9-3 Sport Sedan Headlight Wiring

Hey there,

Today I encountered what is becoming a more and more common problem on the early (MY2003) 9-3 Sport Sedans.

The wiring that connects to the headlamp socket, which holds the bulb for your low beam headlight and provides power to it, becomes corroded and fails. This leads to loss of a headlamp, but provides great fun for those who love a good sporting game of Padiddle.

See: Padiddle

Anywho, the good news is that the repair is simple. GM have encountered the problem enough to the point where they have created a repair piece that splices into the old headlamp wiring and is already wired into the bulb socket. This way, you get a reliable connection and do not have to mess with rewiring the bulb socket internally.

Steps involved:

Remove front bumper



Remove headlamp



Splice and fit repair kit w/bulb
Re-install headlamp
Re-install front bumper

Job cost:
Parts - $20
Labor - 1hr

I'm going to try to remember to take my digital camera with me when I work from now on, but for now cell phone pictures will do!

Take care,
-Chad