HID bulb replacement (90981-20007)

Yes. very easy. Walmart sells the bulbs. Ten bucks each. Plug and play. Look for a schematic on the boards and you will see a metal "spring" which keeps the bulb in the housing. All you have to do is pull the electrical connector away from the bulb, release the spring, pull the bulb out of the housing, and then reverse the steps on the installation. On the bulb, there are 3 prongs which the electrical connector plugs onto. The central prong needs to be in the up position.

 

Not $10 for quality HID bulbs! Really tight in there and you need to NOT touch the quartz glass. There are videos online somewhere...
For a 2005 you need a D2R bulb, but if you bought your Prius used, sometimes the ballasts (and therefore the bulbs) get changed to the newer D4R--best to check. Search for HID bulb here on PC, lots of complaints that cheap bulbs, and worse counterfeit bulbs, only last a few weeks.

 

Slow down here. Any $10 HID bulb is going to be a POS. Original equipment for a 2005 is a D2R HID bulb. Philips is available at HomeDepot.com and is guaranteed to be genuine, not a chinese copy.

Philips Standard HID 85126/D2R Headlight Bulb (1-Pack)-85126C1 - The Home Depot

 

Not the best video, but at least it shows the HID bulb, not the regular bulb:

 

Rather than try to jam your hand in a very tight space, working blind, I would take the time to remove the headlamp assembly. It is not that much extra time (10-15 minutes?) and makes things so much easier!

It will give you complete access to the bulb, the bulb bracket and the crazy clip thingie.You will have plenty of leverage for removing the ring on the back of the assembly. Plus you will not cut up your hand or damage the light bulb.

It's like 5 bolts.

 

Read this about bulbs: Not all HID Bulbs are created equal
And this recent post: BEWARE: Fake HID Bulbs sold for OEM | PriusChat

 

I was just reading through this again and noticed something I missed the first time.....

Tynyyn said....

Yes. very easy. Walmart sells the bulbs. Ten bucks each. Plug and play. Look for a schematic on the boards and you will see a metal "spring" which keeps the bulb in the housing. All you have to do is pull the electrical connector away from the bulb, release the spring, pull the bulb out of the housing, and then reverse the steps on the installation. On the bulb, there are 3 prongs which the electrical connector plugs onto. The central prong needs to be in the up position.

Make notice of this sentance:

On the bulb, there are 3 prongs which the electrical connector plugs onto. The central prong needs to be in the up position.

This member is telling you about a regular HALOGEN bulb, not an HID bulb. He is seriously mistaken if he thinks an HID bulb has three prongs for the electrical plug. A D2R HID bulb does not. HIDs also need the connector to be twisted to disengage from the bulb. If you follow this halogen advice, you're going to end up frustrated and pissed off, unless you actually have halogen bulbs.

 

When you finally have the correct bulb, here is the way to do it (courtesy of Luscious Garage)

 

Skip that.
Much easier on the hands and the bulb to loosen bumper and remove the headlight assembly.
Adds maybe 10 or 15 minutes to the process. Tops.
Advantages...
Your hands will not get cut up.
You will easily be able to loosen the black ring.
You will easily be able to see and understand how the metal bail for then lightbulb works.
You greatly decrease possibility of touching the bulb glass.
You will easily be able to see and confirm that the bulb and ring are properly seated when you are done. Eliminates all guesswork.

 

I have seen all the easy videos but never had any luck getting the back plastic cover off and ended up removing the headlight assembly.
It's good practice and you will get good at it because eventually you will have a ballast fail and it is located in the bottom of the headlight assembly. After first time a headlight assembly removal is only 10 to 15 minutes. As mentioned earlier it makes the job easier but not quicker.

 

Yep. Good summary.
Magnitudes easier.
But not that much longer.

 

And taking the driver headlight out for bulb replacement is good practice for when you need to do it for replacing the inverter cooling pump, or you can knock that out at the same time if you're feeling frisky.........

 

Deleted.

 

Sorry, it looks the earlier Gen 2 cars took a different bulb, D2R instead of D4R. I am deleting my earlier post.

 

WToyotaM said: Does anyone know anything about determining exactly the right type of bulb to order? I'm inclined to get a Philips brand bulb.

If your car has fog lights, then it came from the factory with HID style headlights and IF ORIGINAL, it requires a D2R bulb. I just recently purchased another 2005 (top end model) and got it roadworthy for our family. The second night it was used by my son, the driver headlight started doing the "off" thing, showing the HID bulb was at it's end of life. He ordered a pair of bulbs from Onyx Lighting for $39. They have a 1 year guarantee. It was his choice, so we'll see how long they last.

If your car does not have fog lights, then it uses regular halogen bulbs and the 9003 will work.

So the question is.....does it have fog lights and are the headlights (not bulbs) original to the car?