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Do Your AC/Heat/Fan HVAC Controls Light Up?

34K views 40 replies 23 participants last post by  Sturmkatze  
#1 ·
Sortly after buying my 2002 NB GLS TDI last month I noticed that the HVAC controls under the radio do not light up. They normally do, don't they? :confused:
 
#33 ·
Read the first page then got bored. But thought I would throw in my experience. I had to do this recently. #74 bulb from O'Reillys Auto. Put the fan in #2 position and pull the crap out of it. I swore I was going to break it, but finally just ripped it off and all was good. I didn't use the rubber hose, I used some long needle nose pliers. Getting the old out was easy, putting the new one in was difficult. The knob went back on just fine and fan works fine. Although I did scratch the knob pulling it off with needle nose pliers (Shhhh! Don't tell the wife, she hasn't noticed yet)
 
#37 ·
If it's the bulb behind the heater control knob, i put an orange one in and it was still red. This is because all the fitments that light up RED have a RED filter behind them. So how someone got theres BLUE i would love to know ;) :D
 
#41 ·
Perfect hack!

So, I got the car about a month and a half ago... HVAC controls never lit up and it was irritating me. >:-o I did some searching here and lo, found a couple of these threads. I took my vice grips and a piece of rubber for padding. Adjusted the vice grips just so. 2nd position and a quick tug. Voila!

Didn't have any tubing, but I did have some needle nose pliers. Careful wiggling and it was out. Some more looking for the number and calling Autozone. They had it. Generic #2721--they come 2 for $4.99. Used the vice grips to carefully line up the bulb and get it in a bit and carefully seated it w/ my finger tip. Tested it and bam!, it works! Put back together and then shaded it to check and all the HVAC is lit. :)

Now, on to that broken mirror switch--the used one I got didn't work. Let's see if the Southeast Asian one I got from Amazon does.