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Old 12-04-2016, 09:51 PM   #1
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98 International 3800 DRL on

Hello everyone.
I am new to the Skoolie club, but I bought a 1998 International 3800 Carpenter series with the dt466e in it about a month ago, and have been working on gutting it, and trying to crank it every once in a while to make sure it stays running well. When I went to start it this afternoon, it had zero battery power. No buzzers, clicks, gauges moving, lights, or anything. I put it on a battery charger and let it charge for a few hours and then went out to start it. Started up fine, but I noticed that a headlight was blown. Took it for a drive to make sure everything was good. When I got home and parked it, the "good" headlight never turned off. I have tried everything I can think of short of disconnecting the battery (guess I'll just let it die again). What is causing the DRLs to stay on? I'm also assuming that whatever is going on may be the reason one light is out.
Any suggestions?

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Old 12-05-2016, 12:07 AM   #2
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It is not good for batteries to be discharged 100%. Sometimes as a battery gets older it will discharge and then not take a recharge.

I am not sure exactly what you mean when you say DRL.

If headlights are not turning off I would suggest you most likely have a headlight switch that has gone bad. It happens which is why most of them are mounted in an easy to get to location for service.

On a Loadstar bus I owned I had a leak in the cowl that tended to drip down onto the headlight switch. It didn't take long for the resistor coil to turn green and malfunction.

Short term, until you can determine why your lights won't turn off, disconnect the battery when you are not using the bus.
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Old 12-05-2016, 02:22 AM   #3
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DRL = Daytime Running Lights. Some vehicles use the high beams at low power, others use parking/turn signal bulbs. It's intended to make you more visible coming down the road. I think they're pretty much standard equipment nowadays.

When you say it doesn't go off I presume you mean you turn off the key, remove it and the light stays on? I'd check all the headlight wiring out, sounds like there's either a bare wire that's touching an always-powered connection point or a switch that's not opening up when it should.
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Old 12-05-2016, 08:55 AM   #4
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Thanks for your replies guys!
It's the low beams that are staying on. Does that mean that it is not the drls? I think the headlight switch might be the culprit? Do I just follow the wires from the headlight switch to check for bare spots? I can hardly see them in most places, but could check what I can find. The switch seems to work normal in all other aspects. Is that still likely to be the problem?
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Old 12-05-2016, 09:43 AM   #5
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Year: 1998
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Chassis: 3800
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HardenDrew View Post
Thanks for your replies guys!
It's the low beams that are staying on. Does that mean that it is not the drls? I think the headlight switch might be the culprit? Do I just follow the wires from the headlight switch to check for bare spots? I can hardly see them in most places, but could check what I can find. The switch seems to work normal in all other aspects. Is that still likely to be the problem?
Try pulling the positive wire off of the light switch. Have a piece of tape to put on wire end so it does not touch anything.
(use test light (or volt meter) to find the correct terminal)
If the light is still on after switch has no power wire connected, the power is coming from another spot like Alley described.
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Old 12-05-2016, 09:51 PM   #6
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Hey guys! Thanks for your help again!
I didn't end up fixing the problem, but I found the fuse that controls the daytime running lights, and pulled it (by pulling one at a time until they cut off). All other lights and low/high beams all work with the switch. Just no more DRLs! The DRL system was aftermarket on this bus, and I'm assuming it grounded out somewhere behind the dash, but haven't (and don't know if I will) chased down the short.
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Old 12-05-2016, 11:14 PM   #7
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Glad you found a solution..... DRL systems weren't required equipment on vehicles until well after the model year of that bus so there's no point in chasing it down unless you REALLY want them. You can just turn the headlights on when you're driving and get the same thing (which a lot of school districts did anyway).
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