Wiring, Stereo & Electronics Audio Components | Radars | Alarms - and things that spark when they shouldn't

Strange headlight behavior...

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Sep 4, 2013 | 10:33 AM
  #1  
kjcmusic17's Avatar
Thread Starter
On The Tree
 
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 184
Likes: 0
From: Atlanta, GA
Default Strange headlight behavior...

Hey guys,

So I did the LMC/HID + foglight HID's upgrade this past weekend. I got my HID's from supervtec on ebay (which I DO NOT recommend). Ever since I installed the headlights and foglights, when I lock the car, the headlights flip up then back down (No flash). Also, every once in a while, if I slowly flip the headlight switch all the way to the right, the headlights come on, but do not flip up. I never had any of these symptoms until putting in the HID's. Any ideas?
Reply
Old Sep 4, 2013 | 01:45 PM
  #2  
Daniel Richards's Avatar
TECH Addict
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 2,769
Likes: 0
From: Ellijay, GA
Default

not heard of it coming from switching to HID's but the headlight up/down when locking/unlocking is usually a sign of stripped gears, do they make any grinding noises?
Reply
Old Sep 5, 2013 | 07:12 AM
  #3  
FERNANDO's Avatar
On The Tree
20 Year Member
 
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 113
Likes: 0
From: Corpus Christi Texas
Default

mine do. the left motor continues to run after the headlights are down. it makes a grinding sound then stops after a few seconds. I'm sure it's a dealer item right?! also, the lights go up on the job parking position. no lights, they just pop up. weird.
Reply
Old Sep 5, 2013 | 08:25 AM
  #4  
kjcmusic17's Avatar
Thread Starter
On The Tree
 
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 184
Likes: 0
From: Atlanta, GA
Default

Mine don't make any grinding noise. I had a stripped gear in my last Fbody. With that, the lights would close/open and continue to make a grinding noise. These don't make any noise aside from the normal sound of the motor going up/down.
Reply
Old Sep 5, 2013 | 01:23 PM
  #5  
Daniel Richards's Avatar
TECH Addict
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 2,769
Likes: 0
From: Ellijay, GA
Default

Originally Posted by FERNANDO
mine do. the left motor continues to run after the headlights are down. it makes a grinding sound then stops after a few seconds. I'm sure it's a dealer item right?! also, the lights go up on the job parking position. no lights, they just pop up. weird.
Fernando, it's not a dealer part. You actually have several options, first is if it has never been done you can try what is called "rotating the gear", this involves removing the arm that raises the headlight from the headlight motor, which is just one bolt, once the bolt is off you will have to fight the arm off (I used some wd-40 and a bar for leverage) then rotate the motor gear by turning the manual raise/lower **** on the headlight motor till the gear has been rotated 180 degrees, this of course is just a stopgap, it will likely break again, I know fixing my drivers side aloud me to find out my passenger side was grinding as well and then the new side of the plastic factory gear stripped out after about a dozen or less raise/lowers.

The next and most often exercised option is to replace the plastic gear with a metal gear (google Rodney Dickman headlight gear) I got the double rebuild kit from him for 79 dollars and am now 1 year free of strange headlight issues.

The other option is to replace the entire headlight motor which runs around 80 to 135 a motor depending if you go remanufactured or new from the brand Cardone at advance auto (If you go this route I suggest getting the new one as it has screws you can remove to access and replace the gear instead of having to crack the case open to replace it when it fails).

I and many others on here would suggest the metal gears instead of shelling out for the new motors as they most likely still have a plastic gear inside them. Just do a search on here there are plenty of threads on the subject.
Reply
Old Sep 5, 2013 | 05:35 PM
  #6  
kjcmusic17's Avatar
Thread Starter
On The Tree
 
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 184
Likes: 0
From: Atlanta, GA
Default

Any advice on my problem? No strange noises coming from them. I tried a trick I heard on the internet about holding unlock on the fob for 5 seconds to reset the known lowered position. No luck.
Reply
Old Sep 6, 2013 | 06:51 AM
  #7  
WhiteBird00's Avatar
Ungrounded Moderator
20 Year Member
Photogenic
Photoriffic
Shutterbug
iTrader: (4)
 
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 11,330
Likes: 346
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
Default

Stripped gears don't always cause the grinding noise (mine didn't). But your other symptoms are classic indicators of stripped headlight door gears.
Reply
Old Sep 6, 2013 | 03:08 PM
  #8  
vanwyk99's Avatar
Staging Lane
 
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 54
Likes: 0
Default

Mine did that to thought i had a bad fuse there was no sound at all when i turned my headlights on. You could see the lights were on but i waited 20 min and they work fine again idk it was pretty weird.
Reply
LS1 Tech Stories

The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time

story-0

Topdon ONE vs. Artidiag 800 BT2: Which is the Diagnostic Tablet For You?

