General No access to main beam bulb?

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General No access to main beam bulb?

bogdancss

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I have a 2020 500 and want to replace the main beam bulbs. Looking at the manual and pretty much all existing guides online, all of them point out that there is a flap under the wheel arches.

However, on my model, there's noting, but a smooth wheel arch liner:

Screenshot-2021-09-13-at-16-02-58.png


Does anyone know how to get access to the bulbs on this model?

Thanks
 
Dont you access the headlights from the engine bay?
 
The flap is for the older car's with fillment del and side lights
The Facelift has led units there so no access in. Needed


The main and dipped beam are accessed through the engine bay they are in the larger upper lights units
 
The flap is for the older car's with fillment del and side lights
The Facelift has led units there so no access in. Needed


The main and dipped beam are accessed through the engine bay they are in the larger upper lights units

My model had LEDs only for the DLRs. The main and dipped beams are halogen.

The main beam is not in the large unit at the top - that's just the dipped beam - I just replaced the dipped beam H7s.

Screenshot-2021-09-13-at-19-02-44.png


I also tried looking for the second light cluster through the engine bay and there seems to be no way in through there.
 
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I have also the facelift model and there is definitvly access through the inner plastic arches....

Hey - did you have to cut through or remove the arch liner to get to it? On mine it's completely smooth with no seems anywhere.
 
What does it say in your handbook about replacing the bulb?

@typecastboy, if you're replacing a wheel liner on a crashed car, are there any aftermarket ones available which don't have the flap?
 
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What does it say in your handbook about replacing the bulb?

@typecastboy, if you're replacing a wheel liner on a crashed car, are there any aftermarket ones available which don't have the flap?

the handbook says there's a flap. Also - the car is brand new - picked up with 4km from the dealership - so no aftermarket arch liner
 
Is the door on the wrong way round IE. the latch is innermost?

The main beam bulb is a pain to replace( I can testify ), there's a screw that holds the clip in place that needs to be removed don't drop the screw inside the cluster! you need to remove the screw then the clip then bulb getting the clip back and it to stay in place whilst you try and get the screw in is tricky to say the least ideally remove the whole bumper cover.
 
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The new cars don‘t seem to have that flap. Mine (late 2018) does not. But it is not that difficult to loosen a few screws of the liner and bend it inwards. It gave enough space to change the drl bulbs, I have not touched the H7s though. I had the wheel off, so access was easy.
With the wheel on, it might not work that easily.
 
First question is why do you want to change the bulbs on a brand new car ?

As pointed out if one is blown I’d throw it back at the dealer but you seem to suggest you’re planning to change both? So are you plan planning some sort of aftermarket bulb.

Also in the picture you’ve posted it shows a projector type head light which these days are almost always HID and looking at the Fiat website they seem to suggest these are HID head light units in which case there is no upgraded bulb you could fit.

Finally let’s not ignore this perfectly sensible answer that was already posted

The flap is for the older car's with fillment del and side lights
The Facelift has led units there so no access in. Needed

If you have LED head lights there is no changing the bulb
 
The facelift model does not have LED or HID for the dipped or high/main beams. They are both H7 halogen bulbs.

HID is and option for dipped beam and I think some of the Abarths have them as standard, but the units look different.

It was a pain to replace bulbs through the flap so Fiat decided to use new liners without the flap so you will have to remove some screws (3 I think) to remove the liner.
(that's what they told me when I called Fiat's support line. They didn't sound very convinced about heir answer though)
 
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If it is brand new, it is under warranty. If a bulb needs replacing, get the dealer to do it. If it has the wrong arch liner, get them to replace that with the correct one.

Good luck getting a bulb changed under warranty.

Many cars now require a degree of dismantling to replace bulbs and a dealer will be able to quote a fixed price for changing it.
 
Good luck getting a bulb changed under warranty.

Never had a problem. Have needed this with a couple of Corsas and a Fiesta in the last few years.

Even BL/Rover Group, who quibbled about every warranty claim, would accept bulb failures, as long as the blown bulb was returned to them. (I was a warranty claims manager for a large BL dealer for several years, then latterly on the other side of the fence, handling claims for a large aftermarket parts supplier. No issues with bulbs, as long as the old one returned. Need to ensure it is as supplied, not just someone else's very old one.)
 
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