Headlight Limit switch
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Aug 2022
Posts: 20
Likes: 7
From: Maryland
Headlight Limit switch
Couldn't seem to find anything on this. My headlight gears stripped out a while back and I replaced them, they were making a grinding noise everytime the headlight tried to go down. Headlight was still being weird when it closed, like instead of one smooth motion it was kind of jerky in the way it went down. About a month later, it started grinding again, wouldn't close all the way. Pulled it off and, yup it stripped out the gear again. I'm fairly certain that this isn't the gears doing at this point. I was told there's a limit switch that tells the motor when to stop, and that could be the issue. I'd rather not buy a whole new motor as they're about $150 - $200. Gears aren't cheap either. If anyone knows what I could do to fix this issue, or somewhere to start I'd appreciate it. I'm not exactly an expert in electrical.
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2022
Posts: 1,805
Likes: 365
From: Central Florida
It sounds like the motor or assembly you put back together was binding; ""Headlight was still being weird when it closed, like instead of one smooth motion it was kind of jerky in the way it went down."" The motor shaft has to fit down just right and the 2 red plastic/rubber spacers have to be on top of the square copper bearings. If the limit switches do not open it runs your battery down and makes a clicking noise every 7 seconds. If you buy new ones pay attention to whether you need 2 or 3 wire motors. Can you manually open it smoothly? BE CAREFUL AS THEY CAN MOVE WITHOUT WARNING WHEN MOVING MANUAL **** AND TRAP YOUR ARM EVEN WITH KEY OFF.
Last edited by Vets-Vet; Feb 11, 2023 at 01:50 PM.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 1,353
Likes: 324
From: San Antonio Tx
On 84-87 cars the headlight motor armature is spring loaded to the center position. The limit switch is a simple mechanical device. If the motor has power and the headlight can not rotate any farther it will force the limit switch to open. When the headlight assembly hits the stop, the worm gear will force the armature forward or back depending on the direction and open that limit switch.
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2022
Posts: 1,805
Likes: 365
From: Central Florida
"If the motor has power and the headlight can not rotate any farther it will force the limit switch to open"
The motor has to travel the full distance at each end to open the switches, I believe that you meant to say if it can't rotate far enough to hit the switch the thermal breaker opens.
The motor has to travel the full distance at each end to open the switches, I believe that you meant to say if it can't rotate far enough to hit the switch the thermal breaker opens.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 1,353
Likes: 324
From: San Antonio Tx
"If the motor has power and the headlight can not rotate any farther it will force the limit switch to open"
The motor has to travel the full distance at each end to open the switches, I believe that you meant to say if it can't rotate far enough to hit the switch the thermal breaker opens.
The motor has to travel the full distance at each end to open the switches, I believe that you meant to say if it can't rotate far enough to hit the switch the thermal breaker opens.
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Aug 2022
Posts: 20
Likes: 7
From: Maryland
I figured it out. The grease inside the motor was so old and chunky that it wasn’t letting the assembly move far enough to close the switches. Cleaned it out, turned the gear around, worked perfect about five times and then it got stuck on the bad teeth. New gears coming soon. Seems like a lot of people replace the motors without needing to. Swap the gears, clean out the whole motor. Shoulda done that last time.
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