1998 MGM GS | LED Headlight retrofit | Mystery problem w/ temporary high beams

[_Hacksaw]

I'll keep this brief. After two days of struggle with my FITMOTOR's LED headlight retrofit and a non-stop migraine, it's working ( almost ). The low beams turn right on. If I push the lever forward the high beams do turn on. So far so good right? However when I drove to the store tonight I carefully checked the 'temporary' high beam setting that occurs when you push the directional signal level backward. Nothing! This one is wild is it not? I did notice on visually checking the front of the car that the low beams both point to the drivers side of the enclosure ( a possible tip? ). Did I blow a fuse or is this an orientation issue and if so how do I fix it? It does seem off that nothing occurs in that temporary directional signal mode.

I'm sure this will all be very simple or so I hope as this has been hellish.

_Hacksaw

[sly]

I'll have to refresh my memory about how the flash to pass circuit works on the LCMs. We'll see if I remember that by the time I get home.

[_Hacksaw]

I'll have to refresh my memory about how the flash to pass circuit works on the LCMs. We'll see if I remember that by the time I get home.

Yes, this is a ‘Flash to Pass’ failure apparently. The blue light does come on however it remains on the low beam setting. Is this something related to a fuse?


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[jaywish]

Hi.

Are you using a single led "bulb" with two rows of emitters? If so I don't believe that the bulb will let you power both rows of emitters at the same time. If your flash to pass merely adds the high beam to the low beam, as opposed to swapping the high for low the bulb will defeat the process by only lighting one row of emitters.

[sly]

Forgot to look at this last night as I had to reconnect some of my wiring shenanigans from installing a new negative terminal from newer for stuff to get my electric radiator fan working again. I'll try again today.

+1 if the bulb won't allow both sides to light at the same time, that will defeat flash to pass.

[sly]

Try putting one halogen back in and see if flash to pass works. (Or back probe the connector.) According to the LCM diagrams I can find, the low beam power comes from the LCM and goes through the multifunction switch before going to the lights and each position changes the output to the lights. I also verified on my wife's 2000 model that the high and low elements are on at the same time in flash to pass but high only in high beam position. So if the LEDs you are using prevent both sides from being on at the same time, then you can't flash to pass.

[_Hacksaw]

Wait a minute: It's called the Flash to Pass fuse if* this is the issue with this system. As with all such things, it needs to be taken slowly and carefully ( wry chuckle ). Maybe I blew this fuse ( I do remember seeing a spark from one connecting block when I was attempting to position it ). Then maybe not? Let me see if I can locate this and then put in another. Be nice if it simply solved this problem Ooooh, I remember the electric cool down fan nightmare. Took me forever to figure out what has happening. That's now in my past however. So for now it's "Flash to Pass". Could it be fuse # 11 at 18 amps.?

https://www.autogenius.info/mercury-grand-marquis-third-generation-1998-2002-fuse-box-diagram-2/

[_Hacksaw]

1998 MGM GS | LED Headlight retrofit | Mystery problem w/ temporary high beams

Here is what the FSM says about this enigmatic problem. It’s got to be one of them on this diagnostic list.

Hacksaw


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[sly]

The headlamps are on a circuit breaker and not a fuse. If your lights work at all, it's not a fuse issue. It could be an LCM issue, or like mentioned already, obnoxious LED issue.

[_Hacksaw]

The Grand Experiment | Rotate the far right ( passenger side ) module. OK, I did this on a thoughtful whim just now. I rotated the passenger side LED module 180 degrees. I also unplugged the connector and shot it full of silicon grease. After asking a neighbor to look at the lights, he confirms that the "Flash to Pass" setting is now working in full.

Having the LCM totally DOA is hard to fathom, at least at this time, as everything else works? So I did this last thing to bring things totally into orientation compliance. I'll fully confirm the "Flash to Pass" as being fully operational later tonight when our sun goes down as it's over 80.1 F in my apartment with everything wide open! Just another wild california heat wave in early April. Geez, this could be, well, a serious years for all of us out west?!!!

More to follow as per my experiments later when it's cooler.

_Hacksaw

Update: Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. I'ts all the same as before. Rats! I cannot figure this one out just yet. I may very well replace one the the new ons ( LED ) with an old halogen bulb and see what happens. The "Flash to Pass" does not work ( yet ) with these LED replacements. Let me see if the LCM is still 100% functional.

[sly]

[_Hacksaw]

Holy total Hell" FITMOTORS LED retrofit failure: Yes, it's all true. Days and hours work and I just now went out into the darkness and swapped out the new LED's that were not functional to the old halogen ones that have been in there for many years. Christ, I'm totally dead beat. Worse, and I know it's very small, I managed to loose one of the 3 tire down clips to the dust cover ( I'll buy replacements somehow ) and just now I can see that one of the 2 circular rings that secure the old bulbs is wobbly from old plastic parts and the brutal heat in the engine compartment. Still it works, thankfully, and yet I'm furious at FITMOTORS who have no phone number or real support and yet these are *not* compatible with the 1998 MGM LCM ( lighting control module ). I've have more when I calm and cool down. Thankfully, despite all of the warm weather out here on the ocean, we have the most incredible assortment of young babes from all over the world assembled here and they are taking over from the old stuffy old academic crowd from the '60s. Enough said ( smile ). So bring on the babes and forget the bulbs, for now

[sly]

Then yeah. Those apparently don't allow both to light at the same time. Sealight is the brand I used... They have several levels of 9007 bulbs on Amazon and they are pretty much plug and play. Auxito seems to be another decent brand as that's what I used for all of the other lights on my vehicles.

[jaywish]

Just thought I would mention I bench tested my bulbs. I put on Oxy Acetylene goggles because I knew they would be bright. Well those goggles were not nearly dark enough. The image of those 3 led segments was burned into my eyes for quite a long time.

[sly]

Yeah... you'll want to not look directly at those things. Have them pointed down and rotate into it. Even with the dark lens on a welding helmet, I wouldn't look at them directly. Them things are proper bright up close.