stevo151617 Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 i got home today, went over to my subaru and it started right up. this after hours of toying with it yesterday with no result. so i pulled it right into the garage. the dash lights were still out and all the tail lights and license plate lights were still out, i had the right headlight, but the left was dim. after replacing the left headlight with a known good light i had no difference at all. i then turned the headlights off on the stick from the column and put them into the parking light range, this gave me dash lights, tail lights, sidemarker lights and license plate lights. but then i saw there is a switch on top of the column that also controlled the parking lights, with the headlights on and this switch on, i had all lights, all the way around, except for that left headlight. that is EXACTLY WHAT IS HAPPENING and thats all i know until this weekend when i probe every wire in that car!maybe someone shoot some advice my way? maybe some advice on where to get the schematics for the system? that would be great! rock on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zyewdall Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Sounds like the relay for the parking/dash lights is not working. And perhaps a bad ground to the left headlight. I think the parking light switch on the dash operates independently of the normal headlight switch/relays (because it is not tied into the ignition switch). My Chilton's has decent wiring diagrams. I don't have it handy right now, but you might check that out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeebadoo Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 I recently purchased a '91 loyale and I had the exact same problem. The problem isn't with the ground, it's with the relay. It would seem that Subaru somehow wired it up with a sneak circuit or something so that when the relay goes bad, you still get SOME power to your lights. I just pulled the relay off my '86 GL, put it in my '91 and it now work like a charm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeebadoo Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 I guess I should be more specific, the problem is with the Left Headlight relay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevo151617 Posted March 17, 2006 Author Share Posted March 17, 2006 where is the relay located? im clueless! i see four fusable links under the hood on the left fender side and a fusebox under the dash! i appreciate your help! I recently purchased a '91 loyale and I had the exact same problem. The problem isn't with the ground, it's with the relay. It would seem that Subaru somehow wired it up with a sneak circuit or something so that when the relay goes bad, you still get SOME power to your lights. I just pulled the relay off my '86 GL, put it in my '91 and it now work like a charm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeebadoo Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 where is the relay located? im clueless! i see four fusable links under the hood on the left fender side and a fusebox under the dash! i appreciate your help! It's 1 of 4 relays located under the dash and above the fuse box. Each relay looks like a little round cylinder with 4 wires going into it. For ease of access I removed the bottom panel under the dash, unscrewed the fuse box and pushed it out of the way. The relays are right above where the fuse box was. If you're still having problems, let me know. I'll try and get some pics up for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevo151617 Posted March 17, 2006 Author Share Posted March 17, 2006 thanks man, i never looked up there, any idea which one it was? or how can i test them? i guess whichever one i remove that doesnt change anything, but i got big plans this weekend, so im trying to get it done fast! thanks again! It's 1 of 4 relays located under the dash and above the fuse box. Each relay looks like a little round cylinder with 4 wires going into it. For ease of access I removed the bottom panel under the dash, unscrewed the fuse box and pushed it out of the way. The relays are right above where the fuse box was. If you're still having problems, let me know. I'll try and get some pics up for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevo151617 Posted March 17, 2006 Author Share Posted March 17, 2006 WOO HOO! IT WORKED! subaru is back on all four! special thanks to zeebadoo for being my hero and telling me the answer! if you ever buy a chevy (not likely) let me know whats wrong with it and i can help you eh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeebadoo Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 WOO HOO! IT WORKED! subaru is back on all four! special thanks to zeebadoo for being my hero and telling me the answer! if you ever buy a chevy (not likely) let me know whats wrong with it and i can help you eh? I haven't owned a chevy yet, but hey, you never know... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevo151617 Posted March 18, 2006 Author Share Posted March 18, 2006 looking back, i wish i never went to college to study gm cars and truck because they are based on common knowledge. voltage is voltage, psi are psi, with a subaru the rules are totally different! i love it, its alot more challenging while at the same time alot more failsafe. like my relay, when this thing went it didnt just kill the left headlamp but it also killed the dash lights, which told me something was wrong, while only dimming the tail lamps due to the resistor inside the relay mechanism. the only complaints i have with my 91 loyale is with aquiring parts, i had to steal a rear wiper from a mazda mpv van...honestly, gm cars and trucks are great initally, they have few problems off the line, with the exception of the cobalt which is the greatest abomination of the motor vehicle ever. but as soon as they get to be about 20-30k they fall apart! nothing serious but enough to wish you bought an import. the subaru may be a pain to get parts for but atleast you dont need them near as often! god bless the subaru! the greatest most dependable vehicle on EARTH! rock on subarus! I haven't owned a chevy yet, but hey, you never know... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted March 18, 2006 Share Posted March 18, 2006 Subaru has always been very much into reliablilty - msot things are relay controled except for I think the starter solenoid. My friends Audi A4 burnt out the headlight switch because there is no relay in the circuit - seriously what is Bosch thinking? GD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted March 19, 2006 Share Posted March 19, 2006 The reason the dash lights didn't work is because the power for them runs through only one of the headlight relays. My manual shows it is supposed to be the relay for the right side but it may be wrong. The print does have at least one error in it and this may be another one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevo151617 Posted March 28, 2006 Author Share Posted March 28, 2006 yeah, definately an error, definately was the left headlight! a nice failsafe though,never would have thought of it... The reason the dash lights didn't work is because the power for them runs through only one of the headlight relays. My manual shows it is supposed to be the relay for the right side but it may be wrong. The print does have at least one error in it and this may be another one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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