How do you replace the headlight bulb located on a 2001 Toyota Corolla?

Answer 1

The answer is in the owners manual.... ^^Thanks, that's incredibly helpful. Jerk.

But, If you are like me and don't have the owner's manual, This is how it's done.

Contrary to popular belief, it is not necessary to remove the entire headlight assembly. This is good, because you would have to take off the entire front bumper.

1) Turn off the engine and the headlight switch. 2) Disconnect the power cable that goes to the headlamp. This is held onto the bulb with a latch in the connector. To disconnect the latch, you are supposed to push down on a tab near the "cable" end of the connector, like an rc-car battery or clothespin. However, the latch is fairly tough, and it is hard to get your hand in there for a good "pinch" grip. I was able to insert a screwdriver into the "lamp" side of the connector and pry up to undo the latch. (pry gently, look first to see what you are doing. You want to get the metal tab up over the post it is latched over.) You could also maybe use a pair of needle-nosed pliers.

3) Turn the base of the bulb down. The base is the j-shaped piece of plastic that the cable was connected top. If you were sitting in the engine compartment, this direction would be counter clockwise. My bulb was stuck pretty good, I used a pair of water-pump pliers (looks like a tyrannosaurus head) to loosen it. To remove the bulb, the 3 tabs in the base must be aligned with the 3 slots in the retaining ring.

4) Remove the bulb by pulling it out of the back of the headlight. Again, mine was pretty sticky, but it will wiggle out if the tabs are aligned with the slots.

5) Insert the new bulb into the headlight, being careful to not touch the glass bulb.

6)Turn the new bulb clockwise (if you were in the engine compartment) to lock it in place.

7) Push the power cable onto the base of the new bulb until it clicks. You are now done.