Problem with low beams?

[wyomingste]

I have the 1991 Grand Prix STE with a 3.1 and auto trans if that means anything here.

 

Ever since I bought this car the low beams have sucked, the entire light bar lights up but only the outside two on the center piece (not where the high beams light up come from. Well I moved to Idaho about 4 months ago and one night they were working like the high beams I got out and looked at the front of the car and I noticed that two lights by the high beams were lighting up along with the two on the inside (center) bar.

 

I'm sitting there thinking WTF I never thought that they weren't lighting up I just figured that they sucked. Turns out that I'm used to driving with only the fog lights turned on and no low beam lights.

 

Today I was thinking that maybe something was wrong with the switch so I pulled it out and took it apart, everything seemed to be in location but I took it apart and cleaned and put everything back where it seemed to be. WTF i'm so lost? What would be causing this problem? I replaced all of the bulbs but still nothing.

 

Anyone have any sugestions (short of beating it with a hammer and putting new ones in )?

Eric Crusch

[Crazy K]

welcome to the site!

that was slightly confusing....

the low beams and high beams would be in the same assembly, external of the light bar... So I think you are saying that the fog lights are what you used to think were your low beams, until you discovered the low beams on? correct?

 

the high beam bulb will be between the low beam and fog lights (as mounted in the center lightbar) lows are on the outer edge of the headlights, highs on the inner......

 

sounds like............ relay or switch trouble to me. anyone who actually owns an ste want to chime in????

[wyomingste]

yes, I was driving with only the fog lights on thinking they are the low beams.

[Robby1870]

yes, I was driving with only the fog lights on thinking they are the low beams.

 

So, do the lights to the outside of the high beams work?

 

When I got my STE the low beam/high beam switch in the column was broken, so I replaced it. That might be your problem.

[wyomingste]

No only the high beams on the outside boxes not the low beams

[no1kicker]

Try bypassing the low beam wire at the DIC box behind the glovebox. Yellow wire I think. Do a search for a post by Jeorge I think, I had a similar problem a while back.

[GutlessSupreme]

No only the high beams on the outside boxes not the low beams

 

Still don't think I'm following...

 

 

very outermost lights are the low beams.

next inward are the high beams.

these are in the same assemblies.

 

the next most inward lights are the fog lights, they are build into the little bar.

 

in front of each of those six lights, there is another, very low output bulb that should come on with the parking lights. there are a total of 9; 3 are in between the foglights in the lightbar.

[Prospeeder]

now wait wait, i read this and didnt see this, The low and High beams are different bulbs correct? So mabye they both burnt out... but you know i could just be crazy....he did buy it that way

[Robby1870]

Yeah, does the turn stalk turn the high beams on an off? or does it have no effect?

[wyomingste]

the turn stalk does turn the high beams on and off. The problem is that the high beams will come on but when I turn them off the low beams do not come on only the fog lights.

[GutlessSupreme]

check the low beam bulbs and wiring.

 

when the fogs come on, is the switch for the fogs actually on? or do they just come on as low beams would.

 

I'm thinking it's either bulbs or a fuse... I doubt they're wiring backwards (fogs/lows) but ya never know.

 

i think there's a fuse for the low beams in the glove box, so check that too.

 

if not, you probably have a bad ground.