Technical DRL Help- bulb dropped in headlamp bowl

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Technical DRL Help- bulb dropped in headlamp bowl

bileva

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Hi all,

As title, DRL bulb has dropped into light bowl and is visible in headlamp. Can anyone help with an idiots guide or online 'how to' to remove it?

Many thanks,

Billy
 
Hi all,

As title, DRL bulb has dropped into light bowl and is visible in headlamp. Can anyone help with an idiots guide or online 'how to' to remove it?

Many thanks,

Billy

Try a small magnet taped to a bit of string. Most lamp caps (or wires on wedge end types) are magnetic.

Robert G8RPI.
 
Now to answer my own question, found magnet on stick and claw on stick in halfords for £5. Gonna try and fish it out in the morning.
 
I did the same thing last week. It is straightforward enough to sort out. You need to Jack the car up and remove the front wheel. Undo 4 self tapping screws and 1 10mm nut and then peel back the wheel arch liner. The light unit is held in with 3 Allen screws then you can pull the light unit out and tip it upside down to retrieve the bulb. It took me about 20 mins in total and you won't need any special tools just a screwdriver ratchet and socket or a spanner and a set of Allen keys. Good luck
 
I did the same thing last week. It is straightforward enough to sort out. You need to Jack the car up and remove the front wheel. Undo 4 self tapping screws and 1 10mm nut and then peel back the wheel arch liner. The light unit is held in with 3 Allen screws then you can pull the light unit out and tip it upside down to retrieve the bulb. It took me about 20 mins in total and you won't need any special tools just a screwdriver ratchet and socket or a spanner and a set of Allen keys. Good luck


Thanks Joe.
 
Same thing happened to me this very afternoon.

I was mortified! :eek:

All I could thing about was removing the bumper. I tried bent bits of wire and I don't have a spung-loaded flexy clip thingy. I was stumped, other than removing the bumper.

Then it struck me!
I have a flexy narrow vacuum cleaner hose. I experimented with another bulb, and it would hold it. So I inserted the hose into the light assembly and sucked it!
The bulb stuck with the vacuum to the hose ............. and out it came. :)

Regards to all,
Mick.
 

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Yes, highly recommended!
Bilge-rat recommended too. (y)

I sat down in the living room with the open Haynes Manual on my lap, feeling depressed and angry. Taking a complete bumper off just to retrieve a bulb from the light fitting?

Good grief! :eek:

There HAD to be way. A simple way. ................. and there was! :)

I've now opened a bottle of beer in celebration.
Cheers!

Mick.
 
HA! that's great,,, I have TWO bulbs stuck in my Mazda headlamp units, one each side, might have to try it ( the led bulb came out the holder as the hole was very tight and just pulled the bulb out of its holder when I tried to remove it moral to the story, if the hole is tight tape the bulb to the holder!)
 
I'm glad I'm not the only one who has done this!

I actually came on to the forum to workout how to jack the car up to get it on axle stands to take the bumper off! Now I'm off to find some narrow tubing to try and suck the bulb out!
 
If you cant get it out try removing the inner wing guard first you maybe able to get to the cluster from there.

That was my first port of call, I think I would have been able to do it on the passenger side, but the washer fluid bottle is in the way ion the drivers side.
 
That was my first port of call, I think I would have been able to do it on the passenger side, but the washer fluid bottle is in the way ion the drivers side.
The bumper is easy to remove IF you can remove the screws/bolts easily the small screws in the guards tend to rust away making a simple removal tedious to say the least also the outer wing to bumper Torx bolt can get seized in place careful separation of the wing clips is also required.
 
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I ended up removing the bumper, I think I spend less time removing/refitting the bumper than I spend on looking for ways to avoid doing that!

All sorted now, which is a good job as my BMW went in to limp home mode & the 500 was needed to ferry us to a wedding this weekend.
 
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