This is a kind of the case study of bad engineering on the part of Mitsubishi. In their infinite wisdom Mitsubishi engineers make it almost impossible to replace low beam light
in Outlander 2006 for regular folks.
The Owner's Manual is junk and does not contain the necessary info even for technically gifted person,
to say nothing about regular drivers. It's such an embarrassment that I would recommend that the
manager who authorized its publishing in the present form to commit
Harakiri ;-)
There are two ways to do it:
Try to do it in place. This is the way recommended in manual and this is the one we will try
to clarify.
Partially remove headline assembly to make it easier to operate and then replace the bulb:
see How To Replace A Headlight Bulb for
some ideas. You need to understand about Outlander more then a regular driver. And have a
maintenance CD (can be bought on eBay).
I managed to remove it in
half an hour or so following the instructions. One thing that is important is not to hurry and
document what you doing. This is how this page was created ( see below
Slightly rephrased instructions for my write-up).
For me the most difficult part was to unlock
the spring (aka the bulb retainer) which fixes the bulb in the socket. You need to push it down
and then pull it left to yourself to release the latch but that is easier said then done. The
socket in which bulb is installed has approximately 1 mm raised border that it does not allow for the
spring to unlock unless you push it to the right first (that rotation will lifts the part of the
script within the socket from the raised border fix) and then move to the left. There might
be better variant of accomplishing this that I described. You might also try to lift it from the
edge of the socket first with
a small flat screwdriver.
Doug C :
The second option is a bit more difficult but much safer for the lamp housing.
What we need to do is grab the rubber grommet tabs and pull the grommet off the lamp housing (pull
it back over the connector). The grommet will turn inside out with a little effort..........
Once the rubber grommet is pulled back over the connector, you can reach in to the housing and
release the bulb retainer. With the bulb retainer released, you can pull the bulb/grommet/connector
out of the lamp as a unit, then use a flat edge screwdriver to separate the connector from the bulb.
Because the access is very tight in this situation, it is best to know how the bulb is retained
There is a metal wire that holds the bulb in place; on one end of the wire is a loop which
is the release point. Push this loop in and the wire will fold out like a lever releasing the bulb.
Here is a picture of how the wire looks with the grommet/connector out of the way:
Again once this wire is released you can slide the bulb/connector out where you can get a better
grip on it and gently pry the connector off the bulb
You can also carefully inspect the connector for signs of melting/damage at this time... it is
not uncommon for the connectors to become brittle/damaged from ehat
Note the orientation of the lamp's electrical connector. This is needed info for
reassembly later.
Remove the rubber grommet. Don't try to do it by grabbing the rubber grommet
tabs, just work around the edges and pull the grommet off the lamp housing. Then pull it
back inside out over the connector to get some space to operate. The grommet
will turn inside out with a little effort..........
Inspect the spring with latch. But don't do anything with it Put a small dental mirror
to inspect how it is locks and please understand that it need to be pulled toward you after you
unlock the spring.
After you understand how the spring and lock is positioned release the latch by pushing it left
and then pull it to yourself to release the latch.
After that you have the bulb and its socket in your hands and things became much easier.
The bulb that is used is H1-55W. You probably are better off replacing both of them as otherwise
lights might be uneven.
Assembly is also far from trivial. You need to try it first with the bad bulb before attempting to
do it with new, good bulb. The key problem is the spring is positioned in the worst possible
place for it to be. Also if you are not careful you can drop the bulb and socket inside the hole.
Clean the parts with rubber alcohol as they are typically dirty.
Insert the new bulb into the socket. Don't touch the glass part of the new bulb. Any kind of
debris or contaminant on the glass part will dramatically reduce the life of the bulb. That includes
the tiny amount of oil deposited if touched by even clean hands.
Insert the socket in the housing so the bump was correctly aligned in the socket.
try to put the spring on. If you can't secure it i blind use mirror and light.
Reconnect the electrical connector the way it was connected
Have you attempted to replace the bulb already and are stuck, or are you just wanting a walk
through before you begin?
