DRL Geo Metro

If your vehicle is similar to a '98 Metro the dimmer switch portion of your turn signal/combination switch itself may be the culprit. According to the schematic diagram it doesn't look to me like the DRL module could be causing your symptoms.

Take it to a dealer and have them analyze and correct the problem for you..

mike hunt

Michael Bowden wrote:

Now that would take all the fun out of finding and fixing it myself, that is just an option of last resort, and probably quite expensive compared to doing it yourself and asking questions on a NG like this. Thanks for your input

Took a closer look at the drawings for a Metro. Another simpler explanation for your symptoms is the "Light 2 Relay" in the relay box under the hood near the battery. If that relay is OK then another possibility is the power to the relay which comes through the DRL "diode(s)" which are also mounted in the same relay box. Check these items before looking at the switch.

Thank you Silver Surfer, after looking in the relay box I found the Light 2 relay was missing. Guess that explains alot the electrical diagram I have of the headlight system does not show this relay. I switched it with one from AC 2 and the headlights worked properly. Then I went to the local dealer and asked for the Light 2 relay, after taking about 10 min looking at there screen they informed me there was no such relay and that I would have to replace the DRL module. I said thank you and left, next stop local wrecking yard where I got 2 relays for $5 and they both even work. It's good to see at night.

Again thank you.

Good for you. Do you have any idea how your relay turned up AWOL?

Yep, my wife gad the car out of town a while ago and the headlights stopped working, garage "fixed" it and she was on her way. Took me a while to notice they were really dim, the lens are all cloudy and it wasn't until I tried high beams that I found out we had nothing. They must have just pulled the relay to fix it. I found out last night that the lights are turning off. While driving all of a sudden the headlights went out and so did the high beams, only turning off the headlights at the switch brought on the DRL, after a couple of minutes tried the head lights and they were back, high beams and all.They then cycled off again after a short period of time. Tried the other relay I got from the wrecking yard and same response. After initally working about 10-15 min. the lights went out. Looks like I have lots of work to do to try and find why they are cycling on and off. Any ideas?

TIA

Bummer. Took a look at the schematic for a '98 again. The behavior you describe sounds as if a circuit breaker is tripping and then resetting again because of an overload condition; however, there are no circuit breakers for the '98 Metro lighting circuits. Sure wish I had a '97 schematic to look at. Maybe there's a big difference between the two years?

Went to the GEO forum and found a lot of common complaints about the headlights. The most frequent fix mentioned was to pull the connector on the fuse box that has all green wires. It's said that you are likely to encounter one or more "burned" terminations which are causing the headlight woes. See the typical thread at the link below:

Again thank you I will have alook at the fuse panel under the dash, kinda nice knowing it's not just me and this is a problem with a few years, wonder if the later models have a different fuse box or wire harness. Might be worth the time and effort to get one from the wreckers, but first I will look for the wires and see about repairing them. My book on the 95 metro does not show a circiut breaker either although that sure does seem like whats happening. Went over the schematics this morning when I got home from work, unfortunately my book also does not even show the DRL, it just mentions them in a short 8 line paragraph. Guess I should get a better book.

Hey Silver Surfer, pulled the fuse panel and sure enough one of the contacts is burnt and lose, just have to dig up a good one at the wreckers and I should be good for a couple of years. Not willing to pay the $400 dollars everyone else has run into.

Great. A solution at last. Sure glad you whipped that problem. Good work.

Look for the YouTube video how to repair the burnt wire/connector under the dash in the fuse block. This is a really good fix when you lose both your high and low beams headlights. You know your under hood headlamp relays are working if you hear it click on when you rotate the headlamp switch to park position and then you hear a 2nd click of the relay when you rotate the switch all the way to turn on your headlights. The other fix when you have high beam headlights only is most likely your DRL module that sits right under the steering column and you most likely have got a burnt out matching pin and end connector. Useless you're a purist and want to keep your DRL working then you're going to need to make wire repairs and buy a new/used DRL. THIS IS A FIX THAT I DID TO BYPASS THE DRL AND GET YOUR LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS WORKING AGAIN PERMANENTLY! It's a 10 terminal wire connector that goes into your DRL. Cut the red/green stripe wire and the red/white stripe wire off the back of the connector only, then strip the wires and butt connect the two wires together. Leave all the other wires on the connector and just let it sit there under your dash. PROBLEM SOLVED YOUR LOW BEAMS SHOULD NOW WORK! Who needs a DRL, just turn on your park or low beams lights going down the road for safety if you'd like and CONTINUE ENJOYING YOUR GEO LIKE I DO MINE THAT HAS 430,000 MILES ON IT! My 1995 1.3L 4 cyl manual trans still gets 40mpg and it can't be beat by the auto manufacturers EVEN TODAY!