Can anyone give me information on changing the headlight bulbs on a C5. I want to change the high beam and low beam before I spend the $$$ on the HID lights.... thanks for the help

 

Not sure what it is that you want to know Mike?

Remove the screws holding the black surround and remove the screws holding the lid. Reach in from the side and remove the bulb.

 

With the lights down open the hood and remove the two t15 screws on the back of the assembly.

Turn headlights on then turn the switch back one click so the buckets stay up.*

Disconnect negative battery terminal (8mm bolt)

Remove 3 Phillips screws on plastic headlight bezel then remove the bezel (hint tilt it down and forward) that's clipped into the lid.*

Remove the two t15 screws on the sides of the assembly.*

Lift the painted lid off the assembly and set aside.*

Remove two horizontal pivot bolts (t15 bolt and 8mm nut) be careful not to lose the plastic bushings!

Tilt the entire assembly down for easy access to the high and low beam bulbs.*

Reverse to reinstall.*

 

Even though this way has the most access, I am willing to bet they are rusted and will not want to come out. Pretty common thing. Better to go with the other method of just reaching in from the side closest to the hood and swap them out. I tried that method of pulling the pivot bolts and they were rusted. They refused to come off.

 

yeah, you ain't gotta remove all that stuff to just swap the bulbs out.

turn lights on
turn back one click
disconnect battery (just in case *insert bad thing* happens)
remove the 3 screws on the black surround piece
reach around behind & unplug the headlight connector
untwist lamp & carefully remove
reverse these steps using a new lamp
repeat for the other 3 lamps

high & low beam swap complete

 

I appreciate all the feed back.... my problem is my hands are the size of gorilla hands ..... I did remove the and try to reach in but my paws were to large... guess I'm gonna have to try and remove all that crap... sounds like a real pain in the butt.... thanks again guys...
Mike

 

any feed back on changing the fog lamps whould be a big help too....

 

correct/ philly joe// very easy

 

i got big hands too & it was tight, but i got it to work
the other alternative to disassembly is to jack up the front end & remove the bottom access panels below the corner lights and reach up that way.

fog lights ain't as easy... at least for me because i've got Z06 screens. i just messed with mine while i was swapping the headlight housings for projectors

 

There is a great YouTube video on how to R & R the fog lights. Go to YouTube and do a search for it. The easy way is to go thru the brake duct or the access panel from underneath.

 

Unbolting the components I've listed is not a difficult task. Once you've done it, the process could easily be repeated in under five minutes. It's just three phillips head screws, and six torx bolts (four for the lid and two pivot bolts)... that's it.

You'll have unencumbered access to not only the high and low beam bulbs, but you can also very easily reach down and change the fog bulbs/drls/side markers if you need to.

If you have stock DRL's it'll also give you the opportunity to check your housings to see if the heat has cracked them at the top (above the bulb) yet. I'd bet money they have. If that's the case you'll need to repair them or moisture will be allowed in and eventually you'll start blowing DRL bulbs for seemingly no reason (run a forum search if you don't believe me). Every C5 I've ever removed the headlight assembly on had cracked housings above the DRLs.

Also, you mentioned in your OP that you're thinking about an HID conversion. You're not going to be able to do that without following the steps in my post above. You will not have the clearance to run the wiring or mount the ballasts with your light assemblies in place.

As to the pivot bolts; if they're rusted hit them with some PB blaster and let them soak for a few minutes before removing them. I really haven't ever seen much rust on those bolts but anything's possible I suppose. The mistake most people make is using the wrong tool on them. You cannot use a regular torx driver on them unless it has an extremely low profile handle. You won't be able to get a good bite into the torx head (because of the angle) and will run the risk of stripping it. Use an allen style torx key like these: http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...ku=00977841000

to keep the bolt from turning while using an 8mm wrench to turn the nut. Only think to keep in mind is that there is a plastic bearing over each of the bolts to protect the threads by preventing the assembly from pivoting directly against the bolt. Don't loose the bearings as they are quite difficult to find a replacement for. If you don't see the bearing after removing a pivot bolt it's probably still stuck in the bolt hole on the torx head side.

Honestly it probably took you longer to read all of that then it would to actually do it...

Good luck

 

And if by chance the pivot bolts refuse to come out, why don't you just pull out the headlamp assembly. It takes a 10mm wrench. I bought a 10mm ratchet wrench that fits right in there to make it an easy job. That way you can change the headlamp bulb and reach down to change the fog lamp bulbs as well. Second option in case you have issues pulling the pivot bolts. Pivot bolts would be nicer to pull "if" they come out easily enough for you.

 

Easy twist the ***** on the doores to full open// pull the head light color covers an the plastic surround. And they very visable. Do the outboard first. Just twist the plastic bulb inserts do one ar a time// be carefull to not drop the screws. A good white rag helps under the light housing just in case yoy drop one. Joe