How to Troubleshoot 1971 VW Tail Lights
The tail light assembly on a 1971 Volkswagen vehicle contains the brake lights, the turn signal lights, and the backup lights. If only one or two of these lights is malfunctioning, it is bulb issue. If all of the lights are malfunctioning, it is likely a fuse issue. The easiest way to address these problems is to replace the faulty part. The brake lights use 1034-type bulbs and the turn signal and backup lights use 1093 bulbs. The tail light fuse uses a 10A fuse.
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Instructions
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1
Turn off the Volkswagen's engine and open the driver's side door. Locate the fuse box underneath the steering column. The fuse box has a transparent cover with embossed symbols on it.
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2
Remove the cover from the fuse box and locate the fuses in the eleventh and twelfth slots. These are the tail lamp fuses. If either fuse is broken, you will have to remove it and install a new fuse. A fuse is broken if its inner metal rod is broken.
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3
Pull the fuses out and install new 10A fuses in their place. Place the cover back onto the fuse box and close the door.
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4
Remove the three screws from the lens cover at the rear of the vehicle to access the tail light bulbs. The top bulb is the turn signal bulb, the middle bulb is the brake light bulb, and the bottom bulb is the backup light bulb.
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5
Press in the desired bulb holder slightly and turn it counterclockwise to remove it. Pull the old bulb out of the bulb holder and install the new bulb. Use gloves to install the new bulb, since skin oil can shorten its life.
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Place the holder back onto the vehicle and turn it clockwise to secure. Tighten the screws to secure the lens and test the tail lights.
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