xntryk1

OMG. I think we can FINALLY put this thread out of its misery. LH fuse was blown. Replaced it with one of the spares and, BAM! Instant headlights - both high beams AND low beams on BOTH sides. I know that fuse wasn't always like that, as it was one of the very first things I checked. I must've blown it in all my wiring adventures with the new socket. Anyway, thank you Fairtax4me and JesZeK for hanging in there with me and enduring all my stupid questions. I'll leave you alone for now. But you're not done with me, yet. I still have windshield washers to work on... later...

OK, here's the results of the first test (swapping relays). Haven't done the others, yet. There's no change when I swap the LH and RH relays (right headlight stays bright and left headlight stays dim). But here's what's interesting (to me, at least) - when I completely remove the LH relay, the situation remains exactly the same (right headlight stays bright and left headlight stays dim). But when I remove the RH relay (and leave the LH relay plugged in), BOTH headlights go out! Of course, I have no idea what that means. It just seems strange...

Thank you! I will do that and report back.

Yes, crimp connectors. Is that not good?

"on the Black Box". Is that the Black Box under the dash or in the engine compartment? And how will I know if "Relay got melted wires or have an internal false contact"? Will it be obvious or will I have to tear it apart?

Well, there's no way to be 100% sure that I've got the wires connected properly on the new connector, since nobody ever answered my question about that. But I gave it my best shot and tried to match up locations with the passenger connector (the one that still works great). Facing the front of the car: Red wire on the right, Yellow/Blue wire at the top (middle) and Black/Yellow wire on the left. As for the relays, I wouldn't know one if I saw one. In any case, I haven't touched anything except the headlights/connectors. And everything else electrical works on the car (except for the windshield washers, which is my next project after the headlight).

I guess the first place I should look is somewhere "...between the lamp connector and the splice where the wires join, or at the splice." (as Fairtax4me suggested). That seems like the most likely suspect (area), since the right headlight is still working. Figures that it would be in a rather difficult area to access. Could be worse, though...

I was afraid you were going to say something like that... :-(

Yep, that's what I just did. And here are the results (tests done with the engine off). First, I tested all the wires (L & R) WITHOUT a bulb in either socket. All the meter readings were negligible (.00V - .25V). Next, I tested with bulbs IN on both sides: Passenger Side Lights Off: Red = .01V Yellow/Blue = .01V Black/Yellow = .01V High On: Red = .58V Yellow/Blue = 9.44V Black/Yellow = 9.57V (bright light) Low On: Red = 9.62V Yellow/Blue = .43V Black/Yellow = 9.67V (bright light) Drivers Side Lights Off: Red = .01V Yellow/Blue = .01V Red/Blue = .01V High On: Red = .64V Yellow Blue = 5.65V Red/Blue = 2.67V (very dim glow) Low On: Red = 6.20V Yellow/Blue = .45V Red/Blue = 3.73V (very dim glow)

Thank you again JesZek (and Fairtax4me) for continuing to put up with my ignorant questions. I can certainly repeat my tests, but at the moment, only the LH side has bare wires (on the end). The RH side still has the original bulb and socket and I'd really rather not cut those off as that is the ONLY headlight that's working at the moment. So on that side, I can test the wires going into the socket (without the bulb). That should amount to the same thing (as bare wires) - right?

Yes, definitely testing with the black meter lead connected to the battery negative terminal. I'm still wondering if it makes any difference whether I'm testing the bare ends of the wires or the back of the socket (when it's connected with a bulb in it)? Also, since it sounds like I might have the socket wired incorrectly, I'm still left wondering how to wire it correctly... :-(

Thank you for responding, JesZek! First question: you say, "use the Positive (+ or Power) Terminal from the Tester, on the Headlamp's Wirings, in order to find which one is the Positive" How will I know it's the positive (or power)? What will tell me that - the reading on the multimeter? And I was worried that the wires might be getting mixed up. The fact that the NEW wires on the new Dorman socket are different colors wasn't helping me keep track. But after researching around various Subaru forums, I THOUGHT I'd managed to find and define each wire (by its color). But I was probably wrong. Can someone please tell me if this right or wrong? Red = High Beam Ground Red w/Blue Stripe = Power Yellow w/Blue Stripe = Low Beam Ground And if that's correct, can someone please tell me where each of those wires should connect on the socket (left/center/right)?

