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(1) 2 »

Why would my headlights be dim?
#1
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Brenda
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53 Clipper Deluxe and the headlights are very dim and turn signals don't work, in the back they do, right one very slowly. Haven't installed the new flasher yet. The windshield wiper motor has vacuum and still doesn't work, just a blip once in a while when I turn it on. Also the horn sounds intermittently. Are all these connected somehow? The battery is fully charged. I thought maybe the generator needs rebuilding. I'm keeping it 6 volt for now. There is a place that will troubleshoot all this for me for a handsome price, but I thought one of you might give me some insight if you can. Much appreciated. She starts on the first crank in the morning and purrs.

Posted on: 2017/5/11 0:20
1953 Packard Clipper Deluxe
She starts on the first crank in the morning and purrs like a kitten all day.
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#2
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JeromeSolberg
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Dear Brenda,

The windshield wipers are purely mechanical/vacuum. Probably they need to be rebuilt, people all seem to send them to wiperman.com, apparrently the service is good and the price cannot be beat. I'm planning on doing this myself.

My experience with all the electrical stuff on these 6-volt systems is that the most important thing is to clean all the electrical contacts. Sometimes that is as simple as twisting the bulb in its socket a bunch until it wears the oxidation away. Sometimes that means taking a file or some sandpaper to the contacts. A selection of wire brushes and small files, bought for very little money, seems to be invaluable. That includes things like the connection of the headlight to ground.

One of the main reasons, as far as I understand, why manufacturers went to 12-volt systems was they are more tolerant of dirty contacts. When you have a dirty/oxidized contact, it takes a a volt or two just to burn/tunnel through initially. If the electricity has to go through a couple of those then it would be pretty bad.

One thing to check would be to run a couple of temporary wires directly to a headlight from the battery, one for the ground and one for the "power" side. That will give you an idea how bright the headlights can get, if you clean all the contacts.

The problem with the turn signals is almost certainly the various contacts, assuming you have checked the bulbs. Go around and check each bulb, spinning the bulb in the socket and in the thing that supports the socket, a bunch. That should help.

Since this is a "global" problem, one thing to check would be the main connection to ground (the frame) from the battery. That would not necessarily affect the engine as much as the headlights and everything else. That's the red wires that go from the battery to the frame and I believe to the engine block as well. It could be the connection to the engine block is good but the connection to the frame is corroded.

Posted on: 2017/5/11 1:46
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#3
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Tobs
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Hi Brenda. The wipers are purely vacuum powered. A rebuild by wiperman (ficken) is a good idea. At about the same cost ~100, you might also one day have your fuel pump rebuilt. The vacuum line goes from the intake manifold to the fuel pump, which has a vacuum pump built into it. I'm not trying to get you to rebuild everything, but the fuel/vac pump could also be contributing to your slow wipers if the vac pump part of your fuel pump is not up to snuff.
The horn is probably sounding because the wire that goes up from the bottom of the steering column to the horn button in the steering wheel has frayed insulation and is grounding out someplace. You can remove this section of wire easily and repair/replace.
Like Jerome said, just follow the wires and check that all connections to the things that are not working are clean and free of rust and dirt. Also look for broken wires or broken insulation. These wires are very old and brittle. Repair/replace as needed. It could also be a simple thing like some bad bulbs.

A company called "Rhode Island Wire" sells portions of the wireharness for front lights and the horn. They are quality pieces, and not too expensive. If you want to save money and make new wires yourself, I would at least suggest getting the terminals from RI Wire.

Posted on: 2017/5/11 5:36
1953 Clipper Delux Club Sedan, 1969 912, 1990 Miata, 2009 Ford S-Max.
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#4
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Brenda
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I so appreciate your comments on this subject. She has all new bulbs, cleaned contacts when I installed them. The other things I will attend to starting today and let you know. I want to keep her stock. A mechanic suggested putting in an electrical wiper motor. Your thoughts are appreciated on this too.

