DIY: Headlight Removal
 

-Follow instructions to remove the front bumper. Then pry the fender protector to get access to the harness. It is recommended to turn wheel to one side to get easy access. Work on one headlight at a time, unless front wheels are removed.
-Each headlight has a main harness connector. Push lock clip in, and pull down to unplug the main connector.
-Each wire harness have zip ties with locking clips holding the harness to the headlight. Get behind the clip, squeeze the sides, and the try to unhook the harness from the headlight. It is a pain get behind it. There are two on each side to release from the headlight assembly.

Headlight removal:
1) http://www.the370z.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=23371&stc=1&d=12972150 95[/IMG]

2) This is the 7th pop rivet that separates the rubber lining to get access to one of the driver side headlight bolts.
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1297215095

3) This is the driver side bolt that was covered by the rubber lining. The passenger side bolt is already exposed.
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1297215095

4) Lightly tug the rubber lining above the headlights to get access to a bolt, pop rivet, and a plastic rivet holding the rubber lining. This one takes a bit of effort to pull.
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1297215095

5) The inside side of the headlight, where the rubber lining meets it, has a small pop rivet that is easy to remove. It will allow you to separate the rubber lining from the headlights and expose a few parts to separate. There is a wire harness that is hooked. Pull the harness towards the front to unhook it from the headlight. Unhook cables from the headlight as well. The passenger side is much easier to work on.
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1297215095

6) Remove upper side bolt holding the headlight assembly.
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1297215095

7) Remove the bolt underneath the headlight assembly.
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1297215095

You should be able to pull the headlight towards the front of the car to free it. If it takes more effort to pull the headlight free, check for snags.

Fantastic DIGItonium, now we just need a DIY in how to open the headlight casing!

great DIY. Thanks for posting.

Thank you. I got really tired from the heat and mosquitoes, so I missed the photos of the headlight harness.

NOTE: Take note that the 7th pop rivot mentioned above is different from the other six. This one has three edge/openings whereas the others are four. If you mistakingly used this 7th pop rivot in one of the other spots, you'll find that your last rivot in hand will not snap closed in this one spot.

Great DIY ....TY sir:tiphat:

Anyone know the best/easiest way to remove the Pop Rivets?

Is this a real question? Do you have one stuck or something? Just use a small flathead screwdriver to pop it up and then remove by hand. Simply. Ones that are covered in dirt and have had dirt for a long time can be difficult to remove sometimes...but since our cars are new and these rivets are up high off the road, shouldn't have this problem.

Uhh yes its a real question. In the past ive broken many of these and figured maybe people have a good method of doing that. Is that so strange to ask??

I wish you did more DIY's because this has great detail.

Question, when putting the lights back in, do they align perfectly...only one way? I only ask because I know on the 350Z it took some work to line them up right with the hood/fender/bumper.

Thanks! :tiphat:

I never had any issues lining up the headlights. You simply line up with the screw holes. The driver side is much easier to work on. The passenger side has the window washer bottle and hoses.

There is an adjustment knob that you can turn using a long neck Philips screw driver. Pop up the hood, and there is a small area for the screw driver to get in for adjustments.

good write up

Damn, you had to take off the bumper to remove the headlights?? Icky..:shakes head:

Haha it's not that bad. I've had my bumper off again for the past couple of months getting a new set of headlights modded, and I'm about to drop it again because one of the headlights is in need of repair. The scary part is popping the bumper off from each side.

I wanna do that whole paint the inner headlight housings, but I will NOT remove that front bumper myself, damn it, if you didnt live in Kansas, I'd pay you to take it off for me.:tup:

Really helpful DIY! Many thanks! Actually you don't have to pull down whole bumper. Mine was partly on. But all screws were down for case of breaking something. Both headlights were down (damned parking LEDs which fallen into headlight casing).

