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halogen headlight replacement 2009 prius

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by lukaczer, Oct 4, 2015.

  1. lukaczer

    lukaczer Junior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 4, 2015
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    Location:
    Washigton, DC
    Vehicle:
    2020 Prius Prime
    Model:
    LE
    I just replaced both headlight bulbs and thought I would add a bit of info on this subject. What is available on you tube and in the forums can be a bit confusing. Some of the confusion is because the gen 2 prii use two different bulbs, hid and halogen. The setup and process is just a little different. I hope the following info will help the next person doing this project. First of all both sides on my 2009 were definitely doable from under the hood without removing the bumper parts as is often suggested. It is tight and you have to work by feel and small hands is helpful but it is doable and not a big job. Here is how is how I did it on my 2009: On the left side remove the plastic cover that covers the relays- for a little extra hand room. On the right side take out three of the plastic clips that hold on the plastic cover at the front of the engine compartment. Then you can remove the air scoop which is in front of the washer fluid container. Don't mess with trying to remove the washer fluid container- not possible at least on my car. The hid bulbs have a hard plastic cover over them with the wiring underneath the cover. My 2009 has halogen bulbs. The halogen has a wiring connector on the outside of a soft rubber boot that covers the bulb. Pull the wiring connector straight off- there is no clip or release point on the connector. Jiggling it will not help as the bulb is not rigidly mounted so you are just jiggling the bulb. Just pull the connector straight back to remove. It was pretty tight. The rubber boot has two tabs on it. Use the tabs to rotate the rubber boot 1/8 turn ccw and pull it out of the housing- also tight. Then pull the center hole of the boot off the bulb- also tight. Now by feel find a spring wire that latches under a tab on the housing and holds the bulb to the housing. Unlatch the wire and pivot the wire back and you can now wiggle the bulb out. Put it back together with a new bulb. The bulb only goes in one way- you can look at the outside of the headlight and see the bulb which will help you get it in and seated correctly. The rubber boot has top written on it so you can tell which way that goes in. Once you have done this job once then it is a ten minute job and pretty straightforward. Hope the info helps

    Steve
     
    AaronPDX and Andrew H. like this.
  2. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 19, 2012
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    Location:
    Honolulu, HI
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Holy wall of text Batman!

    Great post, but it will be much easier to read if you break it down into some paragraphs. ;)
     
    AaronPDX likes this.
  3. kinglew

    kinglew Member

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2014
    318
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    Location:
    ny
    Vehicle:
    2020 Prius Prime
    Model:
    XLE
    Washer fluid tank removes for more room not hard to do 1 nut. At top of tank .two electrical connectors and two hose. Makes it easier whole tank comes out
     
  4. lukaczer

    lukaczer Junior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 4, 2015
    21
    17
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    Location:
    Washigton, DC
    Vehicle:
    2020 Prius Prime
    Model:
    LE
    There may be different variations on the tank. On mine, the tank is easy to unbolt but one edge is tucked underneath the edge of the engine compartment and there is a hydraulic fitting blocking movement to the front and left- it appeared to be impossible to remove it without substantial disassembly. Here is a picture if the upload works.

    Steve
     

    Attached Files:

  5. kinglew

    kinglew Member

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2014
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    Location:
    ny
    Vehicle:
    2020 Prius Prime
    Model:
    XLE
    Tilt to the side same on all gen 2 make it easier to change bulb