[GJO]

According to the Driver's Handbook:
"Have the lights replaced by a workshop."
Has anyone on here needed to change a rear light bulb? If so, what is the procedure?

 

[h8ten]

I think it says to use a workshop as they are LEDs so technically it's a new unit and not just a simple bulb(s).

 

[Spiny]

The tail lamp / indicator is a LED unit according to the service manual. Change as a unit. These being LEDS should have a very long life one hopes. The units are not cheap
The reversing light / rear fog do have bulbs you can change.

 

[Spindrift]

Yes, they are complete units. Current US price is $253 each . Some people had them changed under warranty because they tend to attract condensation inside.

Quite a faff to change. basically you have to remove the entire rear bumper facia, then remove the supporting moulding, which is held to the body by large pop rivets. Only then can you get the actual lamp unit out. It seems they put these lamps in first then built the entire car around them.

The manual adds ominously:

Tip
The tail lamp is serviced as a unit, the tail lamp is (LED) Light Emitting Diode.

 

[GJO]

Thanks for the info - hopefully I will not need to change them.
I am in the process of fitting new tailgate reflectors and noticed some condensate in the rear light clusters.
I did solve the issue with condensate in the reflectors but they had already suffered damage due to being damp and had developed a growth of something akin to green algae - which made them unsightly.

 

[h8ten]

Be wary, the image above is for a Volt tail light (Ampera does not have the black band, same with the units on the tailgate so importing from the States might not be easy. Also, I think that early Volts had the red indicator and not amber so if the car was braking with an indicator on one side would be solid red and the other would flash as the indicator.

 

[Spindrift]

Be wary, the image above is for a Volt tail light (Ampera does not have the black band, same with the units on the tailgate so importing from the States might not be easy. Also, I think that early Volts had the red indicator and not amber so if the car was braking with an indicator on one side would be solid red and the other would flash as the indicator.

Yes - a good warning there @h8ten. The US light units will be no use here.

Something just clicked in my memory and I looked through the old invoices that came with the car and found this, which seems to suggest they have been changed on mine last year before I got it and, compared to the US catalogue price above, the price from Vauxhall to change both , including labour looks quite reasonable . Although I'm not absolutely sure that these are the same things - they do have a 'V' part number - but I suppose could just be the numberplate lamps haha. I have to say though that in the recent cold weather, the condensation has made an appearance again.

btw the offer to fix the door handle for £400 was declined in favour of @HandyAndy 's excellent value alternative.

 

[h8ten]

Just found the parts quoted at the top of your bill '23170361' and these are the 'embellishment' bits (they're not reflectors) on the actual tailgate.

 

[HandyAndy]

... the offer to fix the door handle for £400 was declined in favour of @HandyAndy 's excellent value alternative.

Was that for just one handle? Don't tell me, they were going to respray the entire car to match the colour of the new one?
I think I need to put my prices up...

 

[h8ten]

I think my first one or two were painted when they were fixed and the last couple just had the outer part of the handle swapped so done in one day.

 

[Spindrift]

Just found the parts quoted at the top of your bill '23170361' and these are the 'embellishment' bits (they're not reflectors) on the actual tailgate.

Ahh yes - that explains the price - and why I still have condensation in my lights - Grrrrr. I wonder if this might be a case for drilling a fairly large ventilation hole in the casing and covering it with a Gore-tex patch....

 

[GJO]

I am coming to a similar conclusion - possible an accessible 5mm or 8mm drain hole with a small rubber bung to seal it. The Ampera and its Volt sibling is a very smart looking car but I do miss the days when you could remove a lamp lens that was held in place by just two or three simple screws and then change a bulb or clean the inside.

 

[h8ten]

Ahh yes - that explains the price - and why I still have condensation in my lights - Grrrrr. I wonder if this might be a case for drilling a fairly large ventilation hole in the casing and covering it with a Gore-tex patch....

Some Tesla Model 3s suffer the same. There is a youtube clip on how to repair them, it would well give pointers to help cure the Ampera tail lights.

 

[Spindrift]

Really interesting video - he seems to have got to the bottom of it assuming that the Ampera unit construction is the same. I'll have to negotiate the use of the oven though ....

 

[h8ten]

Really interesting video - he seems to have got to the bottom of it assuming that the Ampera unit construction is the same. I'll have to negotiate the use of the oven though ....

Negotiation is a choice, oven for the light unit or dishwasher for the engine block.