Re: [AMC-list] headlight not lit

[C The <kwtheaker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

   Marc, Matt, and those thinking the same thing
but saw their answers: 

 the ground post on the firewall was indeed crusty & the nut merely
hand tight, so with great hopes i took it apart 
and shined all the parts up, put it back together 
and pulled the headlight switch,  and nothing
happened, which ya know, can it ever be that
easy?

  - i did notice the park light fuse blown, which
i somehow missed the 13 times i checked it
or during all the mushing around it happened.
anyway replacing that got the park lights working
small victory, but progress.

- took the headlight connecters off and measure
~8V at each. cleaned them up a bit put the
pass side back on, no change.  dejected i 
do the same to the driver side, measure put
back on, i crawl out from under the car
and that headlight is on!   jeezopeete. 

repeating process w/the pass side, you
know hoping i get extra credit for repitiiton 
but still not on.

the high beam indicator now works correctly,
was alway on when lights on before, but 
the hi beam doesnt come on on the driver
side. 

  mmm, so either burned out, or could that
be due to a bad connection?    
 
 the pass side could also be burned out,
but gee seems unlikely.  i think i'll
purchase a headlight, could be good
backup one day anyhow.

so any other suggestions, welcome,

our old cars just don't want you to
have total victory, you have to 
grind out each step! 

--carl 


- 

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Message: 1
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2011 18:56:45 -0400
From: Matt Haas <mhaas@xxxxxxx>
To: "AMC, Rambler, Nash, Jeep and family" <amc-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Re: [AMC-list] headlight not lit
Message-ID: <4E260BAD.3030200@xxxxxxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

This is for sure a ground problem (my 68 American did the same thing 
with a loose ground). I'm not sure where the ground wire attaches on an 
AMX. On Americans, the ground wire is by the fan motor in the engine 
compartment (it attaches to a stud). It looks like it will have 3 black 
wires going to it. If it helps, you can see a color version of the 
wiring diagram at http://www.mattsoldcars.com/techinfo/images/68jav.gif .

The headlight circuit breaker is part of the headlight switch. Usually, 
a problem there will cause the headlights to blink.

Matt

On 7/19/2011 1:05 PM, C The spouted this sage advice:
>
>
>   hey all,
>
>    i recently got my '68 AMX back from the paint shop where
> they had the fenders off&  therefore -headlights.
>
>    didn't notice till i got home&  a few days later, the headlights
> don't come on (neither do parking lights).
>
>     i see from the chilton's wiring diagram there should be a ground
> on the headlight wires.
>
>    perhaps that's the problem?  i traced the headlight wires and don't see
> any where obvious that something should be connected to the body,
> though i don't really know what i'm looking for, an obvious wire
> going into a screw?
>
> but hey upside down and backwards i could be missing something.
>
> so if that is a good guess can someone tell me where to be looking?
> or if not a good guess, what else?
>
>
> other info :
>
> - fuses all ok
> - headlight hi beam is always on when light switch on
> - headlight warning buzzer works when light switch on
> - brake lights work, fan
> - chilton's AMC book shows the headlights on a circuit
> breaker.  assuming that resets itself if there was a problem?
>
> --paint looks good though,  carl
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>

-- 
mhaas@xxxxxxx
Cincinnati, OH
http://www.mattsoldcars.com
1967 Rambler American wagon
1968 Rambler American sedan
 
 

------------------------------

Message: 3
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2011 22:27:11 -0400
From: Marc Montoni <Freedom@xxxxxxxx>
To: amc-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Cc: C The <kwtheaker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Re: [AMC-list] headlight not lit
Message-ID: <20110720031505.C6E7F984001@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"


C The <kwtheaker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> said:


>didn't notice till i got home & a few days later, the headlights
>don't come on (neither do parking lights). 
>
>i see from the chilton's wiring diagram there should be a ground 
>on the headlight wires. 
>
>perhaps that's the problem?  i traced the headlight wires and don't see
>any where obvious that something should be connected to the body,
>though i don't really know what i'm looking for, an obvious wire
>going into a screw? 
>
>but hey upside down and backwards i could be missing something. 
>
>so if that is a good guess can someone tell me where to be looking? 
>or if not a good guess, what else? 


You're on the right track.  I just traced out the exact same problem on my 68 
AMX.

My test light attached to ground indicated I had power through the light switch 
and through the dimmer switch, as well as power at the headlights, but they 
still weren't lit.  Realized the test light had a good ground, the headlights 
did not.

Eventually figured out that the wiring for the headlights goes to ground THROUGH 
the right side headlight.  The right side headlight has a black wire that runs 
to a single ground terminal, right above the heater area, on the right side of 
the firewall.  There should be like three or four wires attached to the same 
screw.  Unscrew it, take them all off, wire brush the body contact, the screw 
post, and the metal crimp terminals attached to each wire, then put them all 
back on and screw the nut back on securely.

I'll bet they'll work fine, and that it's just a matter of a bit of corrosion on 
a 40 year old post & nut assembly -- no fault of the shop (unless they removed 
the wires and painted the area and so interrupted ground; or just didn't screw 
the post nut back on tight enough.

By the way, AMC wired the parking lights to go off when the headlights were on.  
I never did like that arrangement, but that's the way they're made.  You might 
want to turn on parking lights only and see if they work by themselves.


>- chilton's AMC book shows the headlights on a circuit
>breaker.  assuming that resets itself if there was a problem?


The circuit breaker is, as I recall, inside the headlight switch itself.  If it 
overloads it will shut off.  I forget if it automatically resets or if the act 
of turning the headlights off and then on again resets it.

I think it's a GM unit -- not that it matters.

-- Marc





------------------------------

Message: 4
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2011 20:15:08 -0700 (PDT)
From: C The <kwtheaker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: Marc Montoni <Freedom@xxxxxxxx>, amc-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
 
> 
You're on the right track.  I just traced out the exact same problem on my 68 
AMX.

My test light attached to ground indicated I had power through the light switch 
and through the dimmer switch, as well as power at the headlights, but they 
still weren't lit.  Realized the test light had a good ground, the headlights 
did not.

Eventually figured out that the wiring for the headlights goes to ground THROUGH 

the right side headlight.  The right side headlight has a black wire that runs 
to a single ground terminal, right above the heater area, on the right side of 
the firewall.  There should be like three or four wires attached to the same 
screw.  Unscrew it, take them all off, wire brush the body contact, the screw 
post, and the metal crimp terminals attached to each wire, then put them all 
back on and screw the nut back on securely.

I'll bet they'll work fine, and that it's just a matter of a bit of corrosion on 

a 40 year old post & nut assembly -- no fault of the shop (unless they removed 
the wires and painted the area and so interrupted ground; or just didn't screw 
the post nut back on tight enough.

By the way, AMC wired the parking lights to go off when the headlights were on.  

I never did like that arrangement, but that's the way they're made.  You might 
want to turn on parking lights only and see if they work by themselves.


>- chilton's AMC book shows the headlights on a circuit
>breaker.  assuming that resets itself if there was a problem?


The circuit breaker is, as I recall, inside the headlight switch itself.  If it 
overloads it will shut off.  I forget if it automatically resets or if the act 
of turning the headlights off and then on again resets it.

I think it's a GM unit -- not that it matters.

-- Marc
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