Cars can be interesting to work on, especially the cars of today. Fortunately, a 2000 Chevrolet Malibu is not as complicated as some of the newer vehicles coming off the assembly lines. Even older cars can run well when properly maintained, and just like every other car in the world the Malibu has items that just do not last forever.
Headlights are on that list. Headlights go out for a number of different reasons, but usually because they simply burn out. In an eleven-year old vehicle, they are prone to go out at any given time. Unfortunately, on this particular project the headlamp was damaged by contact with a fence post.
However, luck was on my side because all the bulbs were intact and working, and aside from some broken plastic the vehicle was still in good shape. Therefore, diagnosing the problem was fairly simple, because I needed a headlamp housing assembly. The bad news was that the damage was going to be about $200, but this is a necessary part to the car.
Since time was not on my side, running around junk yards or scouring auction websites was out of the question, therefore the item was ordered on a Monday and picked up on a Tuesday. The headlamp assembly on a 2000 Malibu is pretty straight-forward maintenance.
Upon opening the hood, both driver and passenger housings are visible and easily workable, which is just another plus. The housing is removed by two simple clips on the top and side of the unit, the gray plastic levers simply snap up and the housing pretty much comes right out. The bulbs are removed by making little quarter turns on the bases, which freed the damage housing for a trip to the trash. The new housing was installed by securing the bulbs (in the correct places, so mark them or place them accordingly), and positioning the assembly and snapping everything back into place.
Of course, the job does not end there. The headlamp still needs aimed. Normally, I would have marked a spot on a wall where the old light hit for a good gauge, but since the lens was damaged the bulb was just flopping around. I pulled the car close to a wall and inspected the aim of the driver’s side light. Using two aiming screws and a good old Phillips head screwdriver the new lamp was aimed in acceptable fashion in no time at all. From there it was off the fix the chain link fence post.