DIY: Clear side marker lamp housing swap

Dretlaw

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Here's a DIY for the clear side marker lamp swap. Hope it helps:

Tools you will need: Phillips screw driver, small screw driver, sharp knife/dremmel tool/X-acto knife.

1. First turn the wheel to have better access to the wheel liner and side marker. On the edge of the wheel well, there are 3 screws. Remove them. The wheel well liner is flexible so pry it slightly to the side to expose the larger orange tab (it looks like it has ridges).

2. With some force, push forward on those ridges (towards the front of the car) to untab it while pushing outward on the lamp housing. The lamp housing should pop out. The cable harness is very short, so be careful not to pull on it.

3. You will see the harness connection of the bulb socket. You will find a slot and a small tab that's holding the socket in place. Use a small screw driver or even the tip of a knife to lift the tab and disconnect the socket from the harness. Be careful not to let the harness fall into the hole once separated.

4. Unscrew the socket from the orange side markers. In close inspection, you will notice that there are 4 tabs that slot the original socket into the orange markers. You will need to trim the two small side tabs using the sharp knife/dremmel/X-acto knife as best as you can. You may want remove the rubber ring gasket to prevent it from being cut accidentally and then replace it after trimming. The two small side tabs needs to be removed, because the socket that came with the clear side markers are incompatible with the harness. The pin connectors are different and it is smaller in size. You cannot use the ones that came with the clear side markers. You must use the original that came with the car. The clear side marker housing socket hole only has two slots for the tab to fit into. Once the two small side tabs are removed from the original bulb socket, it will now be able to fit properly into the clear side lamps.

5. If you have an LED bulb replacement, you may swap them now. If not, you may use the amber bulbs that came with the clear side markers. I ordered the Sylvania 194a (amber) bulbs from Amazon. They are frosted white in appearance but light up amber in color. They blend well with the white interior of the clear markers. The filament bulbs that came with the original socket are wedged in very tightly so be sure to grip it with a towel in case it shatters/breaks while being pulled out. Due to possible polarity connection with the LED bulbs, test its placement by reattaching the socket back to the harness and turning on the parking lights. If it doesn't light up, unplug the LED bulb, turn it 180 degrees, and place it back in the socket. Be sure to turn off the parking lights prior to working on the other side.

6. Once the LED bulb test is successful, you may detach the socket again from the harness. I had to do this, because the harness was too short. I didn't have much room to reassemble the clear markers to the socket while it's attached to the harness. If you are able to do it without this step, great!

7. Once all the harness, socket, and clear markers are assembled together, install the side markers back to the body, starting with the smaller tab in front into the small square hole and then the bigger tab into the larger square hole. Push on the outside of the housing with enough pressure until you hear the larger tab click. If it's loose and comes out, it hasn't tabbed in correctly and will need to be helped in. It might look flush, but a little bit of tug will pull it out. Some members were able to reattach the housing easily as it made a loud clicking noise, while others had a difficult time. If it's not clicking in place, you may stick a screw driver into the tab and help it in while pushing on the outside of the housing. The ridges need to clear the thin square metal hole to click in properly.

8. Repeat on the other side.

Here's the process in photos:

Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap IMG_2649.JPG


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap IMG_2650.JPG


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap IMG_2651.JPG


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap IMG_2652.JPG


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap IMG_2653.JPG


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap FullSizeRender copy


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap IMG_0203.JPG


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap IMG_0208.JPG


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap IMG_0207.JPG


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap ima


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap ima


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap ima


Honda Civic 10th gen DIY:  Clear side marker lamp housing swap ima


Disclaimer: Some countries' traffic laws consider clear side markers illegal; therefore, it is strongly advised that anyone considering this modification consult their regions' respective traffic laws prior to making changes to his/her exterior lighting. This modification is solely at the owner's discretion and all liability is solely the responsibility of the vehicle's owner.
 
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frnkp

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I'm not 100% sure but from what I can tell the sedan and coupe both use the same light.. Can anyone verify?
 
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Dretlaw

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It's also a good idea to remove the rubber gasket before trimming off the tabs in order to prevent damage to it. It rolls right off and back on again.
I will add that to the post! Thanks.
 


ams.soltis

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Can you put a link to the clear side markers?
 
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Dretlaw

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Dretlaw

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kmai007

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Thank you so much for this. I just ordered my side markers today also.
 


kmai007

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Are there side marker bulbs that are LED?
 
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Dretlaw

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Are there side marker bulbs that are LED?
Yes. I ordered the Sylvania 194a (amber). The are frosted tips but light up as ambers. They blend well with the interior of the clear side markers as you can tell from my last photo (no orange at all). I ordered mine via Amazon and get the one that comes in a 2-pack. Best of luck!
 

kyr0sis

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Here's a DIY for the clear side marker lamp swap. Hope it helps:

Tools you will need: Phillips screw driver, small screw driver, sharp knife/dremmel tool/X-acto knife.

