[Eric109]

Time to 'pick the brains' of the more knowledgeable. Long story short...because of my stupidity my 03 LT tipped over into my car. Lots of cosmetic damage but the LT seems to still run great with the exception of the headlight; low and high beams don't work. No exterior damage can be seen to the headlight (cracks, etc.). Replaced the bulbs but neither still work. I would be very appreciative if anyone had any ideas as to the problem. Thanks in advance for any ideas. Happy riding!

 

[sheldan2]

You probably need to take the headlight section off and closely inspect for damage. Check your wiring carefully, I am sure it is something simple, you just need to pull it apart to check it out. Could be something as simple as a ground wire.

 

[jzeiler]

Look for a spliced set of brown wires. That is your most likely culprit.

 

[BecketMa]

I don't remember if you can access the light bulb sockets with enough room to insert the end of a probe from a simple, inexpensive multitester (Lowes, Harbour Freight, Home Depot, etc have them)? It sure would make your life easier if you test for voltage to either the low or high beam light bulbs without having to remove the tupperware to remove the nose cone.

If I remember correctly, early year LTs had a problem with the brown ground wire to the headlight. It seems as if would easily loose electrical contact. Since it;s the ground for both low and high beams, both lights cease to function.

I seem to remember people finding another place to connect it from the head light onto the frame?

The plug on the wiring harness connects directly to the head light assembly on the left hand side, the clutch handle side. It uses a U shaped spring to hold the plug to the jack. You do NOT want to loose it!! If you do, you have to order a repair plug from BMW to get the retainer clip. I used hot glue to hold mine in place.

Here is a link to to what the plug looks like:
http://www.maxbmwmotorcycles.com/fiche/DiagramsMain.aspx?vid=51717&rnd=05012012

61_2484 - REPAIR CABLE MAIN CABLE HARNESS picture

part number 01*83 30 0 402 336*REPAIR PLUG, 3-PIN - NO. 6106110.04*1 *$15.81

The plug has 3 conductors, negative, plus to low beam, and plus to high beam. You can see the U shaped retainer clip in the pix.

You can check the plug by putting the minus probe into the socket and then checking plus socket with the plus probe. If I remember correctly the low beam stays on when the high beam is switched on. If so, turn the high beam on and check each plus socket.

If that checks out, you can verify a ground wire problem inserting the plus probe into the socket and then touching the negative probe to the frame. Make sure the negative contact point you try is bare metal. If the plug is getting 12 volts, when you connect the probe to ground you should get a reading of a little higher than 12 volts DC. It's important that you make sure the multitester is set to check DC and not AC or current.

One way to make sure you have a good ground point to check is the headlight socket is still grounded is to attach a wire to the negative battery terminal and run the wire into the headlight area so that you touch the negative ground probe to it while you have the plus probe inserted into the plus socket.

Since the negative post on your battery is still connected you don't have to worry if the test wire accidentally touches the frame.

Best from Tucson
Bob

PS: keep us posted on your progress with this

 

[billd]

As all the guys indicate the ground is normally the issue.. In john Z's post he points to the Brown wires and to be specific I have had 2 LT's with this issue.. The problem can be a bit hard to see as the brown wires that are bundled are INSIDE the headlight housing and usually quite well tucked into the back of the housing..
Trust this discusion that if you have a good ground to the housing external connector.. The problem is this bundle of wires that you can fix with a bit of patience.

 

[Eric109]

Trying to fix the headlight (low and high beam) problem. I took off both right and left upper fairings; now trying to remove the headlight assembly. I can't see any more screws or fasteners holding it in place but it seems to still be attached near the bottom of the windshield. Any advice on how to remove the headlight assembly...do I have to lift up, push down, pull really hard...?

 

[deanwoolsey]

Whatever you do, don't try to force anything loose on the LT. You will break it. I don't think you need to remove the headlamp to solve this, just get a good mirror and use it to work underneath the fairing. The brown wires John spoke of are attached to the base of the headlamp where the bulbs are seated. Just trace it back and look for the broken connection. With that said, if you want to continue disassembly, there is a screw behind the map light which I think you'll need to get to. Also, if you're not aware, there's good reason why John's icon looks like it does. Trust what he says.

 

[PMitchell]

Look for a spliced set of brown wires. That is your most likely culprit.

+1

:bmw:

 

[westvandude]

I believe once you get all the plastics removed it's 4 bolts holding it on.

See here for HID conversion: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYRQmZyZNhI

Unfortunately I didn't get a good picture of mine while doing the front fairing bracket replacement.

 

[Eric109]

Thanks to all for your input. Headlight problem fixed with securing the brown wires. Didn't have to remove the headlight assembly so that will have to wait for another problem. Thanks again...you all are an incredible resource!