1998. Why don't headlights and/or headlight high beam light on my dash work?

SOURCE: DRL and High Beam do not work right on Honda Accord EX 1998

Some time back I found some data on a similar website suggesting that the Day Light Running circuit board, just under the steering column, developed cracks in some of the soldered joints. Your high beams should also be affected with loss of day light running lights.
Resoldering repaired the continuity of the circuits. Ours is now working quite reliably. Some of the defective areas developed slight brownish discoloration, that's how I was told to recognise the areas to be resoldered. Hope this will help you solve your problem.

SOURCE: DRL-1998 Cavalier Z24

Check your DRL relay that is located in the fuse box. Also check the connector under the battery box for corrosion. (Not a smart place to put a connector) GM really messed up with the wiring on the 98-00 cavaliers headlights.

joecoolvette

• 5660 Answers
• Posted on May 06, 2009

SOURCE: head light not working on high beam

When dealing with wiring on a vehicle, it can go from something real simple, to something real complicated, in a hurry!

1.Checked to make sure the headlights have high beam? Bulbs are good in that respect? Not trying to insult your intelligence, but sometimes it's the simple things we overlook. Again, not trying to sound 'Uppity', but do you have access to a type of jumper wire, that has a needle type of tip on both ends? This way you can stick the needle tip, into the wire that has 'juice' for the low beam side of the headlight, and touch the high beam side. See if the high beam comes on.

2.Sometimes it's as simple as a bad ground. There is a wire, or wires, that come out of the headlight wire loom, and have a rounded metal terminal end. A machine screw, goes through the hole in this rounded metal terminal end, and fastens it to the metal sheet metal of the body.

The metal frame of a vehicle, and the metal sheet metal, is the ground for a vehicle.
A lot of times, where this rounded metal terminal end is fastened to the sheet metal, (Or frame), rust can develop between them. Between the metal terminal end, and the sheet metal. This makes a bad contact for grounding.

There is enough of a ground source for low beam headlights, but not enough for the additional draw of the high beams.

3.In the headlight wire loom, there is a Fusible Link. This looks like a 1, or 2, or 3 inch large bump in the wire. This fusible link is designed to melt inside, and break contact, should it need to. Sometimes it's readily apparent when you view this fusible link. It will have the plastic covering melted on one side, or partially around. Sometimes it's not so obvious. (Isn't wiring fun(?)
You just have to use the probes, (Needle tip is real nice here), on a multimeter, (Set to DC voltage, and the 50 volt scale), and track from battery to headlight switch, to headlights.

4.Lastly, it may be the headlight switch itself.

SOURCE: Headlights don't work on start up

Energy must pass through your switch (hi/low or momentary), then to your headlight, and finally to ground. An interruption anywhere will cause the light to go out. Since both your hi and low beams are not working, I suspect a bad ground connection somewhere. Probably in your switch, but if it is easier to check the headlight socket I would check that too. Use a multi-meter, see if you have power to the switch. If you do, ground the negative lead coming to the switch and see if your headlight comes on. If it does, you know you have a bad ground.

SOURCE: My low beams are not working but the high beams are

IT LOOKS LIKE THE DIMMER SWITCH.