2002 Golf Headlight removal

Got to take the front bumper cover off. It's not really that hard and should be off in about 30 minutes of removing screws.

Is not hard to do...is a bit of a tight fit though. In front of the battery cover is a plastic cover that covers the bulb. remove the cover by movig the metal clip over. Inside is another metal clip, and each of the arms of the clip have to be removed serprately by pushing forward slightly and then towards the other arm. remove wiring and then remove the bulb. FYI, do not tough the bulb glass, as the oil from your fingers will reduce the life of the bulb. installation is the reverse of removal. If you have trouble getting the cover back on, you may have to loosen the shield around the battery to get enough room. Hope this helps:)

Thanks, guys. Bolstered by your input, I tried again. I was able to get the bulb changed without loosening the battery shield or removing any unrelated parts. For folks who find this thread in the future, here's my notes on how this worked:

• Remove the plastic cover in front of the hood release cable by taking out its two screws and unsnapping it from the similar piece to its left.

• Slide the big metal clip holding the cover to the lights toward the center of the car. I had to use a screwdriver to get the initial leverage on this because I couldn't get my hand in there. Remove the plastic cover.

• Standing in front of the car, you can now slide your left hand into the space to the left of the lights and then reach to the right. Disconnect the electrical plug from the bulb.

• Release the wire clip holding the bulb in place by pushing on the clip left of the bulb. Push the clip toward the front of the car, and then down toward the ground. (Because you can't see what you're doing on the driver's side light, I actually had to pop open the passenger side light cover to see the details of how the clip works.)

• Remove the bulb, replace it with a new bulb and reverse the steps.

only to replace the whole lamp, correct? You can still do the bulb w/o removing the bumper cover right?

Correct, my reply was based on his question. Headlight & headlight bulb are

Thanks to you all, I'll take the bumper off then !

Nick