Side light bulbs are one of the automotive consumables. After all, any light bulb has a limited resource. Every driver from time to time is faced with replacing lamps in headlights and side lights. Replacing the side light bulb does not require much effort and can be done by the car owner independently without using the services of car services.
General information about side lights
To ensure visibility of the vehicle during parking and braking in the dark, side lights are used. They are available both in front and behind the car. As a rule, side lights are equipped with low-power lamps that are not in the focal point of the reflector. Powerful LED or halogen lamps should not be installed in side lights.
For more detailed information on how to select and install halogen lamps for cars, read the material from our specialist.
Side light circuit
It's very easy to replace the side light bulb yourself.
In order to save fuel and reduce the load on the generator, daytime running lights are now often included in this circuit, which makes it quite complicated.
You might be interested to know whether it is possible to use LED lamps in a car? Read more in this article
The standard wiring option is quite simple and consists of the following elements:
- circuit breakers;
- front and rear position lamps;
- central or key switch;
- Let's take a closer look at the first two elements.
Circuit breakers
Sometimes blown fuses are the reason why the side lights do not light up on one side or another.
There are usually two fuses in the circuit, for the left and right sides separately. Since the light bulbs consume little power (4-5 W each), the fuse rating is small, only 5-7.5 A.
Where are the side light fuses located?
In the same place as the others, in a single block. On most modern cars, this block is located under the instrument panel next to the steering column, or, more often, on the lower left, under a plastic trim.
In the latter case, it is enough to remove the cover protecting the unit, mounted on latches. On the back of the cover, as a rule, there is a sticker with information about which circuit this or that fuse protects, indicating its rating.
The biggest inconvenience in this case may be insufficient knowledge of the English language - it is in this language that inscriptions are usually made, even on Korean and Japanese cars.
Lamps
Externally, the headlight bulb is marked W5W, but today LED sidelight bulbs are increasingly used.
Their advantage over incandescent lamps is their greater durability, and the price of both largely depends on the manufacturer. The most famous products are Philips, Osram, Tesla.
What are the new generation 4Drive LED lamps? Find out now!
Watch the video about LED bulbs for side lights:
Moreover, as the “Behind the Wheel” test showed, expensive products do not always justify their price.
Also, quite often, the front dimensions are equipped with light bulbs with a metal base, but this, one might say, is a thing of the past.
For rear position lights, the most common lamp is with two spirals - 21 and 5 (or 4) W.
The 21 W coil lights up when you press the brake, i.e. In this case, the light bulb serves as a brake light, while the lower power spiral works as a side light.
Just as with any other lamps, purchasing a more expensive product does not guarantee any exceptional durability.
Reasons for replacing the side light bulbs
Replacing lamps in restyled and pre-restyled cars is different. As a rule, in the first case, replacement is somewhat more difficult. Nowadays, replacements do not need to be made so often because LEDs have replaced the old incandescent lamps.
However, there are situations in which replacement is definitely worthwhile.
- You want to improve the appearance of your car and get brighter bulbs. It is worth remembering that LEDs combine well with cold xenon.
- You want to increase the life of your side lights. LEDs have a longer lifespan than incandescent bulbs.
- You want to reduce the amount of electricity you consume or simply keep up with current technological trends.
The reasons for the lamp malfunction may lie in a manufacturing defect. Cheap Chinese lamps quite often fail before the stated end of their service life. Also, the malfunction may be hidden in the car’s electrical network or a leak in the headlight.
Additionally, we recommend reading our specialist’s article, which describes how to change the low beam light bulb on a Priora.
You can read about how to replace the license plate lamp in the material of our specialist.
We also recommend reading an expert’s article on how to replace a low beam light bulb without problems or unpleasant consequences.
Types of lamps
How to replace a side light bulb? Before answering this question, let's decide what type of lamp is needed for this. All required specifications are listed in your vehicle's service book. First of all, you need to decide on the base; this is perhaps the main indicator when choosing. Of course, other indicators need to be taken into account.
Specifically, what type of bulbs are used in your vehicle. Now you can find both halogen and LED lighting fixtures. Please note that it is not recommended to replace one type of lamp with another. Most European sizes have a white bulb. Sometimes you can find orange ones, these are installed if the side lights are combined with turn signals.
How to Choose Suitable Replacement Parking Lights
You can choose a suitable lamp both in car services and at car flea markets. At the same time, experienced drivers do not recommend purchasing cheap Chinese products, since the likelihood that they will burn out ahead of schedule is quite high.
