headlights dont work but high beams do. Cant drive at night
 

my headlights will pop up and down on command but doesnt light up unless i activate high beams...i know the bulb is not blown because at one point, i stepped on the clutch and the lights miraculously turned on...but never turned on again after i turned off the car.....so im thinking its either faulty wiring....which i doubt becuz the previous owner told me that the lights worked....or that i need a new light switch (combination switch)?

i went to a mechanic and he sed first without looking too hard...that the switch might be broken and he might have to replace the whole unit for $125 -_-

any ideas or am i really gonna have to abide by the mechanics bullshit

Here you go, just make sure that you read the entire thread before you start on it. We found out later that you may not have to remove anything for this to work. The cleaner spray can be found at Autozone for just a few bucks.

https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...dlight+cleaner




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im gonna try as soon as i get the time....hope it works for me i'll keep you updated....THANK YOU

most likely its the cmbination switch. my car does the exact same thing except with the high beams. my low beams work just fine. the momentary position for high beams works just fine, but the solid position for high beams turns the headlights off completely. :icon_no2:

My roomate had this exact same problem with her 94 geo metro last night. I Removed the steering wheel and column cover, and sprayed the left side of the combo switch with half a can of brake cleaner. Move the light stalk up, down, forward, back while spraying like mad. Shop towels on floor and windows open.

It just needs the contacts cleaned. Problem solved!!!

Brake cleaner is what TV repairmen used back in the day.

i had the same problem with my 93 miata. only i had the wrong headlight model number installed. they were so close too.

You can pick up a can of Electrical Motor and Contact Cleaner at Autozone for under 10 bucks. It comes with a hose/nozzle, so you can stick it into the base of the combination switch and hose away. Work the switch back/forth a bit and you should be good to go.

so i opened up the column cover, and removed the stalk and pretty much did what you told me to do in your thread kentetsu....there was a lot of build up where the contacts were so i hosed and brushed them all off..i put everything back together and my headlights pop up but still dont turn on (i seriously thought i had progress with the amount of buildup i removed)... but i have my high beams....and i forgot to mention that only the momentarily high beams work when i hold onto the switch...i cannot put it into a fixed position so that the high beams stay on...and after a while i can no longer use my electric mirrors nor does any of my wiper functions work (except the jet spray)

and after i cleaned everything and put it back, i turned on my headlights and the left one only went up half way while the right one went all the way up....but then i manually lowered both of them and now they both come up at the same time (im not worried about the lights coming up im just telling you what happened)

can someone help....is there a certain spot i missed and didnt get to hose down? what does the "no fixed" position of my high beams mean? lol is it easier to call this thing broken and find a new unit? what is this thing called? a steering column? or combination switch?

repeat a few more time before you go replacing all those parts. I saw the switch at mazdatrix I think and it was spendy little fucker. I need to replace my steering column because it collapses and the turn signals don't return.

i dont think u need to replace the whole thing....u might just need this part...i know it cancels the turn signals or something...ur tabs might be broken

http://mazdatrix.com/getprice.asp?partnum=66-1260-BA29

the switch was $250 for an 85 w/ cruise control....u think thats bad..its even worse for SA owners..about 350 w/ cruise control


one thing i didnt mention....i couldnt get the big plugs in the back of the unit out (i think one is white and the other is either brown or black)...its too much of a tight fit, however, i did spray some of the contact cleaner in the openings of these switches..dunno if it helps...how did u guys get it out (kentetsu)?

they just sprayed them I believe. Its not the turn signals that really bother me. I'm use to manually switching them back. its the whole thing going back and forth. I have a white front end and a brown car so I'm thinking the PO rear ended someone and it colapsed. but its the issues together that really get me down.

Check/clean the terminals on the fuseible links and the wires leading to the link box.
http://intertron.com/ron/combo.html

thank you i will look into it as soon as i have time....i was stuck on this last time becuz i dont know how to remove the whole unit off the column like he has it in the pictures...i will try to experiment on my own to remove this but just for reference....did u start by removing the 3 screws that are labled "remove these 3 screws"....did this thing come off as a whole or did it come off piece by piece, section by section?

also, are there are small bits and pieces i should be looking out for....had to replace a small spring and almost a wheel bearing cuz i didnt know that the pieces will be there and when i found out it was too late...its scary to lose these things

Chances are, if the problem is related to gunk built up on the contacts, you won't have to take anything apart. Just take the cleaner, stick the hose into the base of the switch, shoot it full of the cleaner, then work the switch around through all positions. Spend a few minutes doing this.

If that does not work, then your problems most likely lie elsewhere...

i forgot to mention that they have worked before....and the wiper switch suddenly stopped one day also....and great...i broke the thing to cancel my turn signals -_- dont even know how i did it..