so i assume you have a 2010? turn the front wheels, pull back the front of the fenderliner and you can get in there.

 

...YUP! and unless you have hands the size of a 5 year old...good luck. It's a friggin pain in the #@$...bad design there.

 

Mine is a 2011. And I have big hands. Wonder what the dealer cost would be to change a headlight?

 

ooooh, that sucks.

on the other hand, the side marker lights on my old impreza looked impossible to change without major disassembly. i remembered i needed mine swapped out as i was about to leave the dealership. this old mechanic popped the hood, contorted himself like a circus freak and changed it out in about 30 seconds.

paid for the bulb, no labor.

:dance2:

 

I couldn't do it by just pulling the liner. Honestly seems like less of a hassle to just pull the whole **** bumper. Worst design I've ever seen.

 

...I have read that some on this forum have done just that...and I am with you on the design thing. The passenger side is easier to get at than the drivers side because their is a lot of stuff on that side...washer fluid resevour etc.

 

Replacing headlights depends on where you live and the enforcement policy of cops. In emerging Third World nations like California, headlight out vehicles are common.

 

My dealer, University Subaru in Columbia, MO, did it for free, just the cost of the bulb.

 

...that's nice of them. You are looking at at leat 20mins per side @ $75.00 hr for labor...that a saving.

 

Here is pretty good YouTube on changing the headlight bulb, for a 2010 -2014 Outback, 15 minutes he says if you do not have to take the wheel off (depends on size of your hand).

 

I can get the front bumper off of my car in less than 5 minutes no problem. From there, its seven 10mm bolts to pull the entire headlight assembly off, and then you have super easy access to all the bulbs in the headlight. If I had to change a low beam or marker light, that's the way I would do it. And then, once you have one headlight assembly off, you might as well change the other bulb. The entire job shouldn't take more than half an hour.

 

Pulling bumper procedure?



I've seen this statement before. Do you have a diagram or anything showing how to remove the bumper? I haven't had to do this yet but I'm sure, at 4 years and 35000 miles, it's probably coming due. Thanks

 

It's not impossible, but almost. I had to remove 5 clips in order to pull the fender cover back. Used 2 short foam floaties to hold it out of the way. My hands are not small, could just get them through to the plastic cover, but could not get more than the end of my fingers to try to unscrew the cover. was able to get pliers on one of the fins on the cover from under the hood next to the battery to loosen it enough to remove it from below.
Once the cover was off, it was almost impossible to hold the new bulb in my fingers as I pushed my hand up through the tight opening. The spring clip is a little tricky and trying not to touch the halogen bulb against anything was impossible.
Putting the clips back in place was also a real pain. Took me over 2 hours, but would only be 30 minutes the next time, if I really wanted to do it next time.
Not really a fun time.

 

On the right side it's easy enough if you remove the snorkel and air cleaner. The hard part is getting the cover back on, because of the thick o-ring. Remove the o-ring and practice fitting the cap. Once you have the feel, put the ring back in and tighten it up.

I haven't done the left side by removing the battery, but I bet it would be as easy. I've done it by removing the fender lining, and that's not a big deal either, except for the inconvenience of pulling the wheel and working from below.

Much too much is made of this. With a bit of practice, it's easy enough, even with clumsy paws. I had to have one installed by the dealer once, and it cost $60.

 

I think I am going to the dealer.
It is just staying cold and I hate laying, kneeling, sitting on the cold pavement not to mention frozen fingers.
I already bought 2 low beam bulbs (the passenger side low beam is out) so I think I will give them those and have them replace the high beams too.
Sounds ridiculous but I really don't want to mess with this.

 

I agree this was way too difficult, but I found a trick. First of all, with the wheel well arch molding, removing the fender liner is a lot more involved so I wanted to avoid that. I did it entirely from under the hood.

I drilled a small hole through the fin of the cap before I removed it and marked the position. See photo. Then I put a small wire through it. This is because as soon as you remove the cap, it will fall into the inside of the fender. The wire will allow you to fish it out easily. Then just pull the connector off the bulb with your fingers. I was able to remove the wire clip that holds the bulb in pretty easily with the long nose pliers.

Installing the new bulb, reattaching the hold-down clip, and pressing on the connector is pretty easy and fast. Again, the long nose pliers were the trick. The only hard part is putting the cap back on. Mark it before you remove it so you know how it aligns. It only goes on one way so you need to know how to line it up before you press it in. You can see the mark that I made. With a screw driver (a bent one worked best - like the one in the photo) I was able to press the cap on squarely (with fingers in front and screwdriver on the back) and then twist it by the fins. I removed the battery first to gain access. All in all, I think I could do it again in 20 - 30 minutes and only swear a couple of times. Yeah, it's absurdly difficult but this trick really helped.

 

Thank you! I've just replaced both bulbs using your method. Tools required: thin copper wire, headlamp, long nosed pliers, screwdriver, 10 mm wrench + 10 mm socket with an extension to remove the battery and air filter housing, trim removal tool.

A couple of suggestions:
- before opening the cap, mark the "closed" position with a Sharpie. Turn the cap to open (don't remove yet), and mark the "open" position.
- secure the bulb connector with a piece of wire as well, just in case.
- on the passenger side, remove the air filter and the two bolts that secure the filter housing. I could not remove it entirely (resonator was still stuck in the fender cavity), but that was enough to wiggle it out of the way.
- the opening on the passenger side has different dimensions. Removing and installing the bulb was easier than on the driver side, but it was rather difficult to press the cap in place and close it with a trim removal tool. I could reach inside the fender with my left hand and press the cap in place, and then turn it in the "closed" position with my right hand fingers (having long fingers helps).

