Headlight problem

[diesel1114]

hey guys im new to the board , my 1997 tahoe is having a headlight problem , so now im scratchin my head and dont know what to do , i was going to pa from nyc and while driving at night i swtich from low beam to high beam when all the lights went out ,all the lights came back on but not the headlights, now i only get headlights with the daytime running lights when i put the headlight swtich on for headlight position the lights shut off only the headlights , so i went and got another headlight swtich today and changed it , same problem , last year i changed the turn signal switch , so im really confused now on what to do, is it possible my turn signal switch with the high beam selector messed up inside? is there some kinda of relay or something hidden somewhere i dont know , can anyone help me out here im really frustrated , has anyone had this problem before ?

thanks for any help
john nyc

 

["350Vortec"]

Could be bad relays, Bad fuses, On my truck my dash lights, and driving lights would n come on. I dealt with that problem for months. And finally figures it out when i took off my taillights. I heard a small "pop" in my fuse box. The wiring to my tails cause the whole problem. Could even be something stupid like that. Check it out.

 

[diesel1114]

i have been fooling with the truck on and off all night here at work, do you think its possibly the drl diolde module thing , i saw other post here on the board but its like the opposite problem of what i have ? i pulled the drl fuse and then i have no headlights at all with or without the switch ? i tell you this is frustrating as hell ? im open to suggestions? and i alss checked the 50 amp fuses in the engine compartment , its gotta be somehting stupid? tahoe guru's please help

 

[ravingmadman]

Check ALL the fuses in the fuse box in the door jamb of the driver's door.

 

[diesel1114]

ok guys now im really confused now, i changed turn signal switch again and now that stupid litel relay under the dash and the one in teh bottom left corner down by the floor and still teh same problem jesus christ , someone please help me

 

[ravingmadman]

So the headlights only work when you use the daytime running lights? You've replaced the switch on the dash. Do your high beams work, if so when? I'm going to guess it's wiring somewhere between the switch and the DRL box, without much commitment. Good luck, man!!

 

[diesel1114]

hey raving , no i only have the daytime lights perios, no regular headlight or highbeams at all, iam really stumped i have to say ill stick with my old cars alot easier ot work on i tell u , so i tried headlight switch, turnsignal switch, drl, some stupid littel 5 prong relay by left foot up againt firewall, im just stumpped man i have to say damn i just dosent make sense

john
going mad

 

["350Vortec"]

Listen, Take out the head lights, and check to see if the pocket where the bulbs insert into are all gummed up with shit. Im telling you. It happend to me. I had to spray it out with an air hose then spray some electrical contact cleaner in them. Anything thats not working on your truck. Pull it off and check connections closest to it.

 

[YukonGT]

Diesel1114,

How did this turn out for you? I have what I think is the exact same problem with a '96 Yukon. Changed out the headlight switch and no change. Not looking forward to changing out the dimmer switch. Wondering if you found anything else that I should check before tearing into the dimmer. (tried to send you a PM, but my post count is not high enough yet) Thanks for any help you or others can give!

DRL's work only when headlight switch is in the off or parking light position, go off when turned to headlight position.

With switch in headlight position, parking lights and dash lights work, but no high or low beam.

 

[Fireguy1]

I have the same problem and I removed the steering wheel covering and found that the wires are melted. I tried to fix them but to no availle. I think that with the tilt steering the wires break and then short out. I'm not sure the procedure of removing the steering wheel with the air bags. you can buy a whole new switch for about 110 dollars.

 

[raptorforme93]

There are only so many things that it can be. Obviously the first thing to do it so make sure that all of your connections are clean. Use electrical contact cleaner and make sure that all of your light bulb sockets are clear.

 

[allthejerretts]

This happened to me. It seems the wires from the headlight switch to the relays were getting hot. I changed out the switch, no help. I changed the wiring harness ($120) the wires on the wiring harness were a lot thicker than the old ones. That solved the problem for the most part. I still cant use my bright lights for more than a a few seconds, if i do then i will hear a loud pop and i loose all lights for a few min. I got some really nice KC lights that i use when I need to run my brights.

---------- Post added at 12:40 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:39 AM ----------

Oh I am driving a 1998 2door Tahoe 4x4

 

[AJA]

head light problem

I have a 96 Yukon and it also has the same problem. head lights only work on DRL, No High beams, and lights go out when sw is in the head light position. i was going to buy a new sw assembly but after reading this i will check those wires. any hints as to how to get to this wiring harness?

 

[Thegnarles]

Did you figure it out yet? I have a problem too... My lows work but my highs don't switch on... I ways have the green head light light on the dash just can't get the highs on ever when the switch its turned all the way on.... I do have the 4 hi mod so I want it to work... But I was playing around with my lights and if the emergency peddle is ingaged the head lights don't work... I hope you got it

 

[SunlitComet]

first step make sure when headlight switch is fully on there is system voltage on the yellow wire on back of the switch. it tells the drl module to switch control. drl off when parking brake is on is normal function.

 

[rodeoclown]

Hey guys.. I know this response is late but the problem here is a broken wire in the tilt steering column. Shifting the tilt up and down frequently will cause a wire to break and you’ll loose your headlights. Pull your steering column bottom cover off and check the wires, you’ll find a broken wire, usually a green wire, pulled away from the wiring harness....

 

[SunlitComet]

just a little late.

 

[fastpat]

I had a car with that problem, it was in the switch on the column. Still, there are other possibilities as suggested above. I installed a relay controlled direct link to the battery for my headlights so that get the full voltage and that doesn't go through the headlight switch any longer.

 

[fastpat]

just a little late.

Yeah, but it may help someone new.

 

[whoucisme]

I'm having similar problems with my 97 2-dr Tahoe. The high beams will flip to low beams by themselves. Running light dash light comes on/off. High beams will turn back on when they feel like it. Makes for an interesting ride especially at night. I had one mechanic tell me he wants to do further diagnostics on it, but that he felt like it was due to wiring from steering column too. I haven't gone back yet for that because I've also got a CO2 sensor that's gone bad and that's $120+.....All I wanted to do was get this damn truck rust free, painted, get flares off/trim on and new nerf bars on and it's one step forward and two steps back, three to the side with my shoes untied. It has been non-stop with truck. Still look for pillar post that of course GM discontinued. (I used to deal with GM and its always been fun how they know you need parts A-F but discontiue parts C & E) Has anyone had ANY luck with headlight issue?