THE owner of a 2022 Toyota Corolla was horrified to discover that replacing a simple headlight bulb would cost over $1,000.
TikTok user @wrenchin_derek shared his experience in a viral post that now has over 577,000 views.
1
Standing in front of the offending vehicle, Derek outlined the perverse design choice that explains “why I hate new cars”.
He said: “Last night, I’m driving home, I pass my parents. They call me say, ‘Hey you got a headlight out. You need to replace that before you get pulled over.’”
The following day he went to change the blown bulb, only to realise that it required the removal of the bumper – and the purchase of a new headlight unit.
Derek said: “I come to the discovery that it’s a sealed unit, the bulb is not serviceable. In order to replace it you have to replace the whole assembly.
“Then I called the parts store because I’d like to get one today, so I don’t get pulled over on my way to work and they say ‘Hey, you can’t buy a bulb for that. I’m like ‘I know, I’ve got to buy the whole headlight assembly, how much is that?’
“And they were like ‘You don’t want to know?’ I said ‘It’s that bad?’
“And they said “Oh it’s bad. You’re looking at anywhere from $1,000 to $1,100 for the driver’s side headlight.”
Reluctant to pay that kind of money, Derek began searching the internet for a better deal.
He was eventually able to find a XSE (Extreme Sport Edition) headlight assembly on Amazon for £120.
However, ordering it would still require him to drive to work with a broken headlight and require an afternoon to remove the bumper and install.
The TikToker points out that would be able to buy two bulbs for his truck for £60 and replace them in twenty minutes.
He said: “People wonder why they don’t want to buy new cars. They make things so unserviceable and pricey, why would you want to?”
Users on TikTok were sympathetic of Derek’s plight, with many sharing their own tales of woe.
One user said: “An unserviceable led headlight should last longer than 3 years.”
A second poster suggested that such an astronomical price for a repair would have them coming up with their own custom fix.
They said: “Personally, for $1000 I’m drilling and jigsawing the bulb out and wiring up a replacement. With enough glue and tape it should hold.”
Another user suggested that having sealed units was a way of duping customers into expensive repairs.
“They don’t want you independently working on cars. They want you under their thumb for everything,” they wrote.
Content shared from www.the-sun.com.