Panda Headlamp removal

Panda 169 headlight.jpg
Tools Required
Philips screwdriver
Fine and standard pliers
Torx bits
10mm spanner
1/4inch drive socket set 8mm and 10mm
Mini cutting discs (Dremel type)
Torque wrench for wheels bolts


Instructions
  1. Jack up the side affected and support car with axle stand(s)
  2. Remove the road wheel
  3. Undo the Philips screws holding the front end of the wheel arch liner. There are 5 and there are two nuts on fixed studs. These may have plastic or steel nuts on them. Plastic ones just pull off with pliers and a gentle twist, or remove with 10mm socket.
    Pic 1.jpgbottom and wing fixings.jpgPic 3.jpg
    Twin red lines indicate base of the headlight. You can just see the remains of the missing stud for retaining the liner (10mm) nut
    – top left
  4. Remove the single under bumper screw that secures the front rubber lip of the liner from underneath the car. Note ** The bottom torx captive nut was a real pain very stuck, so I cut it off with the Dremel disc. The heat and vibration actually loosened it so I reused it by swapping it with the top torx centre bolt, The captive fitting was wrecked in removal so I put a washer and 100 mm nyloc nut back instead. These only need fixing gently very low torque so do up to the bumper and then just nip up quarter of a turn – max.
    Pic 2.jpgPic 4.jpg
  5. Remove the grill. There are four philips screws that need to be removed and it just lifts out.
    Grill securing screws.jpgPic 6.jpg
  6. This gives access to the top torx fixings These all need to be removed.
    Pic 7.jpgPic 8.jpg
  7. Finally the bumper to wing screw/bolt must be removed. See here it’s the top one marked. This screws into a nylon captive thread block so although very rusty should come out with a ¼ drive 10mm socket and extension bar. The bumper is now free to move and can be pulled forward to extract the head light.
  8. Fold the arch liner out of the way so you can now see the base of the headlamp and the wheel arch fixing. Even with a lot of penetrating oil this captive nut was not going to move without breaking. It’s a round spigot nut bonded into the plastic and it became unbonded as soon as touched. The headlamp however came out with a small tug. I used pliers to hold the captive nut and removed it quite easily.
  9. Remove the two remaining headlight bolts supporting the light as you remove them. You can hold it adequately by the top fixing tab / lug.The light need to be tapped or levered toward the centre of the car about 1cm to clear the locating peg that fits in a hole just below the lower wheel arch fixing bolt. It will then come out forwards.
Refitting is the reverse of this but get an assistant to help you while you put that locating peg back. They are very fragile indeed. Fix the top and front bolts first but don’t tighten them intil the wheel arch bolt is in place.

Make sure you plaster anti seize compound on all the fixings.
rusty bolts.jpgPic 10.jpgSIde lamp.jpg

You need to install bulbs. Side light bulb holder is a simple push in, as is its bulb. Indicator needs a part turn anti clockwise to release it as does its bulb, and the headlight bulb is the awkward spring clip. See phot for how to clip and unclip this,

pic11.jpg

One side of the clip has been released and the other is locked behind the retaining hook

Copy right the Panda Nut (LOL) no rights reserved use it as you like. It’s a guide and not instructions so please accept on this basis. 2023

Car featured is a Panda 169 My life 2011
About author
The Panda Nut
I started driving tractors. I've owned 88 cars or at the last count so thats probably 90+ now and driven so many different things over the years. I have tried but cannot count them all, its many hundreds. I've fitted towbars on most of the 84 car and wired all sorts of stuff. Only set fire to 1 - many years back! I used to swap out engines on my old Austins in around 45 minutes in the end and fell out with the Midland Bank for removing my gearbox in the Seaford branch car park. No option really as the starter broke and jammed the flywheel against the bell housing. Ive broken most of my cars, and worked out I needed to drive a diesel - with a govenor - to stop me melting engines. Made plenty of mistakes in the worshop, one which had life changing effects on my health. Eventually after 20 years in management decided to DO Health and Safety and learned a lot about RCV's (refuse trucks to you) I am now obsessed about Fiat Pandas and have had 7 in a row - 4 still in the fleet. Panda is without doubt the best car ever, particuarly the 100HP which is a true all round masterpiece. I have driven around 1,800,000 miles. If it can happen it has, but with no serious collisions that were down to me thankfully. Probably towed trailers and caravans 100,000 miles. Now old and senile, but perhaps, a little tiny bit more staid. No thats a lie. Now with just 1 kidney left, getting fitter slowly I hoping to be fit in 2024. (fat chance...) Now find im going blind so wantying to enjoy driving my Panda as much as possible while I can. Whats all this face off and birdsong, (Twitter) guff referred to below?? Who needs it, its all nonsense and beyond me anyway.

Guide information

Author
Panda Nut
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