How Do You Know When It’s Time to Replace Your Taillights?

When you’re behind the wheel, your main goal should be to arrive at your destination safe and sound. Following traffic laws and driving cautiously aren’t the only ways to achieve this. Ensuring your vehicle is in good shape and operating properly is also essential.

If one or both of your taillights are out at night or in inclement weather, it can be difficult for other drivers to notice your vehicle. Therefore, changing your taillights is vital when they aren’t working as they should. Check out this helpful guide from our Huffines Subaru Corinth experts to learn how to replace your taillights.

Why You Shouldn’t Put Off Replacing Your Taillights

Being a responsible car owner, you must stay on top of your routine maintenance schedule. Putting off issues until later or even forgetting about them is easy. However, you shouldn’t continue driving your vehicle if you have a malfunctioning taillight. Ignoring the problem not only poses a danger to others around you, but it’s illegal as well. If a police officer pulls you over, you may receive a citation for this infraction, even if it’s your first time.

Driving with the wrong taillights at night is dangerous because it makes your vehicle less visible to other motorists. Consequently, you’ll have a higher chance of being rear-ended, or you may cause another driver to lose control in an attempt to steer away at the last minute. As such, you should fix this problem as soon as possible to protect yourself and others.

What are the Possible Causes of Taillight Problems?

Similar to other car parts, your taillights can malfunction over time. Let’s go over some of the most common causes of bad taillights.

• Bad fuse: If your taillights are faulty, one of the first things you should check is the fuse. This small component is designed to break whenever the current passing through it becomes unreasonably high to protect your vehicle’s other electrical systems.
• Bad bulbs: The quickest way to know if you have a broken taillight bulb is to remove it from the socket and examine it. If the bulb has a damaged filament wire, it’s time to replace it.
• Faulty sockets: Taillight socket problems can result from bad wire connections or corrosion.
• Worn-out electrical wires: Examine the wires that connect to your taillights as they expire.
• Control switch failure: The dashboard’s red dot can also malfunction. If the circuit works fine, the culprit may be a damaged switch.
• Dirty sensors: If you’re driving a late-generation vehicle, you may have an ambient sensor that enables it to automatically switch the taillights on or off, depending on the visibility conditions. When the sensors get too dirty, they cannot determine the weather outside so that they won’t turn on the taillights.

How To Change Your Taillights Yourself

A taillight bulb change is relatively easy and can be done in 45 minutes to an hour. However, more recent vehicle models may be a bit more complicated than older ones because they tend to have more wires to disconnect. Before replacing your taillights, grab a pair of gloves, a socket wrench, and a screwdriver.

Safety First

Safety is vital whenever you work with bulbs and wires. Begin by disconnecting the vehicle’s battery. This will reduce your risk of being electrocuted. After that, access the taillights through the rear hatch or trunk. You should complete this task in a well-lit location and use a flashlight.

Additional padding or carpeting may obstruct the access point. If this is the case, you must move it away to see the back of your taillights. Some vehicles have a panel you’ll need to remove, so have a screwdriver handy.

Remove the Bulb Holders

When you can see and touch the taillight, the next thing to do is remove the bulb holder from the back side of the lamp by turning it clockwise. Take out the burned-out or broken bulb, but be careful not to cut yourself if it’s broken. Put on your gloves and replace the old bulb with a new one. This helps keep the bulb clean and improves its effectiveness and lifespan.

Remove the Assembly

Next, you have to remove your vehicle’s taillight assembly. This should be easy after you find and unscrew the nuts. If you have trouble freeing the nuts, apply oil or grease. Once you’re done, the taillight assembly should slide out easily.

Final Steps

To put the taillight assembly back in its housing, hand-tighten the bolts first and then fasten them with a ratchet. You mustn’t tighten them too much, or they may break or crack the housing. Finish by replacing the bulb holders and the carpeting or panels in the trunk. Make sure you reconnect your car battery as well.

Test Them Out

Before you put away your tools and drive away, you should determine whether you’ve performed the taillight replacement correctly. Switch on your taillights to see if they’re functioning properly. If they aren’t working as they should, you may have missed a step. Go over each step and try again. If you can’t determine what went wrong, consider taking your car to your local service center.

Although it isn’t hard to change your taillights, you must invest time and effort to get the job done right. If you own a Subaru in Corinth, Texas, and prefer to have your taillights changed professionally, consider coming to Huffines Subaru Corinth. Our dealership has a devoted team of factory-certified technicians who know your Subaru model inside out, so you can trust us to do a great job on your pride and joy. Also, we can provide you with original equipment manufacturer Subaru taillights that fit your vehicle perfectly. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.