Customer:
Hi,
Customer:
I tried to pull the bulb out but I don't know how to unlock it - it is held in place. I opened
a flip cover on the back of the plug, but it still wouldn't come out
Doug C :
Okay;
Doug C :
Just for clarity, the bulb you are working on is the outboard bulb with the large rubber grommet
around it?
Are you unable to get the bulb out, or is the rubber grommet and electrical connector still attached
and you are having problems there?
Customer:
The rubber grommet and electrical connector are still in place. It is the farthest plug on the
right looking from the hood, it should be the driver side low beam
Doug C :
Okay no problem;
Doug C :
The electrical connectors can be very tough to remove on these low beams, particularly if
the bulbs have been in there a long time
Doug C :
We have to options to help persuade the connector off
Doug C :
The easiest to do, but most risky for damage is to take a flat edge screwdriver, and gently negotiate
it behind the connector and pry.
While others have luck with this, I do not recommend this method as there is potential to damage
the connector as well as the lamp housing............
Doug C :
The second option is a bit more difficult but much safer for the lamp housing.
What we need to do is grab the rubber grommet tabs and pull the grommet off the lamp housing (pull
it back over the connector). The grommet will turn inside out with a little effort..........
Doug C :
Once the rubber grommet is pulled back over the connector, you can reach in to the housing and
release the bulb retainer. With the bulb retainer released, you can pull the bulb/grommet/connector
out of the lamp as a unit, then use a flat edge screwdriver to separate the connector from the bulb.
Customer:
ok, I'll give option 2 a try.
Doug C :
Because the access is very tight in this situation, it is best to know how the bulb is retained
Doug C :
There is a metal wire that holds the bulb in place; on one end of the wire is a loop which
is the release point. Push this loop in and the wire will fold out like a lever releasing the bulb.
Here is a picture of how the wire looks with the grommet/connector out of the way:
Again once this wire is released you can slide the bulb/connector out where you can get a better
grip on it and gently pry the connector off the bulb
Doug C :
You can also carefully inspect the connector for signs of melting/damage at this time... it is
not uncommon for the connectors to become brittle/damaged from ehat
Doug C :
heat*
Customer:
Will do... I appreciate your help. I am a gunsmith, guns are a lot easier to dissassemble and
repair.....
Doug C :
Hehe, no problem. Go ahead and give it a go and see how you do; I will be here if you run into
any issues.
Customer:
I'll have to wait until morning, I've been going since 5am central
Doug C :
Fair enough, long day indeed! I will be at work tomorrow around noon time (east coast) if you
get to it before I am at work; If you run into problems, you can just post back and I will be notified
when I am back at work.
no i dont think, but to answer the question about headlights. silvania make the best and brightest
white ( notice i said white ) headlights there called the silvania ultra silver stars.... only draw
back is they dont have the life span as the oem or other brand names. another brand i actually have
and like and are about 20% brighter than the stock oem are philips X treme power bulbs these bulbs
are actually brighter than the silvania but not whiter. Also you have HIR bulbs made from toshiba
which are the brightest light available compared to HID but they are not available everywhere, best
bet is to try ebay for them or search a site called candlepower. HIR bulbs are the best but they
also need a tiny bit of modification if you are daring, just a little bit of grinding, and also
they are not available in all sizes, so good luck if that is the route you want to go... hope i
help.
===
If they are the original bulbs, (5 years old), then I would replace them for sure. Bulbs loose brightness
overtime, and you should see a good difference with any replacement bulb.
Like cheech says, sylvania makes some great bulbs. I have used them in most of my cars over the years.
Lifespan is the only disadvantage. I typically get 1 - 2 years before I have to replace them.
Cheech, you said you like the phillips x treme bulbs too, but they are not as white. Do they have a
yellowish or blueish tint to them? Blue I can live with, yellow drives me crazy.
Does this model have plastic headlight "glass"? A friend had the same complaint. Her headlight lenses
were all cloudy. We cleaned them up with a kit from NAPA. Made a big difference. Just a thought.
Drive Safe
Check6
The Last but not LeastTechnology is dominated by
two types of people: those who understand what they do not manage and those who manage what they do not understand ~Archibald Putt.
Ph.D
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