I have a problem with my crown vic lights front, rear and side. They run for awhile then shut off I believe the fuse is getting hot then when it cools down they come on.
The problem might be with the headlight switch. The headlight switch contains a circuit breaker. And a circuit breaker would cut power to the headlights and other lights if it gets too hot and restore power again once it cooled down. It could be that the circuit breaker in the switch is faulty, and is cutting power to the lights when it shouldn’t.
Tester
What year and engine. I can look up the wiring diagram if I have that information.
Also… does it have the automatic/delayed exit system? Does it have daytime running lamps?
It is a 97 v8 no running lamps Just a switch to shut off and on
There is a circuit breaker in the instrument panel fuse panel. #12 position - 20 amp. It sounds like it is doing it’s job in protecting the circuit.
The circuit components are… headlight multi-function switch, dimmer switch(part of multi-function switch), lighting control module, instrument cluster, lamps, and related wires.
Sorry but there isn’t an easy answer here. Any of these components could be drawing too much power causing the circuit breaker to trip.
Try adjusting the dimmer switch to make the lights full bright. a fully illuminated lamp draws less current than one that is set very dim. This sounds counterintuitive, but it’s true. The filament in the bulb has lower resistance when it’s not fully heated and so draws more current - additionally, the dimmer is likely a resistive dimmer which takes some of the power that would otherwise go to the bulb and turns it onto heat. So you get a double penalty in power with the dash lamps very dim.
Also - Do you have aftermarket headlights? Sometimes these can draw more current than the OEM versions - a number of small things can add up to circuit overload.