thefirebirdman

I searched on this and found most threads deal with the noises, replacing gears etc.. I didn't find anything definitive on my problem. If there is a thread for this please let me know.

Trying to adjust the height (open) of the passenger side headlamp on my 2002 Trans Am. Currently the headlamp on the drivers side (when open) sits level with the bumper and looks good (the lower lip of the black plastic headlight surround piece sits level with the bumper), looks like it should. The headlamp on the passenger (when open) comes up much higher. The lower lip of the big black plastic piece that surrounds the headlights sits about 1/2" higher than the bumper and looks like it is sitting over the bumper. When lowered it comes in and clears the bumper.

So functionally the headlamp works fine but it looks like crap. When the headlamp is fully open the motor control arm is resting against the lower white bumpstop like it should be. I used the manual door mechanism and lowered the headlamp assembly to the height I would like it to be at and the control arm is almost a full 1" away from the bumpstop at that point so just wrapping some tape around the bumpstop is not feasible.

Since the bumpstops are fixed, i.e. just a white rubber cap sitting on a fixed metal tab, it almost seems like I need to pull the control arm off the motor, and adjust the position of the motor so that when the control arm is resting against the bumpstop it is at the lower height.

Not sure I can even do this. Looking for any recommendations on how to make this adjustment work. Not sure how it got this way but it can't be right or both headlamps would stop at the same place. If I need to provide pics to help illustrate the problem, I can try and take a few and post them here. I think most of you will know what I'm talking about. Thanks in advance...

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

This is it. One of those bump stops must be bent or the motor may not be secure to its mounting. You should be able to visually see what the problem is when you look at the motor and linkage.

My first guess/look would be to the bump stop. If its bent and the actuator arm isn't hitting it, the door will open until it reaches the limits of the hinge.

thefirebirdman

Thanks. After doing more reading, I think either tweaking the motor which I am not certain will actually work or putting something in front of the white bumpstop are my only choices. The problem with the 2nd option was that the arm is sitting almost 1" away from the bumpstop in the position I would like it to be in so I would have to attach something to the bumpstop that will stick out that far and stop the arm where I want it to stop.

Anyone have any experience with trying to adjust the orientation of the arm by adjusting the motor itself? I'm thinking this won't work because I have read in other posts on replacing the worn gear that it doesn't matter where the motor is when you put it back in, it will just spin till it hits the bumpstops.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

Was the car in an accident? Tweaking the motor isn't an option. The motor will overdrive the bump stops if it can. The only three pieces that control the range of motion of the door is the arm that attaches to the motor, the door hinges, and the bump stops.

- If the motor is out of place, it could tweak the arm.
- Sometimes the arm is not firmly seated in the keyed part of the shaft coming off the motor, which will throw things off.
- The arm can be bent.
- The stops can be bent.
- The hinges can be bent.

That's pretty much it. If the range of motion is too far and the arm is not touching the stop either:
- Something is majorly bent/wrong (like the car was in a crash)
- The arm has missed the stop and you are seeing it sitting an inch PAST the stop. (This sounds likely.)

You'll probably have a lot more luck finding what's going on if you have someone turn on/off the lights while you watch the actuating arm with a flashlight.

Can you post pics?

thefirebirdman

Sorry, I think I was confusing on one key piece of information. Currently when opened or close the arm travels between the bumpstops as expected i.e. when its closed the arm is resting against the upper bumpstop and when its open it is resting against the lower bumpstop. Nothing appears to be bent.

When the arm is resting 1" away from the lower bumpstop is after I have used the manual adjustment to lower the door where I think it should be stopping relative to the front bumper.

As I mentioned above when the driver's headlight is opened the arm travels to the lower bumpstop and the lower lip of the black plastic surround is almost exactly even with the edge of the front bumper.

When the passenger headlight is opened the arm travels to the lower bumpstop but the lower lip of the black plastic surround is about 1/2" above the edge of the front bumper i.e. its travelling up higher than the driver's side headlamp. In this position when I look at the arm its resting fully against the lower bumpstop. When I use the manual adjustment to lower the headlamp assembly such that it matches the driver's side headlamp (lower lip of the black plastic surround is level with the edge of the front bumper) and then look at the arm again, it is now sitting in a position almost 1" away from the lower bumpstop.

I'll see if I can get some pics and post em up.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

Pics would be good. Thanks for the details - this is really odd as the geometry is really defined by the hinge and the two stops.

Is the problem where the bottom of the lamp meets the bumper or are the doors open at different angles with respect to the ground? We also have chronic problems with the bumper alignment...

thefirebirdman

I would say the doors are open at different angles but I was looking at them using the bumper as a reference point. I will check again and measure their height from a fixed point like the ground. Also have some pics, just need to get them loaded onto the laptop. Will add them in a bit.