DI2FLY

99 C5 coupe, twilight option off, LHS headlight won't open most of the time. It always lowers, but getting it to raise is a crapshoot. It went intermittent a month ago, and now it will raise only after trying the switch several times.
The headlights themselves come on like they should. Just the one door won't raise anymore.
Anyone else have this problem and resolved it ? I have a service manual, but I'm looking for a shortcut. I know I can depend on the vast wisdom I find on this site !!
I hope this isn't a Dupe. If so, direct me to the appropriate thread.

purrvert

Probably a stripped gear, they are real sensitive to being opened at high speed and surviving. If it turns out to be gear contact. www.rodneydickman.com , he's got metal gears you can install in 1-2 hours.
I just replaced my drivers side, it worked up and down but growled for 20 secs after closing.

DI2FLY

Anyone else got any ideas ? I feel like if the gears were stripped, the thing would not work at all, and I haven't heard any funny noises in the motor.

ICULUKN-C5

I would have to say stripped gear. Is it making any noise (slipping noise) the auger (for lack of a better word) is plastic and will wear out. I just replaced the one in my 2001 so you are probably due.

c54dan

Similiar situation on my 98 just after I bought it. There is a relay near the passenger side headlight that controls both headlight motors. Mine was cracked and water was in there. Dealer replaced under warranty.

Check that relay...

Triple Black Vet

Its your gear...Those things are plastic and made to fail in order to save the headlight motor in case of any resistance. There is a guy that sells brass gear replacements along with a new rubber ring. Very inexpensive and easy to do.http://www.rodneydickman.com/retail.html
hope this helps. worked for me.

Avanti

One or both lights?

Gears are blamed for everything, but often it is a faulty or shorted "actuator," instead. Been there. It was about $350 installed at Dealer (but, fortunately was under waranty).

Good luck.

DI2FLY

Only the left side. Where is the "actuator" located ?

purrvert

Module is located under right headlight. Can you manualy open the left light?????

Face

I had a module go. It was $15 off ebay. See if Gene at Karshop has any. http://www.geneskarshop.com/

DI2FLY

There is a **** on the end of the motor. I've turned it both ways, and nothing happens.
I assume that is how I would manually open the light.
There are noises coming from that motor. I thought if the gears were stripped, I would hear the motor turning.
I'm thinking I'll stick a new relay in it before I replace gears.

purrvert

[QUOTE=DI2FLY]There is a **** on the end of the motor. I've turned it both ways, and nothing happens.

There are noises coming from that motor. I thought if the gears were stripped, I would hear the motor turning.
I'm thinking I'll stick a new relay in it before I replace gears. [/QUOTE ]

I'm betting on the gear. The manual operation is not instantanious ( nice word ) try the passenger side to get a feel for how many turns it takes to move.
You did say there were noises coming from that motor???

DI2FLY

NO noises from the motor. Yesterday I was able to manually crank open the door. Then I hit the switch and it closed immediately, but would not open again....

kiwi korvette

hi,I am new to this forum and I thought I would share my findings with my headlight problem with my c5.I only bought the car 2 months ago down here in new zealand and straight away I noticed the headlights needed 2 flicks of the switch to raise.Sometimes while driving in the dark I would have the twilight function on and they would not raise then either.I have also noticed the starter motor was sounding a bit slow.Today I put a new battery in the car and the lights work like they should now.I think the headlight module needs full power eg 12.5 volts or more to function.I will post a picture of my c5 zo6 soon,Its been converted to right hand drive for our roads down here.

dadaroo

A lot of problems are caused by the bumper stops being deformed from use. Helped a guy last week with your same problem. Here is the post below. If that does not correct the problem I can help you with more diagnostics.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...coming-up.html

kiwi korvette

thanks for that dadaroo,I am crossing my fingers that the problem has been rectified,but if it comes back I will check the bump stops.My corvette has only done 20,000 kms and still smells new,At first I thought the headlight problem was more from lack of use.The other thing I would try if the problem comes back would be to check I am getting a proper voltage reading on the wire coming into the headlight module from the light switch,that would tell me if it was a switch problem or a module problem.Before you do this test,you need to check that the battery is fully charged

fun_n_sun

Hi DI2FLY,

were you ever successful getting your intermittent headlight fixed? I’m having this same problem but on the right side. Left side always works but I have to turn the switch on and off a few times to get the right side to open.

No motor noises at all so I don’t think it’s a gear. When it opens it opens strong with no issues and the same when I turn it off - it closes fine with no motor noise.

What was was your solution? Anyone?

thanks !

GCG

Next time this happens, try to manually open the right headlight using the **** on the motor. Just turn it until the door begins to open, and then go and turn them ON with the switch to see if both go up now.

If manually relieving the pressure allows it to work and the motor works fine closing, while not producing the well known "rat-tat-tat" noise, chances are your motor is OK and it is just the bump stops that limit the closing action what needs to be replaced (even though they might look fine to the naked eye). The ones that limit the opening action are probably fine, but I would replace all 4 (it might be a good idea to do the same to the left side as well).

The way the headlights work is not based on predetermined positions. When the headlight doors open or close and they reach the end of their travel, they press against the corresponding rubber bump stops. As a result the current through the headlight motors increases and that is sensed by the Headlight Door Control Module, which in turns cuts power to the motors.

If there are missing or damaged bump stops, or they are scored too deep, the motor might keep working longer than really needed, which could result in over torque. If that happens, the next time the motor is operated it would require more torque to perform the action. That would mean more current than normal and the possible intervention of the Headlight Control Module, shutting again the motor before the door actually moves.

If you need replacements (number 4 in diagram below) you can order them from here.

In addition to that, there is a TSB for the driver's side headlight motor that calls for shimming it (number 2 in diagram below).