Busted headlight = $700?

[scubadiver]

Bit of vandalism on my street. Some yahoo kicked my headlight. Broke the plastic cover, not the light itself. (We get pretty wimpy vandals here in Northern Virginia.)

So I'll buy a new cover and fix it myself. Nooooo. They only sell it as a $400 module. Ya gotta' disasemble half the car to replace the module. $700 parts and labor. It's not my $700. I gots Comprehensive, so Cincinnati Home & Auto footed the $700. I'm not out.

But still...$700 for a 2-dollar piece of plastic? Did I do wrong? Could I have gotten the cover somewhere? I find it hard to believe that Subie engineers would make so vulnerable a part as a headlight so expensive to replace.

What say you WRX experts?

[Ruh Roh]

wowww. sorry to hear about that price, and your towns vandals. not sure how much it is to replace but that sounds like too much. what year and model?

[djclue8713]

Wow that's a bit insane. Still, good thing it's not your 7 bills.

[scubadiver]

wowww. sorry to hear about that price, and your towns vandals. not sure how much it is to replace but that sounds like too much. what year and model?

Showroom stock '08 WRX. Not STI. Halogen, not HID discharge lights. Sorry to be on this forum with a stock WRX, but years have taken their toll from eyesight, reflexes and nerve. My WRX is already more car than I am driver.

In my rallying days I needed a dust-cap to modify for a front-wheel odometer for my '67 Volvo. A guy who knew such things told me the dust-cap from a certain Buick would fit. Lo, it did. So I soon had an odometer not affected by wheel-spin for an off-road rally. I am hoping that a knowledgeable guy like that will tell me a trick for repairing the headlight cover on my WRX. I am OK now, but I still drive fast on dirt roads, so I should plan for another busted headlight.

[Calvinball]

Showroom stock '08 WRX. Not STI. Halogen, not HID discharge lights. Sorry to be on this forum with a stock WRX, but years have taken their toll from eyesight, reflexes and nerve. My WRX is already more car than I am driver.

In my rallying days I needed a dust-cap to modify for a front-wheel odometer for my '67 Volvo. A guy who knew such things told me the dust-cap from a certain Buick would fit. Lo, it did. So I soon had an odometer not affected by wheel-spin for an off-road rally. I am hoping that a knowledgeable guy like that will tell me a trick for repairing the headlight cover on my WRX. I am OK now, but I still drive fast on dirt roads, so I should plan for another busted headlight.

Nothing to apologize for there! It's a pretty adult/mature/etc crew here, so stock cars are appreciated just as much!

[mycologist]

If you have to fix it on your own buck, just grab one used and DIY. Should be <$100. I think they can also come off of an standard Impreza.