The circuit breaker is tripping because somehow both the high and low beams are on at the same time.
The negative battery lead should have a around a 10 or 12 gauge wire tying to the vehicle chassis near the battery. If it doesn’t I suggest you add a lead and tie it to a good solid ground point of the chassis. You don’t need to change the ground to the passenger side light.
@cougar that`s correct when I turn the high beams on the 2 low beam lights remain on so all 4 lights are on.
The negative post on the battery has 3 wires connected to it.
It has the big fat wire with the end that goes on the battery post, the other end of that wire is bolted to the alternator bracket.
Then there is the ground wire from the high beam light.
and the third wire is about the same size as the high beam ground wire and it goes from the negative battery terminal to the trucks frame.
I think the high beam switch may be wired incorrectly. I think it supposed to select either the low beams OR the high beams, but not both at the same time. If the switch has three wires one should be from power, and then one wire goes to the low beams and the other goes to the highs. I may be incorrect about that operation, I don’t know that for sure.
on these old chevy trucks all 4 are suppose to be on when the high beams are on, but it definitely seems to be drawing too many amps which is why the circuit breaker keeps tripping and resetting, I`m wondering if someone put the wrong high beam headlamp in?
I`m going to check the high beam lamps tomorrow and see if that part number is the right lamp.
If the low beam lamps have three wires/connectors there is a low beam and a high beam filament in the lamp (#H4656). All four headlamps will be on when high beam is selected but there should be power to only one of the three wires at a time (tan=low, light green=high).
yes, the low beam lamps have the 3 prong connectors. I`ll check tomorrow to see if there is voltage to both wires or only one wire when the high beams are on.
I went out there with a flashlight to see which set is the low beams and the top set are the low beams. On the passenger side the ground wire from the low beam lamp is connected to the negative terminal of the battery. Does that seem right?
on the drivers side the low beam ground is connected to the radiator support frame.
I believe the headlamp circuit breaker is inside the headlight switch. If you don’t find a circuit overload with the headlights you might try installing your original headlight switch.
yeah , I still have the old switch so I probably will put it back in if everything checks out normal with the headlights.
I guess I should have got the OEM switch instead of a cheap aftermarket switch.
The lamp is a wagner 2A1 halogen, I checked their website and it says that`s the comparible lamp for H4656,so It looks like it has the correct lamps.
It really doesn’t matter where the return wire ties back to the negative battery post. The negative post and the truck chassis/body are the same point if the wiring is connected properly.
I didn’t realize you replaced the light switch and it appears it has a current limit circuit inside of it. I assumed that the circuit breaker was external. Reinstalling the old switch should make things work okay, for the headlights at least. With all 4 lights on you are most likely drawing at least 15 amps of current.
yes, I replaced the light switch with a cheapo standard motors after market switch, Im going to put the old switch back on tomorrow, Im sure that will fix the problem.
I put the old switch back in and that fixed the blinking headlights, I`m going to get an OEM switch.
I replaced the 5 amp fuse and that fixed the dash lights.
I never even thought about checking the fuse since the dash lights would come on when the high beams are on, now I know that the high beam indicator light is on a different circuit.
Thanks guys, for all the help, Happy Holidays!
It took some doin’ but you gotter go’n. You’re welcome for the help and thanks for the feedback.