Lights Go Up, But They Don't Go Down

[tfranko29]

Hi Friends,

'83 944, works pretty good. Headlights worked perfectly until 2 weeks ago.

*My headlights go up and shine, but don't go down as directed. Usually later that same day or if I go over a speed bump, they will go down.

*I have no tail lights or side marker lights, unless I jump power from fuse #1 to fuse #13.

*I do not have 12V at the headlight motor plug on the red/green wire as I should with ignition on, switch off.

Do I have a bad headlight switch or a bad relay or ground?

Thanks
Frank

[bigyagi]

google/go to "clarks garage" great site, and he has a full write up on faultfinding on the headlight circuit.
bob.

[tfranko29]

thanks, but that's why I know about the 12v to the wires, what I don't know is do I have a faulty switch or relay or fuse, the motor works great when hand acctuated.

[Dark Skies]

Originally posted by tfranko29
thanks, but that's why I know about the 12v to the wires, what I don't know is do I have a faulty switch or relay or fuse, the motor works great when hand acctuated.

Try lifting the hood, putting the lights on and then off. If the light pods stay up gently wiggle the relay on the headlamp lifting motor. If they then go down you've found the fault - poor connections on the relay spades / female connections of the motor. You can usually clean these up and get things working again in my experience.

[legion]

I think they call that priapism.

[Baza]

same thing happened to me twice Switch. I then put in an extra relay and have not had a problem since. Look at the back of the switch and see if you can see any scorch marks.

[tfranko29]

I have a brand new headlight switch, I wiggled the relay with hood up and the lights did not go down.

[Dtchy]

There's a complete write-up on Clarks garage about the cleaning of the contact wheel in the headlight mechanism. This disc gets cooked with dirt and debris over years of usage, and prevents the system from working correctly.

www.clarks-garage.com. Go to Garage Shop Manual/Headlight Motor Removal and Cleaning

[tfranko29]

Hi Friends,

Thanks for the Clark's Garage info., however I'm interested in the Wayne's Garage info. Just kidding, I have the electrical diagram for the vehicle, courtesy of Snap-On, I wonder if the currrent to the headlight male plug is being blocked by something other than the headlight switch or does the 12v run directly from the headlight switch to the male plug. I don't have the skills to track it down off the diagram.

[DMRK]

I second the clarks garage write up. Read it, I believe it tells you exactly what your problem is and how to fix it. Good luck

[livewirevoodoo]

Originally Posted by legion

I think they call that priapism.

lmfao... glad I took the time to google that.

Hopefully the remedy for your headlight woes aren't as painful.

[onZedge]

Bwahahahah!

[earlr85944]

When they are supposed to go down and they dont, loosen the mounting bolts for the headlight bar standoffs and or motor and see if its mechanically binding, oil the pivot points also and see if that helps, may just need to be adjusted.

[rmcdonnell]

You have a poor (intermittent) connection as it sets over bumps.
It's unlikely to be the switch or relay, but could be the connections to them.
Unlikely to be the motor connections as it only fails in one direction.
Could be a duff wire, that has got pinched or nearly sheared somehow.
I vote for connection, so check them all, and remake them or clean them if possible.
Check for continuity if possible.

Best of luck
Russell

[porschejeff95]

hi frank. almost same issue with my '83 944....I found that my plastic electrical wire connector was loose for one. Secondly the headlight motor relay did not stay in the motor connector all the way; there was always about 1/4 " movement....until I find a new unit I wrapped a zip-tie around it to keep it in. The lights now go up consistently for me. I still do not have the down solved yet......I haven't replaced the relay yet.....that will be next as I have detected a lot of corrosion on it. I already cleaned up all the connectors. keep me posted and I'll do likewise.

[AKCJ]

Headlights. I have the same problem on my 83 - they don't go down right away when turned off. It takes awhile, sometimes several hours before they retreat. I cleaned the contacts on the motor per Clarks but as Russell said - that's not it. I assume it's the switch or relay or bad connection.

Tail & Dash Lights. I have the exact same problem and have read about the problem several times. I have read that the problem is a poor connection in the wiring behind the fuse panel. After spending quite a bit of quality time on my back working on this I've still never found the elusive loose connection. If I wiggle the wires I can usually get the lights to come on but they don't stay lit for very long. I did get stopped by the police one night after the lights went out but no ticket.

I'm going to think about the fuse #1 to #13 thing.

[AKCJ]

Tail Lights. Frank, do your tail/dash lights work intermittently? If so do they not work at the same time the head light retract doesn't work? And, when the headlight retract works do the tail/dash lights also work?

I'm just trying to establish a connection (figuratively and phyisically) between the headlight retract and tail/dash light problem.

Jumpering between fuse #1 and #13 might bypass the power in to the tail light circuit (from the headlight switch) but only on one side. The tail and side marker lights use fuse 13 for the right side and fuse 14 for the left side.

I can't help but think the problem is a wiring connection between the headlight switch and fuses that run the tail/marker/dash lights. But, I'm just guessing.

This problem has happened to so many people I'm still hoping that someone will just go ahead and post the answer.

[juVius]

has anyone solved this? i just picked up a car today with the same problem.

thanks

[juVius]

nevermind.... it was a short in the blue connector on the fuse panel.