When choosing a light bulb, you need to pay attention to the following characteristics.
- Brightness _ This is the most important characteristic of a light bulb, which is assessed by its luminous flux. Luminous flux is measured in lumens. For an incandescent lamp this value is approximately 50 lumens. Remember that the purpose of side lights is to inform other road users of the size of your vehicle. Light sources should not dazzle other road users, but at the same time they cannot be too dim. The upper threshold of luminous flux for side lights is 150 lumens, and the lower threshold is from 50 lumens. Traffic safety sometimes directly depends on the brightness of the side lights, since failure to inform in a timely manner that your vehicle is starting to slow down can lead to an accident.
- Construction . In the design of cheap Chinese light bulbs, the base is made of plastic. In this case, there is a high risk of melting, since plastic is by no means a heat-resistant material. If the part gets very hot, the plastic begins to melt and, as a result, the light bulb fails too early. More expensive models feature high-quality plastic that is heat-resistant. With increased brightness, the incandescent lamp begins to produce heat, which heats the lampshade. Therefore, recently the most popular are baseless lamps, the contacts of which are made on the basis of a glass plate and a sand board. Incandescent lamps are also very energy-intensive. With increased electricity consumption, fuel consumption begins to increase. When choosing a light bulb, it is also worth remembering to save energy.
- Price . The side light bulb is one of those car parts that you definitely shouldn’t skimp on. By buying lamps at low prices, you run the risk of replacing such lamps too often, and in the end, such “savings” will only lead to more serious expenses. It is best to purchase lamps from trusted manufacturers such as Osram and Phillips.
Replacing lamps
Usually, before replacing light bulbs, it is recommended to remove the terminal from the battery. Why is not clear. It is enough to simply de-energize the circuit using a switch - in case you accidentally short-circuit during replacement.
Replacing the front marker
The most common option for connecting a headlight unit is to have a single power connector - for ease of dismantling the headlight itself. In this case, the power wires for all consumers (lamps, electrical corrector) are located inside the housing.
However, consumers are often connected separately. Before replacing, the main thing is to determine the location of the side light bulb, so as not to mistakenly remove, say, the headlight range control unit.
If you are changing light bulbs for the first time, it is better to start on the right side. The battery is usually located on the left, which interferes with both visibility and operation.
The replacement process itself is simple - remove the lamp together with the socket from the headlight, for which you turn the latter counterclockwise. The wires do not need to be disconnected if they are long enough to work comfortably.
It is important to pay attention to the condition of the cartridge - whether there are any traces of melting, which indicates overheating. A defective cartridge may subsequently cause a short circuit, so do not delay replacing it if necessary.
And here about what xenon and bi-xenon are, what is their difference https://mytopgear.ru/interesting/ee/ksenon-i-biksenon-v-chem-raznitsa/
How to replace the side light bulb in restyled models
Before replacing a light bulb, it is advisable to place the car on a relatively flat surface so as not to tilt again, and also turn off the engine. This way you will avoid electric shock, which is supplied to the light bulb when the engine is on. To avoid a short circuit during operation, on most cars it would be a good idea to disconnect the negative terminal of the battery. It is always better to start replacing from the right side. The headlight unit is equipped with a plastic cover. It is dismantled using a socket and extension.
There may be some minor additional complications with this operation. The socket with a light bulb is sometimes more difficult to get due to the fact that it is quite small in size and is located in a hard-to-reach place. To remove this cartridge, find it and start rocking it up and down until the cartridge is completely removed. There is no need to rotate the chuck.
Start installation work from the side where the washer fluid reservoir is installed. Then you should move on to the headlight installed on the battery side. The cartridge on this side is more difficult to reach due to the body. While removing, use your hand to lift the part up.
The dismantling process requires the presence of a special tool. Manufacturers place a protrusion on the lamp socket. Use a flat blade screwdriver to grab onto this tab and use a lever action to remove the cartridge.
Replacing side light bulbs in pre-restyling models
To do this, you must first prepare the car as indicated above (place it on a flat surface and turn off the engine), and then begin installation work.
- Open the hood and disconnect the negative cable from the battery (to avoid a short circuit).
- Remove the plugs that go to the lamps, and then remove the element into which the plug is installed.
- Turn the light bulb clockwise 45-60 degrees, then remove the spare part. To remove the lamp, gently pull it towards you. The socket itself first rotates along with the light source, then it is removed.
- Install a new light bulb and carry out the reverse dismantling.
