hey guys,

the headlight arms, rods in my 85 are shot..bushing are toasty...
so im trying to order some from mazdatrix..but it gives me 2 options...long or short....

i didnt know there were 2 different lengths?

any ideas...cos right now im winking at everyone passing me at night..and you know..i dont want to give em any ideas


Paul

 

2 different rods per light different lengths. check your lights to see what you need

 

I believe Victoria British sells the parts you need.

 

One of my bushings has been fucked for a few years, it clunks when the lights go down but so far nothing worse...

 

hehe..one of my lights is ziptied to the rod...and only sorta goes up 3/4 of the way..i guess what else can you expect from 17 yr old bushings....

 

The main working arm (the one that actually connects to the headlight cover) is the long one. In the 22 years I've been driving 1st Gens, I've only seen the bushings in the long one break, never the short one. So, my bet us you need the long one. This is a common 1st Gen problem.

BUT, I suggest you check your local Pull Your Part wrecking yard. Since these going bad is common, you might find a newer one. I've always found good replacements that way when needed.

For reference, the newer replacement ones have a black rubber cap on each end. Just pry to pop off the pivot on each end. Just be careful you pry against the metal and not the plastic part.

Good luck.

 

Do what I did to mine. Use the manual crank to raise the light, then unplug the motor that runs them up and down. The headlights will still work, but when the lights go out the assemblys will stay up.

 

So the headlights stay up all the time?

Yeah, that looks good.

 

You need one long and one short for each side if you replace both arms. Last itme they went bad on me it was the long one like HOZZMANRX7 said, the bushings were looking bad on the short one too, I just replaced them all around.... They're so cheap new from Mazdatrix it didn't seem worth the effort for me to look for them in a salvage yard as I've had a hard time finding salvage yards good for 1st gens around me...

drew
-----------
smackfu.net

 

What??...uhhhh..no..not gonna happen.....i prefer aerodynamics.theres a reason they are called popups

and in my expeience thus far...all the salvage yard ones are in just as bad of shape.....everytime i try to grab one...the bushings just fall apart

thanks for the clarification on the different length arms..i doidnt realize there were two arms a side

Paul

 

If you're talking about the white plastic bushings, I've got an easy fix for you. The bushing on the right headlight broke off and the arm kept falling out of the hole. (do you get the picture?) I had to hand crank the light up and down (also if the light gets stuck in the down position, the motor will continue to try and lift it, draining your battery) Simply put the arm through the hole and place a rubber garden hose washer over the part that goes through the hole. Believe it or not, the arm doesn't fall out. I've had this fix on mine now for over a year with no problems. I forgot, you have to remove the ENTIRE plastic bushing, otherwise the arm will not protrude far enough into the hole to get the washer on.

 

by hole im assuming you mean the ball the headlight arm fits over?

 

Yeah, slip the ball through the opening of the other arm, slip the washer over it and...viola.