side light bulbs. . it should have been simple but !

[benters]

I decided to change the very dim sidelight bulbs for the LED version at the weekend, not the hardest job i know, however the drivers side decided to bite me !! the issue being the fitting on the back of the lens has previously broken off altogehter, so when I try to fit the new bulb all i manage is i end up pushing against nothing. I have pulled it forward thanks to a little dexterity with a Starbucks stirring wooden splint into position, And i was hoping that the araldite i then managed to get into the hole would do the job, but no joy !
So the next job is to remove the lens, but with no obvious way in, i thought i would ask is it a bumper off job ? or is there a well known 'swerve' on this task that i don't know about ??
i hate things that dont work properly and hope that someone can provide an idea on this issue, if its bumper off then a few pointers will be very useful.

[mdw]

If its a early stevens dont bother taking the bumper off as there is no access from the back, only to the bolts that hold the whole light unit in to the bumper. However I guess you may need to get it off to grind the nuts off the back to remove the light units. Be prepared for a whole world of agro as all the bumper bolts will need grinding off and replacing. Have fun