[Rpaulg87]

Today I noticed whenever I use my right turn signal, it blinks very fast...left is fine, however both the front and rear right lights do it, when one is bad does the entire side do it front and back? How hard are these to replace? I was looking through some threads but couldn't find any specific instructions..or where to go...or if I should just get the dealer to replace this as the car only has 10k on it..very early for bulbs to be going out, thanks in advance though.

 

[toofart (AKA Moron)]

I had a burnt taillight a few months ago. My almost-8-year-old Dakota has never had a burnt bulb.

Access to the taillights is easy -- unscrew the two screws holding it in place (one is behind carpet), unclip the connector and gently push/pull out the whole assembly.

 

[X's Revenge]

I had a headlamp out when I bought my car, didn't know until I got home 3hrs away from the dealer, called them and they issued me cheque for $70 to buy new lights and install them. Could just be a defective bulb that snuck through the line,

 

[Rpaulg87]

Hmmm okay, I took a look and it seems like it's just a few wing nuts, is there a trick to getting those off? By hand there's no way I can generate enough torque to get that thing to spin, it's on there...also does anybody know the correct part # for when I go to pepboys?

 

[toofart (AKA Moron)]

A large adjustable wrench will do the trick and it won't damage the nut.

I used a #3057 for the taillight.

 

[dodgeboy77]

Coincidentally, I burned out a right rear TS bulb last weekend at 20K miles. What Toofart says is pretty accurate. You'll find one plastic wingnut right inside the trunk opening. Unscrew it (with pliers if tight), pry back the trunk liner and you will find the second wingnut hidden under there. Remove that one, too.

There is a small plastic panel right above the inner side of the lamp assembly. It is held on by a couple of clips so just pull it out. Then you can pull the lamp assembly out the back carefully.

The bulb socket has to be twisted to remove it. There are two - so make sure you know whether the inner or outer needs replacement before taking things apart. The bulb is a #3057 and pulls straight out of the socket. Installation is the reverse but just hand-tighten the wingnuts.

A tip: Don't drop the inside wingnut like I did. It can go way down there and you need to use special words to get it back again.

Bill

 

[Rpaulg87]

Coincidentally, I burned out a right rear TS bulb last weekend at 20K miles. What Toofart says is pretty accurate. You'll find one plastic wingnut right inside the trunk opening. Unscrew it (with pliers if tight), pry back the trunk liner and you will find the second wingnut hidden under there. Remove that one, too.

There is a small plastic panel right above the inner side of the lamp assembly. It is held on by a couple of clips so just pull it out. Then you can pull the lamp assembly out the back carefully.

The bulb socket has to be twisted to remove it. There are two - so make sure you know whether the inner or outer needs replacement before taking things apart. The bulb is a #3057 and pulls straight out of the socket. Installation is the reverse but just hand-tighten the wingnuts.

A tip: Don't drop the inside wingnut like I did. It can go way down there and you need to use special words to get it back again.

Bill

To be honest I was just going to install 4 new ones ones but the better Sylvania so I don't have to worry about them burning out....I also know that if I do one new one, it will look brighter than the others which I hate, I prefer uniform lighting, any off-lighting really bothers me.

Thanks a lot for the tips and how to get to the bulbs, I'll pick some up tomorrow, glad Dodge didn't make it too hard I was worried for a second. I'm guessing you say "inside wingnut" you mean the second wingnut behind the linear? Ok I'll make sure to put it aside and not lose it or let it fall lol

 

[dodgeboy77]

I really doubt that you'd notice a difference in brightness in a new bulb. To find out, I just went out to the garage and checked my R/T. I couldn't see any difference at all in either TL or TS mode. I don't know whether the stock bulbs are bad quality or whether with four TS/TL bulbs and another four TL bulbs in the trunk lid some are just going to burn out sometimes.

I forgot to look at what brand the bad one was before I tossed it. Anyone know?

Another question: Does anyone know if the '3057LL' bulbs (Long Life) have any difference in brightness?

Bill

 

[Rpaulg87]

Hm...I see a bunch of ones called "3057A" can you even use those?

 

[jimmydea]

A tip: Don't drop the inside wingnut like I did. It can go way down there and you need to use special words to get it back again.


Special words work in many special instances, never thought about it before.

 

[KI4RXM]

Hm...I see a bunch of ones called "3057A" can you even use those?

Typically when you see an "A" appended to the part number, on a bulb it means that it's am amber bulb, made for clear turn signals. I'm sure you could use in on a Challenger, but it will look probably dimmer and possibly also a different shade.

 

[mopar bob]

Poor Quality Bulbs

I have replaced two right rear taillight bulbs.
The first blew at about six months the second about a year later.
I suspected to find cheap china bulbs.What I found were Sylvania OEM
bulbs.So that is what AutoZone had and I replaced them with more Sylvania bulbs.I would try maby GE next time.

