i have a 98 trans am, and the lights flip up fine, but when they go down, the driver side goes down, and it sounds like the motor keeps going for about three seconds. almost sound like the gear just keeps skipping. is this a relay problem, or something else? where can i buy the relay at? thanks

 

not a relay, gear is stripping out.

 

where is the best place to buy a replacement? thanks

 

You can do a temp fix, may last a few months or a few years. Just rotate the current gear as only 1/2 of it is used in operation, & its free.

 

Read my sticky...........

 

there is a kit made with a aluminum gear now, i just did it to mine, search bfranker on here i think his name is.

 

Some newer info:

- Cardone now makes a new motor unit that is easier to change out the gear on. The gear cover is screwed on vs. glued on. So, if you are going to keep the car a long time, you may want to upgrade to the Cardone and use up its gears before you do any switching. The gear change on a stock motor is a PITA.

- Not all metal gears are made equal. If you are going to go that route, I highly suggest you get the one with the rubber insert. There are multiple sources for these. Some without the rubber shock absorber and some without. If you the one without, you'll be more prone to strip that one in the future, also.

 

Also check the "arm", that is fitted on the motor shaft, and that lifts the HL cover. It should be hitting a small white plastic thingy when going down - this is the thing that makes the motor stop. In my case the problem was that it SEEMED like the covers went down, and then a little bit up again. This was acctually an illusion, since the motor didn't acctually changed direction - the "arm" just went too far, and passed the location where it should have been stopped by the white thingy, so the "arm" started to lift the covers again. The white plastic "stopper" is fitted on a small metal thing (can't find a word for it), and by time this metal thing might get bent. Compare with co-driver side.

I also tested without the arm fitted on the motor shaft: if you let the motor spin freely this way, it spins about 5 seconds and then stops anyways. Up or down. So there is a maximum the motor should spin, wether or not anything (white stopper), stops the motor.

 

Google Rodney Dickman. That's where I had got the pieces I needed for my TA. Best thing I ever did.