It’s remarkably dangerous to drive with one headlight out—not necessarily because it reduces your vision, but because it reduces your visibility to other road users. It’s all too easy to look like a motorcyclist, and hence a much narrower hazard, to a tired driver, with potentially lethal results.
It’s therefore wise to get a blown headlamp bulb changed as quickly as possible. On the Mark 1 Mazda MX-5 (Miata in the USA, Eunos Roadster in Japan), while it’s not as straightforward as on some cars, it’s nevertheless not a difficult procedure, as the following guide will show. I’d recommend the purchase of the Veloce Mazda MX-5 1.8i enthusiast’s manual (if you have the 1.6i, this version of the manual is preferable), which assisted me along the way. As for the replacement bulb itself, you need a 12V 60/55W bulb, such as this Lucas LLB472 bulb. I obtained one from my trusty local mechanic (thanks Gary!), who was even kind enough to drop it off at my house.
- Turn the lights off, and raise the headlights using the centre console switch.
- Remove the four screws, two on each side, on the sides of the headlight. These hold the plastic headlight surround in place. Be careful when removing them, since they each have two small washers on them.
- Lift the headlight surround away.
- The screws that hold the headlight unit should now be visible. Be careful: there are three that hold the headlight in place, and two others that merely adjust the headlight beam. Don’t touch the latter, and be careful with the others, as I’ll explain.
- You need to loosen, not remove, the three that are spaced roughly 120 degrees apart. When I first did this, I didn’t realise that I didn’t need to remove them, and indeed it’s quite tricky to remove them all, due to their positions. Just loosen them enough to allow the shiny headlight retention ring to rotate slightly, causing the screws to line up with the larger holes in the ring. Have WD-40 at the ready to lubricate them.
- Rotate the retention ring and remove it. In my case, it had become stuck to the headlight unit, so I ended up removing the unit at the same time, as described in the next step.
- Carefully start to remove the headlight unit.
- The wiring loom will be connected to the back of the unit: disconnect it to release and remove the unit completely.
- Pull the dust boot off. Note any damage: if it’s no longer sitting snugly over the assembly, you’ll need to replace it soon.
- Undo the bulb clip.
- Remove the bulb carefully.
- Install the replacement bulb, making sure you don’t touch the bulb with bare fingers—this can leave a residue on the bulb that leads to the bulb’s premature destruction. Clip the bulb in.
- Reassemble carefully.
With your new headlamp bulb thus installed, you’ll be all set to get safely back on the road.
Many thanks for the instructions/photos they were excellent!!!
Thanks, glad they helped!
An excellent guide
Liam tried the method you used but got stuck when it came to the lower screw on each unit. They are rusted solid.is there any other method you know of that doesn’t involve taking the lens off ? Cheers
Thanks for posting this – nicely explained. Good work
Thanks – job done in 5 minutes thanks to this instruction
Nice write-up found it very useful.
Brilliant
A rare thing, an online “how to” piece that doesn’t miss anything out. Well done, you’re a natural teacher.