Might have a ghost

[BlueBoy-SKO]

Happy Christmas!

I either have a ghost or there something crazy going on with my headlights and clearance light wiring.
Bus has been sitting in the driveway for weeks now with no problems. I took it out for a drive yesterday and this morning I found out the batteries were 100% dead. I put the charger on it and noticed the headlights were glowing. They got brighter as the batteries were charging and also the clearance lights were on. The headlight switch was off. I started pulling fuses and relays but the headlights are still not going off. I kept going back-and-forth with the relays and turning the ignition on and off and eventually they went off. I was working on some unrelated wiring and noticed the lights came back on all by themselves. Not just once or twice but about a half a dozen times they came on.
When I was driving yesterday evening I noticed the charging voltage was a little low. I’d say in the neighborhood of 11 to 12 V. I’m not 100% sure but I am pretty sure before last night it was charging in the 14 V area. I suspect a leaking diode may be the culprit.
Has anyone had this problem before?
It’s a 1999 Bluebird Freightliner.
Thanks!

 

[BamaBus]

The daytime running lights module is one option. Mine was a blue module located somewhere in the front panel area. When I removed it, all returned to normal. Search "daytime running lights" here. It was also a 1999 Bluebird Freightliner.

 

[BlueBoy-SKO]

Thanks BamaBus!
I think you might have the answer.
This morning I was checking on a few things and the phantom lights came on again. When I turned the headlight switch on and off the they went out. It happened again a few minutes later. I was waiting for them to come on again but apparently they knew I was on to them. Because they wouldn’t come back on and they haven’t come on in the past 7 hours. I was hoping to catch them in the act and then unplug the module and put an end to the phantom light mystery. But no such luck. I’ll unhook the battery before I go to bed tonight and try again in the morning.
I went for a short drive this afternoon and the charging voltage seems to be normal again, so I’m not sure what’s going on there.

 

[BlueBoy-SKO]

Just a thought. Shouldn’t there be a fuse somewhere for the DTRL module? Because I’m pretty sure I pulled every single fuse and the lights never went off.

 

[BamaBus]

I think that I also removed fuses but wound up removing the module. Could have just unplugged it but wanted it in case I needed a reference for replacement. Lights turned on when needed with it removed/unplugged. It you have the FS65 it was in the center of the dash area behind some plastic panels.

 

[BlueBoy-SKO]

I had found the controller before and just now unplugged it, also pulled the fuse. I’m leaving the batteries hooked up tonight. Hopefully they’re not dead in the morning.
I’ve been waiting for the lights to come back on by themselves again. But they’re not.
Actually now I’m beginning to think the DRL’s are not working at all. Because before I unplugged it I had the engine running had it in gear and released the parking brake (at operating pressure) and the lights did not come on. I’m pretty sure at this point they should come on.
They did work before and they did come on by themselves before and now it’s not doing either one.

I’m wondering what happened the other day when I was pulling fuses and the lights wouldn’t go off. I’m thinking that once the circuit was energized the relays latched on, it wasn’t until I pulled everything then they went off.
Another thing that was weird, one of the headlight relays was actually working the dash lights. You can see in the photo the Panel Lamps Relay, R.H. HOLPS relay and the L.H. HOLPS relay. Also the tail/marker lamps relay was involved. When the lights were in phantom mode, I’m pretty sure it was the RH relay that was running the panel lamps. I’m not imagining things, something was really out of whack. I’m not used to diagnosing electrical problems when a computer is involved. I don’t know if the computer is involved in the 1999 buses. But I’ve read newer vehicles (not sure the year or make) the computer is involved with just about everything. Like if you turn the lights on the computer gets the signal and does its own thing for you.

For me personally I could care less if the DLR‘s are not working. I’m in the habit of turning the headlights on anyway. I know in Canada and I think some US states the DLR’s are mandatory after a certain year.
I just don’t want to wake up some morning and find out my batteries are totally dead again. I would install a master Kill-switch but I don’t want to take the risk of something else getting screwed up. I know the dryer has a heater in it to prevent freezing. I’m sure there are other things I’m not aware of.

https://www.skoolie.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=80632&stc=1&d=1735258273
https://www.skoolie.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=80633&stc=1&d=1735258273

 

[nikitis]

If it's that difficult to identify I'd probably run fresh wiring and just rig a new headlight system up without DRL's.

There's plenty of videos online on how to wire up a headlight setup for automotive. You can make something primitive that just works rather than wasting a ton of time chasing gremlins.

My thoughts anyway. Nobody is gonna check out fine you for not having DRLs.

 

[BlueBoy-SKO]

If it's that difficult to identify I'd probably run fresh wiring and just rig a new headlight system up without DRL's.

It’s just me. I like answers. I’ll keep beating a dead horse until I think I saw it move and then beat it some more. :horse3: Eventually I’ll give it up, actually I may be there already.