Help a noob out before he spends $100....

My left headlamp won't open on it's own, but it will close on it's own and it will stay open. I printed out the troubleshooting tips from corvette-101.com and I'm not entirely sure what the results are telling me.

When I attach my hand vacuum pump to the back side connector where the red hose attaches I can pump the headlamp closed and it stays that way, though the gauge on my pump doesn't show any vacuum. When I connect it to the front connector where the green hose connects I can pump all I want but the headlamp stays put. I hear some noises like the actuator is trying to do something but nothing happens. I repeated the procedure on the right headlamp and I can pump that one up & down without any troubles, though again the gauge on my pump goes up to about 5 and drops to 0 right away.

The troubleshooting guide says "If If vacuum pressure holds, the internal diaphragm and rear sealing grommet are both good. If the vacuum pressure drops, replace the grommet." WHAT GROMMET? Is that grommet something internal to the actuator? I don't see a grommet in the parts list for headlights on Corvette Central so I'm kinda lost.

My guess here is that replacing the actuator on the headlamp will do the trick but I figured before I drop $100 I'd ask if maybe there's a simple grommet that will do the trick.. wherever that may be.

Thanks!

 

I believe what you are looking for looks like a "witches hat". It is an easy fix for most headlights but it does require that you pull the actuator.

From Zips website, here is the witches hat by itself.
Witches Hat

From Zips website here is the witches hat and the rod seal that goes with it. The seal is not always needed. It is mostly for keeping out dust. I would recommend getting this kit as it even comes with the all parts necessary to reseal the actuator. (the gold piece)
Witches hat and dust seal

Hope this helps.

 

this is what you need

 

Thanks guys, that makes alot of sense now!

 

Wanted to say thanks to you guys for putting me on the right track. I haven't put it back in the car yet, but I just installed those parts on my actuator and the rod now extends when you apply vacuum to the "back" port where before it did not. Turns out the "witch's hat" was ripped in 2 pieces so it must not have been sealing up properly.

Thanks again!

 

Ta da!! Same thing was wrong with mine at one time. I went through the same thoughts as you and was looking at buying a new actuator. Then someone said try the witches hat replacement. Glad I went that way, I saved quite a bit of money and now have headlights that work. Glad to hear it worked out for you.