Water is leaking in, and I want to replace the gasket and swap the bulb for an LED. Do I need to remove the two small screws inside the metal housing after taking off the trim? It’s for a 2005 Outback… I can’t seem to find a video anywhere.
Pretty sure that’s already an LED strip.
GregoryMesh3 said:
Pretty sure that’s already an LED strip.
Good to know! But how do I get the thing off? I don’t see any screws inside the hatch. Trying to reseal the gasket since water is getting in…
@Amir
You need to unbolt the spoiler and carefully pop it off. It’s plastic, and they crack easily.
Marcell said:
@Amir
You need to unbolt the spoiler and carefully pop it off. It’s plastic, and they crack easily.
Take off all the trim inside the hatch, and you should be able to see the bolts.
@Marcell
Already got all the trim off. I’ll take another look tomorrow in better light. Will be careful with the spoiler and use my plastic pry tools to get it off without breaking it. Thanks!
Amir said:
@Marcell
Already got all the trim off. I’ll take another look tomorrow in better light. Will be careful with the spoiler and use my plastic pry tools to get it off without breaking it. Thanks!
Just a heads-up, besides the nuts inside the hatch, there’s also a bolt (or nut) on each side that’s harder to spot.
@Jason
Ugh, why did they make this so complicated? So, four connection points? That helps—thanks!
That’s already an LED. The high-mounted stop light in this model was always LED. Had one myself, and mine stopped working. It’s a known issue—the wiring is too short, and heat over time causes it to shrink. You can usually pull the wire through more (or solder a new one) once the light is removed. Mine cost about $45 to fix. Any decent tech should be able to handle it.
@Terryanne
Mine still works fine, just getting water inside. Thought I’d swap in an LED while I was in there, but looks like that’s not an option. Still need to take the light off and reseal the gasket to keep the water out. Starting at the top and working my way down. But this info is super useful for when it does stop working—appreciate it!
@Amir
Oops, didn’t read all your comments! Ignore what I said about the hinge harness fix.
@Amir
I used to have a 2006 Outback 3.0L, now have a 2021 Forester Touring (top trim in New Zealand). Been driving Subarus for 35 years—this next one will be my 8th. My wife drives a Crosstrek now.
Terryanne said:
@Amir
I used to have a 2006 Outback 3.0L, now have a 2021 Forester Touring (top trim in New Zealand). Been driving Subarus for 35 years—this next one will be my 8th. My wife drives a Crosstrek now.
That’s awesome! Have you heard about Subaru’s free ‘Badge of Ownership’ program? I just ordered mine, and they have one for how many Outbacks you’ve owned! This is my first one, had it since I was 20. Just hit 299,489 miles and planning to put in a new short block in August!
@Amir
Yeah, but they only offer those in the US. Can’t get them in New Zealand, unfortunately.
Terryanne said:
@Amir
Yeah, but they only offer those in the US. Can’t get them in New Zealand, unfortunately.
What?! That’s not fair! You’ve owned eight Subarus! You should totally email Subaru of America and see if they’ll make an exception. 
It’s probably working fine! Don’t mess with it. Just fix the broken BLACK ground wires in the tailgate hinge harness! I’ve fixed a ton of these. Had to do it on my own Outback from this generation too.
@Quill
It does work! I’m just trying to fix the water leak. Figured I’d swap the bulb while I was in there, but looks like that’s not happening. Already soldered two broken wires in the hinge—got my rear wiper and plate lights working again. Now just tracking down the leak, and since there’s water inside the light, I’m starting here.
Part number should be:
High Mount Lamp - Subaru (84701AG01C)
Not the easiest thing to access. Tried searching for a video to help you, but no luck. The best I found was just an ad for light bulbs—useless.
@scofield
Appreciate you looking! At least now I know the actual name of the part. Every time I search for ‘third brake light’ or ‘center reverse light,’ all I get are generic brake light videos. Super frustrating.
- It’s called the center-mounted stop light or third brake light.
- Don’t put in an LED—it’ll just flicker.
- You need to open the inside trunk panel. It either twists out or is screwed in and then twists.