Replacing the Drive Gear in a 2001 C5 Corvette Headlight Motor

[@MegaSquirrel01]

A+++++ Thank you, I'm 65 yrs old from Detroit, MI. But moved to Naples , FL. 35 yrs ago. I have owned 5 Corvette's starting with a 1967 white 327/365HP Convertible ( I wish I still had that car LOL ) I want to tell you your VIDEO of gear replacement is the BEST on KZbin. You speak slow and show a very good look at what needs to be done without a "I know it all attitude" If I could give you an award for one of the cleanest and best car videos I would. I have had to replace the gears a couple times through the years, but the last time I just Flipped the gear over because it was in good shape. I love this 1998 C5 I have. A few weeks ago I was able to reach the 200mph. mark on a old road we have out here with no traffic on it going through the Orange Groves. The fastest I had gone before with this car was 187 mph but I had a feeling one day to beat that speed so I did. Then went home and changed my underwear hahaha. Anyway Thank you my friend, I hope one day I can return the favor to all the great people on KZbin that take the time to video a project just to help someone else.GOD Bless& Stay Safe Steve - S.W.Florida

[@snorkfire]

Well how bout that. Years later and you’re still making people’s lives easier. I just hit this in my car st 163k miles. Thanks for the very useful how-to.

[@dennisbsutube]

Thanks! Glad to help.

[@PHL413]

Thanks a lot for the post. I thought this was going to be a real pain, but with the aid of your video I was able to complete the repair in no time. Thanks again!!

[@dennisbsutube]

+Rich S You're welcome. Glad I could help.

[@davidsomerville1016]

Excellent video! Very informative…Thank you for taking the time to make it while you were working on your car. Much appreciated by all of us out here.

[@ronaldcarpenter4556]

You’re the man on that don’t listen to these other guys you were you know how to do it thank you

[@dennisbsutube]

Thank you. Good luck with your repair.

[@ddonmorris2540]

So, my headlight was making that noise and not going down. I went to the Chev. dealership....cost to fix it? $760.00 + tax = $828.00!!! Then I found your video....ordered the gear for $16, paid my mechanic to do the work while watching the video. Took 45 minutes. Works GREAT.... for $116.00 You saved me $728.00. THANKS FOR YOUR HELP.

[@dennisbsutube]

Wow, that's a lot of cash! Glad to help.......Dennis

[@TEAMIMPORTKILLER]

D Don Morris... That's why I refuse to go to a stealership

[@stan8t8gt]

And that cheap crap Dorman gear lasted how many weeks??

[@motorsportsautogroupinc1835]

I want to say thank you so much for this fantastic video!!!!! Many video's out there are terrible and give bad information yours on the other hand was fantastic. Mine ended up being about 4 teeth off so the headlight would always stick up about an inch when you shut off the headlights. Due to your fantastic video I did the entire job in an hour and she works perfectly now.

[@dennisbsutube]

Thank you for your kind words. Glad I was able to help.

[@Pchild]

In the video (which is very informative) the installer left his lights on, and battery plugged in... I just want to point out that if your key is off, or in the accessory position and your head lights are on for more than 15 minutes they will automatically shut. You can easily damage your paint this way. Pinching tools, or other objects. They will connect to the front bumper, and headlight cover. Make sure you pull the battery, or disconnect the light if you are working on them.

[@AchillesofSparta]

A tools list would be great to go along iwith this fantastic video on C5 headlight gear replacement. Thanks

[@ffas23]

I think this video showing everything that it takes to replace the gear on a C5 Corvette has to be the best that I have seen on You Tube. This was the first problem I have had and it is on the Driver Side. I saw on my '99 Coupe 3 small bolts held the housing together on the headlight motor where the main gear sits. Have to say I can't understand why GM changed that design on newer C5's where you must split the case and then have to glue it back together. On the '99 its just 3 small bolts and pry the cover up. Even has a cork gasket sandwiched in between that was like brand new still so I reused it. Tightened up the 3 bolts and that is it. I put the Brass Gear in supplied from Ecklers. Came with a new gasket I really didn't need today and new rubber block to go inside the Brass Gear. Nothing else needed. I added some Super Lube Multi-Purpose Lubricant with Teflon (Clear) I happened to have on the shelf to the new gear and the factory gear still in the housing. Could put it right back in tonight if I feel like it being there isn't any worry about glue to dry as there is I believe in the 2000-2004 if I am not mistaken C5 Headlight motors. Thanks for the Video Dennis. You did a great job.

