"The front fender will have to come off." That was the word from the local mechanic when I asked him to replace a low beam lamp on my 2003 Beetle. He's an old hand, a recovering hotrodder and isn't easily stumped. So I was a bit concerned.
Well, no way I figured that could be right. I told him to hold off while I checked around. Sure enough horror stories abound on the intrar-web about dealers gouging for headlamp swaps. "HOURS!" to do the job.
Not so. VW actually did something right. They just didn't document it too well. A quick bit of google-fu magic and the answer popped up. There's a lever on the top back of the headlight assembly.
Press the detent next to it and then slide the lever up and Voila! The whole headlight assembly popped out the front. Then it was a fairly simple matter to dig into and replace the lamp.
VW people are the greatest -- the very definition of geeks with all their automotive hacking and tips out in the public domain. The spirit of John Muir (VW author not the naturalist) lives on with the "Idiots" on the web. Thank goodness.
I fumbled around in the dark a bit but had it done in 10 minutes -- 15 max. Not bad for a first effort.
There's the culprit.
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