 

[dodgeboy77]

I looked at the spare replacement bulb I got from my LAPS and it's an EiKO brand. Never heard of them. So I looked them up to find that "EiKO Ltd is a family owned, Kansas City based, multinational manufacturer and distributor" which means those bulbs could be made anywhere. They used to be called Service Lighting. Of course, probably any other brand is made most anywhere in the world.

Bill

 

[Rpaulg87]

Bought the bulbs, bought the long life Sylvania 3057LL two 2 packs for 10$, I'll replace right side when I get a tool to help turn off those wingnuts, I would do the left side just to have a fresh start with better bulbs, but I have the stock kicker\sub amp..and it looks like it requires removal just to change those bulbs :-\ I removed the two fastners, but didn't notice that there is a plate you also pop out (forgot and read the manual during) even after the plate removal it wouldn't "slide out" like the manual said, I think the harness was slightly caught, so a tug and voila it was out, if I was to do it again maybe at max it'd take 5-10 min.

*EDIT* Just finished, ironically the only tool I had (lacked pliers) that worked was my Mosin Nagant rifle dissaembly tool, worked like a charm. No more blinking fast on the right side, so it was the bulbs, now the right side has the LL bulbs so I shouldn't have to worry, I'm still bothered that I have to take my friggin amp\sub out just to get to the LEFT side though...

 

[toofart (AKA Moron)]

I'm nowhere near my car now, but I believe you can fit a socket on the center portion of the wingnut.

 

[Tout09]

Made in china, all electric bulb manufacturing died in the USA, Phillips was the last to go.

Tout09

 

[Rpaulg87]

Made in china, all electric bulb manufacturing died in the USA, Phillips was the last to go.

Tout09

To be honest my favorite #1 bulb maker is PIAA, which is German based, they make incredible bulbs, their 55w put out the equiv of a 110w, though they were expensives (50$ for a set of halogens) I dunno if they make the bulbs for the Challenger though...if they did I would do it, as their rear bulbs on my FJ Cruiser were 2x brighter than stock, they looked like a lucious red compared to stock.

 

[Tricki68]

Had a burnt tail light bulb with 100 miles on the car. It was in the center section connected to the trunk. I went to my local dealer, not where I bought the car, & they changed it for free while I helped them.

 

[dodgeboy77]

Toofart said <<I'm nowhere near my car now, but I believe you can fit a socket on the center portion of the wingnut. >>

I am near my car so I went out in the garage and looked (it's as cold as a witch's elbow out there, BTW!). You are correct!! There is a hex in the middle that I hadn't noticed. An 11mm socket fits it (or 7/16" if you're a traditionalist).

A question for Rpaulg87: When you look at your tail lights at night, do the new 'Long Life' bulbs show any difference in brightness from the others? I was concerned that they might not be as bright.

Bill

 

[Rpaulg87]

Toofart said <<I'm nowhere near my car now, but I believe you can fit a socket on the center portion of the wingnut. >>

I am near my car so I went out in the garage and looked (it's as cold as a witch's elbow out there, BTW!). You are correct!! There is a hex in the middle that I hadn't noticed. An 11mm socket fits it (or 7/16" if you're a traditionalist).

A question for Rpaulg87: When you look at your tail lights at night, do the new 'Long Life' bulbs show any difference in brightness from the others? I was concerned that they might not be as bright.

Bill

I just went out and replaced the driver side rears as well, but I did look prior to installing them, the LL bulbs seem identical in brightness to the old ones from what I can tell (comparing right side new to left side old), but even so it's only 10$ for 4 of them (replace all turns on rear), and they are easily just as bright, or brighter..I can't tell a difference, but they def don't seem darker, crystal clear and bright, if anything I'd say they are slightly brighter..I think all Sylvania does it use a better "coil" as it looks beefier than the stock one did when I eyed it, which would explain why it handles vibrations\shock better than the stock bulb.

I did have to remove the kicker sub to access the left side, but it was just one bolt + velcro, however the left side light, just as the right, required a bit of "prying" to get it loose, I really think what's happening is the harness is stuck...as it's always the part towards the electrical harness that won't turn pull out, but got it and they all check out, since these bulbs are supposed to last a LONG time, hopefully I won't have to do it again for a very long time.

I can't even imagine how hard that center light is to replace...looks like it requires entire removal of the light\trim, in the manual it says "Take to dealer for Center bulb replacement"

3057 - standard
3057ST SilverStar: The brighter, whiter signal light. Up to 30% brighter light, up to 20% whiter light and up to 10% farther and wider.
3057LL SYLVANIA Long Life miniature bulbs perform twice as long as any standard miniature bulb. Designed for durability, lower maintenance and greater safety.

I'd imagine 3057 ST is brighter at the sacrifice of lasting shorter, but if you installed those I believe you would over-power the center light at night...LL's are plenty bright, at the very least as bright as stock, I looked at the voltage\life differences, and the LL's have the same voltage..life is the main difference, 1-5k (standard) vs 10k (long life) in hours.