[@skipferguson3421]

Thanks, this video really was a really great help! Removing the two pivot screws made this job so easy!.

[@ZPrezton]

I've had my gear (copper) for 2 years haha. i'm tired of manually adjusting the knob to where the gear catches the good spot. funny part is the side with the occasional non open makes no noise. the other side that works makes the noise..lol but they both need to be fixed. thanks for the effort making this video. inspired me to finally do the repair.

[@Tremonius]

Remove pivot pins, disconnect arm, use adjuster knob to rotate gear 180. Reconnect your pivots and test it out. Thank Boomer Pro. Worked like a charm.

[@hunterdion]

great vid thanks. i did the job with a new brass gear. i didnt feel that it needed epoxy tho. i didnt want to epoxy in case i needed to replace or adjust the gear.your vid was very helpful

[@Grandmastercraig]

CAM ALIGNMENT! Great video, made the repair myself in a couple hours with your help. Would have been faster except the alignment of the cam. It is SO important to make sure the cam is aligned pretty much exactly the same way as it is when it comes out. I thought I had it aligned very well but nope. Needed to remove and change alignment three times until I got it right. And that is a little hard to do as the cover gets glued back on. After the first time tearing the glued cover off a sceond time I held it together with electrical tape until I was able to get the alignment correct on the third try. Then re-glued. Thanks for the video!

[@royedwards3495]

Yeah,.. it IS a PITA when you don't get it aligned correctly! I've gotten pretty good at removing the damn thing.....

[@GregSr]

Several years ago I did this repair to both headlights in my 2003 C5. But, I went one better. Instead of installing another nylon gear, I upgraded the gear to brass.

[@mikem597]

Well done! My '02 Z06 driver side does this exact thing. The car has really low miles, so it is perplexing how this gear could have worn out. Thanks.

[@dennisbsutube]

Thank you. Make sure the motor itself is not loose within its own mounting bracket (press fit tabs). I think that is what made mine go bad, the gears were not meshed tightly together. See my comment below to SwissHarmonie.

[@lancebeauchamp5267]

Great tutorial on gear replacement on a c5. Thanks again,Beau

[@dennisbsutube]

The brass gear is a good way to go. Glad you received some good info from the video.

[@treyterbay]

Awesome I knocked this out today wasn’t too bad thanks for all the information sir

[@dennisbsutube]

Glad to help.

[@TEAMIMPORTKILLER]

Good stuff. I gotta change out my head light gear tomorrow I went with brass instead of plastic this time

[@dennisbsutube]

You're welcome. I have learned a lot watching You Tube videos. I thought it was about my turn to contribute something. Dennis

[@leonelhinojosa6009]

Excellent video partner! U just saved me $$$$$$

[@dennisbsutube]

Great! Thanks for the positive comment

[@geraldfitzgerald5947]

Excellent video. Had a little trouble with the hinge bolts, but all went fairly smoothly. But, after I was done, I tested the lights four or five times in my garage - perfect, smooth as silk. Then I took it out for a test run (daylight) and turned the lights on and off several times - again, smooth as silk, perfect. As I got closer to my house, I thought I'd test them one more time -- oops, the repaired light only opened half way. It closes good, but, over and over, it now only opens half way. What a major disappointment after thinking I'd done a perfect job! Any ideas on what might have happened? How does it go from 'smooth as silk perfect' to only opening half way?

[@dennisbsutube]

Sorry I just now saw your question............. It may sound too simple, but the first thing you need to do is determine if the motor on that side is getting power. Getting power, not moving = problem is in the headlight assembly. No power = time to troubleshoot the circuit to the motor. Dennis

[@prutten1]

You helped me fix my baby! Thanks for the video!!!

