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2006 Pulse Headlight problem (bad SAM?)

5K views 5 replies 5 participants last post by  Mike T 
#1 ·
Original post for background:


(I have a 2006 pulse with only 3000 miles on it. Great car but I noticed yesterday that only the outside headlight (there are two lights on each side, peanut style) on each side comes on and comes on when the car starts. The inside light will not come on under any circumstance. The light control arm has three positions and does not have any effect on the lights at all. Because the inside light doesn't come on the bright light control (Pushing the arm out or pulling it in) has no effect. I cannot find out if this model has the daytime driving light function, but I have gone thru the procedure to disable it i.e.: switch of the ignition, operate the headlight flashers, at the same time pressing the button on the car key that unlocks the door. That had no effect. I would have thought that if it was a fuse none of the lights would work. Any help, suggestions or direction would be greatly appreciated!)


Current Status:


I put the car in the local shop that services the Smart and they determined the problem was in the lighting arm on the steering column and ordered a new one and replaced the old. That did not work! they said that when the system was hooked up to their device (?) that everything worked fine but when taken off the device and attempted to use the lights the fuse blew every time. They are now telling me it is the SAM unit. So...can anyone tell me where I can get a SAM unit for the 2006 Pulse?


Again any help would be greatly appreciated!
 
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#2 ·
again this is an electrical issue which is hard to pin down without throwing parts at it...
since its a 450, its even tougher to find... so I will give you my opinion on this, so take it for what its worth.. as I have some experience owning a 450 with electrical gremlins..
if you pull back the carpet to the battery, youll notice the battery and its ground connection, take it off and clean it even if it looks clean.
do the battery and the stud on the body,... then to left just next to the center of the car is Another stud with multiple ground connections.
these do most of the up front connections, take them off, clean each with a wire brush, and the stud as well.
then in the rear of the car under the service panel for the engine, the ground cable from engine to body... REPLACE IT.. its braided junk.
clean the stud, and the bolt connection on the other end and REPLACE THE CABLE .. use a solid copper stranded coated wire at least 6ga.
and this is important.. get a tube of dielectric grease and cover all ground connections when you clean them. AND while you are at it DO THE SAM GROUND ALSO!! I have found in my experiences with my own 450 the electronics are extremely sensitive to ground corrosion,and to MOISTURE .. if your carpet is damp underneath the passenger side foot area OR under the mat around the engine cover... then youll have all kinds of problems. welcome to the club..if either is damp , youll have to dry it out.. common causes are: up front plugged fresh air drains, and poor sealing around windhield and door frame. in the rear. poor sealing around tailgate, rear hatch..
so check for damp...
clean your grounds.. all of them..
lastly pull the panel at drivers footwell area, (above your feet) and check the grounds there...pull the relays one by one and clean the spades.. let me know how you make out ..
Steveg 05 450 S.MANN cabrio
 
#6 ·
Fusebox = SAM. Take it down (need a T-10 screwdriver at the front) and firstly check the headlight fuses. There is one for each side. They're likely OK. Then remove the N11-3 plug. Look for signs of melting in the two centre contacts on that plug and corresponding melting in the SAM pin vicinity. If there is melting, all is not lost if one headlight still works.

What you need to do with this if there is evidence of arcing/melting is wire in external relay(s) for the headlights. You can run both headlights off the one good SAM circuit if you add an external relay.

Basic instructions are here:

mounting external relays for headlights - How-To: 450 Model, 2005-2006, diesel - Club smart Car
 
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