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85 headlight motor

  • Thread starter Thread starter twister9305
  • Start date Start date
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twister9305

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Does anyone know where to get internal headlight motor parts? I have a diode bad, or atleast thats what it looks like. Any info on this part would be helpful to keep from buying a new motor. thanks, ronnie
 
Go to the junk yard. 1984-1986 Fieros had the same type of motor (in terms of the electronics and basic gears and internal electronics). Also, the early third gen Firebirds also had the same electronics. If you are lucky you can buy a bucket full of them for $20 and have enough spare parts to make one of yours work better. I have had pretty good luck switching these parts around in the past.
 
Thanks very much. Atleast I know where to look now.
 
1985 Left Headlight lamp

Hey guys, Fist off I would like to say its great to be part of the club! I just bought my first vette. its a 1985 bright yellow coupe. Looks like a million bucks. And I am having a blast driving it around. I had a mustang with a 350 hp motor and this car with only 230hp allready surpasses this. This is a great car!

Anyway back to the subject at hand. All of a suden today my left front rotatating light won't rotate and the right lap started to slow down as well and act kind of jerky. The left lamp opens about an inch and then stops. Anyone know what might have gone wrong and might have some solutions?

Thanks again :_rock
 
You need to inspect the rotating assembly and determine if there is any binding in the linkage for the light pod. After that, remove the actuator.

Here is the good/bad/ugly of these things. They can be rebuilt to some degree. Your 85 motor is much different than the 88-96 design.

You can drill out the rivets and open the housing. Once inside you will find your lower big gear center is chewed up. It has three hard rubber spacers in there that get torn up over time. Look in Mid America, etc. for the rebuild "brass" gear set and replace the gear mechanisim. When you reassemble, just get some stainless bolts and locking nuts to reattach the housing pieces. You will want to apply a fresh RTV or silicone sealant to the two halfs to keep the moisture out.

Next, there is an access panel on the side of the actuator with four 7mm hex headed screws. Remove that panel to expose the switching mechanism. Get some good electric contact cleaner spray and clean all the contact points, and observe is any have just melted away over the years. This is where you can and might get lucky swaping these parts for some bone yard Firebird and Fiero pre 1987 headlight actuator parts.

Sometimes just cleaning them does the trick.

Final point. The Pre 88 Vette actuators depend on a series of relays to make it happen. These can stick, fail, etc. These relays are not expensive and can be matched up at your local Napa or auto parts dealer. It is not a bad idea to replace them while you are in there.

If all else fails, you can always upgrade to the 1988-96 design. Mid America sells a kit for about $550, and or you can shop e-bay or the Corvette recyclers for later model units. You will need the single control module, headlight assemblies, and wire pig tails. Your headlight switch remains. If you have a buddy with a 88-96 Vette, you can just probe out his harness to determine where to hook the power, ground, up/down signal wires to finish the job on your 85. IF you upgrade you will be much happier with the sound, feel, and action of the later model units.


Hope that helps!
 

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