[@panzerwaffen2873]

thanks a lot i have to replace the gear in the driver side also... good job

[@angelsuarez17]

Great walk through

[@andrenj1970]

good video, soon I'll be installing aca projector headlights with led bulbs:)

[@Clampetron]

The pivot bolts may have some kind of locking coating on them. You may need to spray and let them sit for an hour or so with WD 40 or bolt blaster to get them loose.

[@stan8t8gt]

The cheap plastic gears available at the auto parts stores and online are much lower quality than the OEM plastic gears. They are actually undersized so only the very edge of the gear meshes with the drive gear. I have seen them fail after less than ten cycles open and closed. If you only want to do this repair once I suggest purchasing this kit from carguy8t8 on eBay. With this kit you will only have to do this repair once for each side. www.ebay.com/itm/Corvette-C5-Firebird-Headlight-Motor-Repair-Kit-Aluminum-Gear-Upgrade-LH-amp-RH-/151301458768?rd=1

[@jeffbelknap9140]

Thanks so much for the great video,helped out alot !

[@crimson1931]

How long do you let it sit after applying the poxy?

[@BIGGDADDYWIGGS]

Thanks, just bought an 02. also ordered the brass repair kit from hawksthirdgen, $45.00

[@ShackledGTO]

Brass Gear💯🚘🏁

[@SwissHarmonie]

I replaced the chewed up plastic gear by the brass one and everything worked perfectly. Now after 3 weeks, the light only comes up half of the way. Is there an adjustment I need to make? Highly appreciate your guidance and thoughts. Manfred

[@dennisbsutube]

The motor shaft has a worm gear that is mounted perpendicular to the drive gear that you replaced. The motor itself can become loose within its own mounting and not mesh tightly with the new gear. Make sure there is no "play" in the motor mount. If there is movement, an easy fix is to pull up on the motor to assert more pressure between the gears, place a temporary wedge like a piece of wood to hold the motor up, clean any grease away from the motor housing near the gears, and insert a marble size ball of moldable epoxy "putty" to serve as a permanent wedge. Remove the wood wedge after the epoxy has hardened. Good Luck........Dennis

[@SwissHarmonie]

Thanks Dennis, Now that I reopened the headlight, I see that the glue of the actuator cap did not hold. I forgot to install the bracket which came with the Rodney Dickman kit. I just have to do whatever is necessary that the glued piece cannot come off again.

[@davidegbert2147]

I epoxied the case back like you said and I have to change my plastic gear again how do i separate the case without destroying it? I only got 35k miles out of those plastic gears they wear out to fast.

[@dennisbsutube]

I would still insert a sharp blade into the joint and pop the lid off. You can cut into the joint somewhat with a utility knife if the expoxy set too hard. Take your time, you'll be okay. You can use a brass gear if you want a stronger part, but I would also be suspicious about how well the worm gear on the motor shaft is engaging the gear your replaced. Plase read my comment below to SwissHarmonie.

[@mikeflores3137]

Very helpful, thanks a lot

[@juggernaut2930]

Some times I have to turn the lights on and off 3 or 4 times before the passenger side light opens on my 2001. Some times it opens on the first try. I do no hear any unusual noise .... it just does not open....then it does. Any Ideas? Maybe some lube on the pivot points? Maybe bad motor wire connection? Any Ideas?

[@Ricovette]

Awesome! You just saved me about $130.00... Thank you so much for this upload... Take care and God Bless... Rico

[@dennisbsutube]

You're Welcome!

[@dennisbsutube]

The tool is called a Torx wrench. The best thing to do is buy a set of Torx bits that fit into a 1/4" nut driver (similar to the bits that go into a power driver) or a 3/8" socket wrench. Sears.com has some Craftsman brand sets that have a lifetime guarantee and cost under $10.00 per set. Dennis

[@markweeks1308]

Great video. Thanks!

[@dennisbsutube]

Thank you. Glad to help.

