
Thanks again for your great picts and directions!!  Keep up the great work.

Thu Dec 6, 2007 at 12.38 pm

lakeland linda

does anyone know how to change the little rectangle light in the back just below and off to the side of the brake lights?  Please help

Sun Dec 9, 2007 at 11.46 pm

Will

Thanks for the tips…..I just helped a friend change the lamp in her bug. She was told that it was a 6 hour job at one of the local shops. Your advice was very accurate.

Wed Dec 19, 2007 at 11.13 pm

Anguel

This is fellow friends called “Corporate America” - 80$ for 30secs of their time - MAGNIFIQUE will say someone - me i will say shame on them, shame on us for letting it go our majesty THE CONSUMMERS who are always F…. This is called slavery of the 21st century.Thank you Cindy.By the way on 2006 New Beetle and above, there is a metal bolt and a white painted locker picture with arrows showing the direction it must be turned to unlock the headlight unit.

Mon Dec 24, 2007 at 02.24 pm

Ralph

The lever must go up all the way. If it won’t, spray some lubricant such as WD40, wiggle, jiggle and push the assembly. Then push the lever up, it will go up a smidge. Keep doing the wiggle, jiggle, push, push thing. It could take a few minutes or a few hours. DO NOT force the lever as hard as you can, just keep going a little at a time. Mine just took 2 hours.

Fri Dec 28, 2007 at 08.24 pm

Adam

I am still trying to replace the passenger side headlight. After pushing the plastic lever,in your directions you say to “Gently push the column (which i am assuming is the black outter shell?)forward.” I tried that but it feels like the Light casing is still attached to the column even after it is “loose”. Am i going to need to unscrew something?