I swapped out the interior bulbs (+trunki) on our '16 ES350 today.
All went smoothly but I could not do the overhead front and rear lights.
I dropped the panels but the lights appear to be inaccessible in large plastic housings.
Are these bulbs already LEDs? Are they accessible, and I just missed something?

 

The overhead light fixtures are encased in a plastic cover behind the outer lens. Switch out the bulb inside. They take the same size bulbs as elsewhere inside the car such as the door panels and visor mirrors. I switched every bulb in the car including the trunk and taillights...

 

Can they be changed from the outside without dropping the panel? I didn't see a point to pry them open

 

No need to remove any panels. You must pry off the outer lens of the fixture. Inside you'll find a cover over the actual bulb. Be careful with the inside cover as I believe its glass - not plastic due to heat. I bought a kit of plastic tools designed specifically for prying off door panels, light fixtures such as the ones in our cars, and anything else where one must remove a tightly secured cover. The kit prevents damage to the surrounding area when it's done with a screwdriver and such. I got it at Harbor Freight and it was about $5.00. A very good investment. Use this tool to remove the front and rear lenses.

GOOD LUCK!

 

Thanks, appreciate the help

 

+1 ! The plastic, non-marring tool kits are a must for lens removal. If you don't have access to that, you can use a flat-head screw driver with tape wrapped around the top to prevent scratches.

Should be relatively simple to swap everything out on your ES

Nick C.

 

FYI the outside mirror puddle lights use the same lamp as the interior lights, so they can be swapped also. Dis-assembly of the mirror is a little tricky but there are posts and videos of that process if you search.

 

Thanks did the Mirror Puddle Lamps this afternoon on my IS-F will attack the ES350 next.
Job was easier than I thought, Will need more bulb to continue.

 

The overhead lights are LED. I took them completely apart wanting to change them out. They are just bare LEDs soldered into the circuit board. Don't waste anymore time trying to get them apart.

 

Thank you. That was my impression based on what it looked like when I dropped the panel from the roof.
I did not see a way to just remove the lens. The car is a '16 and I think they were confusing years.
my '10 IS-F I was able to switch the bulbs to LEDs

 

Apparently the interior light fixtures have changed since 2013. The information I supplied was obviously for a 2013 and not your car. Sorry for the misinformation...

 

Appreciate the update. Thanks.