1995 F250 Headlight Removal

The Ford F-series pickups date back to 1948, when the automaker modernized their trucks and named the three new entries the F-1, F-2 and F-3. In 1953, Ford later slightly changed the names of its pickups to the F-100, F-250 and F-350. The 1996 model year F-250 was the last of the square-front pickups, as Ford redesigned the F-series to have a more rounded front end in 1997. Removing the headlight in the square-front F-250 is a task that any moderately experienced do-it-yourself mechanic can perform.

Instructions

Headlight Assembly Removal

1

Open the F-250's hood, exposing the four screws that secure the grille to the front of the truck. Remove these four screws with a ratchet and socket.

2

Remove the screw holding the bottom, center of the grille to the lower valance panel -- the plastic trim located below the grille. Pull the grille forward and off the truck.

3

Look on the center, rear of the headlight assembly, under the hood, and locate the black locking ring that holds the headlight bulb inside the assembly. Turn this ring counterclockwise to unlock it, and pull the headlight bulb from the assembly.

4

Twist the turn signal socket counterclockwise, to the outside of the rear of the headlight assembly, and pull the turn signal socket from the headlight assembly.

5

Remove the two nuts located directly above and below the place where the turn signal socket plugged in, using a ratchet and socket. Remove the two nuts on the front of the headlight assembly, nearest to the grille, with a ratchet and socket. Pull the headlight assembly from the F-250.

Headlight Assembly Installation

6

Set the headlight assembly on the front of the F-250 and hand-tighten the nuts on the studs nearest the place where the grille was. Hand-tighten the nuts onto the studs on the rear of the headlight assembly -- directly above and below where the turn signal socket inserts.

7

Torque all four nuts to 5 foot-pounds, using a torque wrench and a socket.

8

Insert the headlight bulb into the rear of the headlight assembly, lining up the tabs on the bulb with the notches in the headlight assembly, and turn the locking ring clockwise to lock it into place. Insert the turn signal bulb and socket into the assembly and twist it clockwise to lock it.

9

Reinstall the grille on the front of the truck and tighten the five screws to 1 to 2 foot-pounds with a torque wrench and socket.

Headlight Bulb Replacement Only

10

Open the F-250's hood and look on the rear of the headlight assembly to locate the headlight bulb socket. Twist the plastic locking ring counterclockwise to unlock it, and pull the headlight bulb and socket from the headlight assembly.

11

Grab the old headlight and pull it from the socket. Grab the new style 9007 headlight bulb by its plastic base and press it into the socket; do not touch the glass portion, as the oils from your hands may cause the bulb to burn out prematurely.

12

Insert the bulb and socket into the hole on the rear of the headlight assembly, lining up the tabs on the bulb with the notches in the headlight assembly, and twist the locking ring clockwise to lock the bulb in place.

13

Close the F-250's hood.