Electical/Headlight issue (SOLVED) Plus what is this mystery corroded part?

Attachment 9847Hello,

2005 Chevy Aveo LT Hatchback

I have very limited mechanical knowledge and even more limited electrical knowledge. My wife started having electrical issues in her Aveo earlier this year. She seems to have a short of some sort and her radio periodically goes out - a quick beating of the dashboard can bring it back in most cases. My inquiry is unrelated to the radio, but I figured I'd throw it out there.

My current issue is the driver side headlight socket. My wife said her headlight started going in and out lately bought a new bulb. I went to change it and saw that the plastic socket was burnt up and melted around the headlight prongs. so much so that when I went to pull it out one of the bulb prongs stayed in there. I bought the replacement socket, wired it up, and got nothing. I verified the bulb is working. I took the other headlight out just to compare and do some voltage readings and determined that the 3 wires that go to the socket do not have power running to them.

Firstly, does each headlight have it's own fuse and could that be my issue?

Secondly, when I was looking at the wiring I noticed some serious decay on an electrical part I have no idea about and when I went to fiddle with it literally crumbled and fell apart in my hands. It looks to be some type of ground or something surrounded by ceramic maybe???? I have no clue but the main wiring that the headlight wires run into is has a wire coming out that is (was) connected to this mysterious piece. The inside is a spring. I attached the picture (not sure if it worked) and was hoping someone could tell me what this is, what purpose it serves and how the hell I can get a new part. It looks like I need the entire White Piece and the wire connectors on both sides due to very heavy corrosion. It is located to the bottom left of my battery and there is a metal bracket connected directly to the body/frame that holds up a plastic/ceramic piece with a spring in the middle and wires going into each end.

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Originally Posted by lazerface

Firstly, does each headlight have it's own fuse and could that be my issue?

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The owners manual has the info you are looking for regarding the fuse block....for the Hatchback the low beam lights are LOW BEAM RT (Passenger side) / LOW BEAM LT (Driver Side).

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hoping someone could tell me what this is, what purpose it serves and how the hell I can get a new part

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Not sure, but I've changed your thread title to get a few more eyeballs over here. People like "what is this part?" games.

Also, the headlight wiring can be a problem in these cars, eg:

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the headlight wiring harness. I had both corrode on me and would do funky stuff to the headlights. Eventually, one plug melted and the other was one showed signs of heat damage too.

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From: http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/f108/...-please-15753/

Unfortunately, that thread died without the solution being posted

Looks like some type of ground strap with a ...ballast resistor in the ceramic?? Never seen that setup before. Make sure you have solid ground from the battery, frame, engine and body, as all need a solid (un corroded) ground.

OK, the headlight is fixed. It was the fuse. My new harness is insulated/heat resistant so hopefully no more overheating and melting of plastic under the hood.

As for the mysterious part it is still hanging there in pieces and all electrical parts are functioning fine. With that said, I'm not going to ignore an issue that could be a potential safety hazard.

Thanks for the replies and I will keep the thread open to see if we can get a definitive answer on what my mystery part is. It is hard to tell what exactly it is grounding (if it is indeed a ground) because the two wires that go to the part come out of a main wiring group that goes all around the motor.

If history is correct that ceramic part is for your cooling fan. I think it might be a resistor that allows it to run slow speed?

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Originally Posted by lazerface

OK, the headlight is fixed. It was the fuse. My new harness is insulated/heat resistant so hopefully no more overheating and melting of plastic under the hood.

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Thanks for letting us know. Nice to get a resolution for future reference.

http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/webki...b3f7/imagejpeg

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Originally Posted by lazerface

Attachment 9847Hello,

2005 Chevy Aveo LT Hatchback

I have very limited mechanical knowledge and even more limited electrical knowledge. My wife started having electrical issues in her Aveo earlier this year. She seems to have a short of some sort and her radio periodically goes out - a quick beating of the dashboard can bring it back in most cases. My inquiry is unrelated to the radio, but I figured I'd throw it out there.

My current issue is the driver side headlight socket. My wife said her headlight started going in and out lately bought a new bulb. I went to change it and saw that the plastic socket was burnt up and melted around the headlight prongs. so much so that when I went to pull it out one of the bulb prongs stayed in there. I bought the replacement socket, wired it up, and got nothing. I verified the bulb is working. I took the other headlight out just to compare and do some voltage readings and determined that the 3 wires that go to the socket do not have power running to them.

Firstly, does each headlight have it's own fuse and could that be my issue?

Secondly, when I was looking at the wiring I noticed some serious decay on an electrical part I have no idea about and when I went to fiddle with it literally crumbled and fell apart in my hands. It looks to be some type of ground or something surrounded by ceramic maybe???? I have no clue but the main wiring that the headlight wires run into is has a wire coming out that is (was) connected to this mysterious piece. The inside is a spring. I attached the picture (not sure if it worked) and was hoping someone could tell me what this is, what purpose it serves and how the hell I can get a new part. It looks like I need the entire White Piece and the wire connectors on both sides due to very heavy corrosion. It is located to the bottom left of my battery and there is a metal bracket connected directly to the body/frame that holds up a plastic/ceramic piece with a spring in the middle and wires going into each end.

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http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/webki...f2c5/imagejpeg

It is the engine coolant fan resistor OEM 94812213

Excellent.

Thanks again for reporting back!

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Originally Posted by lowchaz

It is the engine coolant fan resistor OEM 94812213

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Thanks lowchaz! Just ordered a replacement from GM Parts direct.