How long does it take to change a headlight bulb?

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When was the last time you changed a headlight bulb on your car? If your car is an older model then it was probably so easy that you can’t even remember. But if you car is newer it may be a task that will haunt you forever.  As will all the many other basic maintenance tasks you used to do so easily at home.

According to independent British Warranty provider, Warranty Direct, you may struggle to change a bulb in your car at all. Using information from technical manuals, the company has analysed the time taken to perform various maintenance tasks.

They found that changing a headlight bulb on a Renault Clio Mk3 could take as long as 96 minutes, that’s about 90 minutes longer than it would take me to give up and sell the car. Renault took issue with the finding saying that even though some earlier versions required THE BUMPER TO BE REMOVED it could be done in 54 minutes. Oh, that’s ok then.

They also found that the front light cluster on an Audi A4 would take a specialist mechanic 45 minutes to change. In 1994 it would take 10 minutes. In 1980 it would take a DIY home mechanic about an hour to change a timing belt on a Ford Escort but it’ll take a professional mechanic 3 hours to do the same on a new Ford focus.

The fact is, it’s much harder for the DIY mechanic to service their car than it once was but the industry would argue that the payoff is better reliability, efficiency and safety. And of course it’s easy to forget the problems with starting your Ford Cortina on cold mornings or your old Mini stalling at the lights due to a blocked carburettor jet. It is true, modern cars are more dependable.

So for most of us it’ll be best to stick with topping up the washer fluid and checking the tyre pressures.