 Pouria Savadkouei
story-1

Gas Monkey Built a 6-Wheel Ferrari Testarossa With a Corvette LT4 Engine

 Verdad Gallardo
story-2

7 Most Reliable High-Performance Engines GM Has Ever Built

 Verdad Gallardo
story-3

Amazing '71 Camaro Restomod Is Modern Muscle Car Under the Skin

 Verdad Gallardo
story-4

6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them

 Pouria Savadkouei
story-5

Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph

 Verdad Gallardo
story-6

Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked

 Pouria Savadkouei
story-7

Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!

 
story-8

Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP

 Verdad Gallardo
story-9

Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes

 Verdad Gallardo
Old Sep 6, 2013 | 04:20 PM
  #9  
kjcmusic17's Avatar
Thread Starter
On The Tree
 
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 184
Likes: 0
From: Atlanta, GA
Default

Guess I'll try the temp. 180 fix and see if anything changes.
Reply
Old Sep 6, 2013 | 07:18 PM
  #10  
AmDWs6's Avatar
TECH Apprentice
 
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 375
Likes: 0
From: Bahrain
Default

did you remove the headlight assembly during your install?
if so i can argue that you didnt put it back together correctly.

check the white bumps- the light stops turning up when it feels a obstruction could easily be that when you turn your head light on it immediately feels the obstruction and stops.

there is no trick, the car doesnt save the position, it feels the need to stop moving by the white rubber pieces as they cause an obstruction by which makes the motor stop.


change your gears to rodney and be worry free, now about them popping while locking / unlocking.... never happened to me, hope it never does.

you'd want the end of the arm to be below the white rubber piece that is far inside or bottom if i may with headlights open upon removal or the bottom of the arm at the top white rubber piece with the headlights closed upon removal. Switch the arm location and you'll have one head light turning up while the other goes down lol.
Reply
Old Sep 8, 2013 | 10:01 PM
  #11  
FERNANDO's Avatar
On The Tree
20 Year Member
 
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 113
Likes: 0
From: Corpus Christi Texas
Default

funny you should mention the key fob. i haven't used it in months. it suddenly stopped working. the fob itself is sending a signal, verified by autozone's key fob tester. is it the heat in this *^##* place? it hit 106 F a few times.
Reply
Old May 21, 2018 | 09:22 PM
  #12  
FERNANDO's Avatar
On The Tree
20 Year Member
 
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 113
Likes: 0
From: Corpus Christi Texas
Default

well, i know it has been years but i found the problem. it was a prairie dog or something like it that was chewing up my wires. i took it to a auto repair shop a couple of years ago to get it fixed.

Reply




All times are GMT -5. The time now is 02:31 AM.

story-0
Topdon ONE vs. Artidiag 800 BT2: Which is the Diagnostic Tablet For You?

Slideshow: We take a close look at the ONE and Artidiag 800BT2 diagnostic tools from Topdon and the reasons to buy one over the other.

By Pouria Savadkouei | 2026-05-28 11:05:11


VIEW MORE
story-1
Gas Monkey Built a 6-Wheel Ferrari Testarossa With a Corvette LT4 Engine

Slideshow: The controversial Ferrari F6 swaps its original flat-12 for a Corvette Z06-derived LT4 V8 and sends power to four rear wheels through a custom-built drivetrain.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-26 18:23:54


VIEW MORE
story-2
7 Most Reliable High-Performance Engines GM Has Ever Built

Slideshow:These GM engines didn't just make huge power, they survived abuse, boost, track days, and six-digit mileage with a reputation for refusing to quit.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-21 16:45:27


VIEW MORE
story-3
Amazing '71 Camaro Restomod Is Modern Muscle Car Under the Skin

Slideshow: This heavily modified 1971 Camaro mixes classic muscle car styling with a fifth-generation Camaro interior and modern LS3 power.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-12 18:06:42


VIEW MORE
story-4
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them

Slideshow: From wobbling harmonic balancers to failed EBCMs, these are the issues that define long-term C5 ownership and what repairs typically involve.

By Pouria Savadkouei | 2026-05-07 18:44:57


VIEW MORE
story-5
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph

Slideshow: A modern Camaro transformed into a retro icon, this limited-run "Bandit" build blends nostalgia with brute force in a way few revivals manage.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-04-21 13:57:02


VIEW MORE
story-6
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked

Slideshow: Cadillac didn't just crash the high-performance luxury vehicle party, it showed up loud, supercharged, and occasionally a little unhinged...

By Pouria Savadkouei | 2026-04-16 10:05:15


VIEW MORE
story-7
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!

Slideshow: Top ten most powerful Chevy trucks ever made

By | 2026-03-25 09:22:26


VIEW MORE
story-8
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP

Slideshow: Hennessey has turned the Silverado ZR2 into a 700-hp off-road monster with supercharged V8 power and a limited production run.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-03-24 18:57:52


VIEW MORE
story-9
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes

Slideshow: A one-off sports car that looks like a vintage Italian exotic-but hides a C6 Corvette underneath-just sold for the price of a new mid-engine Corvette.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-03-23 18:53:41


VIEW MORE