help!! headlamps keep poping up

[rsnoble]

i have got an mx5 every now and then when i come out to my car the headlamps are up. and the battery is totaly flat, it normaly after it is hot, i doesnt do it all the time sumtimes it goes for weeks without trouble, does anyone have any idea what it could be, i have also had headlamp pop up on me when im driving

[Stickers]

rsnoble said:

i have got an mx5 every now and then when i come out to my car the headlamps are up. and the battery is totaly flat, it normaly after it is hot, i doesnt do it all the time sumtimes it goes for weeks without trouble, does anyone have any idea what it could be, i have also had headlamp pop up on me when im driving

I had a very similar problem when I first bought my Mk1, except that the main beam kept coming on & because they wern't popping up, I had no idea what was going on!

I was convinced the problem was down to a faulty stalk (operating main beam Flash-To-Pass) but thankfully after further investigation I eventually traced the problem down to a relay.........changed the relay & all was well with the World!

I used to carry a leisure battery & a set of jump leads around in the boot, just in case of disaster - that caused more problems than I had anticipated as one day it tipped over during a fast/fun-filled trip.......spilling acid all over the contents of the boot!

[rsnoble]

yer battery acid tends to make a mess, can you rember were the relay was as i may change it anyway

[Stickers]

The headlight relay is located in the engine bay along with the tail light relay & headlight retractor relay (or horn relay on later models).

They are situated along the inner wing on the passenger side, very near the bulkhead & close to the brake/clutch fluid reservoirs - the relays have a narrow/long cover over them.

[NiceCupOfTea]

Stickers said:

I used to carry a leisure battery & a set of jump leads around in the boot, just in case of disaster - that caused more problems than I had anticipated as one day it tipped over during a fast/fun-filled trip.......spilling acid all over the contents of the boot!

One of the best things I have ever bought for my cars:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...

Battery in the Saab loses its charge if not used for a couple of days - a quick jump from this and it fires right up - must ahve done 7 or 8 jumps and it still shows full power (plus it has an inverter, torch, compressor, etc.)

[rsnoble]

thanx sounds like a good idea but i realy cave got to try and cure the problem

[trace1967]

rsnoble said:

thanx sounds like a good idea but i realy cave got to try and cure the problem

hey its definitely the relay, this happened to me last year. go to www.autolink.com - andy stott will send you one out. Mine kept going up/down up/down. Its situated on the passenger side wing over the wheel near the washer bottle. Its clipped on the side.