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Hey guys having issues with my driver side headlight it won't pop up I've been reading through this thread and I have an extra broken headlight that has a motor on it should I try to install that motor to see if that would fix my issue of the headlight not coming up the lights work but just won't come up thanks.
No. Your first step should be to take the rubber boot off the top of the motor and see if you can open it manually. (To see if you have a motor problem or a gear problem.)
More likely than a bad motor is a stripped gear or corrosion on the terminals. If you swap the motor, that act itself can introduce more headaches if the terminals are corroded - so the best thing to do is as much testing as you can with the unit as-is before undoing any electrical. (For example, if you swap a motor with a bad gear and run in to corroded terminal problems with other unit, things still won't work and you'll end up running in circles trying to figure out what the problem is.)
No. Your first step should be to take the rubber boot off the top of the motor and see if you can open it manually. (To see if you have a motor problem or a gear problem.)
More likely than a bad motor is a stripped gear or corrosion on the terminals. If you swap the motor, that act itself can introduce more headaches if the terminals are corroded - so the best thing to do is as much testing as you can with the unit as-is before undoing any electrical. (For example, if you swap a motor with a bad gear and run in to corroded terminal problems with other unit, things still won't work and you'll end up running in circles trying to figure out what the problem is.)
So I was able to get it up manually, but when I turn the lights on in the car to raise the other light the one that I raised manually falls and then if I raise it manually while while the lights are on it will stay. Is this the sign of a bad gear or motor gone bad? Before I plugged in the new passenger side headlight the driver side raised no issue.
Is this the sign of a bad gear or motor gone bad? Before I plugged in the new passenger side headlight the driver side raised no issue.
Probably. There could also be other uncommon electrical gremlins though.
If you just have one tooth stripped in the gear, sometimes the motor can not bite in to the gear to raise it manually, but the more gentle touch of the manual raise will get it done.
I'd also test this - Try raising the light manually, but hold the door down with a little bit of pressure with your other hand. If your gears are engaging correctly, then you'll feel resistance in your hand holding the light down and the light should still come up. If the gear is stripped, then your hand will be able to hold the light down.
Another thing that happens is that the motor pulls away from the gear casing. (The motor is held to the gear casing with four flimsy metal tabs.) The metal tabs can come loose, causing the worm gear on the motor to disengage from the gear attached to the door/arm mechanism. So, this is another thing to look for - it can cause the door not to work and it can also cause gears to strip; both plastic and metal gears.
Does anyone have a part number for the 2 pin wire assembly that goes inside the actual motor itself where the 2 springs go into? One of the lead 'things' split in half that presses against the motor via the spring. Thanks! 2001 T/A
Does anyone have a part number for the 2 pin wire assembly that goes inside the actual motor itself where the 2 springs go into? One of the lead 'things' split in half that presses against the motor via the spring. Thanks! 2001 T/A
There isn't a part number for any component of the motor other than the entire assembly. The individual connector bodies and terminals are common repair parts and are a part of the GM terminal repair kits - so they can be had individually. If you can post a picture of your problem we can see if others have had the issue and if it can be repaired.
I am replacing the cannon plugs for my headlights. The passenger side was a breeze. The drivers side is giving me major problems. Like an idiot i cut all wires at once thinking they would be the same. I was wrong. I now have 2 light green wires that I cannot figure out where they go. I know one of them goes to the low beam and the other to the headlamp motor. One of the green wires is constantly hot. the other is not. However the dark green wire to the motor is also constantly hot. Does the light green hot wire go to the motor as well?
I am replacing the cannon plugs for my headlights. The passenger side was a breeze. The drivers side is giving me major problems. Like an idiot i cut all wires at once thinking they would be the same. I was wrong. I now have 2 light green wires that I cannot figure out where they go. I know one of them goes to the low beam and the other to the headlamp motor. One of the green wires is constantly hot. the other is not. However the dark green wire to the motor is also constantly hot. Does the light green hot wire go to the motor as well?
Greens are wires to some of the bulbs. If you register on AutoZone.com and go to their service section, you should be able to pull up electrical schematics for free (they are copyrighted) and you can confirm where the wires are supposed to go.
Dont seem to be getting any power to drivers side headlight motor. Lights come on but the headlamp never opens up. Makes no noise at all. Is there a fuse for the motor somewhere? Any help would be great! Wanna drive this thing again!
I replaced a stripped gear. My headlight will barely move now like something is stopping it. I took the arm off, flipped the switch and it moved just fine. I got someone to hit the switch with the arm on and with a little hand pressure it went up and down. Is the motor going bad? There's no grinding noise as it won't even go down now.
Dont seem to be getting any power to drivers side headlight motor. Lights come on but the headlamp never opens up. Makes no noise at all. Is there a fuse for the motor somewhere? Any help would be great! Wanna drive this thing again!
Probably corrosion on the connector terminals at the motor. If you search this thread for "corrosion", you should find lots of information on this common issue.
and with a little hand pressure it went up and down.
