wierd headlight
10-10-03, 05:18 AM
#26
The AUTO DOCTOR
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: South Side of ATL. Ga.
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well people dont think about all the little **** like the upgrade in wires needed and the ajustments needed to the linkage so it all works "right".
on my working prototype me and a friend spent 5 weekends dicking around with ajustments before we got it right. on the kit i had on the gray car (miata based kit) it came with some new linkage parts and i still had to mod it a few times so it would work... but it was a WORKING light kit... flip the switch 1/2 up they went flip it again... down they go... hell on the miata based kit i spent 8 hours messing with the linkage stuff to get it to work right....
on my working prototype me and a friend spent 5 weekends dicking around with ajustments before we got it right. on the kit i had on the gray car (miata based kit) it came with some new linkage parts and i still had to mod it a few times so it would work... but it was a WORKING light kit... flip the switch 1/2 up they went flip it again... down they go... hell on the miata based kit i spent 8 hours messing with the linkage stuff to get it to work right....
10-10-03, 04:09 PM
#27
SKELETOR!
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Prescott Valley, AZ
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Ok,
Maybe this is dumb......but I just though of it.
My old 88 Accord used to have pop up lights too. I could manually adjust them up (looks like the FB has the same adjusters).
Now, if the point is, to have the lights popped up halfway, ALL THE TIME, couldn't you just manually adjust them to be open halfway.......?
Maybe this is dumb......but I just though of it.
My old 88 Accord used to have pop up lights too. I could manually adjust them up (looks like the FB has the same adjusters).
Now, if the point is, to have the lights popped up halfway, ALL THE TIME, couldn't you just manually adjust them to be open halfway.......?
10-12-03, 12:58 PM
#29
84SE-EGI helpy-helperton
In order to get your lids to only go up a fixed distance (halfway, in this case), you're going to have to use the existing arms, but redrill the triangular pivot that both the motor-side arm, and the light-side arm are attached to. Shortening the arms themselves is only going to accomplish crashing your lids beyond their travel and causing the motors to seize up when they can't move any further - frying your fusible link...
When your lights are up, open the hood, and look by the battery or by the right front corner (whichever is easier on your car...). You will see that there is a triangular shaped pivot that is mounted to the frame in front of the motor assembly that the 'short' arm from the motor attaches to. From here, on the other side of the pivot is the 'long' arm that attaches to the bottom of the headllight mechanism.
You'll need to remove this pivot, measure, and drill new mounts for the ball joints that hold the long arm so that it only travels a short distance. You don't want to mess with the short-arm, since this is required to have the fixed travel so that the motor can make a full revolution from full up to full down. This will be a trial and error process, since I doubt that anyone's distributed any kind of measurements on the 'net about this mod.
Basically, you're using the geometry of the fulcrum at the triangular pivot to limit the upward movement of the headlight bucket and mechanism. Shorten this geometry and you'll shorten the throw of the headlight bucket to it's half-up position.
Be sure to drill both sides the same, or you'll have one bucket go up or down farther than the other. If you do this right, no modifications are required to either the motor mechanisms or the arm lengths - allowing you to use standard Mazda factory arms for future replacement when the plastic ball cups go out (and they do).
Caveat - I have not done this modification on my car, but have given it enough thought to figure out what it would take, mechanically. I kinda like the standard flip-up headlight design, and think that they are one of the features that set the first generation car aside from the other generations, and from other manufacturer's offerings. HTH,
When your lights are up, open the hood, and look by the battery or by the right front corner (whichever is easier on your car...). You will see that there is a triangular shaped pivot that is mounted to the frame in front of the motor assembly that the 'short' arm from the motor attaches to. From here, on the other side of the pivot is the 'long' arm that attaches to the bottom of the headllight mechanism.
You'll need to remove this pivot, measure, and drill new mounts for the ball joints that hold the long arm so that it only travels a short distance. You don't want to mess with the short-arm, since this is required to have the fixed travel so that the motor can make a full revolution from full up to full down. This will be a trial and error process, since I doubt that anyone's distributed any kind of measurements on the 'net about this mod.
Basically, you're using the geometry of the fulcrum at the triangular pivot to limit the upward movement of the headlight bucket and mechanism. Shorten this geometry and you'll shorten the throw of the headlight bucket to it's half-up position.
Be sure to drill both sides the same, or you'll have one bucket go up or down farther than the other. If you do this right, no modifications are required to either the motor mechanisms or the arm lengths - allowing you to use standard Mazda factory arms for future replacement when the plastic ball cups go out (and they do).
Caveat - I have not done this modification on my car, but have given it enough thought to figure out what it would take, mechanically. I kinda like the standard flip-up headlight design, and think that they are one of the features that set the first generation car aside from the other generations, and from other manufacturer's offerings. HTH,
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