VXOC Astra-J/GTC - How to change drl and h7 bulbs

This How to will Cover How to change the DRL BULB AND THE H7 BULBS.
Most will know How to Do this but it will Help those that Don't.

FIRST STEP.......

Left Hand side
Remove the Hose from the Air Filter then Pull the Air Filter Box out
and Place it some were Safe out of the way
your Air Hose may be at the Other end of the Air Filter
but do the Same and Remove the Air Filter Box out of the way
Place a Rag or something over the Hole for the Air Filter
so Nothing can fall Down there.

[Image: 1.JPG]

Now you will have Access to the DRL and the H7 Bulb Holders
Place a Screw Driver in the Slot on the Cover and twist it
then Remove the Cover by hand.

[Image: 3.JPG]

Now squeeze the Black Tabs on the DRL Holder and Gently take it out
just be Real Careful when you Install the New DRL Bulb
that it is Fixed in the Holder Properly
if it Falls in to the Headlight
it is a Nightmare to Get it back Out
i Recommend the PIAA DRL as they fit Perfect.

[Image: 5.JPG]

Now you can Remove the Two Caps for the H7 Bulbs
just Twist them off by Hand.

[Image: 6.JPG]

The Bulbs are held in by Two T15 Torx Screws
just give them a Half Turn
Do not take the Screws Out just Slacken them a bit
Then Twist the H7 Bulb out.

[Image: 8.JPG]

When you put the Bulbs back in Remember too Tighten
up the Two Torx Screws on the h7 Bulbs
too Refit the Air Filter Box put the Rubber Boot it Position first
this will make it alot Easier to get the Air Box back in to Position.

[Image: 9.JPG]

NEXT STEP......

The Right Hand Side.

Pull out the Washer Bottle tube
and Remove the Fuse Box cover.

[Image: 10.JPG]

You can also Remove the 10mm Bolt
from the Headlight fixing arm if you want
again Place a Screw Driver in the slots and Twist
there Really is not alot of Space on this Side
it is Really Tight so take your time.

[Image: 13.JPG]

Getting the DRL back into this Side is Harder
it is much more of a Tight space to work
some Members have Removed the Whole Fuse Box to do this
but it is Possible to do this with out Removing it.

[Image: 14.JPG]

The H7 Covers are the Same it is a very Tight space again
so you will need a Really Small Screw Driver to slacken the Two screws
and Remove the H7 Bulb.

[Image: 15.JPG]

Hope this has helped Someone out there..

Real easy to do but just take you Time on the Right Hand side
as it is a Tight place to work.

Please note if changing the DRL bulbs for the cheaper Blue DRL bulbs like these

NOTE..........

On some cars you may get and Error about Position lamp,
Check the DRL is Working if it is Check the Rear Lights
as this will Also bring up the Errors on the DRL
if a Taillight has Blown.

in total its 4 h7 bulbs isnt it?
reason i ask as looking for replacements on ebay and most have h7 and h1 and unsure if all four main bulbs are what

Yes mate all are H7

Check out this thread for the info on bulbs

rusty, how did i miss that out lol Smile

nice mate

Well thanks to this guide changed all the front bulbs yet i still get my error message about checking front left right :-(

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I get that ever now and again but not all the time

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Yeh its strange because ive checked all the lights and they work fine so dont understand why i get it :-( never mind :-)

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I had no errors for a year then aroun Xmas I now get the odd message saying check left lamp position no idea why It is not on all the time just pops up every few weeks

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oh right, see mine comes on when i turn the lights on if im driving. Also shows when i start car with lights on. :(

ok, so i have just replaced all the head light bulbs so all six have been change. Yet i still get message about checking left position lamp :( any advise tucpal?

Check ALL lights, when I got that after I changed my DRL bulbs, the rear lights didn't illuminate at all!...

well all the the light work thats the thing mate, i dont have one light that dont work

what bulbs did you use ?

O brought the piaa ones of ebay im going to swap the drl back to standard see if error goes if so then i no they are not error free bulbs

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it may be the best way to find what bulb is giving the error it must be on the left
as it says check left lamp position as i said i do get it once every 2 weeks or so but only when the head lights are on
i am none the wiser my self it never used to do this but it started a few mouths back and it only seems to happen when i park up

I've done the drivers side DRL bulb a few minutes ago, yesterday it didn't clip into the holder, today it has, illuminates, and no canbus warnings.. Just the passenger side, removed washer bottle, fuse box lid is a bit of a pain and doesn't give much room to play with, blame the layout! Nono

Bought from Lush Lighting City - 171053510709

it is a pain that side isn't it.

tucpal Wrote:it is a pain that side isn't it.

Just a tad....

Done... Finally haha Smile

Looks much better now!

glad you got it sorted pic,s a must, Wink_1

tucpal Wrote:glad you got it sorted pic,s a must,

On the condition it can be this evening when it gets dark? They look ok in the daylight but night will be much better!

dusk is the time they show up real nice then. :cool

tucpal Wrote:it may be the best way to find what bulb is giving the error it must be on the left
as it says check left lamp position as i said i do get it once every 2 weeks or so but only when the head lights are on
i am none the wiser my self it never used to do this but it started a few mouths back and it only seems to happen when i park up

oh right ok, well i have missed placed my standard ones :( im gutted :( so i can even go back to them to check to see if its a drl....
I get mine after ive had lights and i turn them off, thats when the message appears.

What i have noticed when i turn the lights dial once to the right i have no lights on at the front. When i turn it to postion two so all way to the right, I get drl and the main lights.
Unsure if thats anything to do with it.

