What kind of a person paints black a metal parking lot post? Are they dumb, cheap, evil—or a mixture of all three? Do they
want people to run into it? It wouldn't be surprising if all of these thoughts were going through the mind of James Potter the night his '05 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 came into contact with a pole that was camouflaged by darkness. While backing up, he heard that sickening crunch we all dread and instantly hit the brakes, but it was already too late. In addition to putting a dent in the bedside and scuffing the bumper, the invisi-pole had smashed the passenger side tail lamp.
Sure, some red plastic repair tape could keep everything legal, but James takes a lot of pride in how his truck looks. Along with the crunched brake lamp, both of his headlamps had fogged over for the second time. He'd been searching junkyards every weekend but had absolutely no luck finding replacement parts for his '03-'06 Chevy truck, and the dealership wanted an arm and a leg for just one headlamp. James' plight is an all to familiar one, so instead of going back to stock, he decided to upgrade to LED lamps by Anzo USA in the front and back of his truck.
Along with fixing the existing problems, the Chevy received a new, modern look with the Anzo "U-Bar" headlamps and LEDs for the turn signals and brake lights (including the third brake lamp on roof of the cab). These products fit all '03-'06 Chevy Avalanche/Silverado fullsize trucks and are designed for easy installation.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED Headlamps
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED Brake Lights James Potter
This '05 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 was suffering from foggy headlamps and a busted brake light before the LED upgrades came to the rescue. These Anzo USA direct-replacement Crystal U-Bar Black headlamps, G2 Black and Amber LED parking/turn lights, Black LED taillights, and a G3 Smoke LED third brake light update the look of the entire truck, and the installation took less than half a day.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Foggy Head Lamp
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Broken Brake Lamp
James bought his truck new and a few years later used a kit to clear up his headlamps the first time they fogged-over, but he was ready for a replacement when they turned yellow again. Then, a malicious parking lot pole busted the passenger-side brake lamp, (along with scraping the bumper and putting a dent in the bed). After trips to junkyards proved unsuccessful and the dealership asking too much for a factory replacement, he decided to get LEDs for the front and rear of the truck.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Head Lamp Removal
Calin Head, the manager of our tech center, removes the L-shaped retaining pin that keeps the upper part of factory headlamp assembly in place.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Head Lamp Removal
With the pin removed, the lamp assemblies on each side can be pulled upward (to dislodge the vertical tabs at the bottom) and then out of the fender housings.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Head Lamp Plug Removal
Calin uses a plastic pry tool to avoid breaking the tabs on the factory high and low beam bulb plug fixtures that will be reused on the new Anzo USA lamps.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Turn Signal Lamp Removal
With the headlamps on both sides out of the way, the turn signal/parking lamp housings can be removed by pushing in the plastic tabs near the fenders and then pulling the lamp assemblies out and towards the grille (to release the inner tabs).
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Head Lamp Bulbs
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Turn Signal Upgrade
All of the factory wiring and bulbs are re-used on the new parts. The Anzo USA G2 LED parking/signal (PN 511067) assemblies have tabs just like the factory parts that use the same mounts. By using a plastic pry bar, you can help snap the outside tabs into place and avoid unnecessary stress on the new parts.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Head Lamp Upgrade Wiring
The Anzo Crystal U-Bar headlamps (PN 111312) are plug-and-play, except for a couple of inline connectors that power the LEDs and attach to the turn signal wires (in this application, black to black for the ground wire and green to brown for power). Calin was careful during this step to make sure the teeth inside the clips made a solid connection but didn't damage the wires.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED Head Lamp Installation
With the LED wires connected, the turn signal bulbs in place in the lower housings, and the factory low and high beam plugs in place, Calin installs the U-Bar headlamp assemblies by inserting the lower tabs into the factory slots and then replacing the upper retaining pins.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo UBar LED Head Lamp Upgrades Day
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED UBar Head Lamp Upgrades Night
With the Anzo USA U-Bar headlamps and G2 turn/parking lamps installed, the decade-old Chevy now has a modern look that can be replicated on any '03-'06 Chevy Avalanche or Silverado truck.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED Adjustment
To adjust your new headlamp beam levels, park the truck on level ground 20 feet away from a wall with the lights on. The beams should project level with each other. If they need adjustment, just lift the hood and use a Phillips head screwdriver to turn the adjustment knob on top of the headlamp assemblies.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Brake Light Removal
With the tailgate down, Calin is able to remove the two screws that hold each factory brake lamp assembly in place.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Brake Lamp Replacement Bulbs
Like the headlamps, the Anzo USA Black LED taillights (PN 311009) reuse the factory connections and all but one bulb.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Brake Lamp Replacement Cleaning
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LED Brake Light Resistor Placement
To make the LEDs work with the factory wiring (and avoid the fast-blink known for a blown bulb), each brake lamp comes with a prewired resistor box. Calin used brake cleaner to remove 10 years of grime inside the housing so the box can be mounted securely.
| Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED Brake Lamp Bulb Installation2
After attaching the box, Calin removes the factory brake bulb on each side and inserts a connector that routes electricity through the resistor.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED Brake Lamp Replacement Side By Side
Calin holds the old broken taillamp next to the new Anzo LED brake light and the difference in styling is noticeable. The cracked plastic on the factory part reveals the stock brake lamp lenses had already started to turn yellow just like the headlamps.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED 3rd Brake Lamp Installation
Two screws are taken out so the yellowed factory third brake lamp assembly can be removed and replaced with the LED-powered Anzo USA G3 Smoke unit (PN 531075). Calin uses a plastic pry bar to pop-out the old part and to release the tabs on the factory wiring harnesses to prevent them from breaking. Then, he plugs the factory leads into the provided harnesses and mounts the included resistor box. Calin makes sure the foam seal around the new LED assembly is secure so water doesn't end up leaking into the cab of the truck.
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED Brake Lights Day
| 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Anzo LED Brake Lamps Night
The Anzo USA brake lamps shine brighter than the old factory parts, and the third brake lamp assembly includes white LEDs to light up the cargo bed.
