Ok, so here are the two issues im having with my '89 bird GT.
The first is my driver side headlight, is a flip up..And when i turn my headlights on..i can hear the motor running, but rarely if ever does the headlight rise. This car is new to me, as in days old new, so therefore im new and wondering what some possible problems could be.
My other issue im having is with my Gauges, The speedometer is inaccurate and reads right around double the speed it should, but not quite double for it to be accurate with a little math. The actual amount its off is undetermined and appears to change. Im wondering if this could be a speed-sensor problem, faulty gauge, bad wiring, or one or more of the above, and how to pinpoint which one or ones it is.
I couldnt find anything specific enough to my problem to help so i decided i would just post my problem and hope for the best. Thanks for reading
Since you're new, I need to let you know I personally don't claim to know much of anything, but...
I would suspect there are plastic gears in your headlight door and they are stripped (from what little I know this appears to be an 80s thing). I don't know how people fix them, but I heard there is a way to manually raise/lower pop-up headlights, and I would think you can do those with the doors on your headlights as well.
As for your gauge:
after pulling to the side of the road due to the red and blue lights in your rearview mirror...
Cop: do you know how fast you were going?
You: I couldn't tell ya, the speedometer only goes to 85...
Check the Size of your Tire first for Speed Issue ! Check on The Side of Driver Door there's a Sticket telling the size of the Stock Tire example : 185/60R15 ! Tell me What size is your Tire and The size Wrote on the car and I'll tell you if you'r right or not ! I have the Same problem on my Sunbird GT, Cluster is Messed Up I need to change it so I'll see if it's dûe to a Cluster Issue or the VSS on the Tranny ( Vehicle Speed Sensor ) cause I have the Right size of Tire !
As long as that's the factory door you're good, but if you have my situation where the door is not original, the sticker would be incorrect.
However, if your tire is too small, the gauge will read higher, but should be nowhere near double the speed. My wife is always going 70 or more on the highway, so I bought smaller tires for her truck to slow her down; and as long as she never reads this, my evil little plan will continue to work ]:->
Try turning the little know on top of the headlight motor. It probably won't move the door if the motor won't move it. You can do a quick fix and turn the gear 180 degrees and put it back in (Google search for some how-tos on that, its the same motor as every other GM car with flip lights), or you can pull the stocker gear out and replace it with a brass gear (again, do a Google search for replacements).
appreciate all the replies guys, i'll check my tire size tomorrow and let you know, and as far as the headlight a stripped gear is probably the case, i guess i'll prop it open until i force myself to work on it, i dont know just how much i'll need to take out/take apart to get to the gear and motor..
Not too much, just the one headlight "frame" thing. The motor is bolted to the backside of it.
There are only three 10mm bolts mounting the motor to the frame. A motor from any 87-94 Sunbird GT will fit your car, so look around for a used one before you buy new.
