How Do I Replace The Headlight on 2006 Subaru Tribeca
If you owned a 2006 or 2007 Subaru B9 Tribeca, you would know why this post is important. The first year the Tribeca was introduced it had really cool headlights with flowing alien-bugeye styling. Later models have more conventional headlight design and are probably easier to replace. The 2006 Tribeca headlights (particularly the low beams) are a bit of a trick. Particularly the driver side.
Most of what you need to know is in this awesome entry in the FixYa.com forum:
FixYa.com: How do I replace headlight on 2006 subaru tribeca
The only thing that is a little vague is how to get the dang clip off and back on. The rest is pretty easy once you can get to the back of the light.
Note: See those Phillips screws – do NOT remove them. I know that our first instinct is to unscrew things – the screws hold the clip in place and are a bear to get back in. Just do NOT under any circumstances remove the Phillips screws you see in these pictures.
First, getting the clip off… Here is a picture of the passenger side bulb facing forward (the left side of the picture is toward the center of the car).. You can see that the leads have been removed from the bulb and tucked down and away.
On the left side of the picture you see the D-shaped left end of the clip. You can just see the end of the clip peeking out from under the bit of metal that is held in place by the left Phillips screw. To remove the clip, push the D-shaped bit toward the front of the car and then down toward the garage floor. It will easily unclip and then pull away easily so you can remove the light.
With the clip off and the light bulb removed, we see the detail of how the D-Shaped part of the clip is actually kind of an S-shape with the little bit that clips under the metal by the left Phillips screw.
We also see that the little alignment tab on the bulb faces downward. The replacement bulb is a Sylvania H7.
To reinstall, put the bulb in with the tab downward, get the clip so it rests on the flat bulb base, push the D-shaped bit of the clip slightly downward and toward the front of the car than let it come back toward you and and the clip will grab under the metal bit by the left Phillips screw and end up looking like the “before disassembly” picture.
Put the leads back on and reassemble the rest and Voila! You have a new low-beam on your 2009 Subaru Tribeca. And you saved $50.00 and several hours of frustration.
P.S. If you followed these instructions so far, imagine for a minute just what a pain it would have been if you took out those Phillips screws.
One more fun bit of information. This design is pretty hard to see. If you have a mirror, you can and should use it to get the lay of the land and figure our how things go together. But I did not have a mirror. All I had was my trusty iPhone. I stuffed a flashlight in to get some light and then put my iPhone in to take pictures that I could not see myself because the space was too small. So the only way I got to see these scenes was through my iPhone acting as a makeshift periscope! Yes – there is an app for that.
FixYa.com: How do I replace headlight on 2006 subaru tribeca
Again, I need to give props the the folks on the FixYa.com forum – they tell you all the hard stuff – especially how to get at the light on the driver’s side. All I added here was the detail and photos regarding working with the clip.
Nice job. The pictures helped a lot. For me if I can see it I can figure it out. I had a difficult time figuring out how the clip worked(tried to go by feel) until I saw your pics than bam I knew what I needed to do.
Thanks,
Rick
Thanks for the comment. Like you, I spent 20 minutes trying to do it by feel and failing. Once you know the trick – it takes a blink. It sounds like you work on cars the way I do – running back and forth between the garage and Google. :)
Dr. Chuck,
THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!!!!!! Wow. Don’t know where I would be without this article…. oh, yes I do. Still fighting with that &&^%$$%^ clip. You are da man.
Thanks for the comment. I just had to replace the drivers side headlight on the Tribeca and I came back to this article to refresh my skills. It only took a few minutes once you know how to do the clip.
Awesome pictures. Huge help. I did a dry run with the old bulb. Then got the new one in about 30 second!
I recently changed the drivers side bulb, my wife tells me, ever since I changed the bulb the vehicles battery is weak and wont start on random occasions, if I did not put the leeds back in proper order could this have an affect ? I did try to keep track but was in a hurry to getter done.
Darin, I have never worry about the order of the leads. I have now done this about four times as different lights burn out. I took an EE class in college and got a 2.0 in it – but the parts I did learn in the class suggest that there is no reason to worry about lead order. My guess is that it is just something else that is going that discharges your battery.
