It has been a while since I have been on. Been to busy putting my dads vette back together. Here is a quick question followed by a story of our work. Put new lights in and they are real dim, brights are brighter, but I don't think they are bright enough. I check the fuse last night with a test light, all fusses show a bright light except the light fuse. The test light is real dim on the light fuse compaired to the others. A 12 volt source should have the same effect on a test light no mater where you check, correct? Any ideas? I am thinking the light switch. I checked the ground on the harness. Actually ran a new ground straight to the battery and it did not make a difference. Inside lights are bright and everything else works ok. I need some help it is scary down the country roads at night.

Took 6 years to complete the car, it has minor custom work. Original '63 convertible fuelie. We stripped the paint off and had to do some serious body work to the passenger side. Took so long because we have never done body work before. Turned out pretty good. I am happy with it, but not satisfied. Well are any of us? Anyways she is finally on the road and runs pretty good. Although when you wind up the rpm’s it sputters and pops a little more than I would like. Well more later, I better get back to work. Please let me know if you have any ideas on the lights.

 

Try cleaning the sockets where the bulbs plug in with a file and lube with diaelectic grease. Also try cleaning the dimmer switch contacts with electrical spray.

 

Get some relays, and a good power wire to them, see my pics at: http://www.fototime.com/inv/9B6B933F5803661

You will be happy, it would be possible to hide everything, very easy, very satisfying.

 

I will check the lights for connection, but what about the test light being dim across the fuse

 

Check all the connector terminals for corrosion (light switch, dimmer switch, outboard multiple connector on the engine side of the fuse box, headlight harness connectors forward of the radiator support, connectors on the back of the bulbs, etc.). There is NO FUSE for the headlight circuit; they're protected by a self-resetting thermal circuit breaker inside the headlight switch.

 

You say there is no fuse for the lights, I don't doubt you, but when I was cvhecking the fuses, one had no juice until I turned the lights on, is that the parking lights? I will check all the connectors. I think my dad is planning to get a new switch anyways. It does not work right with the interior dimmer. There is a Corvette Shop in Jefferesonville IN, that he has been dealing with and they are very helpful and have great prices as well. I think he got carpet, seat covers, gas cap, & now a light switch. don't know their name but check them out for service.

Chris

 

The parking lights and taillights are on a fuse (which is powered by a hot feed from the headlight switch), but there's no fuse for the headlights - only the internal circuit breaker. The shop you noted is Willcox Corvette - very knowledgeable folks who know how to run a business and provide customer service along with good prices.

 

With this new information about the tail lights going through the fuse box and not the headlights, could a bad ground from the tail lights cause the head lights to be dim.

 

Nope, they're on totally separate circuits - the headlights (and everything else forward of the radiator support, including the headlight motors) use the same common ground wire to the rad support, and the entire rear of the car is grounded to the bottom of the Z-bar just to the left of the radio.

 

I'm assuming you're using new headlamp bulbs, right? Old bulbs get really dim, if you reinstalled the old ones back in.

 

Actually we have drastically customized the front end. When the car was purchased in 1974 the head lights were glassed in and the bumpers and turn signals removed. When we redid the car this last time, my dad found some fiberglass buckets from and ’85 olds, we flipped them over and glassed them into the cavity. The lights are square and look pretty good. I thought the original problem was the fact we installed halogen lights, so we installed regular lights. They were new and one burned out in just a few trips. We installed the halogens and are just as dim as the others.

 

Then I'd suspect you've got a voltage problem. Since the full 12 volts for the headlamps runs thru the headlight switch, you may need to wire a relay circuit for your headlamps in order to get full voltage to them. I'd start checking voltages at the lights, work backwards to find where the drops are occurring.