Advice on replacing a rear brake light bulb

[06YarisRS]

It's just easier to remove the whole tail light. I just replaced the driver's side bulb on my '08 hatch last week.

[myfirstyota]

Originally Posted by 06YarisRS

It's just easier to remove the whole tail light. I just replaced the driver's side bulb on my '08 hatch last week.

Be careful if removing the housing and you frequent dirt roads. I find a lot of crud and crap works its way up behind the housing making the clip that holds the housing in on the one side stubborn to come out. I actually broke my housing trying to remove it.

[dogsridewith]

Originally Posted by myfirstyota

Be careful if removing the housing and you frequent dirt roads. I find a lot of crud and crap works its way up behind the housing making the clip that holds the housing in on the one side stubborn to come out. I actually broke my housing trying to remove it.

"Note that Toyota used, for each housing, 2 nuts and a slide-thingy rather than the 3 nuts which would have most evenly compressed the gasket. They included an ingenious rubber push-button grommet next to the slide-thingy so the human can more easily remove the housing without breaking it. (Not mentioned in owner's or shop manual.)"

I didn't know about this grommet until I had the housing out...maybe that's not even why the grommet is there? Maybe it is just a sort of spacer/stop for locating the housing-to-body clearance? Mind of Toyota.

After removing the 2 nuts on each side, I could feel, and then flashlight-confirm, that there was something holding on the outside of each housing. Even pressure, while dithering and rooching, was obtained by getting a couple tips of finger-tips (w/ maybe a bicycle spoke head to start opening space for the finger tips) under the outer edge of each housing.

Note that there is less reason to change the bulb base wiring routing from OEM if the bulbs are always going to be accessed by removing the assembly and then doing the bulb work outside the car. (A second reason is that the out-and-in wire creates a small water leakage path.) But the owner's manual is obviously showing the bulb replacement being done from inside the car, and once you see where everything goes, the simple one-cable routing switch will be obvious. And maybe only some cars got wired like my 2007.

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by myfirstyota

Be careful if removing the housing and you frequent dirt roads. I find a lot of crud and crap works its way up behind the housing making the clip that holds the housing in on the one side stubborn to come out. I actually broke my housing trying to remove it.

Yes, this is true. Mine took some wiggling and I applied a little anti-seize before reinstalling.