ok so i put a cd player in my girls 81 gs and now the headlights dont go down. but when flip the switch it turns on the interior lights. ie. dash lights and ac unit etc.. any help would be great.
thanks

 

Uhm..... wow. So, do they come on, but just dont' close? What about the light box up/down switch? Does that let them go up and down? All I can say would be double and triple check your wiring and your connections.

Basically, you can go back through and UN-Plug whatever you removed before until they begin to work then you'll be able to figure out where the problem lies.

Good luck!

 

Check the fusable links under the hood too, sometimes they come loose. The cd-player may just be a coincidence.

 

ok so now not only do the lights not go down... but the car doesnt start... now i dont know if this is coincidental or not but it just doesnt start... unless i pop the clutch.. any help would be greatly appreciated.
kevin

 

Is it cranking at all? or just nothing when u turn the key?

 

nothing when the key is turned....

 

Then u've got a power problem, does the clock come on? If not, check your battery connections, and the fusible links on the left strut tower under the hood. Check all the fuses too, might just be as simple as that.

 

I would check fuses.. If the fuses are fine check the connection on the light switch. I know on my 80 if the switch is not connected then the lights stay up.. Also do you hear the fuel pump clicking?? Download the wiring diagram for your year it may help. You crossed some wires or popped a fuse..

 

the fuel pump is running. the weird thing is that the car ran all day yesterday and all day today , i was showing my friends zach.(fbII) that i installed the cd player in the glove box, and i was showing him that the only way the cd player turns on is if i flip the switch that usually pops up the headlights, and the car is on... and he told me that he tapped into his clock and i was like hmm i should try that . i turned the car off, then i tried to turn it back on and nothing , what the heck both zach (fbII) and i are stumped. all fuses are good. but i cant tell how to see if the fusible links are blown....

 

the fuel pump is running. the weird thing is that the car ran all day yesterday and all day today , i was showing my friends zach.(fbII) that i installed the cd player in the glove box, and i was showing him that the only way the cd player turns on is if i flip the switch that usually pops up the headlights, and the car is on... and he told me that he tapped into his clock and i was like hmm i should try that . i turned the car off, then i tried to turn it back on and nothing , what the heck both zach (fbII) and i are stumped. all fuses are good. but i cant tell how to see if the fusible links are blown....

 

I believe for the links, just check that theres current going through them with an ammeter or something. Also make sure that the links are actually contacting the terminals inside the block, I had a problem with one of mine, just had to wiggle it a bit and push it in and everything was normal again.

 

well i wiggled them and pushed them all in, but nothing happened, could it be the starter? i dont know how the starter could just go like. that.. but who knows...

 

hmm...that I dont know too much about, sorry...hopefully one of the other members know more about it...free bump though.

 

try roll start it.

 

thats what i meant by"poopping the clutch" and that is what we did to get her home.

 

Nah, no reason to do that. Go through your fuse panel and remove every fuse and inspect them thorougly for even a crack, a crack can stop the current. Also those fusible links can burn on the inside and not the outside, pop them off and roll them in your fingers to feel if they're burnt out on the inside.

From what it sounds like your most likely have blown something. Check your wiring for your stereo and see if you have a short anywhere. Your could have a ground touching another wire, wires touching other wires, all kinds of things. So make sure to walk through your install and see if anything was changed like jweather73 said above.

 

just invest in a fuse tester, they cost like 1400 with a set of fuses, good deal, Mine even has fuses I never knew were used in a car 2.5 17 etc.

 

so you have an 83 gsl and your girl has an 81 gs? she's a keeper!

 

yes, but this doesnt help me out !!!! lol!!!
the top wire feels really flimsy ill pull it out of mine and put it in hers, but why would it just go like that?

 

They go when too much current passes through, basically like a fuse. Better those links than everything else in the car.

 

problem solved .. . rewired the am/fm back the original way - and the car starts, and lights go up and down! i wired the cd player through the clock & fuse box.

 

Ok, well that's good... now, for anyone here that's electronically technical enough to be able to answer this..... I'm curious as to why (assuming the wiring was done correctly--no offense, dude) did this happen?

 

because it's possible that certain wires crossing were shorting out. that was my guess when it first happened. some wires were exposed and could have touched metal and then got all forked up. wires SUCK! I HATE WIRING!

 

no ZACH - the only wires that were exposed were the speaker wires. and call us, you lazy bastard! ashley's getting a new motor, not a new car.