February 26 @ 10:25 pm
Sunday I was supposed to go to a friends house for an Oscars Party after the kids headed home with their mom. I stopped by the grocery store to pick up my favorite non-alcoholic beverages (Weinhardt root beer and Thomas Kemper grape soda) then headed on over to my friends house. Something seemed odd as I pulled into the parking place in front of his apartment. Hmmm… wait a minute, no headlights! Click-click, click-click. Nope, both headlights out and it’s getting dark fast. I head on up to express my regrets that I can’t stay and quickly head for home, getting flashed by just about every car I pass (guess they didn’t see Urban Legend).
So today I start troubleshooting things. Pull all the fuses, none blown, clean all the contacts, fiddle with wiring, relays, etc. High beams work but no low beams. I figure I’ll replace the bulbs since it’s remotely possible that they both burned out at roughly the same time before I schedule an appointment with the dealer. Drive to the closest NAPA store, pick up bulbs and start for home. I’m behind a truck with a chrome bumper so I take the opportunity to test the headlights again. No headlights, click - highbeams, click - no headlights, click - highbeams, click - no headlights, click - highbeams, click - low beams! And they continue to work fine now.
*Head scratching* So either it’s a wonky switch or maybe a relay just got stuck. I guess I’ll keep an eye on it and take it to the dealer if it happens again. I love this car, I hope this isn’t a sign of things to come…
February 27 @ 4:10 am
It sounds like Silent One’s car gremlins have mutated a bit south & invaded your vehicle too! Keep them up there, ok?
M~
February 27 @ 6:59 am
YIKES! No gremlins for me, thanks! I just paid off my truck!
February 27 @ 7:48 am
Wiring gremlins can drive you nuts. My 1977 Datsun 280Z drives me nuts with wiring problems. It has taken me a couple of years to get it to the point I have worked out most of them.
My favorite was: When you take a descending left hand turn at speed, the car would quit running. When you straightened out from the turn, it would start back up.
February 27 @ 9:13 am
Gremlins… I never thought of that. Maybe our house has Gremlins too.
Maybe call the dealership and ask about recalls or other issues? They may be able to tell you something over the phone? Just a thought.
~S
February 27 @ 3:53 pm
Weird!!!
laughs a M~ I think we should send the gremlins down to her…. My vehicle is old 1998 (I think) so it might be time for a new one….
glad everything is working again.
p.s. I won’t flash my lights at anyone because of all the urban legends and scary stuff.
February 28 @ 10:58 pm
Two things -
I am sure you checked but on some car the high beam lghts and the low beams are sometimes different bulbs.
however, it is odd that they both went at the same time.
check your alternator, sometimes the lights are the first to show symptoms.
If your e-mail address is not on your blog pls send it to me. to lazy to check now. Have information about the dinner i have promised
March 1 @ 7:49 pm
i bet the person in the truck was thinking your crazy..lol