Opened a beer thinking it would take a while. Had my laptop on top of the engine, followed the advice, and was done before finishing half the beer. Thanks!
I have 2008 Tribeca. My manual says take it to the dealer for driver side replacement. Looks to me that the battery must come out and then it should be accessible. Anyone have any experience with the 08?
Hey Chuck – I certainly wish I had googled this before I replaced the low-beams in my ‘06 several months ago! Since they were replaced, however, a few folks have told me that my passenger side is out (even though it’s on). It has always looked much dimmer unless I get right up in front of the car and nearly on the ground. Is there a way to align these? Could I have installed the bulb upside-down? Thanks!
Jesse, there are three different Sylvania bulbs that fit the H7 slot. There is a normal, silver, and super-awesome platinum. If you stare at them for a while at the auto store, they are indeed about brightness. My guess is you may be in an unmatched situation. I am not sure but I think that the bulbs from Subaru are the mid-priced ones (the silver) ones. They have gold paint on the tip. I think that it was dumb luck when I went to the store and brought the bulb and matched the gold-tip so I got the equivalent bulb. Also, as you suggest, one might not be properly seated so it might be pointing up or down. Since it is so easy to get at them – it is easy to check.
Thanks, Doc – you are awesome!
Try this one handed because the owner doesn’t want the necessary parts taken off to get to it :). After I changed the second bulb, 2 months later, both headlights point at the ground. The Subaru dealer says besides adjustment it could be a “headlight module”. Any thoughts ? Note: after changing the first bulb both lights were pointed correctly. Only after changing the second (passenger side) did they then BOTH point down. ?????
For the person above asking about the driver’s side…yes, you have to remove the battery to get access to the headlight, but this is a simple task. Simply unscrew the nuts on the hold-downs, remove them, use a 10mm socket to loosen the cables, remove them… and lift the battery out. Much easier than replacing the damned light.
I wish I had found this article before I tried to change the bulbs. I DID unscrew the screw, lost the screw AND the clip in the headlight housing (slid forward to somewhere…you know…that special place that all critical parts in a car disappear to, of course), and now can’t find the stupid clips anywhere…
Anyone have a suggestion on where I can find them?
Tim – I would get one of those magnet things and move it all around in the housing and see what it picks up. Good luck to you. :)
Thank you so much ! Only took a few mins.
One other trick I use during the replacement of the bulbs is to duck tape the wires to the side of the housing to keep them out of the way. Sometimes the wire clip as well, makes replacing the bulb easier. On the drivers side I don’t take the battery completly out, just loosen and slide off to the side.
I have a question: When I replace the bulbs with Sylvania H7 they are only lasting about 4 – 5 months. Is anyone else having this issue? Any ideas what could be causing this, I am always careful not to touch the bulb with my bare hands.
Tim – thanks for the tape tip – I just did a replacement of the driver’s side high beam last weekend and could have used your tip. Regarding burning out more quickly – I think I am seeing a similar situation. I just buy the cheapest H7’s and let the chips fall. Good thing replacement is not all that hard anymore.
Great posts!!….it was with substantial dread that I read the comment about NOT removing the Phillips head screws under any circumstances….I had already removed one, and nearly lost the wire clip, before seeking assistance on the internet. I am happy to report however that armed with a mirror, flashlight, a Blackberry (for difficult to take and not very useful photos) and equal parts patience and determination, I was able to replace the wireform and subsequently the low beam headlamp.
I should clarify that this was the driver’s side lamp that I replaced. The wire form is held in place under 2 screws…one retains the form in a slot beneath the screw head and prevents it from dislodging while permitting the form to rotate freely beneath it, while the other screw sits atop a metal plate that secures the locking/unlocking end of the wireform. It was the retaining screw that I had loosened. If you’ve done the same, take heart….just use the other headlamp assembly as a reference, use your mirror and flashlight, and it can be reassembled. Good luck!
Thank you so much for this site! I had struggled with the drivers side only to lose the spring in the housing- yes I unscrewed it. I duct taped it so I could take it to the dealer and $85 later it was fixed.
The the passenger side went a week later. I googled and found this site and just finished up.
Again Thank you!!