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well I'm hard headed tried 1 more gear, and worked good for 1 day - really! IMO there was too much "backlash" between gear and drive gear, and no way to tighten that up. motor wasnt loose on gear housing either so bought new motor working good but havent driven it much
Who knows until you address the other issues that could be the board. Until you can eliminate that gremlin maker, you are just chasing ghosts around your engine bay.
Resoldered the board two weeks ago, still had issues. Resoldered again this wkd with bigger globs and made sure to heat up the base of the solder points where it connects with the board. So far, so good but will report more a few weeks down the road before I get my hopes up too far.
Resoldered the board two weeks ago, still had issues. Resoldered again this wkd with bigger globs and made sure to heat up the base of the solder points where it connects with the board. So far, so good but will report more a few weeks down the road before I get my hopes up too far.
Unfortunately I have to report that even after welding my headlight control module board twice now, my lights still work intermittently. The left motor stayed up the other night after I shut the lights off and had to manually lower it, both lights stayed down one time when I turn the lights on recently, and last night when I turned my lights on my drivers side light stayed down and the passenger side flipped up, and after cycling the lights a couple times both headlights flipped up and shut off appropriately afterwards. Thanks for all your input, do you have any other thoughts?
Unfortunately I have to report that even after welding my headlight control module board twice now, my lights still work intermittently. The left motor stayed up the other night after I shut the lights off and had to manually lower it, both lights stayed down one time when I turn the lights on recently, and last night when I turned my lights on my drivers side light stayed down and the passenger side flipped up, and after cycling the lights a couple times both headlights flipped up and shut off appropriately afterwards. Thanks for all your input, do you have any other thoughts?
That was step 1. The next thing to look at would be in the wiring that the module uses to do it's sensing or in the module itself.
In post 1872, there is a dark spot around the rivet on the right side of the picture. Is that just a shadow or is it charring?
I've read through a lot of pages of this sticky and haven't found anything like my issue, so I apologize ahead of time if this is a repeat.
When going from open to closed, my driver's side headlight cover closes completely, and then pops back open about 3/4 of an inch, almost like the motor runs too long. The headlight itself functions fine. No grinding noises, no dimming, opens and closes every time as it should, etc. It's just more of a cosmetic issue that I'm looking to correct. Has anybody experienced this before, or know where I should look? It has been an issue since I bought the car, so couldn't tell you when it began.
I've read through a lot of pages of this sticky and haven't found anything like my issue
Look for a bent tab that stops the door arm from traveling at the up/down position. Sometimes they fall out of place and the arm misses them. If the arm is taken off the motor and not installed right, it can also pop out too far and miss the tabs.
All of these issues are consistent with module problems.
Originally Posted by Majozak
The left motor stayed up the other night after I shut the lights off and had to manually lower it
No power from the module to the left motor.
Originally Posted by Majozak
both lights stayed down one time when I turn the lights on recently
No power from the switch to the module.
Originally Posted by Majozak
I turned my lights on my drivers side light stayed down and the passenger side flipped up
No power from the module to the left motor.
^ Given that you have multiple issues, I would guess that there is still an issue with the module or the connectors to the module. You could try swapping the module, but I understand they aren't cheap. (A used module could have similar issues, so some patience may be required there.)
Aside from tracing wires and circuits with a schematic or probing the module in a test rig, this is probably what you'd have to do.
All of these issues are consistent with module problems.
No power from the module to the left motor.
No power from the switch to the module.
No power from the module to the left motor.
^ Given that you have multiple issues, I would guess that there is still an issue with the module or the connectors to the module. You could try swapping the module, but I understand they aren't cheap. (A used module could have similar issues, so some patience may be required there.)
Aside from tracing wires and circuits with a schematic or probing the module in a test rig, this is probably what you'd have to do.
Bummer...
I'll check around for that part. I might see if I can get the board tested too? There's gotta be a shop that does that.
I'll check around for that part. I might see if I can get the board tested too? There's gotta be a shop that does that.
At over $100 an hour (standard charge) for electrical work, I don't expect you'll be successful in that quest.
This module is pretty simple. You are probably better off to download the free schematics off of AutoZone.com, find a friend who can test simple electronics with 12V of battery, and give them a 6 pack in return.
wssix99 do you happen to know what the part numbers are for the headlight connectors to the harness?? Mine need to be replaced but I can't find the part number. This picture is the one on the first page but it looks just like this one I need them both.
At over $100 an hour (standard charge) for electrical work, I don't expect you'll be successful in that quest.
