CX5 replacement LED headlights

Fred1970

Member
From my CX5 (2015 october) with led headlights, the DLR on the left side doesn't work. I've heard the whole headlight unit needs to be replaced. Replacement by a Mazda dealer is very expensive. On ebay I found some used units. Is it possible to replace them by yourself? Are there any workarounds? On youtube I found some videos how to remove the bumper for getting at the headlight unit. But I cannot find anything about the wiring.
 
You can definitely replace them yourself. In terms of wiring, it should just be a matter of unplugging the bulb sockets and wiring harnesses from the old housing and plugging them into the new one. To avoid any issues, I'd make sure that the new headlight housing comes from the same year and trim as your CX-5.
 
Ok, clear. The car has led with automatic leveling (hope I translated it correctly). Can anything go wrong with that? Or will the electronics in the car adjust it?
 
From my CX5 (2015 october) with led headlights, the DLR on the left side doesn't work. I've heard the whole headlight unit needs to be replaced. Replacement by a Mazda dealer is very expensive. On ebay I found some used units. Is it possible to replace them by yourself? Are there any workarounds? On youtube I found some videos how to remove the bumper for getting at the headlight unit. But I cannot find anything about the wiring.
Firstly, I wouldn't try to get a used LED headlight assembly as EVERY LED headlight from factory on 2016 CX-5 is having problem on LED DRL. See the following long thread with 327 posts for details:

Daytime running lights dim/flickering

Mazda has revised / redesigned LED DRL several times trying to fix this problem. There're many revisions on part numbers. You want a "J" version, where the part number ended with a "J". But not to be confused, the sticker on the LED headlight itself has the part number ended with a "H" for both "J" version and "H" version.

Sencondly, you can't just replace the LED DRL part. the whole LED headlight assembly needs to be replaced. OEM is the only option unless you're willing to settle for something which looks different. The OEM unit is very expensive but the price has come down recently. It used to be $1200+ EACH, but lately Mazda dropped the price to ~$800 each. You can replace the headlight assembly by yourself removing the front bumper. But the proper procedure on LED headlight replacement requires the AFS (Adaptive Front Headlight System) readjustment with Mazda equipment based on factory service manual.

Thirdly, you should try to contact Customer Experience Center at Mazda North American Operations. Many people were getting some help on parts from Mazda even without new-car warranty.

BTW, you should post your inquiry in Lounge section, not in How-To section. Read the sticky post on top.
 
Thanks for your explanation. I'm from the Netherlands, so I will contact Mazda europe. I've read parts of the thread you mentioned. Some people complain about the difference in colors and brightness for the revised units. Can you confirm that?
 
Another option is to replace both headlights with an aftermarket set. User Chris_Top_Her has replaced his headlights I believe, and I think they look pretty good.

EDIT: Nope I was wrong, he replaced his tail lights, not headlights. Doesn't look like there are any aftermarket options for replacement.
 
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Thanks for your explanation. I'm from the Netherlands, so I will contact Mazda europe. I've read parts of the thread you mentioned. Some people complain about the difference in colors and brightness for the revised units. Can you confirm that?
For the latest "J" version LED DRL it would look like discrete dot-matrix LEDs but the original LED DRL looks more like fiber optics. You can also tell the difference on color temperature between the two if you're picky. I replaced both under warranty so I'm fine with the new looks although I prefer the old style which feels higher quality.

Yeah there's no aftermarket LED headlights for 2016 CX-5, not to mention the AFS system comes with the OEM LED headlights.
 
Might be easier to just disable the LEDs on the other headlight, or retrofit your own LEDs into the OEM headlight using parts/kit from a place like theretrofitsource.com.
 

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