1. First turn the wheel to have better access to the wheel liner and side marker. On the edge of the wheel well, there are 3 screws. Remove them. The wheel well liner is flexible so pry it slightly to the side to expose the larger orange tab (it looks like it has ridges).

2. With some force, push forward on those ridges (towards the front of the car) to untab it while pushing outward on the lamp housing. The lamp housing should pop out. The cable harness is very short, so be careful not to pull on it.

3. You will see the harness connection of the bulb socket. You will find a slot and a small tab that's holding the socket in place. Use a small screw driver or even the tip of a knife to lift the tab and disconnect the socket from the harness. Be careful not to let the harness fall into the hole once separated.

4. Unscrew the socket from the orange side markers. In close inspection, you will notice that there are 4 tabs that slot the original socket into the orange markers. You will need to trim the two small side tabs using the sharp knife/dremmel/X-acto knife as best as you can. You may want remove the rubber ring gasket to prevent it from being cut accidentally and then replace it after trimming. The two small side tabs needs to be removed, because the socket that came with the clear side markers are incompatible with the harness. The pin connectors are different and it is smaller in size. You cannot use the ones that came with the clear side markers. You must use the original that came with the car. The clear side marker housing socket hole only has two slots for the tab to fit into. Once the two small side tabs are removed from the original bulb socket, it will now be able to fit properly into the clear side lamps.

5. If you have an LED bulb replacement, you may swap them now. If not, you may use the amber bulbs that came with the clear side markers. I ordered the Sylvania 194a (amber) bulbs from Amazon. They are frosted white in appearance but light up amber in color. They blend well with the white interior of the clear markers. The filament bulbs that came with the original socket are wedged in very tightly so be sure to grip it with a towel in case it shatters/breaks while being pulled out. Due to possible polarity connection with the LED bulbs, test its placement by reattaching the socket back to the harness and turning on the parking lights. If it doesn't light up, unplug the LED bulb, turn it 180 degrees, and place it back in the socket. Be sure to turn off the parking lights prior to working on the other side.

6. Once the LED bulb test is successful, you may detach the socket again from the harness. I had to do this, because the harness was too short. I didn't have much room to reassemble the clear markers to the socket while it's attached to the harness. If you are able to do it without this step, great!

7. Once all the harness, socket, and clear markers are assembled together, install the side markers back to the body, starting with the smaller tab in front into the small square hole and then the bigger tab into the larger square hole. Push on the outside of the housing with enough pressure until you hear the larger tab click. If it's loose and comes out, it hasn't tabbed in correctly and will need to be helped in. It might look flush, but a little bit of tug will pull it out. Some members were able to reattach the housing easily as it made a loud clicking noise, while others had a difficult time. If it's not clicking in place, you may stick a screw driver into the tab and help it in while pushing on the outside of the housing. The ridges need to clear the thin square metal hole to click in properly.

8. Repeat on the other side.

Here's the process in photos:

IMG_2649.JPG


IMG_2650.JPG


IMG_2651.JPG


IMG_2652.JPG


IMG_2653.JPG


FullSizeRender copy.jpeg


IMG_0203.JPG


IMG_0208.JPG


IMG_0207.JPG


image.jpeg


image.jpeg


image.jpeg


image.jpeg


Disclaimer: Some countries' traffic laws consider clear side markers illegal; therefore, it is strongly advised that anyone considering this modification consult their regions' respective traffic laws prior to making changes to his/her exterior lighting. This modification is solely at the owner's discretion and all liability is solely the responsibility of the vehicle's owner.

THANK U SO MUCH FOR THIS!! I had them installed wrong, I initially thought you had to trim down the large clip because i couldnt get it to snap in place. I was using the bulb casing that came with the clear sidemarkers. Just went to dealer today to get my ASEAN black front grill assembly installed and they couldnt fit the sidemarkers on after they took off the bumper. Came on here and found ur post and fixed my problem, thanks so much it's greatly appreciated!
 
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Dretlaw

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THANK U SO MUCH FOR THIS!! I had them installed wrong, I initially thought you had to trim down the large clip because i couldnt get it to snap in place. I was using the bulb casing that came with the clear sidemarkers. Just went to dealer today to get my ASEAN black front grill assembly installed and they couldnt fit the sidemarkers on after they took off the bumper. Came on here and found ur post and fixed my problem, thanks so much it's greatly appreciated!
You're welcome! Can you please PM photos of your ASEAN grill? Thanks!
 


 


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