This reads like the worm drive is hitting another place on the gear with a stripped tooth or the motor is disengaging from the gear box.
Check out the part of these instructions about the motor tabs and make sure its not your issue. If your motor tabs are soft, even gears made of kryptonite won't save you from stripping. http://www.bfranker.badz28.com/headlightfix/
Dont seem to be getting any power to drivers side headlight motor. Lights come on but the headlamp never opens up. Makes no noise at all. Is there a fuse for the motor somewhere? Any help would be great! Wanna drive this thing again!
Just wanted to let everyone know that I've fixed my problem. I removed both connectors from the headlight relay module (attached to the interior side of the engine bay fuse panal). Removed the module and opened it up using smedium sized flat head and a scribe to remove the black tar-like sealant GM used to seal it an saw on the inside of the circuit board inside there was a fair amount of surface corrosion. Nothing serious but I scraped it all off gently with the scribe and reinstalled the module and connectors and everything works great once again! I did remove the module and resealed it once I verified everything was in working order. Thanks for the help.
This reads like the worm drive is hitting another place on the gear with a stripped tooth or the motor is disengaging from the gear box.
Check out the part of these instructions about the motor tabs and make sure its not your issue. If your motor tabs are soft, even gears made of kryptonite won't save you from stripping. http://www.bfranker.badz28.com/headlightfix/
Can you explain this a bit better? I when I replaced the gea,r I spun the motor by hand and I saw the tooth and gear spining, it moved free and no resistance. I sealed it back up, flipped the switch on and off and it spun freely with no issue, I hooked the arm back up and it had issues up or down, it would move barely and inch then stop like its stuck or something. No grinding noise.
I can't explain the gear flip any better as its an unreliable hack and the site above explains the tab issue better than I can.
Originally Posted by Beararms88
I sealed it back up, flipped the switch on and off and it spun freely with no issue, I hooked the arm back up and it had issues up or down, it would move barely and inch then stop like its stuck or something. No grinding noise.
Is your issue that the door stops moving and the motor keeps spinning or is the door binding in its motion?
A lot of people have issues hooking the arm back up for the first time. If it's binding, you may compare both sides and see if there are any differences. It is possible to hook the arm back up in a way so the door won't operate properly.
Here’s one for you. 2002 TA. I replaced the driver’s side headlight motor about 3 months ago. It was working fine, until I noticed that when I turn the lights off, it pops back up about 1/4”.
Then, it started with this new action. I don’t know what you call the part… elbow joint, pivot arm, crank… the thing that actually raises the light… it doesn’t lock into position when open. The motor keep spinning & the light just goes up & down 4 times before settling on one position.
It used to stay 90% open, but now it closes all the way.
I’ve tried raising both lights, pulling the “arm”, matching its position to the working light, but it doesn’t help. There's also a little play where it bolts to the motor. No play on the working light. Is it this arm piece that’s bad? There's one on ebay for $70!!! More than I paid for the motor!
Thanks in advance! (hope the video plays)
Your arm isn't bolted to the motor correctly, and/or the motor isn't bolted to the car correctly and the arm is missing the stops. (The two pieces with the tan plastic tips on them.)
You have to get the arm on the motor shaft just right so the keyed parts mesh correctly, otherwise the arm won't pop all the way on to the shaft.
Compare both sides and you'll see the arm hitting the stops.
I took the entire headlight off and started over. Everything is tight & square. It still had the problem. Could not figure it out. Upon close inspection and comparison of the 'good' headlight, the only difference is that it appeared that the tail end of its crank arm is touching the lower mounting bolt. On the new headlight, it does not. Apparently the new motor's shaft is a tiny bit longer than the original. What the hell. 10 minutes later, back from Home Depot with a longer mounting bolt and now it works.
I took the entire headlight off and started over. Everything is tight & square. It still had the problem. Could not figure it out. Upon close inspection and comparison of the 'good' headlight, the only difference is that it appeared that the tail end of its crank arm is touching the lower mounting bolt. On the new headlight, it does not. Apparently the new motor's shaft is a tiny bit longer than the original. What the hell. 10 minutes later, back from Home Depot with a longer mounting bolt and now it works.
The lower mounting bolt has the side-effect of acting as a stop...?!
I took the entire headlight off and started over. Everything is tight & square. It still had the problem. Could not figure it out. Upon close inspection and comparison of the 'good' headlight, the only difference is that it appeared that the tail end of its crank arm is touching the lower mounting bolt. On the new headlight, it does not. Apparently the new motor's shaft is a tiny bit longer than the original. What the hell. 10 minutes later, back from Home Depot with a longer mounting bolt and now it works.
It's not that your bolts are too long. It's that some are in backwards!!! Not all the mounting bolts go the same way. Some have heads in. Some have heads out.
^ Yes, this is weird. It's the way it came from the factory and will keep your problem from happening.
10-10-2016, 05:19 PM
