With all the technical situations I deal with on a daily basis, even I was taken about at just how annoyingly difficult it is to try and replace a burnt out headlight bulb on new Volkswagen Beetles.
Fortunately, Google came to the rescue and led me to this guide. While the directions are for an older model, seeing the overall process helped with the 2006. In addition to the metal lever on the side of the assembly mentioned in the guide, there’s also a lock bolt that you have to rotate.
Once done, the entire assembly pulls out. Just make sure once you’re putting the assembly back, you push down on the metal lever so that the assembly can be fully locked back in place.
where’s the bolt and the lever? I can see a metal lever that looks like its made of spring steel but no bolt (or which bolt am i rotating?)
thanks
I found the bolt. It’s toward the front of the fender at the base of the headlight module. A 5mm deep socket works nicely. There is also a *small* silkscreen of an opened/closed padlock to show the direction to turn to open, ie. it’s counter intuitive but you turn clockwise to open, counter clockwise to tighten.
The thing is i can pull the assembly out about an inch before it snags on something.
I am familiar with the older beetles where you have a locking tab / metal lever. However i don’t see that on this model. Perhaps i need to look again.
-r
I finally located the release lever. It’s at the base of and along side the headlight assembly. turn the screw then depress the (3 inch, silver) lever while pressing on the assembly from behind. One more thing, you will require an H7/55 watt replacement bulb. Not an H1/55. Which is what was used in the pre-2006 models and is what PepBoys mistakenly sold me.
cheers
-r
I need to mention, the headlight assembly i pulled out was on the passenger side. This determines the direction you need to turn the lock screw. Follow the silkscreen mentioned above and you’ll be fine. And yes “Annoying difficult” sums it up
dont give up its easy took me an hour to do both well open the hood duh ! buy the light bulb duh!
ok serious part get a verry long screw driver flash light and a 6/13 i think socket hectagone female ranch with long extension look on the passenger side first u will see a piece of metal sticking out like a little penis lol,, well twist it with the socket ranch the verry small hectagone one then look on the side facing the engine real low a leveler verry fragil and made of tin well u have to find it pull on it ( the lever) with the screw driver down tillits all down then slide the light assembly out if it sticks use flatheasd screw driver to get it out. applyu the same method for the driver side light no need to remove the battery,,wow it was hard but worth it shop wanted 100 for labor!!
It took me a long while to figure out the release lever. If you are having trouble after turning the lock-unlock screw in the from of the light assembly to unlock, stop working hard and look for a small shiny piece of tin that really doesn’t stand out. It just seems random. Like others have said down towards the bottom on the engine side. On the passenger side it is easier to reach, on the drivers side you will see a shiny piece of tin behind the battery. Just press it down 2-3 inches and the whole assemby will slide forward with little pressure and will hit the ground, so careful. The omega (horseshoe) shaped piece of wire only releases the back cover to get access the the bulbs after the housing is out of the car.
It is real easy after you figure it out. I did the other side as well after figuring it out and it really only should take 2-3 minutes.
I discovered my driver side headlight is out. My husband is out of town, so my daughter came over to help. After much trial and error we gave up and took the car to a Valvoline oil change shop. 3 techs worked on it for almost 1 hour, and could not figure it out. Needless to say, my husband is sure he can figure it out. The previous tips have been very helpful indeed. Thanks
Thank you to everyone who contributed…I accomplished in 15 minutes what it would have taken (after hours of frustration) a trip to the dealer to fix.
My observations: the whole headlight assembly is enclosed. After turning the locknut, wiggle the assembly from the outside to get it loose, then use some kind of tool (another site suggest
Advice to newcomers:
1) Change both bulbs ($18 for one, $35 for two at Kragens) at the same time. If one is out the other is likely to go pretty soon anyway, and the second one goes much quicker than the first..
2) Start with the passenger side, even if the driver’s side is the one that’s out The passenger side is a challenge, but once you figure it out, the driver’s side is relatively easy. Finding the nut and the lever on the Driver’s side would be tough if you started there first.
