Headlight trouble
- Thread starter ClassicA
- Start date
cabrioletgalaxie
Senior Member
I had the same issue and found out that the headlight wire, to wire harness connector had broken and wasn't making contact with the high beam. I checked the bulb first, of course.
pat in Santa Cruz
Well-known member
First off I would use a volt meter to determine if the problem is in the switch or elsewhere.
Another source for this problem other than those already mentioned is the reproduction headlight bucket socket. The contacts are rounded with weak springs, and they slide off the harness contacts. I recently heard about grinding the rounded contact flat as a solution, tho' I have not tried it yet. I have had success cutting the contacts off, running the harness wire up through the socket contact springs and wire nutting the harness wire to the bulb socket wires. Sometimes its necessary to extend the harness wires by soldering an extension on to them and shrink tubing them.
On original headlights, I would look for a loose contact or broken wire somewhere, like in the bulb socket or harness socket.
Another source for this problem other than those already mentioned is the reproduction headlight bucket socket. The contacts are rounded with weak springs, and they slide off the harness contacts. I recently heard about grinding the rounded contact flat as a solution, tho' I have not tried it yet. I have had success cutting the contacts off, running the harness wire up through the socket contact springs and wire nutting the harness wire to the bulb socket wires. Sometimes its necessary to extend the harness wires by soldering an extension on to them and shrink tubing them.
On original headlights, I would look for a loose contact or broken wire somewhere, like in the bulb socket or harness socket.
allison-tech
Member
All the above is good advice, it would be to your benefit to 1st just check the bulb, if it looks ok, hold it up to a light source and flick the glass and observe, if the element vibrates like a guitar string, the element is not secure and the bulb is bad. One more thing to add to the above, its not uncommon for the solder on the bottom of the bulb to get hot and flatten out, especially on a high beam, it then, of course, becomes an open circuit, if this is the case, you can just heat w/a soldering iron/gun and build up the solder.
Barry B./ Ma.
Well-known member
I would turn the bulb around in the socket first to see if it lights up, if it does the wiring and connections are good and the bulb is bad. If it doesn't it must be a connection or break in the high beam circuit.