Popup light problem on a 94 Firebird

[Kaoz]

Well, randomly my headlights now pop up with my parking lights, and when i put them down my front left one goes down then the motor keeps running for about 5 seconds, this happens when i use my remote clicker as well to unlock the car, the parking lights flash and the headlights try to come up then go off. The lights themselves do not actually turn on but the housing flips up. Any ideas?

[slow]

your gear is stripped.

do the 180 mod first, and/or buy brass gears.

http://www.bfranker.badz28.com/headlightfix/

there is the link for both of them.

Ryan.

[red01maro]

I recently had this problem as well. The gear in my right headlight was stripped. I replaced it with the brass gear from Brent Franker and this fixed both problems. For some reason when the gear problem exists the parking lights will kick up the headlights as well but the headlights dont actually turn on, but when I fixed the headlight gear it fixed the other problem as well. The fix is easy and only takes about a half hour even for a first timer. I highly recommend it. Heres the link.

http://www.bfranker.badz28.com/headlightfix/

[Kaoz]

I don't get why they try to come up with my parking lights though, why?

[slow]

(Post #4)

The headlight control module whenever it gets a signal, either parking lights or headlights, checks the status of the motor, by applying current for a brief second.

When the gears are striped, even a click of the alarm, will make the headlight module check the status, and they will grind (read, stripping more gears) for a second or 2.

Once you get a new gear, or motor, the lights will work perfect, with no reseting, or reprograming required.

Ryan

[Kaoz]

but the lights ACTUALLY come up, but do not turn on with the parking lights... how could they do that if the gear is stripped?

[Justin Kirkham]

Kaoz, it is a stripped gear. I just fixed mine a few months ago, it is exactly as you described, and it is simply the stripped gear. Follow the links previously provided, and you will become a happy man.

-Justin

[slow]

Originally posted by Kaoz:
but the lights ACTUALLY come up, but do not turn on with the parking lights... how could they do that if the gear is stripped?

like i said before, that is normal for them to flip up/down, and grind when your gears are stripped.


For some stupid reason, GM designed the controller box to look for load on the motors when the parking lights flash. I can only guess this is because you can have the parking light on, but the headlights off, and if the lights are in the up position, they stay up, (for cleaning of the lamps) So whenever you get a parking light on, (the flashing of the remote is the parking lights) it causes it to check for down/up, and go all the way up, then down, and grind until it senses it is down, (or 5 seconds, whatever comes first) Since the gear is stripped, it goes the 5 seconds, and stops.


Ryan.

[ May 06, 2004, 01:57 PM: Message edited by: slow ]

[Kaoz]

i understand this, but my question now is, how can the light even turn up if the gear has no teeth? i mean isn't the motor just turning on smooth plastic? how does it catch?

[Georghino]

Would that brass gear also fix the loud noise (banging) the headlights make when they open and close?
Thanks

[slow]

the plastic is not totally stripped, but it mostly stripped, one direction (down) normally goes first, as it will wear off that side of the gear, when you go up, it pushed on the other side of the teeth, and normally with catch for a short time, if you continue to let it grind, it will eventually fail 100%

it is just the end position that gets stripped, so all it needs to do is move 1 tooth, and it gets back to solid gear.

the brass gears help some, but not a true fix for clunking.

Ryan