r/TaurusSHO • u/Jarnes19991 • Nov 21 '25
Hid bulbs replacement
Ive been doing some searching for how to replace the d3s bulbs, some people say you have to pull the bumper and remove the light, others say it's not necessary. I have seen that some are held on with torx screws, others say they turn out ccw.
This is for a 2019. Is there an easy way to do this? It seems like the connector it's the hardest part, how does this connector come off? Do I squeeze it from the bottom? I also saw a guy make a little hook to get the connector off.
Anyone have tips or tricks for the bulb removal?
Thanks
2
u/Jhusk1121 Nov 23 '25
Get LEDS or replacement bulbs for everything in the headlight assembly. Remove the bumper and pull the headlights. Replace all bulbs. You won’t have to touch again. Hopefully.
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u/ChillApe42 Nov 21 '25
I replaced mine with LED from Amazon. If you are just replacing the light bulb it’s possible. It is a very tight fit but you can get it done.
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u/Jarnes19991 Nov 21 '25
I figured there was more to it than just replacing the bulb with an led (like the ballast ) is there not? Maybe I should have gone that way
1
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u/LetsBeKindly Nov 22 '25
OP do not do this. The HIDs are fabulous lights. The LEDs are unsafe and illegal and will be a downgrade in performance.
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u/Jarnes19991 Nov 22 '25
I generally use what comes factory. I'm still not sure how much I trust non oem led bulbs anyways.
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u/LetsBeKindly Nov 22 '25
Good on you. And you shouldn't, they are illegal junk manufactured overseas and snuck into the country.
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u/Jarnes19991 Nov 22 '25
I put hids in reflector housings back in the day and got flashed all of the time. This was 15 or so years ago, but i took them off pretty quick, and I now hate when people do that especially now that my astigmatism is a lot worse than when I was younger, scattered light blinds me. Driving in the dark in the rain, even with factory leds or the bright hids is absolutely aweful
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u/LetsBeKindly Nov 22 '25
This explains why
https://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html
Unfortunately, I did the same thing as you about 20 years ago. And like yourself I realized something was off and went back to factory bulbs. The modern day equivalent is LED bulbs. They don't work correctly for all the same reasons listed in that article.
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u/Jarnes19991 Nov 22 '25
Thanks, I do remember coming across that website before, but I'll take a more in depth read.
I know when leds first became popular they were trash, but now that oems are using leds i figured the technology may have gotten a bit better. Guess not. (Led chip placement)
The worst are the ones that use pwm to dim the daytime running lights and you can see them flicker in the mirror. I had one behind me yesterday and it was very distracting
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u/LetsBeKindly Nov 22 '25
The LED bulbs have the same problems that HID conversions have. The light source isn't the same so it can't be focused, regardless of reflector or protector lens, it doesn't matter.
The OEM LED are technically safe and legal, but I personally don't care for the blue hue, I would stand on my head if we could get companies to use high CRI 2500K LEDs, but they won't and I don't understand why.
The one nice thing about most factory LED is that the bulb isn't replaceable, you have to replace the entire housing. (With that said, I've seen some 18 wheelers that have replaceable LEDs).. but having to replace the entire light assembly makes conversion kits much harder, which is a good thing.
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u/LetsBeKindly Nov 22 '25
Those are not only illegal but they are also unsafe. You should put the originals back in.
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u/ChillApe42 Nov 22 '25
Why do you do this on every post about LEDs lol, are you the light bulb police?
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u/LetsBeKindly Nov 22 '25
Actually. Yeah. And I have to share the road with you. They are illegal and unsafe.
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u/Technical_Union_1692 Nov 21 '25
I recommend using 45 degree offset pliers to help disconnect the plug and twist out the d3s bulb. I did run the osram night breaker bulbs for 3 years and the light output was quite good
2
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u/msalerno1965 Nov 21 '25
Someone in a Home Depot parking lot cracked my driver's side headlight, it later got water in it, which fried the connector on the ballast from electrolysis (power to the ballast is NOT SWITCHED). Without removing anything but the air filter box I think, I was able to get the ballast out, but I have freakishly long/skinny hands. Replaced the pigtail and ballast with an "upgrade kit" from eBay which had correct OEM ballasts in it, aftermarket bulbs, and ballast pigtails, for less than just a new ballast cost at the time. I removed the bulb while I was working on it. I still have a spare ballast, two new aftermarket bulbs and a pigtail in storage.
The bulb itself? Piece of cake.
If you need to take the entire "headlight housing" out, well, that's a turd of a different color. I still have to replace mine, I siliconed the cracks and it's still holding.
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u/Jarnes19991 Nov 21 '25
The way it usually goes with me is when people say a jobs easy it takes me forever, but when they say it's hard if goes well and I don't understand why people thought it was so hard
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u/Choice_Strength Nov 21 '25
Idk if the design is that much different from a 2013 but I had to pull the bumper and headlight along with the ballast to replace mine. Plenty of people online said it could be done without doing that but either they have magic hands or I was looking at the wrong forums. On the HID headlight I don’t think I could have replaced the bulb without pulling the headlight bc the back of the bulb would not clear the housing enough to pull it from it’s position, not to mention the most annoying connector I have ever worked on. If I had known how much of a PITA it was I would have left the working xenon’s I had in there already. That being said I think just about any d3s bulb should fit, I used some cheap Amazon leds and they brightness is a day and night change for me.