Our “new to us” popup camper needed new tail lights from the start. When we picked up the camper, none of the lights worked. The first thing to check obviously was the bulbs. After 25+ years the plastic had gotten brittle and then broke. While towing the camper, in the side mirrors, I saw the lenses fall off and smash into a million pieces. The plastic tabs that hold the lenses on broke off, so the whole housing was going to have to be replaced. This is a relatively easy job using only a few basic tools.
Tools you will need
Tools you will need are…
- Drill
- Step bit
- Phillips head driver
- Hollow wall anchors
Removing The Old Tail Light
First you must drill out the old rivet holding the tail light housing to the camper. After all four rivets are drilled out, the tail light housing will easily come off of the camper body. Bend the metal tabs back holding the wiring into the tail light housing. Make note of the different color wiring locations, and make sure you do not let the wiring slide back into the camper. Once all the wiring is off of the old tail light housing, it can be removed.
Installing the New Tail Light
Use the stepper bit to widen the rivet holes wide enough to allow the hollow wall anchors to slide into the camper body. Once the holes are wide enough, install the wall anchors into the camper body. Now take the new tail light housing and push the wires through the back in the same position that they came out of the old housing. Make sure all the wires are securely held by the metal tabs in the new housing. Once all the wiring is done and secure, start your screws through the new housing into the wall anchors. When all four screws are started they can all be tightened slowly. Once everything is secure you can pop your new lens in place. Just make sure the new lens is not upside down like mine.
Finished
After the lights are finished, hook up the wiring to your tow vehicle and test. If they all work congratulation on a job well down. These new tail lights look great and are a great update to an old pop up.