1994 Lexus Headlight Burned Out

[Merdena]

1994 Lexus LS low beam passenger headlight has burned out. We bought this car new but I don't remember ever changing out headlight. My 17 year old son loves this car. We live 2 hours away from the nearest Lexus dealer and am wondering if this is a "change the bulb" thing or "replace the assembly" thing that will require me to take a day off work to see the dealer. Is this a major DIY project? Any guidance is appreciated.

[VBdenny]

You can change the bulb, not terribly difficult either. I believe there is a tutorial on here but anyway if you are able to figure things out, it will be easy.

Lift hood (secure with a board if you have not replaced hood struts) Factory struts WILL drop unexpectedly.

Remove screw holding parking lens in place (use magnet so you don't drop) Look carefully for correct screw.

Remove parking light cover by pulling on it toward front of car. The lens slides into the body. Be aware, it is very easy to break this lens as it pulls the tab off one of the attachment points. If it happens, just glue it back on. They stick because the tab slides into a grommet type slot. Detach bulb and remove.

Not sure if 94 had fog lights but if so, remove them next.

To replace the bulb, you must remove the assembly. 4 bolts hold this in which sounds easy but there are several other screw looking things which are headlight adjustments. Take your time and study the configuration and identify how. It is obvious upon careful inspection.

After removing the assembly, observe how the bulb holder attaches. It is imperative that the new bulb be properly seated and secured or water will infiltrate.

Regarding the bulb itself. Be VERY VERY careful NOT to touch anywhere near the glass on the new bulb or it will cause the bulb to burn out in short order. Seriously, wear clean gloves making sure to keep the bulb glass virgin. The oil will create a hot spot on the bulb and blam.

Re-install everything in exact reverse order or you will get to do some segments twice. By far the hardest part of this entire process is the removal of the parking light lens.

Suggestions 1. Take picture or video of everything, noting the sequence. 2. Do both sides. The second side will take you 1/4 the amount of the first and by the time you do it again, you will forget.

Good luck, make your son do the work and supervise.

Denny

[VBdenny]

found this from 1990LS400 in an old post.

Posted 26 November 2006 - 08:16 AM

For the record, the driver side headlight bulb replacement procedure for gen 1 (90-92) LS400 outlined in the U.S. spec gen 1 owners manual does not require the removal of the battery. The gen 1 LS400 uses 9004 bulbs in theheadlights. The gen 2 U.S. spec LS400 (93-94) use 9003/H4 bulbs in the headlights.

But replacing the drivers side headlight bulb without removing the headlight unit works too. Replacing the bulb per the instructions in the manual requires following the instructions exactly -- otherwise the side light can break when removed and the headlight aim can be messed up.

I once replaced the headlight bulbs in my 90 LS numerous times in one evening while testing the effectiveness of various bulb brands and wattages. Once I understood how to do it per the instructions in the manual, I could replace the bulbs in both headlights in about five minutes.

[VBdenny]

Good luck Medessa,

Thanks for visiting LOC, nice to have you.

[LSPaul]

I find that it's much faster to remove the headlight assembly to do this.

You'll need a 10mm socket/ratchet, and an extension, and a Phillips head screwdriver. Remove the screw, carefully remove the corner light, like VB said. There are four bolts and one nut that hold it in, two on top, two on bottom (one under the corner light and the other on the other side of the light). The nut is through the fender sheet metal, under the top lip of the fender.

Once the nut and bolts are out, the assembly lifts up from the front and center of the car. I usually unplug the fog light and headlight connector now, then do the bulb change.

On the headlight assembly, there's a plastic lock ring; unscrew and remove it. There's also a rubber seal; lift that off. Now, there's a clip that holds the bulb in place. Unhook one side and pivot it out. Pull the old bulb, put the new 9003/H4 bulb in (it's keyed and only goes in one way). As VB says, don't touch the glass (if you do, clean it with rubbing alcohol to get any skin oils off). Re-hook the wire clip, put the rubber gasket and lock ring back on, hook up the wires to the fog light and head light and reinstall.

DO consider replacing the other side bulb while you have the hood up-the old bulb will be considerably dimmer than the new one and probably isn't far behind the first failed bulb.

Replacing both bulbs should take 20-30 minutes, max, even at a leisurely pace.

Paul

'93 and '94 LS400

[landar]

All good advice above. Here is a tutorial on replacing the bulbs with higher output but you can disregard the upgrade and just look at the replacement aspect.

As mentioned, I always wear a pair of latex gloves to avoid getting body oils on the new bulb. Here is the tutorial -> http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/lighting/h3conversion.html