Guys, my headlights go off and on when in the on position. and the car has been driven for a couple miles.If i grab the switch from up under the dash when they are off i can wiggle it and they will come on.I took the connection off the switch and applied dialectric grease to the pins and have not tried it since doing so to see if the problem persists.
It seems like when the switch gets warm the lights will blink on and off.Is this telling me the switch is bad or something else.
Thanks
Terry
Most common problems are bad connections at the lamps or bad dimmer switch. The additional resistance causes too much current draw which trips the thermal breaker in the headlamp switch.
Replace the switch. Cheap and still available at FORD dealers. Repalced mine with same issue, done deal. I used a pair of needle nose pliars to replace mine instaed of the special tool mentioned. Remove the seat if you want to make the task easy.
I'm going through the same thing right now. On high beam (only) the lights would go off then come back on about four seconds later. They would stay on for about four seconds then go off again. The on/off cycle was too regular to just be a loose connection. The folks here assured me it was the headlight switch, acting like a breaker that would heat up on high beam, pop the breaker, cool off quickly, then come back on. I've got a new switch on order that is suppose to be delivered today. I'm also replacing the dimmer switch at the same time, just for good measure.
I had my headlights go out on me too. At first it was only intermittant, but eventually they didn't come on at all. In my case, the bad connection turned out to be at the dimmer switch. When I wiggled it loose a bit to see if I was getting power there the headlights came back on.
I've been told that the new halogen light bulbs draw a lot more power than the old headlights and that it can be a bit much for the original wiring.
__________________
"Late weekend night and I'm at the bojar grill I got decisions to be made between lager and ale" - Kim Mitchell
I'm going through the same thing right now. On high beam (only) the lights would go off then come back on about four seconds later. They would stay on for about four seconds then go off again. The on/off cycle was too regular to just be a loose connection. The folks here assured me it was the headlight switch, acting like a breaker that would heat up on high beam, pop the breaker, cool off quickly, then come back on. I've got a new switch on order that is suppose to be delivered today. I'm also replacing the dimmer switch at the same time, just for good measure.
Although the breaker could be weak on your headlamp switch, the problem you describe sounds more like the dimmer switch. Sounds like you've got it covered, anyhow.
I tried a new switch and the problem continued...New dimmer and still no change.I think i will need to install some relays .does anyone know who makes an economical wiring harness with the relays installed.I have seen some online but not sure which to buy.
My car has halogen bulbs and I think has too much draw on the switch.It got to 150* after being on an hour .
Tmunn, since you've changed out the switch and dimmer AND since you originally posted that the lights would react to you "jiggling" wires under the dash, it seems to me that the culprit is jinky (technical term) wiring. I would check for loose connections, bad grounds, etc. Make all your connections "tight and bright."
By the way, I just replaced both my headlight switch and my dimmer and my lights now are perfect, even brighter than ever before.
Add one of the headlight relay kits that pull current directly from the battery thru a relay instead of thru the headlight switch as the original harness does. This will also improve the brightness of the headlights as it will have less voltage drop.0
I was reading on line a bit about the relay kits . Does anyone have a suggestion on which one to buy.while doing my test i realize that my wiggling the connection may have just be a coincident.when i let the switch warm up last night i was not near the car and the lights would cycle on-off continuosly once the switch got hot.
Terry
Before you install a relay kit you should fix the issue. I would check the connector on the fire wall first then confirm the ground. To check the connector on the fire wall pulling the dash may be the only way. You can check the back side of the connector behind the brake booster. Try turning on the lights while parked and see if they turn off.
If they dont start wiggling wires starting from the head lights. I just redid my harnesses and found several wires that were down to the last few strands where the harnesses branch off from the main harness by the drivers side rad support.
If the lights shut off when things get hot and I am not wiggling wire or even near the car ,would hat not rule out loose wires or bad ground ?
I figured the relays would cure the problem...
Perhaps you got a bad 'new' headlight switch?
If the switch was good it should have taken care of the problem unless there is another issue causing a whole lot more draw from the headlights.
I've got halogens, too, and the new switch cured my problem- which was just like yours.
Some people suggest a Cougar headlight switch because they are stronger in order to handle the hideaway headlight doors.
Maybe a relay setup will fix your problem.
Hope so.
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70 mach 1 headlights lights shutting off
