2012 Fiat 500 license plate lamps

i my license plate lamps went out. Fiat does not make a replacement bulbs for the 2012. Starting in 2013 they changed out the bulbs. i tried to in stall a after market LED light and it does not really work well. What can i do short of replacing the back lift handle where the license plate lamps are located.

What does the parts counter guy at the dealer say? It’s seems like Fiat dealers must have a way to deal with this.

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Based on what I found in a quick Google search, the early 2012 Fiat 500 had a license plate light bulb built into the handle mechanism, and you have to replace the whole thing. It sounds completely unbelievable, but here’s what I read.

Well you can screw around trying to retrofit another bulb in there or just bite the bullet and buy a new handle for $100. I think that’s probably what I would do and be done with it. The Police love to pull you over for having a license plate light out. You can spend a lot of time and effort trying to retrofit something. They really should give you a break on the price though.

My 86 Park Avenue had opera lights but they were some type of fluorescent lights. When one went out and the replacement cost was very significant, I rewired them both to use standard bulbs. I used surplus sockets etc. and the only thing was instead of a bright white light, I got a mellow yellow light which I preferred anyway.

So just whatever you want to do. Screw around with it or buy a new handle and be done with it.