More possible clues (for those who know what they're doing - unlike me). I went ahead and connected the new Dorman socket and bulb to the bare ends of the LH headlight wires. Here's what happened - the high beam indicator on the dash came and stayed on (whether I switched from high beam or low). Also, the voltages at the back of the socket were ALL negligible (.02-.05 or so) and the bulb did NOT light up at all, not even dimly. Wonder what all that means...?

"Likely the problem is going to be between the lamp connector and the splice where the wires join, or at the splice." This prompts another question. How exactly does one actually access this "splice" - by dismantling the entire car?? It seems to be in a very inaccessible location... :-(

OK, just tested the voltage on all 3 wires leading to the LH headlight socket (while the engine was running). Here are the readings: With headlights off Red (High Beam) = .14V Red w/Blue Stripe (Power) = .02V Yellow w.Blue Stripe (Low Beam) = .02V With LOW Beams on Red (High Beam) = 14.14V Red w/Blue Stripe (Power) = .09V Yellow w.Blue Stripe (Low Beam) = .04V With HIGH Beams on Red (High Beam) = .04V Red w/Blue Stripe (Power) = .07V Yellow w.Blue Stripe (Low Beam) = .09V Note: these are just the readings from the bare ends of the wires, without the socket/bulb attached. Electrically-clueless me is wondering if that's an insufficient test or what? Should I try it again with the socket/bulb attached to those wires?

Ah, that makes sense. Thank you for explaining.

OK, good. I'll try all that out (next time I feel up to tackling it) and report back. Thanks. :-)

But what if the bad part is farther beyond that? I guess it's not just a simple matter of running a good ground wire directly from the socket. That would be too easy...

Thank you! Just wondering - would it be feasible to simply bypass the possibly bad ground wire by using a different wire? Since I've already got the wires stripped (at the ends) and the old, bad socket removed, it would be a simple matter to run a GOOD ground wire from the new socket to somewhere else. Or will that not work for some reason?

OK, just taught myself how to use at least one function of my digital multimeter. And with that knowledge, I've learned that one of the wires coming to that LH socket is not getting the same voltage that the equivalent wire is getting on the RH side. Whereas both of the bottom wires were showing about 9.85 volts on the RH side (the battery is obviously getting weak, since I've been playing with it so much), only ONE of the bottom wires was showing 9.85 volts on the LH side. The other wire (red w/blue stripe) was only showing about 1.85 volts. So I'm afraid to ask what that means...

So meanwhile, back at my left headlight. I replaced the socket this morning and it didn't help. In fact, things have gotten worse. Whereas before (with the old socket), I had high beam, but no low beam, now I don't have EITHER. All I've got is a very dim glow from the bulb in either high beam OR low beam. I should have known I couldn't get off that easy (by just replacing the socket). What should I try next? Thanks.

That's what I was looking at on Rock Auto - Dorman 84790. $8.92 (including shipping) for a PAIR of sockets. Seems like a good deal to me.

Thank you for the suggestion! As long as they're not outrageously expensive, I will consider it. :-)

Ah, so a loose connection could have caused that. That makes me feel better about simply replacing the plug. And it just so happens that I already have a Rock Auto account, so off I go! Thanks guys (and/or gals ;-))!

Forum topic title is wrong and I can't figure out how to fix/edit it. The problem is with the LOW beam, not the high beam. Meanwhile, back at my 1995 Legacy L wagon that I just bought last week. Investigating a problem with ONLY the left headlight. High beam works, low beam doesn't (both work fine on the right). When I pulled the plug off the back of the bulb, an obvious problem appeared. The plastic casing around the one plug at the top (of the 3-prong plug) was all melted and crispy. The bottom two plugs seamed fine. So I'm guessing that top plug is what activates the low beam (duh) and something shorted it out? Before I go buy a new plug and splice it on there, I wondering what could have caused that meltage? Will it just happen again? The problem is, I know ZERO about electrical testing and unless it's incredibly EASY to test (like one or two steps), I'll probably be lost. Any assistance greatly appreciated.