Posted on: 2017/5/11 8:20
1953 Packard Clipper Deluxe
She starts on the first crank in the morning and purrs like a kitten all day.
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#5
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Owen_Dyneto
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Always seems a shame to me to replace functional original equipment with substitutes for little or no reason. With you windshield wiper motor serviced by Ficken it will give great performance.

Posted on: 2017/5/11 8:44
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#6
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HH56
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Grounds are the biggest culprit in dim and sometimes intermittent lights. The tail light housings are pot metal which are bolted to the fender. The electrical path is a clean and bare spot of metal on the fender which touches a nut or bolt which is threaded into the pot metal which finally reaches the socket. Rust or corrosion at any of those spots and ground is lost or becomes a high resistance. Same with the front pot metal turn signal housings except the electrical path also goes thru the grill potmetal before reaching body sheetmetal.

I would start by cleaning up any connections you can see and pay attention to where the housings and bolts meet sheetmetal. Some have even had to add an additional ground wire directly between a lamp housing and the body sheetmetal. That is particularly true of the front park/turnsignal housings.

The flashers are the type that depends on a specific resistance and size in the bulb filaments so the heater working the bimetal strip will start the flashing. Any increased resistance from poor grounds changes the overall resistance and the turn signas become erratic or do not work at all. In all probability a new flasher will not solve the issue. Also, be aware that some of the modern flashers won't like the positive ground. They may work the turn signal bulbs but not the dash indicator light.

There are no 6v electric wiper motor conversions. There is a unit from Newport Engineeringhttps://newportwipers.com that will bolt in in place of the wiper motor but it is 12v and requires a new switch to be mounted somewhere. The mechanical cable from the original switch and the original switch location will not work. There may possibly be a 6 to 12v converter module that could be added to allow the wiper to work on the original 6v but how easily a proper motor rated unit can be found is unknown. There is a discrepancy on the Newport website as to that availability. They still list the item but somewhere else say they no longer sell it.

Posted on: 2017/5/11 9:10
Howard
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#7
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Ernie Vitucci
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Good Morning Brenda...If your 53 is like our 49, there is a little horn relay on the left fender about two inches by one inch or so. Carefully bend the little clips that hold the top on and remove it. Inside you will find a small set of points not unlike the ones in your distributor. Simply clean them and then test your horn again. We had this problem with 'Miss Prudence' and we spent a good bit of time cleaning. Once we polished the points in the relay, the horn went 'BEEP' Ernie

Posted on: 2017/5/11 9:30
Caretaker of the 1949-288 Deluxe Touring Sedan
'Miss Prudence' and the 1931 Model A Ford Tudor 'Miss Princess'
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#8
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Ross
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With a multitude of electrical complaints, I would first check that your generator is producing what it should. With the engine at a good fast idle you should see a voltage of about 7.2 volts at least if you measured between the two posts of the battery.

You can have great wiper performance at a fraction of the cost of an electric by sending your old motor off to Ficken.

Posted on: 2017/5/11 9:39
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#9
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fredkanter
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As the voltage she checked is OK and it starts fine the overall electrical underperformance would likely be a single or a number of bad grounds.

Conversion of cars to 12 V in the 50's was not due to occurrence of dirty contacts as that usually occurs when the car is old not new. 12 V was adopted because of the need fro more powerful starter motors needed for high compression engines.

If you convert to 12V to use a modern electric wiper motor I'd suggest a Corvette LS6 motor for better performance, a Mustang II front end for better steering, air conditioning, , air bag suspension,power windows, nylon velour upholstery which won't get moth eaten...or better yet just buy a new car. Then again , new cars don't have lighters, or liters as Packard labeled them

Posted on: 2017/5/11 13:19
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Re: Why would my headlights be dim?
#10
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JeromeSolberg
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Dear Fred,

Thanks for the clarification as regards 6V. My info was what my father explained to me long ago.

Truth be told, I think Brenda's problem is probably the battery to chassis ground connection. That would play havoc with everything except the actual operation of the motor. Does that make sense?

Jerome

Posted on: 2017/5/11 15:36
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