R32 GTS Headlights Staying On

[slow32de]

Hello all, 

I have just bought my 1992 R32 GTS and have found that the headlight lowbeams are permanently on and cannot seem to fix it.
I unplugged the switch and they stayed on, unplugged the relay and still stayed on.

Wondering if anyone has any advice before I start tracing all the wires back looking for the problem.

Thanks

[GTSBoy]

35 minutes ago, slow32de said:

Wondering if anyone has any advice before I start tracing all the wires back looking for the problem.

That's not going to happen, given...

35 minutes ago, slow32de said:

I unplugged the switch and they stayed on, unplugged the relay and still stayed on.

Because that shot should be categorically impossible. Stock circuit goes direct from dash switch/dimmer to globes.

Someone might have added relays and f**ked that up, so that the relays stay on regardless of the control side being on/off/unplugged.

There's a big 3 pin connector (H4 style) behind each headlight that carries the Lo, Hi and earth wires, that plugs into a subloom that breaks out to connect to the separate Lo and Hi globes in the headlight. If there are relays added, they should be there, because it is the easiest place to intercept the stock wiring and interpose something else.

[TurboTapin]

Was the car previously in a country with mandatory DRL's? Might have been a poor attempt at having them.  

[The Bogan]

 

Question: on a stock 32 when the lights are turned on at the dash switch do they turn themselves off when the ignition is off

Assumption: possibly someone wired them so the lights come on/off with the ignition as a simple hack because they always drove with the headlights on....maybe

With most modern cars the lights go out when the ignition is switched off and a door is opened, or after some time, some older cars do this, some don't

I personally always drive with my headlights on, day or night, that is a possible hack that I have considered for my MX5 which beeps at me every time I get out the car because I forgot to turn off the headlights, unlike my VX SS where the lights come on and off with the ignition 

[GTSBoy]

3 minutes ago, The Bogan said:

Question: on a stock 32 when the lights are turned on at the dash switch do they turn themselves off when the ignition is off

No. Too old for BCM controlled anything.

[niZmO_Man]

What I recommend:
"H4 relay harness" for your Headlights, the R32 switch is passed though the headlight circuit, so it's common to see burn out switches because people have used "100W H3" or H3C bulbs, they are all shit.

ALL BLUE TINTED BULBS ARE SHIT

no matter what instagram ad you saw, every single HID/LED/whatever bulb is shit.

Trust me, been there done that, every halogen bulb is shit.

 

Your only real upgrade path is to retrofit proper HID projectors and ballast (or equivalent Koito LED projectors).

trust me when i say i've been there done that, no replacement for displacement.

 

And that's saying with me driving a BMW F45 with factory LED bi-LED, and my R32 having aftermaket bi-Xenon (morimoto d4s)

 

you cannot argue with physics

[Duncan]

Before you go too far with this, just make sure it is indeed the headlights on, and not the foglights (switch on the dash surround). Also, are the taillights always on?

[slow32de]

4 hours ago, Duncan said:

Before you go too far with this, just make sure it is indeed the headlights on, and not the foglights (switch on the dash surround). Also, are the taillights always on?

Tails are always on aswell even when the car is fully off, I’ve been having to disconnect the battery.

By the looks of it the bloke must’ve messed around with all the light wiring so I’m just going to go through and redo it all. 

[slow32de]

On 8/15/2024 at 2:01 AM, niZmO_Man said:

What I recommend:
"H4 relay harness" for your Headlights, the R32 switch is passed though the headlight circuit, so it's common to see burn out switches because people have used "100W H3" or H3C bulbs, they are all shit.

ALL BLUE TINTED BULBS ARE SHIT

no matter what instagram ad you saw, every single HID/LED/whatever bulb is shit.

Trust me, been there done that, every halogen bulb is shit.

 

Your only real upgrade path is to retrofit proper HID projectors and ballast (or equivalent Koito LED projectors).

trust me when i say i've been there done that, no replacement for displacement.

 

And that's saying with me driving a BMW F45 with factory LED bi-LED, and my R32 having aftermaket bi-Xenon (morimoto d4s)

 

you cannot argue with physics

I’ll have to have a look at them then, looks like old mate messed around with the wiring and rooted it. 

[blind_elk]

7 hours ago, Duncan said:

Before you go too far with this, just make sure it is indeed the headlights on, and not the foglights (switch on the dash surround). Also, are the taillights always on?

That switch turns the tail lights on.

[The Bogan]

Possibly the headlight switch has shorted out

Pull the switch and test the terminals

[R32RB20]

On 13/08/2024 at 1:29 PM, slow32de said:

Hello all, 

I have just bought my 1992 R32 GTS and have found that the headlight lowbeams are permanently on and cannot seem to fix it.
I unplugged the switch and they stayed on, unplugged the relay and still stayed on.

Wondering if anyone has any advice before I start tracing all the wires back looking for the problem.

Thanks

This happened to me, Its an easy fix.

The control switch you use to turn on the lights have metal 'tags' inside that switch between the options on your knob. those tags wear out and can easily short.

I bit the bullet and bought another light switch. unfortunately i had to buy the whole surround to get that switch hahaha

[GTSBoy]

6 hours ago, R32RB20 said:

The control switch you use to turn on the lights have metal 'tags' inside that switch between the options on your knob. those tags wear out and can easily short.

Yeah nah, because:

On 8/13/2024 at 12:59 PM, slow32de said:

I unplugged the switch and they stayed on, unplugged the relay and still stayed on.

Something is well f**ked up on this one.