How to replace a tag light bulb in a 2003 Honda Civic

On a 2003 Honda Civic, there are two lights above the rear license plate that illuminate the license plate when you drive at night.  These small lights come on when your headlights are on.  If one of the lights goes out, replacing it is an easy task you can do yourself.  The process takes less than five minutes.  The instructions below were written for a Civic coupe, but they should be the same for a Civic sedan.

If you don't already have a replacement bulb, you can get one from your local auto parts store (bulb #168).  Online, Amazon sells a pair of long-life replacement bulbs for $6.99.  You may also want to get some dielectric grease if you don't already have some -- recommended but not required.

The first step is to open your trunk.  Looking up at the inside of the trunk door, locate the two tag light bulb assemblies.  They are above the license plate, one on the left side and one on the right side.  Each bulb is encased in a plastic housing with a wire connector coming off of it.

Remove the housing for the bad bulb by squeezing the plastic tab on either side of the housing.  Push the tabs in, and you can pull the housing straight out.  With the housing out, you can see the bulb.

Now remove the bulb by grasping it with your hand and pulling it straight out of the housing.  (You may have to wiggle it a little.)  Be careful not to squeeze the bulb too hard, or it could break.  If you find that you don't have enough room to get the bulb out easily, you can disconnect the wire connector from the housing by pushing down on the plastic tab and pulling the connector and housing away from each other.  Once you've done that, the housing is not attached and you can take it out of the trunk for a closer look.

Once the old bulb is out, you're ready to install the new bulb.  If you want, you can dab some dielectric grease on the bulb contacts to ensure a better connection and longer bulb life, but it's not necessary.

To install the new bulb, simply push it straight into the housing until you feel that it's all the way in.  Now reinstall the bulb assembly by pushing it into place in the cavity that you removed it from.  The two side tabs should snap into place once the bulb assembly is in position.  There is a plastic hood that sticks out above the bulb -- make sure that the side with that hood is on top of the bulb.  (If you disconnected the wire connector from the bulb housing, reattach it now.)

You've successfully replaced your tag light.  Now all that's left is to close the trunk and test your new bulb.  Turn your headlights on and make sure both tag lights come on.  Once you've seen that they do, you're done!