66 hideway lights wont close

[66charger101]

Ok so I just bought my 66 charger and I'm tackling the headlights. The headlights were removed when I got the car. So I hooked them up to see if they would work. OK so the lights light up when headlight switch is pulled but do not close when you push the knob back in. The override switch is not in the override position so I don't think its that, unless its the actual switch. I have a FSM and I'm going through that . I need to know locations of the override switch, control relay, closing relay. And the circuit breaker located on side left cowl ? please help and any additional info would be great. I would like to test the relays and switch.

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i know that the 3 relays are under the glove box. Do I need to remove glove box in order to get access to the relays? How do I perform this test ? what is marked H and what is marked S?
If the headlights fail to close, the closing circuit at the control relay should be tested by touching one lead of a test light to the terminal marked “H” and the other lead to a good ground. The light should glow when the headlight switch is turned “OFF.” Repeat the above test at the “S” terminal if the headlights fail to open, this time turning the headlight switch “ON.” If the test light fails to light in either test, replace the control relay.
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[twecomm]

Headlight motor issues are common to these cars and a bit complicated to troubleshoot.. The 3 relays that control the opening / closing of the motors are located on the inside RH firewall behind the RH glove box. You will need to remove the glove box liner to access them. The override switch is also known as the "hold open" switch which is on the dash next to the headlight switch which keeps the lights in the open position if all is working properly. The circuit breaker is located behind the LH lower drivers side kick panel. Also at play are the mechanical limit switches that sense when the headlight buckets are in the fully rotated open or closed position. Those switches are part of the headlight assy. You may want to inspect all the connections on the connectors on the motors as corrosion is common. Another possibility is You may have defective motors as well. Check out this web site 66-67charger.com as much help is available from members there and also persons that rebuild the motors. Good luck with it..

 

[66charger101]

Oh I'm on that site daily I'm doing my reading believe me. Ok now that I know where the relays are, is there a way of testing them ???? I want to test the control relay first as said in the FSM, I'm just confused on the "H" and "S" terminal. Is there place to get the three relays? I know about headlight motor man but I see that's just the motors and limit switches....

 

[A383Wing]

sent you a PM..I have new relay sets here

the hold open switch controls the ground circuit, it's just a simple toggle switch...if it's bad, lights will never close unless it's fixed, which I can do. Do you hear relays click when lights are off and moving the hold open switch back & forth?

 

[chargere 2]

i am having issues with my headlamp doors closing , hopefully someone can help! the relays , and motors have been replaced and they have worked this way since i replaced everything, (didnot work at all before)when the headlamp switch is pulled out the headlamps open if the hold open switch is in the up position -but when turned off they will not close until the hold open switch is move to the down position- then they will not open again until the hold open switch is in the up position again- i have moved the wires around on the hold open switch and nothing changes, i have taken all connections apart and cleaned and checked all 4 limit switches- anyone have any ideas - i would like to make this work as intended ! any ideas

 

[A383Wing]

sounds like either the connections are reversed at the limit switches up front, or bad ground for the control relay, or bad ground at the firewall.....

you have failed to mention what year of car you are working on, kinda hard to help if appropriate info is not given.

 

[chargere 2]

its a 67 , are the 66" different? limit switch reversed? are they not just and open -closed switch? the wires are not long enough to be plugged in the wrong ones ! you said ground at the fire wall were would this ground be located? now about the ground for control relay would they work at all if it didnot have a ground or am i looking at this all wrong? like i said they open with the "hold open" switch up and will close with it in the down position , just not sure what i am missing,thanks for your response

 

[A383Wing]

wires are long enough to be put on the wrong limit switch up front....had a guy do this to me one time.

66 & 67 hold open switches are different.....

Where did you get the new relays and what style are they?

Ground on firewall is just under the ballast resistor....goes from firewall to engine block

 

[chargere 2]

i double checked the wires are still wrapped in the harness and cannot go to the wrong switch but i did find the the problem, it was the control relay , i wired in a new "square style " and now they work as they should, just for info isnt the difference between the 2 year hold open switch just cosmetic or do they work different? thanks for all your reply, hope you have a good new years -

 

[ODZKing]

As Bryan has stated previously that "hold open" switch gets dirty. My 67 has several times. If you exercise it it may go away temporarily. By that I mean move it up and down a lot until it works.
Finally I had to remove mine and spray de-oxidizer in there. Tuner cleaner essentially. Problem gone.
The outside relays under the dash can be flip flopped for troubleshooting purposes. It is possible one is stuck. Did you try flipping the plugs?