Guest Geoff Meador Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 Hello all,My driver's side headlight suddenly became sluggish today. It barely opens at all now.Being the good Reatta owner that I am, I immediately went to Barney's "Headlight Repair FAQ" at Reatta.net.I noticed that an early step in the guide is to manually raise the headlights with the "Headlight Up" knob. That seems to be my problem.The knob just spins. No friction, no results. Is this a bad thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest EDBS0 Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 A clear sign of 1 of 2 things.1st. Your bellcrank is stripped and no amount of turning will open the light.2nd. Less likely but same results. Your plastic gear is striped.Follow Mr. Eaton's fabulous repair procedure and you will find the problem and the fix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard S Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 Or possibility 3. The nut holding the bellcrank to the shaft is loose or missing, as was the case on one side of mine. I agree with one of the fix/posts that using JB weld to glue the entire surface of the "Barney Washer" is preferable to depending on the tang alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 Almost all headlight motors have pulverized the rollers by now. Some continue to work because the powder has packed in a cavity and gives enough resistance to make them work (barely).The bellcrank can be examined without going the full route of disassembly. You can get the headlights open by lifting on the cover while turning the know and almost always get them open. Worst case, you may need to make a hook from a piece of coat hanger wire and hook and pull on the bellcrank while raising the door with the other hand.You must do some disassembly to get to the bellcrank, but this gives you a chance to check for binds in the door pivots. The washer in the procedure is not worth making... I have a new design that has not been widely distributed, that works much better. I am attempting to find someone to make them at a reasonable price to avoid paying GM's price for new bellcranks. I am hoping that a part that last longer than GM's can be made for $10-15.....that sure beats $55.If one of you want to post the pictures of my sketches, I will send them to you. This way everyone has the benefit of trying the new design. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Geoff Meador Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 Barney,I'd be happy to post the pictures for you. E-mail them at your leisure.Thanks for your input! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harry yarnell Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 Uh, whats the 3% club? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 I don't know if you mean that when your knob spins, it will not lock the light in place. Because my passenger headlight doesnt open on its own either (unless at high speed), so i have to use the knob. My knob just spins at well, it never stops or has any friction, but I do see it move a small lever into place somewhere in there and my headlight does lock into the up position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 By "no friction" I meant that the knob just spins freely, like the wheels of a toy car. It doesn't do anything. It doesn't seem to be connected to anything.In contrast, the "headlight up" knob for the passenger side light is fairly firm and functions properly.Harry, someone here (GMRoss, perhaps?) welcomed me to the "3% Club" when I joined the forums and introduced my Blue/Blue/Blue 1988. Apparently, that color combination accounts for only 3% of Reattas. I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest EDBS0 Posted October 5, 2002 Share Posted October 5, 2002 The knob you are talking about turning would come down from the top the picture. When turned it turns the armature shaft of motor which has a worm gear at the end which turns the Plastic gear. In normal operation the electricity applied to the armature of the motor turns the shaft and knob. If your plastic gear is stripped it would turn freely as you describe. The headlight in opening only uses 1/3 of the gear. if this is your problem simply disassemble and rotate 120 degrees and you in effect have a new gear.The second source of problem is right where the Bellcrank label points. This is a soft white metal that wears. and allows the shaft to turn freely. This is where Barney's washer fix works. The tighter and more accurately you file the rectangular opening in the washer the better. If you have to use some force to press the washer on that is not only OK but probably desirable. I remember from my engineering days that you could use a smaller key on a shaft if the fit between the key, shaft and part you are keying is tight. If any of the fit was loose, to have the same strength you had to use a larger key. So make your washer fit as tight as possible and if possible press it in place.Good luck and a 1/4 drive with a universal makes the headlight assembly easier to get off of the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chazzman Posted October 7, 2002 Share Posted October 7, 2002 Meadorg, AFTER you get your lights working, make it a point to open/close your headlights ONLY when doing less than 30mph. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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