3) Get the bulbs (and the 5mm [or 3/16] socket + extensions) first. Kragens had a socket set for $6.99 and a set of three extesnions were another $5.99.
Including a 15 minute trip to the parts store the whole job took less than an hour.
Thanks to all.
Oops! What the other site suggested was a paint stir stick to push down the lever. I didn’t have one, but made do with a screwriver.
ACHTUNG BABY:
I recently replaced my headlight bulb on my 2007 VW Beetle convertible. As the previous posts indicate it is not very easy, but it is worthwhile to learn because the knowledge can save you alot of money. Tools you will need to complete job: 5 mm socket ( to be able to unloosen the headlight lock) socket needs to have an length of 5-6 inches to reach the headlight lock/unlock screw so therefore have it connected to a long screw driver or a socket wrench with a long extension, an H7 bulb (mine cost 16.99 at AutoZone) a close ended wrench, a flashlight/and or trouble light and alot of patience.
First: Unlock the light by finding the release, which requires the 5mm socket. The unlocking screw is located toward the front of the light and you will be able to distinquish it by the image by it that indicates which way to lock and unlock the light.
Second: After the unlocking screw has been set to the the unlock position locate the release lever, on the drivers side it is right behind the battery located at about the same depth as the bottom of the battery. Position the closed end of the wrench around the release lever and lightly push it down. The wrench is especially useful on the drivers side because the battery is completely in the way and therefore the lever is inaccessible by your hand. (DO NOT REMOVE THE BATTERY; IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO DO SO).
Third: Now push the headlight from the rear to unloosen it. Next take your fingers and from the front grab under the headlight lip and pull the headlight assembly out.
Note: In the earlier model Beetles it is necessary to disengage the headlight with various electrical cords this is not so in the later models (06/06-present).
Fourth: Once the headlight assembly has been removed take the backend off the headlight(This enables access to the bulbs themselves)
Note: The bulb on top is the one that needs replaced for the DLR’s(Daytime running lights).
Reverse the procedure to reinstall the headlight.
NOTE: If you do not turn the locking screw to the lock position the entire light will not function at all once you place it back in.
NOTE: If after you have inserted the light and positioned the screw to the lock position and the light still refuses to work, manually push the light in from the outside front in an effort to recede the electric connections.
As I previously stated, it is worthwhile to learn to do this yourself because the dealer will charge you quite a bit for a situation that is going to occur numerous times during your Beetle’s life.
GOOD LUCK!
Thanks, your instructions were dead on. Did my wife’s 2006 beetle in about 10 minutes. Never would have figured this out without removing battery to see how it was attached. You saved me a bunch of time and headache.
Thanks for the info. I got the drivers side assem. out, but the passenger side refuses to slide out. It is loose, and will come out about 1/4 “, then it catches on something. There must be another sneeky release or trick for the pass.side on the 2007 beetle convertible. Please Help!
Thank you!!!! I first looked at my wife’s 2006 Beetle and thought “No Way!” I am used to replacing from the rear of the assembly and NEVER would have known to remove the whole headlight system from the front. I did it in 5:00 start to finish and could never have done it without this guide.
On the driver side remove the air filter to get to the release lever, almost impossiable to reach otherwise. Also easier to get the silver latch back latched without it in. I remember the good ol days of open engine bays and easy to reach parts….. they are gone forever I suppose
Jeffrey:
Thanks for the instructions. Very clear. I have to say the design is very poor.
also make sure to push down on the silver tab when putting the assembly back in,,also make sure to fully turn the locking nut or the light wont work,,thanks ,made it too easy
I was explaining to a friend about the headlights and how much I thought it might cost and he said “GOOGLE IT”. I found your site and read all of the ideas from the others. I can’t believe how easy it was. All of the locations were right on. The passenger side was the harder one only because a steel line runs past the lever, so I used a long screw driver to hold it down. Do the bolt first then the lever and the other way going back in. One person said to use a paint stir stick, which worked perfect on the drivers side. You can see the lever right between the air filter and battery. One thing I figured out when going back in, push the lever insert the light, push hard on the fixture and turn the locking bolt until it “CLICKS”. Thank for the great ideas!