[@PintoBlades]

Mine has the same problem but on the drivers side light. Did you find a fix for yours?

[@boomerpo8064]

If you are familiar with the gears going bad here is a free fix that worked for me I handcranked the headlight up took off the 10mm nut holding the arm to the motor ( you gotta take the top cover and black side cover off ) hand cranked the motor until the shaft rotated 180 degrees re-attached the arm hand cranked the light back down no vid , no pics , just good info here..... Then hit the headlight switch....works good as new WHY ? the motor uses only 1/2 the gear so....you get 1 freebie fix..... if it happens again....brass gear time..... worst case , it gets you by for awhile until you can repair it correctly

[@wesholt1906]

This video is great and certainly the way to go if needed... but I tried Boomer Po's EASY fix and was finished in 30 minutes... NO parts needed, NO cost, and Headlight door works like new again! I highly recommend trying Boomer's suggestion first. Boomer, U da MAN!! Thanks!

[@boomerpo8064]

Wes Holt it's a one time freebie. Thanks

[@melrobinson6919]

And it works! Thanks, man. Follow Booler Pro's instructions exactly so you don't end up wuth the lights out of sync and you will be good.

[@phoneman91]

Thank you ! Yes-- your way is the quickest and easiest way to repair stripped stock gears--and also the best way to get to the headlight motor is to simply remove the two pivot bolts--as detailed in the above video.

[@EMPIREAUTOGRP]

I was all ready to swap the motor gear out until I read your comment! I did it and worked like a charm on my C5! Much appreciated :) In my case..I turned the shaft 180 counter-clock and the headlights were out of sync.. re did the procedure this time bringing the shaft to it's original position and turning it 180 clock-wise.. that did the trick. not sure why, but they're working great!

[@NS-rj5eo]

I can't get the actuater arm off. How do I get the screw bolt to release?

[@dennisbsutube]

Sorry you are having trouble. Looking at the video I did not have to do anything unusual to remove the arm. Were you able to remove the nut on the motor shaft, or is the arm itself stuck on the shaft?

[@NS-rj5eo]

@@dennisbsutube Finally got it. Think it was actually glued on. Thanks.

[@davidegbert2147]

Oh forgot to mention that when I replaced that plastic gear it was a gm part and the whole mechanism in the hinges was going egg shape because of the sand and dust in Arizona how can I fix the hinge points without having to buy a whole assemble?

[@dennisbsutube]

Not sure I understand your question. Sorry..........

[@skmcobra69]

I've done my passenger side before but I can NOT get the screws loose on the driver's side. I can tell it's been painted before in this area so I bet they shop over torqued them! Ugh!

[@joem1344]

I got the part to fix it, but I noticed in the different videos I've watched everyone has the lights up. My left side won't go up (ugly noise like in the beg. of this video). I tried to crank it, but it just spins...can I still do this without the light up?

[@dennisbsutube]

+Joe M Yes you can. Please notice near the start of this video that the headlight barely came up, and then it was pulled up by hand just to make it quiet! Go ahead and install your new gear. Pay attention the flat side of the shaft when you take the motor out. Put the new gear back in the same way the old one came out. You'll be fine.

[@randyrobinson7079]

Very helpful

[@playermodsrule]

Very Helpful! :D

[@TitusvilleSurfer]

Perfect

[@deltaraider21]

The video doesn't tell you that you will need star aka Torx screwdrivers, and that the back 2 screws on the lid should be removed first. I couldn't get the 2 pivot screws to move so I am going to try Boomer Po's ideam

[@MegaSquirrel01]

I believe that is just common sense ! sometimes the start of things don't need to be explained, It's a great video of the gut's of the project ,It's like the first thing is to buy the car? LOL lighten up lol

[@armchairjudge]

Those two pivot bolds were aweful. I ended up cutting one off ...it would not come off...bad design

[@askarijudd6444]

I bought gears from eBay and didn't last for 15 minutes gears on eBay are very low quality they strip right out... garbage parts on eBay

[@Clampetron]

Great video. Thanks.