Haha! Removing the bumper and headlights is probably much less scary than working on the electronics (i.e., gauge cluster assembly). The only thing annoying is getting the underbody panel oriented properly so it can be screwed back in place.

:tiphat: How did you manage to get to the bolt underneath the headlight? That would be a pain to stick wedge my arm between the bumper and chassis. Glad you got it! Happy modding!

nice work!
free bumpp

bump off the car is hard job for me...
seems no way to drop the headlight assembly without bump off..
OR there is another way to do so?

thanks to this DIY :tiphat:

here is my gift:

a picture of harness clip that you'r missing
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1352265090

Please help!! Doing this right now! Is there a special way to get this connector clip off?!?!?! Im going insane!!:shakes head:

Long needle nose pliers, squeeze both ends of the tab and push through.

Got it haha thanks :tup:

The harness clip thing was a total pain in the arse. I ended up cutting the zip tie on the passenger side. Easier to replace it than take the time to pop the clip.

I put it all back together over the weekend.

Removing the bumper was relatively easy actually. The hardest/scariest part for me was getting that bolt inside the wheel well. After that it was a piece of cake. Going back on was much harder, but still not too bad. Definitely took 2 people to get it on each side without scratching into things. Then getting all the holes lined up, especially underneath.

Hardest part about removing the lights was that friggin' clip up in the back that holds the wires tight on the light. I can say with 100% certainty that the best way to do this is to just cut the zip tie part of the clip. Once the light is out, then you can remove the clip. When you go to put it all back in, just zip in a new tie into the clip and reattach. Super easy and eliminates all the headache.

Putting the lights back in was harder than I thought it would be. There is definitely some play to the fit, so you'll need to make some adjustments along the way. Took me about 45 minutes to get the first one just right. Second one only took about 15 minutes since I had more experience. Actually, my lights are in better alignment with the body panels and hood now than they were from the factory. I actually added 2 washers to help lift the rear of the light up a little so it sits more flush with the body panel at the back. (Now that it's more aero dynamic I'll go faster !!!! :icon17:)

Overall getting my headlights painted was totally worth it. It looks SO much better now. I'll make a post on the 180 Customs page. Until then, here some pics.

Freezing fingers + evil harness = hell.

When you guys work on the harness from the back of the headlights, do you pop off all 3 rivets attached to the fender well in order to access to the harness or just pop off the most outer rivet and pry the fender well to get the access?

I had very good luck using interior pry tools to pop the harness off. It took longer for me to take the front bumper off than to do the headlights. I used
Amazon.com: Amico Auto Vehicle Blue Loudspeaker Audio Dismantle Removal Pry Tool Set 4 in 1: Automotive

If you go behind the clip where you need to press the tabs, wedge this tool in there and it'll pop right out. I removed the washer tank on the passenger side to make it easier to get the clip from underneath. On the driver side, I attacked it from the top. The tools are worth every penny, it makes popping any harness off that much easier than pinching w/ your fingers.

^^ Thanks for the tools buddy! They are really handy!:tup:

But honestly, I am not going to clip the harness back on just make it easier for next time when I need to take them off again.:icon17:

i had the same problem squeezing it too but i finally got it
here is a clear pic show u how, hope it helps
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1397107005

Okay removed and re-installed my headlights today. Here is my thought... If you really have a hard time to get behind the headlight units to tackle on the clip and the main connector, jack up your car take off the wheel and fender might be the easiest way. Because then you will get a full access.

http://i46.tinypic.com/33zbsc4.jpg

Great DIY , got the head lights pulled in a jiffy. though i have a lot of experience removing the bumper

Used this DIY today and the work went flawlessly! Thanks for taking the time!

Great DIY, found it very helpful today,
just a couple of differences, to the that nasty little clip, with the ziplock on it.
well I did a bit different, took a screw driver got under the little tab and pushed it out.
then I was able to lift the head light assemble out and remove the electric connector.

why, I at times get to be all thumbs when it comes to working on cars...

but this was very helpful....