Lewis6317 Wrote:What i have noticed when i turn the lights dial once to the right i have no lights on at the front. When i turn it to postion two so all way to the right, I get drl and the main lights.

This to me sounds like it isn't a double filament bulb, obviously having misplaced your standard ones you wouldn't know, could you take the one out that is causing you problems so we can have a closer look?

I just fitted some DRL bulbs from Lush Lighting City off eBay - 171053510709 - Just awaiting the forthcoming darkness so I can see them in the correct light Smile

Can anyone recommend good quality headlight bulbs?
I have the LED daytime lights which are bright with a hint of blue but my headlight bulbs are the standard yellowish colour so doesn't look right at night.

Either bright white or preferably ones with a slight blue tint.

mg3091 Wrote:This to me sounds like it isn't a double filament bulb, obviously having misplaced your standard ones you wouldn't know, could you take the one out that is causing you problems so we can have a closer look?

I just fitted some DRL bulbs from Lush Lighting City off eBay - 171053510709 - Just awaiting the forthcoming darkness so I can see them in the correct light

this may be the problem
so you get no lights at all on side light mode the DRL does not come on at all then

i will take photos tomorrow mate and show you Smile

WhelanUK Wrote:Can anyone recommend good quality headlight bulbs?
I have the LED daytime lights which are bright with a hint of blue but my headlight bulbs are the standard yellowish colour so doesn't look right at night.

Either bright white or preferably ones with a slight blue tint.

Mtec cosmos blue 100w h7, had them in both my astra js, my gtc and my mate had them in his corsa vxr, best side is hids direct

WhelanUK Wrote:Can anyone recommend good quality headlight bulbs?
I have the LED daytime lights which are bright with a hint of blue but my headlight bulbs are the standard yellowish colour so doesn't look right at night.

Either bright white or preferably ones with a slight blue tint.

H7 HID kit, dipped beam and main beam are both H7, 8000k will give you a slight blue tint..

have a look at this thread lewis i show how the lights should work

http://www.vxoc.org.uk/forum/Thread-Best...-gtc--1221

tucpal Wrote:have a look at this thread lewis i show how the lights should work

http://www.vxoc.org.uk/forum/Thread-Best...-gtc--1221

Yeh mate and i brought the PIAA DRL BULBS

can you take one of the DRL bulbs out and make sure there are a said above duel filament bulbs
they did come in a PIAA box yes ?

Yeh mate came in thw box and everything once the rain stops i will check

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Well my passenger drl bulb has fallen into the headlight unit :( how on earth do I remove the headlight unit??

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ok so i have been playing and taken the following photos,

This is the piaa bulbs i fitted
[Image: IMG_0671_zpsb0a00bf7.jpg]

After removing this DRL i get the following on the dash
[Image: IMG_0672_zps6338a724.jpg]

So once i popped it back it them errors went apart from the left. So i pop the left out same errors but referrers to the left side of course. So i have now taken photos to show whats the lights are going.

Position 1 - drl only and very bright
[Image: IMG_0676_zpsfdcfba83.jpg]

Position 2 - as you see the drl dim down, but no others come on. Is this correct?
[Image: IMG_0679_zps2f5d8a04.jpg]

Position 3
[Image: IMG_0682_zpse955579b.jpg]

Lastly with full beam on
[Image: IMG_0685_zps02d1dab4.jpg]

Any ideas mate?

they are working ok change the h7 bulbs back and leave the PIAA in
and see if the errors go if they do not then we will know if it is the piaa at fault

Well thats the thing mate, This message was showing before i even changed the bulbs.
After changing them all at the front i still get the same message :(

Thing also mate, if it was the PIAA then why don't i get a message about the right side? because also what i done today was swap the bulbs to each other side. So if it was the piaa why didn't the message switch to the right?

have you got some WD40? try spraying a little in and with a slot head give the contacts a good scrap may just be a little bit of dirt or something on them.

Ok mate will give that ago tomorrow :-)

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i know this is a pain to do but check the clips that hold the bulb in the holder
and make sure they are not pushed back and they have contact with the bulb
and then do as rusty said

Oh right ok mate i will do :-)

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tucpal Wrote:i know this is a pain to do but check the clips that hold the bulb in the holder
and make sure they are not pushed back and they have contact with the bulb
and then do as rusty said

They were very very lose when I changed them before for him so nipped them up abit they weren't pushed back though

When you say push back, so you mean the wire in the plastic block?

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the terminals inside mate where the bulb sits.

Oh right ok mate

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Rusty2009 Wrote:have you got some WD40? try spraying a little in and with a slot head give the contacts a good scrap may just be a little bit of dirt or something on them.

Tried this mate no luck

tucpal Wrote:i know this is a pain to do but check the clips that hold the bulb in the holder
and make sure they are not pushed back and they have contact with the bulb
and then do as rusty said

They seem fine mate :-/

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I wounder if the duel filament bulbs need to be in the correct way
one last thing to try is to put the bulb in one way in the holder
and the take the bulb out and put it in the other way round

i have never seen anyone have this much trouble before with the PIAA bulbs

also the wire on the bulbs make sure they are ok
and are not crossed and touching each other

already tried that mate.
Well i only got the issue when rusty fitted the spare drl lights he had.

I thought i get some new ones and try and see if it solved it but nothing :(

Well this is very strange, after changing all the interior lights apart from the glove box bulb and the boot bulb, the error for the front left drl has not gone [fingercrossed] and will not come back Smile

so now im stumped on what done the trick lol

So changing the interior lights to LED lights has cleared the check left lamp position error message Cool Lol

changing the interior bulbs may have reset the canbus maybe.