Intermittent headlight low beam inop

Wagonman · Post by **Wagonman** » Mon Nov 02, 2009 1:45 am

Hey fellow subaru onwers
i got a 89 L series sportswagon with headlights that come on every now and then, flicker or dont at all. parks and high beam work and is how i get around lately (sorry to anyone in front of me!)

i just swapped the combo switch from my other wagon which i assumed works and i'm having the same problem. i'm guessing its not the relays cos each headlight has its own relay.

has anyone had this problem or have any guidance to what i should do next?

tex · Post by **tex** » Mon Nov 02, 2009 9:53 am

Narrow it down by checking for a loose fuse etc first because high and low are on different fuses although now i think of it fairly certain low beams are on parkers fuse. but also check bulb connection and combination switch earthing if its like the MY then normally screwed to the chassis near the fuse panel inside the car!

Gannon · Post by **Gannon** » Mon Nov 02, 2009 3:16 pm

Have you tried topping up your headlight fluid?

tex · Post by **tex** » Mon Nov 02, 2009 5:03 pm

I didn't even think of that...

Post by **TOONGA** » Mon Nov 02, 2009 8:57 pm

I had the same problem in my brumby when I bought it, turned out that the contacts in the high beam low beam switch in the indicator assembly was full of corrosion and I wasnt getting proper contact. a good old fashioned clean down of the contacts (be careful) then a light spray woth some machine oil (singer oil is great) fixed the problem for me
another thing to check is the connection plug thats in the loom under the dash (near the pedal box right up under the bugger) not the one the main light switch plugs into the one that is really hard to find some times that is full of corrosion as well

TOONGA

Gannon · Post by **Gannon** » Mon Nov 02, 2009 9:36 pm

Im pretty sure the low and high beams are on the same fuses and relays

From memory, it goes like this

For the positive wires
Fusible link at battery -> Fuses (left and right) -> Headlight relays (left and right) {comes on with ignition and headlight switch} -> Headlights.

The negative wires
From chassis earth -> Hi-Lo stalk -> 2 wires to each headlight, for hi and low beam

So if you are having trouble with your low beam, its either the hi-low stalk, or its one of the connectors between the steering column and the headlighs

Wagonman · Post by **Wagonman** » Sun Nov 15, 2009 8:59 pm

TOONGA wrote: another thing to check is the connection plug thats in the loom under the dash (near the pedal box right up under the bugger) not the one the main light switch plugs into the one that is really hard to find some times that is full of corrosion as well

TOONGA

thanks mate.. i had a look at this connector today because i finally got around to it and bingo there it was, a burnt out connection on the black and red wire. i'm guessing it burnt out due to oldness?

cheers for your help guys

ps: headlight fuild level was a little low so i topped that up too.

RSR 555 · Post by **RSR 555** » Mon Nov 16, 2009 2:34 am

My best guess is the earth to the stalk.. my friend had a similar problem on his L.Series. It was a pain to find where the fault was but it turned out to be a loose earth under the dash.