Orrabein Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 My wife has a 99 Forester with an odd headlight issue. Sometimes the headlights work normally. Sometimes they are very dim. When that happens, the brights indicator is faintly lit. Sometimes the headlights are out completely. When that happens, the brights indicator is lit normally.I'm guessing that if it was a known/common problem, I would have found something without having to post this. I'm also guessing that it's going to amount to tracking down a wiring short, which pretty much tosses me out of the mix. Hope springs eternal though, so I figured I would ask. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Try unplugging one headlight at a time when the issue is present. If things become brighter as they should be with one light unplugged, you know the issue is with this light. From here, inspect the globe. If the filament/element looks dodgy, replace the globe and check for normal operation. If not globe, check the relay for that light in the fuse and relay box in the engine bay. If one is dodgy, replace it. To check, individually pull the relays and see if there is a change in the performance of the remaining light. From here I’m no use... Other thing to check are your earth mount points on your wiring harness. Clean and replace any that look dodgy/crusty/rusty. All the best, please report back if issue is resolved Cheers Bennie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forester2002s Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 +1 on this being a 'grounding' problem. If one headlight filament doesn't have a good ground, it may try to find a ground through another route, possibly through another headlight. Hence the 'dimming' and other 'weirdness'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montana tom Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 (edited) Had that very thing happen on a 02 obw just the other day. Issue was a bad Ground... (sound familiar ? ) Headlights had been replaced with the china copys... the low beam ground was bad.. Made all the issues you have happen. I replaced that entire headlight housing with a used one and the problem is gone. Edited February 6, 2018 by montana tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt167 Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Had same issue twice. Burned connector on a 2001 Forester. Replace connector with an auto parts store connector and all fine 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orrabein Posted February 7, 2018 Author Share Posted February 7, 2018 Thanks for the feedback and pointers. Will do some playing this weekend and see what I can find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted February 7, 2018 Share Posted February 7, 2018 Could be a failing hi/lo switch. Definitely check connectors at the bulbs first. That's cheaper/easier than a dimmer switch. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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