Clock backlight replacement?

[Dave Garrett]

The backlight on the LCD clock in my 1999 Accord EX went out a couple of
weeks ago. Is this an easy replacement? Is the light a standard part
that's readily available, or will I have to go to the dealer for it?

Dave

 

[Elmo P. Shagnasty]

The backlight on the LCD clock in my 1999 Accord EX went out a couple of
weeks ago. Is this an easy replacement? Is the light a standard part
that's readily available, or will I have to go to the dealer for it?

Dave

Go to the dealer. Get a clock light bulb.

Find a small screwdriver, a flat one. Stick it under the clock and pry
gently. The clock will pop right out. (Use padding if you like.) Find
the lightbulb, remove it, put new one in. Pop clock back in.

Ah, if only they were all like this...

 

[Bill B. Johnson]

The backlight on the LCD clock in my 1999 Accord EX went out a couple of
weeks ago. Is this an easy replacement? Is the light a standard part
that's readily available, or will I have to go to the dealer for it?

Dave

I advise you to take it to any Honda dealership's service department and
pay them to fix the problem for you. Those mechanics have done it several
times before and he or she can do it much better than you and they won't
do any damage to your car.

 

[Elmo P. Shagnasty]

I advise you to take it to any Honda dealership's service department and
pay them to fix the problem for you. Those mechanics have done it several
times before and he or she can do it much better than you and they won't
do any damage to your car.

True. However, this particular repair is about on the level of plugging
a light fixture into the wall. If you can bring a new lamp home from
Target, screw in a light bulb, plug it into the wall, turn the switch,
and get light--then you can fix the clock light on a 1998-2002 Accord.

 

[Al McFarlane]

very true, just did mine on Friday. Now if you have money to burn and you
feel you owe those rip off artists at Honda something, by all means, take it
to them. Bill, are you by chance a mechanic or dealer for Honda?

 

[Elmo P. Shagnasty]

very true, just did mine on Friday. Now if you have money to burn and you
feel you owe those rip off artists at Honda something, by all means, take it
to them. Bill, are you by chance a mechanic or dealer for Honda?

They aren't all rip-off artists; I don't think my dealership charges but
two tenths for this.

However, the whole cabin air filter design by Honda is so screwed up, it
can't help but be a rip-off. For my Accord, the dealer charges AN HOUR.
And once I did it myself, I see why. It's a very, very bad design--an
afterthought. So there's an hour labor plus $36 for the Honda filters;
now you're up to $110 or so, just for that.

Man. I bought two filters from the auto parts store. Total: $11.
Then I did the labor myself. It's not difficult, but it's time
consuming. Then, because the instructions I had didn't mention the
third screw on the lower dash panel, I broke the dash panel. Well,
hell. So I ordered another one; $30. I'm up to $41--which is less than
half what the dealer would charge, PLUS I won't break the dash panel
next time.

All because of a horrible design decision.

 

[Bill B. Johnson]

very true, just did mine on Friday. Now if you have money to burn and you
feel you owe those rip off artists at Honda something, by all means, take it
to them. Bill, are you by chance a mechanic or dealer for Honda?

No,I'm not a mechanic and I don't work for a honda dealership. I was once
a backyard mechanic that done all of the mait. on my vehicles. As a result
of that experience, I learned not to do any job on a car that I had never
done before unless I watched someone else do the job. I know that some
people can easily remove and replace the light in a car clock. However, I
also know that a lot of people would end up messing up the job and may
even do minor damage to their car. Those people should have a professional
do the job for them.