No n/side dipped beam....not bulb.

[mcnob]

It's a '99 1.8T SE if it matters but the problem is that the dipped beam on the passenger side is not lighting up properly on the bulb (which I tried replacing). Driver side works fine but the nearside will only go as follows:

Side lights = Lights as per drivers side
Dipped beam = No change from above
Full beam = No bulbs lit at all

I dunno if it's related but my courtesy light shorted out when the switch broke and took the windows and c/locking with it. New fuse fixed that but could it have shorted a headlight relay or something?

Any suggestions gratefully received.

Thanks,
Dave

[martin1810]

The headlights don't have a relay but they do have a fuse. Check all the fuses.

[mcnob]

The headlights don't have a relay but they do have a fuse. Check all the fuses.

Yep, first thing I checked. 2x10amp and 2x5amp for parking lights all fine. In fact, I checked every single fuse anyway.

[martin1810]

If the fuses test ok then you may need a new light switch or a new flasher switch. It will be easier to swap switches than test the wiring, unless you are good at autoelectrics.

[mcnob]

Great. Sounds like a trip to a scrappy and many wasted hours in store then.

Thanks for your input.

[mcnob]

Ok, have tried swapping the switch from an identical car who's lights work fine and problem still the same. I noticed from the wiring diagram in the Haynes manual that the fuses in slots 20 & 21 should be 15amp whereas I only had 10amp ones in there. I swapped them out of curiosity but as suspected, no change.

Any other ideas?

[martin1810]

That suggests that the flasher switch is faulty as that controls main/dip. The fuse rating don't matter as long as it works. It could be a bad earth. Sometimes the earth is just good enough for the side light but not good enough for the other bulbs.

[mcnob]

Forgive my ignorance but flasher switch.....that would be the steering wheel stalk that also handles the indicators, right?!?!?!

[martin1810]

I've been looking at the wiring diagram for your car (sad really). I think your problem is a bad connection in the headlamp wiring or an earth fault. The main beam and dip beam are on different circuits so it shouldn't be a switch fault. I would try running an extra earth wire to the headlight unit to see if the bulbs light.