DIY headlight retainer clip

E

ehsande

Member
:
2003 Mazda Protege5
There is plenty of info on the Internet about the hassles of Mazda's headlight bulb clip. I purchased a low-mileage '03 Protege5 in October 2013 and had to replace one bulb the other day. It was a pain, but I got it done. The new bulb was noticeably brighter so I went ahead and replaced the other side.

Many people experience the clips snapping, but in my case the clip on bulb #2 came apart from it's "hinge" area; a tiny piece of plastic broke. No chance of reattaching it, as far as I can tell.

My question is whether anyone has ever found a way to keep the bulb secure without having to buy a new headlight assembly.

Somewhere on the Internet I found a comment from someone that said they had a dealer replace a bulb, and the next time around found that the dealer glued it in place. Is there a glue that will hold metal-to-plastic, yet break free for another replacement?

I guess I'll end up buying a new headlight assembly someday so I may as well just use some strong glue and hope that the new bulb(s) last for years.


Eric
 
You can try using a large paper clip to replace the clip for now. Maybe you can tighten the screw down enough to hold the paper clip in place? That is what I did until I could find a used set of lights. You can pick up Depot lights for a decent price on Ebay. IIRC the chrome housings go for around $100ea but the black housings will easily set you back double that.
 
Thanks for the replies.

I read up on different types of glue last night and came across silicone adhesive. That sounds like it might be the ticket.

I'll mess around with a paper clip and see what I can come up with.
 
I bought some silicone adhesive. This morning I glued a couple things together to see what the bond is like.

But, I'll try some duct tape first. I'll have to wait 'til the car is home, but I'm envisioning cutting a hole in the tape for the plug adapter and then pushing the flaps onto the bulb mount.
 
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when i put my hid's in i used a couple small zipties and locked it in place, it was a small hassle, but took only 5-10 minutes to get it to stay straight and all
 
I considered zip ties but I didn't see much for them to grab onto or loop around.

I tried duct tape the other day but there wasn't much surface to adhere to. My issue is with the light on the passenger side, so I came up with putting a large hose clamp around the washer fluid neck and positioning the excess of the band to press against the harness plug. Holding just fine after a few days.

I may still try the silicone adhesive. With the couple of items I glued together as a test, it holds OK but isn't so permanent that the next outage would force the purchase of a new headlight assembly.
 
ehsande said:
There is plenty of info on the Internet about the hassles of Mazda's headlight bulb clip. I purchased a low-mileage '03 Protege5 in October 2013 and had to replace one bulb the other day. It was a pain, but I got it done. The new bulb was noticeably brighter so I went ahead and replaced the other side.

Many people experience the clips snapping, but in my case the clip on bulb #2 came apart from it's "hinge" area; a tiny piece of plastic broke. No chance of reattaching it, as far as I can tell.

My question is whether anyone has ever found a way to keep the bulb secure without having to buy a new headlight assembly.

Somewhere on the Internet I found a comment from someone that said they had a dealer replace a bulb, and the next time around found that the dealer glued it in place. Is there a glue that will hold metal-to-plastic, yet break free for another replacement?

I guess I'll end up buying a new headlight assembly someday so I may as well just use some strong glue and hope that the new bulb(s) last for years.


Eric
Click to expand...

Oh, I had this exact same problem. Here's how I solved it:

p5headlightfix.jpg


I took an old CD-ROM drive that I had laying around and then cut apart the sheetmetal case using a pair of tin snips. I picked spots near the end of the sheet that already had the |_ shape to it so I would have to do minimal bending. Then I ended up drilling holes in the little metal slivers to put the plastite screw through. One of the plastic holes had stripped so I ended up bonding the screw in using a 2-part epoxy (J-B Weld quick, or something). The previous owners were using the wrong bulb in the car (the ones from the regular protege) so they had lost the metal retaining clip on the other side of the hinge so I had to make one as well. They were also using the wrong bulbs (the ones from the regular Protege... that were just kind of floating inside the housing and not illuminating the road ahead at all).

Works great, but required taking the housing out which required taking apart the bumper...

Edit: The metal sliver on the left is the hinge, the sliver on the right is the catch.
 
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I actually just used duct tape to fix mine on my passenger side. I dropped my headlight spring into the depths of my front bumper after it fell off and I tried to put it back in. Surprisingly if you split the strips of duct tape and put them on like a a picnic basket (cross-hatching) it seems to hold the bulb in place. It's pretty cold, so idk how it'll hold up but I'll find out after 6 hours of bumpy roads tonight. I can post pics if it'll help....
 
StevieB said:
I used red RTV silicon- figured the high-heat capacity of the red was best. No problems.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that suggestion. I'll get some if it comes down to using adhesive on the bulb.

It's difficult to get a decent photo, but here's what my hose clamp solution looks like on the passenger side. I should flip the clamp over so that rotating counter-clockwise puts pressure on the plug, but it's been holding things steady just fine so far.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/48379912@N05/12616550875/
 
most any silicone has worked for me many times. The key is don't use too much. I hold in with a foam sponge etc. while it sets. Also avoid like Super Black gasket silicone. I had to remove the bulb in pieces - thought I would have to disassemble the whole housing. HIDs now so less of this hopefully.
 
I'm trying to understand what you guys are doing to those clips. I've changed bulbs multiple times with no problems. I realize the right side is a b**** and takes some !@+#% time, but WTF is the problem?
 
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Inside said:
Oh, I had this exact same problem. Here's how I solved it:
Click to expand...

Thanks for that illustration. If I ever pull the whole assembly out I'll try to fashion a new hinge based on that.

I've found plenty of content online when it comes to the frustration of headlight replacement for all brands of vehicles. Gosh, you'd think that since the main headlights are on all the time and most prone to outage, they'd be the easiest to replace. Anyone have the high beams burning out all the time? Not me. If a high beam went out, just use low beams and you won't get pulled over.
 
gino said:
I'm trying to understand what you guys are doing to those clips. I've changed bulbs multiple times with no problems. I realize the right side is a b**** and takes some !@+#% time, but WTF is the problem?
Click to expand...

The real problem is that there is a Mazda engineer out there that needs a smack upside the head,... those clips are flimsy twisted pieces of crap that never should have been put on the car,... why not just a big threaded plastic or rubber ring ??? easier, simpler, cheaper and far less stupid,...
 
Eh.. I work as an engineer (not for a car company) and it's usually not the engineer's fault. Management is always coming down on us to make it cheaper and more reliable, but really cheaper.
 
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