Headlight Replacement

How hard is it to replace the headlight on the 2010 Legacy? While I'm there should I look to upgrade?

If you have a headlight out, keep in mind its covered under the 3/36 warranty. It a project to replace the bulbs

Originally Posted by Jsmith

If you have a headlight out, keep in mind its covered under the 3/36 warranty. It a project to replace the bulbs

I'm past 36,000 I have the H7 bulb. Can you take the headlight assembly out?

You can't take the headlight assembly out with removing the bumper. There is a bolt(maybe 2,its been a while since I did it) under the headlight, behind the bumper. Removing the bumper is not that difficult, just takes a little time.

Originally Posted by Jsmith

You can't take the headlight assembly out with removing the bumper. There is a bolt(maybe 2,its been a while since I did it) under the headlight, behind the bumper. Removing the bumper is not that difficult, just takes a little time.

You can replace the bulbs with out removing the bumper. Bulbs are consumer replaceable items. Now for the bulb assembly, that is a different story.

Subaru states you can changle the low beam by removing the fender lining and reaching in to change the bulb. I tried this and could not do it. If you can do it the recomended way, congrats, you may be the first on here.

Originally Posted by Jsmith

Subaru states you can changle the low beam by removing the fender lining and reaching in to change the bulb. I tried this and could not do it.

same here. I think I need to open up the fender lining more to allow my whole arm to go in.

I was able to replace the drivers side headlight by removing the battery first. then I was able to remove the plastic cap by turning it counter clockwisewith one hand and i had the other hand inside the fender to catch the cap. There is a metal tab which holds the light in the socket. The trick is getting the cap back on. I have a 13 yr old son w/ small hand that helped me out.

You figure this should be easier than it is. It is a safety issue, Cops can ticket you for a headlight that is out. They shouldn't make it so tough to replace a headlight. I would feel like a idiot if I had to go to a repair shop to get a headlight replaced

My Mazda 6 was like this, you had to pull the wheel well liner and had just enough room to reach your arm up there and get the bulb, it was such a PITA.

I was really hoping the subaru would be easier, sounds like the same situation though, I wonder how much the dealer is going to charge for this? I hope the bulbs never burn out because I really don't want to go through that again.

Looks like on the pass side, if you want to get at it from the top, you have to remove the air filter box

I think the left side light would be much easier to change without the metal tab sitting against the back cover.

In another thread on headlights someone posted a couple of PDFs from the service manual. Instead of pulling the fender liner, you pull the bottom cover off the bumper in front of the wheels.

I did that too, and there was no way I could reach the bulb cover from the bottom, unless I am Mister Fantastic with a stretchable and curvy arms.

The passenger side is much easier than the driver's side.

For the driver's side, we removed several of the plastic clips using pliers and screwdrivers, and then had to peel and hold back the finder liner. Then we had limited access to the light compartment. Then, after several tries, we were able to replace the bulb.

On the passenger side, we removed the air filter box to gain access to the light compartment. This took significantly less time than the driver's side.

Good luck. It's not easy.

just did it its not too bad but its kinda a pain.

turn on the car turn the wheel to the opposite the headlight your changing the bulb.

remove enough of the plastic fasteners the keep the fender-lining attached to the bumper and on the drivers side i needed to take an extra on in the top of the lining in the middle

squeeze your arm in between the lining to removed the watertight plastic cap off the head light - turn about an 8th of a turn counter clockwise

pull the wire plug off the lamp

there is a metal retaining spring the holds the bulb in place push it down and move up a little bit to release it.

pull bulb out...pay attention to were the metal tab sticks out so you can place the new bulb in easier..i didnt and it took about 15 min of spinning it to get it placed in right

just do the steps in reverse to put the bulb back in

all in all took me about an hour and i didnt remove the air box. if you need the FSM look on mysubaru.com under maintenance its page 11-50. its the hardest headlight ive ever messed with but still was easy enough to tackle myself and enjoy it

if you have any questions email rps13jp@gmail.com