 

Just did mine 2 days ago...removed air filter assemblies for passenger side which was 20 minutes total. I stalled an access port through the fender lining...so I can easily reach through in the future. 2 hours there but the future savings is the payoff. Another member suggested the port method and works great. To save yourself bulb hassles...buy some latex gloves when handling, then you never have to worry about getting oil on the bulb.

As for those bulb covers...warm them up before reinstalling them...the o-ring is softer.

 

This thread has some very good information. Thanks to all the posters. Once the winter weather is over I plan to replace my working OEM bulbs with new ones, to hopefully avoid aging bulbs burning out at the wrong time. These tips are great.

 

The last time I had to do this I had a very hard time putting the cap back on. Once I lubed the O ring a little bit it went on like butter. I don't remember if I used oil or soapy water.

 

@gomjabber the high beams are accessible from under the hood, no need to have the dealer do those.

 

LOL! Oh well, I had it in, they did it, I am done with it!
Thanks for that heads up though, I will know next time.

 

I did mine by watching the youtube video a few weeks ago. It is an absolute PITA! Its even worse when its cold outside as the inner fender plastic wont flex very well. Then you have to go in blind with your hand that unless you are 5 years old is much too big to maneuver around there. Think trying to pull a rabid raccoon out of your roof through your roof soffit.

You will get a bloody badge of courage doing this. Just be prepared. It has the same goofy spring clip to hold the bulb in as the Honda, but at least Honda lets you install it from under the hood.

Imagine lying on your back in the middle of January with your hand thrusted up 3 ft under your vehicle fighting with a plastic fender guard, cursing Subaru and swearing that some engineer guy at the plant in Lafayette Indiana put a mini camera up there to watch and listen to you struggle with their design for laughs in the breakroom during lunch. "check it out Tom here's another bozo trying to change a headlight"

 

Most bumper (bumper covers/skins) are easily removable (or flex/bend half way) - they are just help by a couple of plastic clips. If I remember correctly (when I had my 13 OB) it was easier to just pull the headlight assembly out (after front bumper skin removed) and change bulbs. If you do it once, you have it done in a jiffy next time...third time it's a routine.
I've replaced quite a few headlight assemblies, rather than polishing lenses. Many (if not all) require front bumper cover/skin removal.

 

I have a headlamp and a taillight out, both on the driver's side. Dealer wants $50-$55 to do the headlamp and another $35 to do the taillight.

 

Tail light is simple (on the '13) - it looks harder than it really is. The procedure is in the manual, just requires a screwdriver.

Headlights? Haven't done it yet, and after reading this, if one burns out I might just rely on driving during the day...

 

I just did my passenger side low beam the other day. I got at it through the fender well and it was still a PITA, but now that the job is done, the beam pattern is all fubared. There doesn't seem to be a lot of information on whether the H7 lamp is directional or not, but is it possible to put it in rotated 180 degrees from the correct orientation?

 

Since you have to work blind, it's easy to not get the bulb fully inserted into the correct position. There's a tab on the bulb that has to fit into a corresponding spot in the housing. When I switched my bulbs to the Osram Rallye bulbs I managed to bump one side out of that slot as I was securing the clip, which left the pattern all fubared. I had my girlfriend come out and look in from inside the engine bay to make sure I had the bulb inserted correctly as I fixed it. Problem solved and the new bulbs are AWESOME. :grin2:

 

There's another thread on headlight replacement and I had posted on that one in May that so far things have been good. (The OP was complaining about having to change his multiple times) I fixed myself though. I discovered a bulb out this morning. And since my hands are 66 years old instead of 5 years old, my mechanic Nick is getting the job!

 

Just got the car back from my mechanic. $40 including the bulb. At that rate it almost isn't worth getting dirty. But who knows what other guys are charging.

 

Before you fight the bulb, take a peek at the whole headlight assembly. Often there are only one or two screws (and/or clips) securing the entire assembly. Once you remove the whole thing it is very easy to get to the individual bulbs. I've seen this on my 2006 sub outback sedan and on a number of Fords as well. It seems impossible to get at the bulb until you realize the whole assembly is easy to remove with one screw lol.

 

There are 4 bolts holding each the Outback headlights in plus a few more in the bumper cover retaining strip that need to be removed to take the assembly out. It makes me really miss the two quick release pins that held them into my Silverado.

 

I'm in a similar situation with both front parking/marker bulbs out which has me really annoyed as I have an inspection coming due here in PA. I tried doing the fender non-sense (I also have the wheel arch moldings so add some more work there) on the driver-side and there's just not enough room to get my fingers in grab the bulb socket with enough strength to turn it. So I'm considering two options, the first of which I REALLY would prefer to do:

1). Remove the whole headlight assembly and change whatever bulbs I need to.
2). Pay a dealer to do it. I do not like paying someone to do something that I have the means to do myself. I'd rather buy more gas or cover an extra oil change, etc.

Having said that, are there any helpful resources on how to get at and remove the headlamp assemblies for the Gen 4 Outbacks? I know there's a couple of screws just under the hood along the fender that have to be removed, and it felt like there's one last fastener that had to be removed to free the unit, but admittedly it doesn't appear it would clear the front of the vehicle with the bumper cover in the way so I would assume that must go too. Does anyone have a good picture of the location of the fasteners that need to come out and a reference to the types used? I'm going to buy some extras ahead of time and wanted to know the variety used so I can buy in advance. All of the references I've found thus far are just casual overviews in text.