This module is pretty simple. You are probably better off to download the free schematics off of AutoZone.com, find a friend who can test simple electronics with 12V of battery, and give them a 6 pack in return.
Understood, thanks.
I also have been noticing my drivers side parking light has been working intermittently. Same issue?
wssix99 do you happen to know what the part numbers are for the headlight connectors to the harness?? Mine need to be replaced but I can't find the part number. This picture is the one on the first page but it looks just like this one I need them both.
Hey guys, hoping someone can help me out with my 98 Firebird. I have had it about 3 years and never had an issue with my headlights going up or down. Got in the car last night and when I clicked my headlights on only passenger headlight went it.
I clicked the switch on and off a few times and same thing happened. There is no grinding noise or sounds coming from my driver's side that is not raising. I tried disconnecting the connector at the headlight control module. I even took the module apart to inspect and see if any components were burnt out. Nothing. I did notice though, a clicking noise when I plugged in the passenger side connector. I could hear a clicking noise coming from the passenger side (almost like it was engaging the connector). However when I connected the driver's side, nothing. No click or anything to give me an indication that the connector was engaged.
Any ideas of what this could be? Could there be a relay I might be missing or some other issue? I have raised the headlight using the gear and it went up very easily. It will not go down either. Any help is appreciated!
On the surface, it sounds like your driver's side motor is not getting electricity. This could be due to problems in the module, wires, connectors, or motor itself. You would need to trace the wires to confirm. (If you register at AutoZone.com, you can download all the electrical schematics for the car.)
If your gear is stripped, you may not be able to hear anything when the motor is moving and you might also not hear the click.
So I've been working intermittently on a few different things for the Trans and finally got enough headway on the headlights specifically to report back. It's been a while so I'll summarize briefly:
I've diagnosed and fixed the lights themselves, which were not always coming on initially, so those work fine now. It took me doing a whole new wiring harness and wires going to the bulbs. So a new male and female connecting harness and the two sets of wires going to the back of the light bulbs.
What's left is that my Driver's side headlight motor is not raising the headlight each time. Every now and again it works, but it seems to work less and less well now. The last couple times we "fixed" the headlight it worked fine. Specifically after I rewired the plugs on the back of the light bulbs, and then after I replaced the wiring harnesses thereafter. Its effectiveness seems to deteriorate over time after a repair. Also, once every blue moon my Passenger side motor won't work either.
My dad works in equipment maintenance and has some familiarity with checking wires and diagnosing electrical issues, but admittedly doesn't know auto electrical beyond the late 80's. So per your suggestion, he helped me test the board and test some of the wires and the motor itself.
He made this handy little contraption a while ago, which I'll share in this post, where he can plug a 12v battery charger into the wall and can hard wire it into a device to test it, with a button spliced in to toggle the power on and off. What we found is that the motor works flawlessly. It doesn't stutter or stop and works continuously until we cut the power. We thought about this after the fact, but we'll test the motor under load as well the next time I go back. When we tested it, the whole headlight was removed.
We also found that there is good voltage going through the headlight control module. We tested input power on both orange wires and confirmed we have power. We also found that we have good power (12v) on both the light blue and light green wires, which were described as the "up" wires to the headlights.
We also tested the brand new wiring harness that leads into the motor, which we found had 12v and 11.5v readings for what connects to the black and red wires going into the headlight motor, respectively.
With the switch to "on" for the lights to pop up we had the passenger light rise up, but not the driver's side. The lights also come on for both sides. So something is messed going specifically just to the motor, or the motor itself.
We also checked and tested the fuses.
We tried adding conductive grease to the wiring harnesses to make sure there was a good connection.
My dad was wondering if there's any specific readings we're supposed to be getting from any specific wires that we haven't tried yet or anything else that you'd suggest.
Also, being that a car battery is 12.6v, is the ~11.5v that we got a low enough reading for the harness leading into the motor to be of concern?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
The device I mentioned that we used to test the motor.
Last edited by Majozak; 03-27-2018 at 03:29 PM.
Reason: Add the picture
I just noticed your post to mattygritt and signed up for AutoZone and downloaded the electrical schematics, which I'll print off and review when I get a little more time.
I just noticed your post to mattygritt and signed up for AutoZone and downloaded the electrical schematics, which I'll print off and review when I get a little more time.
The AZ schematic is also linked here in post #1838.
Your problems sound a lot like module issues. If one of your motors acts up, try opening the hood and letting it slam shut. Does the headlight open up when you do this?
09-11-2017, 01:15 PM
