[greensmurf20]

hey guys my headlights stuck today! i took a pic so my GF could show her dad and i had the headlights up cuz i like them and then they wouldnt go back down. they stick once in a while but if you jiggle the handle back and forth/side to side it goes down but not this time. any leads? they always moved freely before but just not now. thanks in advance for any input

 

[Rich]

headlights stuck today

One bit of advice would be not to force it. I (actually my son) forced the lights and it sheared off the rod that is atached to the gearbox in the rear fo the headlight compartment. A real pain in the kazoo to get to and then to take out. I am going to have to weld or replace the rod. Please post what made it stick in the first place.

 

[greensmurf20]

HA! i wish i knew what made it stick. i found a screw down in the hole where the lever goes through the floor, pulled it out and it didnt make a difference, the cable is not pinched and the headlights still have some play in them so they're not stuck themselves. idk wtf is up with it but i dont like it....lol

 

[RITTER]

Sounds like a possible rust build up in the cable . You wont like this but either replace the cable or start taking it loose . I would start at the bracket at the hood hinge, take it loose and start soaking it with pb blaster or some other neutrilizer. Try to work the lever then, any resistance you take off of it will help. as a last option you may have to take it completely out and replace it , but if it was just working, you probably just have the rust dust buildup syndrome. Goodluck and we wish you well!!!

RITTER

 

[greensmurf20]

PO replaced the cable 2 years ago and its beautiful and worked great all except that the mechanism in the tranny tunnell would move sometimes and the rod would catch on a rib in the tunnell. (made it stick sometimes) looking today the passengerside bucket moves all over the place, the mechanism does also, any chance this is the problem? i tried rolling the lights over by hand and they wont go (is the rod going from the drivers headlight to the passenger side headlight supposed to have 2 bends in it). thanks for the luck ritter. need all i can get when the word opel comes up...lol

 

[RITTER]

Reading your post I am getting a picture of the Pass. side light moving and the Driver side still locked? If that is correct I would say more of a chance the positioning nut on pass. side loosened up and is allowing headlight to move without lever actuator being engaged. Try to get your lights back in the same position as each other, (might have to loosen some of the connecting bolts and nuts) then start looking at all the connections of the actuator rod ( or what ever you call it) and see if they are correct. If I remember my setup I believe the rod does have two bends in it kinda looks like a stretched out z. I can tell more when I get home this afternoon and actually look at one of the GT's. I think I heard somewhere on this board before that if a headlight gets stuck in the closed position when the locking nut loosens it is a bear to get right . try doing a search for headlights, I am sure there was one sometime ago. Yes we all need a lot of luck when it comes to the word OPEL!

 

[RITTER]

Sorry it has taken so long to get back to you, My Mom had a stroke Friday and this is the first chance i have had to reply. I was wrong about the stretched out Z on the headlight rotation linkage mine is in a sort of straight set up, I didn't have a chance to look too closely though. But yours definitely shouldn't have a couple of bends in it so maybe that is the problem???
Good luck if you need pics or something let us know

RITTER

 

[greensmurf20]

i'm very sorry to hear about your mother, wish her the best of luck. the headlights both move, sort of. they are stuck in the up position and they will only turn over about 1/5 of the way. the back side towards the rear of the passenger side headlight then starts to "sink" down into the headlight compartment. if you look int he gap between the bucket and the fender/intake panel.... the whole mechanism moves up and down and every way you can imagine depending on what way you move the lever. i'd post a pic of the rod to see if its right but i stil can't ever figure out how to post pics here.....

 

[greensmurf20]

i feel pretty dumb now, i finally noticed what is probably keeping my headlights from revolving. the body seam between the fender and the air intake is falling apart and there seems to be a piece of "L" channel that the mechanism mounts to and that is just sort of hanging down. i tried to take some pics and try to post a pic or 2 but the batteries are dead and the pics just look like streaky colors.

 

[greensmurf20]

well since i'm nearing the completion of my engine rebuild, i figured it was time to fix the steering colum and headlights before i start driving the car again. i'm sure everybody knows there is supposed to be a inspection panel in the innerwheel wells, to get to the back of the headlight revolving mechanisms right? well a PO had cut part of it out and replaced it, maybe rust...? anyway there was no longer an inspection panel there and he just cut 3 cuts in the shape of a "C" and all 3 cuts were 90 degrees to each other, so one more cut would be a perfect square, so you would bend the piece of sheetmetal back that now forms the inner fender to get behind the mechanism. well there is a plate/bracket type of thing that holds the revolving mechanism up, it is attatched to the body inbetween where the hood goes, and the headlight bucket cut outs are, and the other end of this plate/bracket has 2 bolt holes and bolts up to the inner wheel well. well my plate/bracket was extremely rusty and not having the extra 2 bolts at the bottom that should attatch it to the inner fender, it finally gave out allowing the buckets to bind. so a little time with "C" clamps, prybars, and a wire welder fixed things up ALOT!!! once i got the buckets all adjusted right after putting them back, they work better than they used to before they broke and they dont occasionally hang up anymore. i would like to thank RITTER for all the help, info, and ideas....helped me to understand the revolving headlights alot better than i thought i knew them. and RICH, maybe this is what happened to your GT? if not it must be one of the many things RITTER mentioned. thanks again

 

[Rich]

Hey you may have found my problem too. I have taken it all apart and started repainting and rebuilding because of all the rust and I have a couple of bolts rusted out also. Thanks for the heads up.

Cash Poor Opel Rich

 

[Old Hippie]

Hey, greensmurf. After that little problem, how did you gf's dad like your GT? Nothin gets a girls father to like ya better than a car from his youth! LOL

 

[greensmurf20]

lol he thought it was cool, and even stopped by to look at it!!!......he has always been a mopar freak but did own one until a 1-ton chevy decided to run him over on the way home from picking it up.... he still never liked me tho, not until we broke up and nows hes cool with me. LOL