drew440 Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I checked the fuses and the fusible links and all is good. The check engine light came on prior to the headlights going out. Everything else works as it should. How do you get the codes so you can find what is wrong. Autozone said they have no scan tool for this model. My chiltons manual is all but worthless and tells me that there is a self diagnosis procedure, but doesn't tell me how to go about doing so. I am new to subaru and do have some mechanical ability. The car has 26,566 actual miles and lived in Florida all its life. I had this problem on the trip back to Indiana at night in a white out! Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyale 2.7 Turbo Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Welcome Aboard! First let me Tell you that More Details about your Subie will Help a Lot: Which Model, Year, Situation Details, etc... and Pictures! Since you Posted at Older Gen Forums, I Guess it could be a Loyale; it is Weird that Both Lights are Gone at the Same Time... so if the Dashboard`s Lights went Dim, it must be a Relay issue; I Suggest to Check the Headlights` Relays for a Loosen Plug Connection or Worn Relays. They`re Located under the Dash, Above the Fusible Box (You should unscrew that Fusible box to Reach them) if the Dashboard`s Lights are O.K. ... You must Check the Fusible Links, those are Located near the Battery, in a Black Box attached to the Coolant`s Overfill Tank. Hope this can Help. Kind Regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drew440 Posted January 30, 2009 Author Share Posted January 30, 2009 I checked the fuses and the fusible links and all is good. The check engine light came on prior to the headlights going out. Everything else works as it should. How do you get the codes so you can find what is wrong. Autozone said they have no scan tool for this model. My chiltons manual is all but worthless and tells me that there is a self diagnosis procedure, but doesn't tell me how to go about doing so. I am new to subaru and do have some mechanical ability. The car has 26,566 actual miles and lived in Florida all its life. I had this problem on the trip back to Indiana at night in a white out! Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. The year is 1993. It is a loyale 4 door front wheel drive. Everything works as it should except the headlights. I mean everything works but the headlights. Dash board lights are fine. I need to check the codes. How do you do this procedure? I need to find a proper manual as the chilton manual I picked up at autozone is worthless! I will keep looking for relays. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caramanos2000 Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Check if the high beams work plz Maybe they just burned out X2 on th fusible link on the coolant overflow tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skip Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Welcome to the USMB Drew To read the codes you must lower the panel that is above your knees when driving. Located up beside the steering col. is the ECU. On the end facing you is a small hole In this hole is an LED which is called the 02 moniotr. The ECU looks like this This LED will flash the stored codes when you plug together the two white connectors located under the hood by the driver's side hood hinge. For what the codes are Read here. http://www.troublecodes.net/Subaru/ With respect to your head light problem IF you do not have high beams! This car uses two separate systems for the left and right headlamps. For both to be out you need a common to both systems. This common could be the a) headlamp switch the grounding point of the head lamps This ground is located behind the coil on the inner fender. Note please, the headlamps are NOT wired as they are on American made cars. They are wired with a switched ground. The lamps you want to light (high or low beams) are controlled by switch the ground to the lamp NOT the hot as in domestic cars. Here is the headlight diagram if it helps? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skip Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I forgot to add to read the codes the ignition switch must be in the run position withOUT the engine running. Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edrach Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Do the high beams work? It is possible for both the low beam filaments to have burned out; have you actually checked the bulbs? I lost both low beams simultaneously on my '86 GL wagon (pre-cursor to your Loyale) and found that the alternator's voltage regulator had failed causing the voltage to spike to 17-18 volts. This burned out both low beams at the same time. It didn't burn out the high beams since they were not in use at the time. So check the headlamp bulbs and if necessary the alternator voltage at the battery when revving the engine to about 2500 rpm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 There is a pretty good chance that the headlights are just burned out like Edrach stated. If they are really ok and the high beams don't work either then there may be a wiring problem from the light switch. You can get CD and factory manuals from Ebay at a good price. I think there is a set of 4 manuals that completely covers the car. The fourth manual covers the wiring and is most likely the most important to have. Just a heads-up about the factory drawing that Skip so nicely provided. There is a mistake in the way the wiring to the headlights is drawn. The wire coming from the fuses should be to the center wire connection of the bulbs and not on the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drew440 Posted January 30, 2009 Author Share Posted January 30, 2009 There is a pretty good chance that the headlights are just burned out like Edrach stated. If they are really ok and the high beams don't work either then there may be a wiring problem from the light switch. You can get CD and factory manuals from Ebay at a good price. I think there is a set of 4 manuals that completely covers the car. The fourth manual covers the wiring and is most likely the most important to have. Just a heads-up about the factory drawing that Skip so nicely provided. There is a mistake in the way the wiring to the headlights is drawn. The wire coming from the fuses should be to the center wire connection of the bulbs and not on the end. Thank you guys very much! I don't have any lights, high or low. I was in a icy, sleety, snowy mix and they just went out at the same time. I checked everything I could with the booklet that cam with the car. Fuses and fuse links. I will check the grounds first and go from there. I think you guys are very nice to help a new subaru owner. I'll keep you posted. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abog Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 The ecm should not have any connection to the light system. There are no codes that would be displayed for headlamps not working. I think that the other posts with regards to bulbs, relays etc are more the direction you need to go Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I guess it could be the relays, but it is odd that they both go at the same time. Do the taillights work? Once when I had a headlight relay go out, the taillights went out to. The relays are under the dash next to where the ECM is. Have you been driving this car since? Is the output from the charging system ok? Maybe the alternator or voltage regulator is bad and it overloaded the bulbs?? Odd that they would be the only thing to go though.... Check all the wiring that you can access, even the stuff that you think isn't associated to the headlights. Maybe since it's a low mileage car, and sat for extended periods, that a rodent made a home of it and got chew happy on a wire some place... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 One easy thing you can do is to check fuses 7 and 8 for power. Verify that power is getting to that point when the light switch is ON by using a test light probe to test with. If you have power there then check the center lead at the lights and see if power there also. If it is, you should be able to ground either of side leads to the lamp and turn on the headlight filament for that side of the light. This would then mean something is wrong with the switched ground to the lights. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Oh, and if it were to be relays, ask for part number PLRY1 at autozone, it is a Pilot brand relay that's 30 amp, and less than half the price of the original replacement, it was $7-8 I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyale 2.7 Turbo Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 ...or you can Swap there Bosch Standard Relays! ... I have a Writeup about that, with Pics... to find it, click on my Avatar and you`ll Reach my "Public Profile" where I Posted a List of my Writeups... Hope this can Help you. Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skip Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 check the second fusible link it has a black with white tracer wire the fusible link needs to be tested with a multimeter they are located behind the battery in a small black box mounted on the washer bottle. This link is used to power the headlamps, both sides. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyale 2.7 Turbo Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 (edited) May I Respectfully Correct you? the Fusible Link`s Black Box is Near the Battery, but not Mounted on the Washer Bottle, it is Mounted on the Coolant Overfill Plastic Tank. The Washer Bottle is Located inside the Passenger`s Side front Fender. Kind Regards! Edited January 31, 2009 by Loyale 2.7 Turbo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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