Main beam on all the time when lights swirched on... won't dip at all...

So. My question is...

Has anybody had this? Is it a failed relay? Or bad earth? (looked fine to me), wiring issue (checked as much as I could), or a dodgy switch? Or any or all of the above? I've lost a day to this already and I hate going behind the instrument panel...

Any and all help gratefully received.

Mike

 

Happened to me when I didn't put the steering wheel back on right, it was pushing on the contacts. Funny pushing the wheel down and the lights coming on and off tho

 

Could be any of the above ...
Personally i`d eliminate the relay , either change it or prise the case off and fix it

 

Have you done anything before the trouble occurred?

 

Also, a smart rap with the handle of a screwdriver can occasionally remind a relay of how it is supposed to behave
A

 

As it ahppens I was working on it...I was behind the panel putting some new bulbs in... It has happened before that though, and decided to fix itself... That said, some years ago I removed the dipped dash light as it stayed on all the time... I thought then the relay was the issue but never followed it up after removing the bulb. Am guessing I have no choice but to eliminate all of the above... I will check the steering wheel though as if I recall there is an earth to check in there. As an aside... 45 year old brittle electric wire does nothing for my confdence Onward and upwards... Thanks guys

 

Can you hear the relay click? if it does it probably rules out the wiring at the steering column
I had one headlamp that would go on full beam but the other didn't found out it was a bad earth on the headlamp bowl

 

No click from the relay... Checked the stalk on the steering column seemed fine. Need to check earths again... Electrics have always foxed me...

 

Pull the relay out of the socket do the lights go off?
If they do connect a multimeter with the red multimeter probe into the socket where terminal 30 of the relay came out of and the black probe into where terminal S came out of, you should not get a voltage reading. If you do get a voltage reading the fault is with the dip switch or dip switch wiring. No voltage reading then it is a duff relay.

 

Thanks... Will have a go.

 

Turned out to be a loose connection... not obvious as the connection looked good but was corroded so not viable... Simple fix but time heavy tracking it down... I'll know for next time and hopefully a few of you guys might too from my experience...

Thanks to all the help you guys gave me. Much appreciated.

 

I have an old fusebox which was looking pretty grim and as I wanted to repurpose it I left it for 24 hours in a large bowl of cheap cola and now corrosion gone and it looks like new!
I may have a play with some spare light fittings next.

 

I've got a lot of Diet Coke in the fridge (the Indian takeaway always gives us it whether we want it or not) - will that work or goes it have to be full fat? Sod it, I'll try it anyway coz I'm never going to drink it all....

 

If it's got phosphoric acid in it, it'll work.

 

My main beam works fine when headlights are on, It won't flash otherwise, is that normal or fooked ?

 

Depends on where the van came from, the yanks didn't do headlamp flashing.

 

They are easy to convert to flash, just add one live wire to terminal 30 and an European headlamp relay if it still has the yank one.

 

Thanks, that el be why then ta

 

Always amazes me when people know stuff like this ^


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