HELP! - removing tail lights on a '97 corolla VE (base model)

[malone]

Some people appear to be still confused.. I took some pictures to make it easier:





Your tail light is now ready for removal. Pull it directly away from the car, there should be no need to budge the tail lights up, down, left, or right. It should pull straight out of the back of the car, and may require a little effort.

You'll need to wiggle the tail light wire out of the car:





Simply twist and pull out the 4 bulb holders. Push down each light bulb and twist them out of its holder. You'll figure it out.

[malone]

Originally Posted by rakesh15

The keyword here is,...... " Pull the housing straight Back"

Do not try to pull it in an angle or sideways.
Just stand in the rear of the car and pull straight back"

{ Otherwise, you will break the two guide holes )

That is correct. This picture shows why the tailights go straight in and straight out:



The tail light has guide "pins" that must go through the holes illustrated above. Attempting to shift tail lights in different directions (e.g. up, down, left, right) will not help and may cause damage (you'd have to try hard though).

[deanochino]

A Picture is worth a thousand words!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[PhatRoyale]

thought someone would have caught this by now... but there is NO VE model for the 7th gen.

[Andrew Dressel]

Originally Posted by rakesh15

Yup.

It did workout well, finally.

The keyword here is,...... " Pull the housing straight Back"

Do not try to pull it in an angle or sideways.
Just stand in the rear of the car and pull straight back"

{ Otherwise, you will break the two guide holes )

Goodluck all and thanks for help.

I agree with Pull the housing straight Back. On mine, the metal pin protruding from the light assembly, that slides into the plastic bracket attached to the fender, is corroded, so it resisted coming out. I ended up using a wooden spatula to pry between the front edge of the light assembly and the body of the car. When I finally had it out and could see what was going on, I was relieved that I didn't try any other direction than straight back.

[Toumba]

Originally Posted by malone

That is correct. This picture shows why the tailights go straight in and straight out:



The tail light has guide "pins" that must go through the holes illustrated above. Attempting to shift tail lights in different directions (e.g. up, down, left, right) will not help and may cause damage (you'd have to try hard though).

Epic win