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I am tired of not being able to drive at night!!

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Old Aug 16, 2011 | 07:44 PM
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I am tired of not being able to drive at night!!

Yes i have a headlight problem. They will not pop up or turn on. I can push the toggle button and they pop up, my blinkers work. I am really bad with anything thats not mechanical. So i was wondering if someone could dumb down what wires to check where. I just dont know where to start on the wiring diagram.

Thanks for the help
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Old Aug 16, 2011 | 08:10 PM
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Go to Autozone and buy a 5$ wire tester and take it to the wires headed to the lights. Check to see if they are getting power to them, the light in the tester will come on if there
is positive current going to it. If you have no power going to it work backwards from then on. (fuses, bad ground....)




Also check to make sure no terminals are corroded or bent.
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Old Aug 16, 2011 | 08:12 PM
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Have you taken a look at your fuses to see if any are burned out?
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Old Aug 16, 2011 | 08:25 PM
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Originally Posted by Flat_Boostin'
Have you taken a look at your fuses to see if any are burned out?
Check every single one. Also check the fuses under the hood
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Old Aug 16, 2011 | 08:40 PM
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It could also be the switch itself since they pop up using the button but not the switch.
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Old Aug 17, 2011 | 04:07 AM
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Maybe this will help:
The fact that your Retractor Switch still operates the headlight actuators reveals that both the 30A Retractor fuse and the 30A Headlight fuse are good.

The next thing to is verify the Retractor Switch is good on both contact sides:
  • Set Retractor Switch so the headlights are down.
  • Pull the Retractable Headlight Relay located in the relay box in the front of the engine bay.
  • Put a meter between ground and the relay socket center terminal next to the socket's tang. You should get battery voltage. If not the Retractor Switch is bad or the wire harness (brown wire) is broken. Reinstall the relay.
Check the "Flash to Pass":
Set the Headlight Retractor Switch set to raise the headlights
  • Pull the Flash-To-Pass. The high beams should come on then go off when the Flash-To-Pass is released. This reveals you have good copper through the high beam circuit.
Check Head Light Relay:
The Head Light Relay is located next to the main fuse block by the battery.
You should be able to hear this relay click when the lights are turned on and off from the light switch.
If it does not click:
Pull the Headlight Relay
  • With a meter or test light measure between ground and the tang side of the relay socket (both are red wires); you should show battery voltage. If not the harness to the relay has a broken red wire.
  • With a meter or test light measure between the tang side of the relay socket (either red wire) and the socket that has the White/Blue wire going to it. You should not read anything with the head light switch off but battery voltage when the headlight switch on. If this is the case the headlight switch is good and the relay needs to be replaced.
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Old Aug 17, 2011 | 01:48 PM
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Thanks for the input guys. I have checked all the fuses, and everything was good. I tried swiching some of the relays to find out if they were bad but it seems like they are working. I will be trying what ttmott said tonight and see if i can track it down. I have a snap on multi meter and dont know how to use it.
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Old Aug 17, 2011 | 03:09 PM
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google how to use a multimeter and watch the videos
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Old Aug 17, 2011 | 04:16 PM
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this happened to me a while back... it ended up being that the grounding tabs, bolted to the front of the bumper frame was loose. maybe you want to check that..
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Old Aug 17, 2011 | 09:46 PM
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Ahh.... i have had some interesting experiences trying to figure out what was wrong with my car when i forgot to bolt them on ha. Ill check them though. thanks
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Old Aug 17, 2011 | 09:54 PM
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I had the same problem with my FD's headlights for weeks. Ended up being the headlight relay corroded internally. Put power to the terminal that should be getting power and see if they come on
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Old Aug 17, 2011 | 10:12 PM
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What relay is it i can hear it clicking but no light?
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Old Aug 17, 2011 | 10:50 PM
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Well i checked the re-tractor switch and it has 12v. I can hear the relay click. I am confused on what the flash to pass thing is. is that the button that moves the headlights up and down? If the relay is clicking then that would mean i have a short from the other side of the relay to the headlight correct so then i can chase this wire down.
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Old Aug 18, 2011 | 05:57 AM
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Originally Posted by yourmom23
Well i checked the re-tractor switch and it has 12v. I can hear the relay click. I am confused on what the flash to pass thing is. is that the button that moves the headlights up and down? If the relay is clicking then that would mean i have a short from the other side of the relay to the headlight correct so then i can chase this wire down.
If you pull the turn signal lever towards you the high beams should come on if the headlight buckets are up; that is "flash to pass".

You didn't mention if all the other lights on the car (tail, side, etc) are working when the light switch is on.
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Old Aug 18, 2011 | 01:49 PM
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Ok i will do the flash to pass test and see what i find. All my other lights come on dash tails and front signals.
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Old Aug 18, 2011 | 04:48 PM
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I had a similar problem. Just the last turn of the headlights switch wouldn't activate the lights. Mine clicked as well, but the corrosion was so built up inside, it prevented it from making a full circuit.

The headlight relay is a single green relay.

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It could also be the TNS relay, which I believe is in the relay box with the others
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Old Aug 18, 2011 | 06:06 PM
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Originally Posted by shmacklepap
I had a similar problem. Just the last turn of the headlights switch wouldn't activate the lights. Mine clicked as well, but the corrosion was so built up inside, it prevented it from making a full circuit.

The headlight relay is a single green relay.

It could also be the TNS relay, which I believe is in the relay box with the others
His TNS relay appears to be good - all of the parking, rear and marker lights work per his post.... Which supports the switch being good also; at least in the first click position.

YOURMOM23 - make sure all of the other lights (parking, marker, and rear) remain on when the light switch is in the headlight on position.
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Old Aug 18, 2011 | 07:03 PM
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Well the tns relay is the one i thought was the headlight relay. It was the one that was clicking but i checked out my headlight relay and it is corroded as **** i am going to see if i can plug in another relay from some where else and try that.
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Old Aug 18, 2011 | 07:08 PM
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Yes i found it it is the headlight relay!!! Thanks for the help guys. Well while i have your attention..... i have a fan problem it comes on right away, only one speed and if i leave my car without starting it for a week it will have a dead battery. When i unplug the 30a fuse i can hear one of the fan relays clicking off and i checked it and it was warm just sitting there. What would cause this to be flipping on? Any ideas
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