64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

[Daniel M.]

HI FOLKS,

I'M A VERY NEW OWNER OF A 64 VETTE THATS HEADLIGHTS WON'T FLIP UP.
THERE IS POWER TO THE MOTORS BECAUSE I CAN SEE THE WHEELS TURNING FOR A FEW SECONDS WHEN THE SWITCH IS DEPRESSED.
THEY DONT SEEM TO HAVE ENOUGH POWER TO FLIP THE BUCKETS.
ANY SUGGESTIONS?

THANKS,
DAN

[Roy B.]

Re: 64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

Each side has a pin you can pull , then see if they move freely , (if not pull them and clean the parts) if not ( motors need attention ) or you have a bad ground.

[Gordon Peterson #4961]

Re: 64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

Hiya Dan!

Get ready for your first of many Corvette adventures! I recommend you make sure you're getting full power to the motors first. But I suspect the problem is that the grease inside the motor gearboxes has aged and hardened - they ALL do it. The fix isn't too bad. You will have to pull the headlight motors (buy and follow the '63 Corvette Shop Manual and the '64 suppliment). Then tear down the gearbox keeping track of what goes where, thoroughly clean and re-lube, re-assemble and re-install.

It's actually a very rewarding job if you have long thin fingers and some patience. I've had my '63 for over thirty years now, and I did this for the second time just last year - they had once again become reluctant to come up even on a warm day. But now they flip up and down like they're supposed to.

Good Luck!

Pete

[Bruce Boatner]

Re: 64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

Dan,

I just finished working on my 1964 headlight motors for the first time. Removing the motors would be an incredibly simple job if you could actually see what you are doing. Unfortunately, the motors are tucked inside the front end of the car where you can reach them easily but will not be able to see what your hands are touching.

Before you do anything, be sure that you have a mirror on hand. I highly recommend that you spend a few bucks on a mechanics telescoping mirror--you are going to need it. Not a bad idea to crawl under car and examine the motors and how they are positioned and attached first. You can SEE everything under the car, just can't REACH anything. To do the actual work, you will stand at the front of the car and reach inside the opening between the open hood and front end. A good back helps here.

All that is involved in freeing the motors is to remove a retaining pin (looks like a small, stubby hairpin; and removing a bracket that is attached to the motor and ground wire (bracket was actually missing in my case).

You must pull the hood forward past the stop position to gain enough clearance to remove the motors from the car after you free them. Taping some newspaper or shop towels on the hood and nose will help avoid scratching the paint when you remove the motors. It is a lot easier to have an assistant pull the hood forward for you, but I was able to do it myself. Just remember that when you pull the hood forward you are releasing the catch as well, so not a bad idea to put a bolt in the hole in the hood support.

The gear portion of the motor where your trouble likely lies is very simple to disassemble. BE SURE TO REMEMBER THE POSITION OF THE SLOT IN THE BIG GEAR BEFORE YOU REMOVE IT. This will make it easier to position the motor back on the headlight bucket shaft while you are holding the motor in one hand and a mirror in the other. Another tip is to rotate the big gear 180 degrees to utilize the "fresh" teeth on the gear since only half of the teeth are actually used.

This is one of those jobs that may take you a few hours the first time and then a few minutes after you flatten the learning curve. Just be patient, have a mirror handy, and you will be fine.

Good Luck!

[Alan Drake]

Re: 64 HEADLIGHT Caution

Once you have motor out and taking apart use extreme caution when you pull the armature out of the case (if you decide to). The back end is on a brass ball (bearing) held in by spring fingers. If the shaft of the armature is frozen on the ball it will pull the ball out of the spring fingers - good luck getting it back. Use some WD40 or such.
Have fun

[Daniel M.]

Re: 64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

BRUCE,

THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS!!
I CAN SEE THAT MY AFFILIATION WITH THE NCRS IS GOING TO BE VERY INVALUABLE.

THANKS AGAIN,
DAN

[Daniel M.]

Re: 64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

THANKS (EVERYONE)FOR THE INFO.
I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT ALL THE HELP I'M RECIEIVING.
YOU GUYS ARE GREAT!!!
DAN

[Bruce Boatner]

Re: 64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

Dan,

This board is AWESOME. I cannot begin to tell you how much time and money I've saved by all the great advice here. Better than that, you will get to know some great people.

My left headlight is still giving me problems so I am going to replace the "big" gear in the motor this weekend and see if that takes care of it. Be sure and check the condition of this gear on your motors. It is made of soft metal(I believe aluminum) and prone to wear. It looks someone else already rotated the gear 180 degrees on mine because both "sides" of the gear appeared worn--one side is REALLY worn.

I am also going to install the brackets that someone conveniently forgot to replace (could be the cause of my problem).

Let me know if you have any problems and I will be glad to help you out. As I mentioned before, I spent a few hours fooling with my motors the first time but I would surprised if it takes more than 45 minutes to pull the motor and replace the gear now that I know what I'm doing.

[Daniel M.]

Re: 64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

BRUCE,

I SUSPECT MY PROBLEM IS THE STIFF GREASE AND TEMPERATURE UP HERE IN THE UPPER PENNINSULA OF MICHIGAN. SINCE I HAVE OWNED THE CAR (12/18/05), IT HASN'T BEEN ABOVE FREEZING MORE THAN A HALF DOZEN TIMES. NOT REALLY THE BEST PLACE TO LIVE IF YOU'RE A CAR NUT!!!
DAN

[Ken Edmunds]

Re: 64 VETTE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM

Dan, we promise to be even greater in the future if you will please turn you caps off when posting.