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I recently replaced my engine wiring harness and of course those best laid plans of mice and men...I broke a tab off of one of the headlight limit switches. I've got a new switch and new headlamp leasds, one of which needs to be replaced. How difficult are these to install. Any tips on how to do this with the headlights and hood in place.
As I recall, you don't need to remove either the headlight assembly or the hood. You will want to put a bolt through the hole in the hood brace to make sure the hood doesn't close while you're working. It's also useful to have a mirror and light to see the limit switch. It's not a difficult job except that you can't see the work area easily and you have limited room between the hood and the body in which to work. Assuming the screw securing the limit switch is not rusted in place, it shouldn't be too hard. Good luck.
You will have to take a small screwdriver and depress the tab that holds the three individual wires in the connector so you can pull the wires through the headlight pivot.
The only thing the limit switches do is turn on the red "Lights" sign on the dash whenever the headlight assembly is between fully open and fully closed. The limit switches do not affect the electric circuit powering the headlight motors.
I just replaced one in my 64. As described above, It can be done with the hood open and pinned (for safety). I used a mirror an a 1/4 inch wrench. Was slow going and getting used to the reversed look thru the mirror took a while but it worked fine. The only tip I can offer is that you hook up the wires to the new switch first, then slide it into the bracket and put in the 2 small bolts. There is not a lot of slack in the wiring harness and the mirror will get you crazy if you try to connect the wires after the switch is in.
Also as described above, the limit switches only light the "lights" warning on the dash when the headlights are on and the buckets are not fully open. If the switches are not hooked up, the warning light will not function, but everything else will work normally.