This 2005 Chevrolet Impala came in with the complaint the the right rear turn signal and stoplight did not work sometimes. The bulb had already been changed. To access the bulb the light assembly has to be removed from the vehicle. The trunk liner is held in place by several plastic wing nuts.
After the liner hold down nuts are removed and the liner has been folded down and out of the way, there will be two more wing nuts that have to be removed.
Since the bulb had already been replaced most of the visible damage was no longer present so I do not have a picture to show you of that. I tested to confirm there was power and ground present at the socket with the brake pedal depressed. That meant that the socket has to have a faulty internal connection issue. I contacted the local Chevrolet dealership to find out about getting a replacement sub harness assembly for this light. I was told the sub harness would cost a little over $70 and would have to be ordered. Being resourceful as I am, I started looking through various sockets that I keep in stock. I found one that had the correct alignment tabs and focal length but is had a slightly different design. If you need to purchase one of these sockets please click here.
In the process of replacing the faulty socket, I noted that the socket is also used as a splicing point for the tailight and ground circuits that connect to the rear side marker light socket. It is not a big deal because the splice will simply be moved to the splicing point for the new socket wiring connections.
All of the wires have been connected and heat applied to the heat shrink tubing.
The wires have been taped together to form a harness.
Notice how there is a tab on the light assembly that fits perfectly with the locking arm on the socket. My assumption is that the light assembly was originally designed with this socket in mind but a less expensive supplier got the bid to supply the harness assembly to GM.
Notice the curve in the harness.
I curved the harness in that position and monitored it carefully when I installed the light assembly back into the vehicle so that I could insure that the wiring would not be pinched.
A better comparison between the original and replacement sockets.
