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I'm having an electrical problem on my 1971 Corvette. The other day while I was riding, my headlights would not switch from bright to dim. They would only stay on bright. I eventually got them to change to dim somehow, but it's not changing at all right now. The headlights would flicker on and off also. Sometimes they would come back on, and sometimes they wouldn't. The windshield wipers will stop when they are on low. They work fine on high, however. Also, my radio at some points will put through nothing but static. Earlier, my interior lights would not go off when the doors were shut. I had to disconnect the wires so the battery would not run down. Could someone tell me where I can start fixing this problem, what it is, and/or how to fix it? Thanks.
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Re: Electrical Problem
So many electrical things at once makes me think of a common root cause of electrical troubles: bad ground. Pull out a wiring diagram and check the grounds to the troubled circuits. Many of these items share ground terminals.
Good luck.Tony -
Start here....
There are two 'key' areas for electrical 'funnies' to develop--'heartbeat' areas of the wiring system.
(1) The side terminals on your horn relay (RH inner fender) form a B+ buss for engine electrical. Oxidation and corrosion can result in all manner of weird problems with underhood branch electrical circuits seeing intermittent power supply. Remember these wires are unfused and ALWAYS hot! So, be careful when you work there and first disconnect the battery! Remove All of the terminals held by screws to the side of the horn relay, clean all of the surface contacts and re-connect them. BTW, you alternator 'looks' at this point to determine what the current battery charge state is and decides when and how long to charge based on what it 'sees' here....
(2) The main sandwich plugs on the RH side of the firewall (directly in front of the driver) buss virtually all of the electrical system's critical branch circuits. These are cream colored, multi-prong, plug-in connectors that hook up to the interior fuse box. The pins and sockets in the connectors (male and female sides) are inexpensive tin-dipped steel vs. computer grade gold contacts. They can and do oxidize over the years.... You very carefully spread the plastic hold-down clips of the connectors and gently wiggle to separate the connectors. Once apart, carefully clean everything in sight with a small wire brush to remove oxidation, then smear some silicone grease (available at Radio Shack) over the contact surfaces before re-connecting. This will thwart/retard oxidation growth by displacing air.
After these major moves, you've 'shotgunned' the critical areas and it's time to individually trace/track 'funnies' by specfic circuit. If any of this is over your head, then find a competent local automotive electrical shop to do the job for you and put the pros to work!Comment
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Re: Start here....
Sounds like more than one problem, but the first thing that I would do is change the dimmer switch. That will probably take care of the HL problems.Comment
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