S13 headlight not getting 12 volts?!?! - Zilvia.net Forums | Nissan 240SX (Silvia) and Z (Fairlady) Car Forum

kcook737 · 02-04-2013, 10:09 PM

Hey guys, I just wanted to see if anyone was having any similar type problems. I just bought my 91 240 coupe a week ago. It's got it's issues but it runs and I love it. A main issue I'm having is driving at night. Only one headlight works. Only The drivers side low beam works and if I switch to high beams the passenger side only works. I started off by replacing the bulb but nothing changed. I checked the fuses and none were blown so then I started digging deeper. I hooked up a multimeter and checked the voltage in my headlights. The drivers side low beam has 12 volts where as the passenger side is only receiving 10. If I switch on the high beams its the exact opposite. Passenger high gets 12 volts and driver high gets 10. At this point I'm lost. Why would it get some power but not enough to get the bulb on. I haven't gotten deeper in yet and chased the wires but I really don't want to unless I have to. And I don't want to pay $80usd for a new headlight switch. Any ideas? Thanks in advance!

rat240 · 02-04-2013, 10:12 PM

terminal might need cleaning

kcook737 · 02-04-2013, 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rat240

terminal might need cleaning

Any tips on doing so? High grit sand paper? And chemicals? Etc

zerodameaon · 02-05-2013, 01:30 AM

Sounds like your selector switch on your column went bad. Had this exact issue same lights doing the same thing and switching the whole blinker switch assembly out fixed the issue. If you can't find one from a S13 some of the Nissan Hardbody trucks work as well.

TheHustleHouse · 02-06-2013, 12:36 AM

had same issue. my problem was a combination of bad wiring and a bad headlight switch.

check your wiring, then do this

S13 Headlight Switch Repair : 240sx General Discussion

^^ that fixes all kinds of weird headlight issues.

02-04-2013, 10:09 PM	#1
kcook737 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: florida Age: 29 Posts: 5 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	S13 headlight not getting 12 volts?!?! Hey guys, I just wanted to see if anyone was having any similar type problems. I just bought my 91 240 coupe a week ago. It's got it's issues but it runs and I love it. A main issue I'm having is driving at night. Only one headlight works. Only The drivers side low beam works and if I switch to high beams the passenger side only works. I started off by replacing the bulb but nothing changed. I checked the fuses and none were blown so then I started digging deeper. I hooked up a multimeter and checked the voltage in my headlights. The drivers side low beam has 12 volts where as the passenger side is only receiving 10. If I switch on the high beams its the exact opposite. Passenger high gets 12 volts and driver high gets 10. At this point I'm lost. Why would it get some power but not enough to get the bulb on. I haven't gotten deeper in yet and chased the wires but I really don't want to unless I have to. And I don't want to pay $80usd for a new headlight switch. Any ideas? Thanks in advance!

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02-04-2013, 10:12 PM	#2
rat240 Post Whore! Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: zipcode Posts: 3,294 Trader Rating: (87) Feedback Score: 87 reviews	terminal might need cleaning

02-06-2013, 12:36 AM	#5
TheHustleHouse Zilvia Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Orlando Age: 35 Posts: 154 Trader Rating: (10) Feedback Score: 10 reviews	had same issue. my problem was a combination of bad wiring and a bad headlight switch. check your wiring, then do this S13 Headlight Switch Repair : 240sx General Discussion ^^ that fixes all kinds of weird headlight issues.