For the first time since I have owned the car (1.5.yrs) I drove about an hour with the parking lights on. Starts to get dark and I move the switch on the stalk to headlights and they don't come up. I have to fiddle with moving the switch back to parking lights/off then to headlights about 3-4 times to get the headlights to operate.

Spent about an hour tonight messing with the lights to try and replicate the problem and the one time the headlights would NOT come up when switched to on was after running parking lights only for a while.

Is this a sign I have a problem coming or it probably an aberration? Any experiences with this or suggestions are welcome.


Bob

 

Here are the stages my "stripped gear" went through.

1) Problem with right headlight not popping up all the time, but light was on. You could ensure it always popped up by loosening the manual headlight **** a few turns before trying.

2) Took a long while but much later, then it would make a machine gun noise after closing for 4-5 seconds. This was obviously the stripped gear sound.

3) Things now got crazy. Sometimes my headlights would pop up when I just turned on my parking lights, but they would not be on.

4) Replaced right stripped plastic gear with brass one. Everything fine. I have left gear but did not put it in yet.

There is a solid state headlight module. It is expensive from the dealer (over $200). I am told these rarely go bad. It is located under your passenger side headlight. It works by sensing the high current when a headlight motor hits a stop and turns off power. That is the cause of the stripped gears, the metal worm gear trys to keep turning until the module turns it off, putting stress on the plastic gear. Oh, there is a rubber shock absorber piece that the motor drives the gear through, it usually goes bad also. Rodney Dickman includes new rubber piecies with his kit. Cost of kit is $90 for 2 gears, rubber piecies, gaskets, lube and if later year includes expoxy and braces (they are a little more $).
Here is the link for Rodney Dickman's kit:

http://www.rodneydickman.com/retail_new.html

choose "electrical" and scroll down to your year

It contains all pieces: brass gears, rubber shock absorbers, lube, gaskets, expoxy and braces for later years.

 

Do the headlight come on, but the doors do not come up? Can you hear the motors running, or can you raise them manually?

I had an issue where the lights would come on, but not open. Turned out to be the HDCM ground at the G102 splicepack. The pin that grounded the HDCM was loose. After tweaking/cleaning the ground, haven't had a problem since!