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Can the "constantly-on" feature of the 1995 headlight switch be fixed so that I can actually switch the f-ing things off?
I know there's a dead spot on the switch, but this is a haphazard solution. Is there another model/year switch I can put in to get around this "feature"??
My C70 has a small screw that when turned, will allow normal Volvo headlight function. I wish I could do that to my v940
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Hi,
So why do you want to disable the daytime light feature when its a proven fact that the more visible you are the more other drivers actually see you hence you are safer in a car with daytime running lights than you would be without the lights !
Only my opinion of course.
Cheers,
Dave
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I work at a facility where if you drive up to the gate with your lights on they have legal authority to shoot at you. Seriously.
I almost always drive with my lights on - even in the day, but I switch them off when I go through the gate at work. The "feature" on my 940 means that even at the middle position I can't deactivate my headlights. It means I can't turn them off when I'm servicing the car either. It's dumb and it goes too far.
There *is* a small "dead" spot where I can actually switch them off, but this is a sloppy solution and it doesn't always work.
I don't like M16 bullets flying over my head.
It's fine if they are On at "off". It's fine if they are On at "on". But I need some position - preferably the "running lights" lights setting where I can shut the damn things off. If not for the front gate
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I completely agree with you that lights on is a good thing, and I run all my cars that way, with the headlight switch left in the 'on' position virtually all the time.
But, on the 95 that I once had and now sometimes work on for my friend, it is a pain to not be able to turn them off, ever. Sometimes I want the fogs only, or the corners only, etc. And when the car is on, the HL's are on. PITA.
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Dear Dave,
Hope you're well. If all cars have day-time running lights, those lights probably won't make one car more noticeable than another. Attentive drivers will notice a car, with or without the daytime running lights. Inattentive drivers won't notice a car, because such drivers are not road-focused.
Where additional and/or brighter lights may help is in fog or at night. Such lights will help the road-focused driver to see something sooner, than otherwise they might.
That's why I converted my wagons to have two rear fog-lights. Even so, such lights are of little help if a following driver is focused on music, passengers, a phone discussion, etc.
Hope this helps.
Yours faithfully,
Spook
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Dear Repairmanjack,
Hope you're well. For cars sold in the USA, Volvo used headlight switch #1362699 in the 1991 through 1995 940s (and some 740s). Cars sold in Canada have a different switch (#3515978). I recall reading posts, that Canadian cars are set up for daytime running lights.
Part #1362699 is about $20-25. Inspect your car's switch. If it bears number 3515978, it is possible your car was made for the Canadian market, or that a prior owner wanted the daytime running lights, and replaced the factory-original switch. Installing a US-spec switch will solve the problem.
Don't toss the switch that allows day-time running lights. This switch costs about 6 times as much as the US-spec switch. Someone in Canada may be glad to pick up a spare.
Hope this helps.
Yours faithfully,
Spook
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This post has been marked as an answer to the original question.
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I received my 1362699 switch from Tasca today.
I installed the replacement switch after cleaning up the front of the v900
(Accident Thread)
I was very happy to find that the switch fit perfectly and gave my proper, recognizable headlight function. The ignition shuts off the headlight when I remove the key and I can switch them off whenever I feel like it.
Still unclear why someone would pay an extra $100 to take away Volvo's tested fine and logical headlight function, but I'm glad the fit was super easy and super affordable for an OEM part.
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Thanks Spook, that *does* help. According to the VIN, my car was manufactured at a Canadian plant. My vehicle history report indicate it was shipped to St. Louis immediately afterwards. It also indicates that I am the second owner.
Being built in Canada might explain why I have the un-switchable headlights.
This raises another question - is this just a matter of changing the switch or is more re-wiring complexity involved?
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Dear RepairmanJack,
Hope you're well. A comparison of the US and Canada headlight wiring diagrams for 1994 cars (I do not have a wiring diagram for 1995 cars) shows that there's an additional wire, that exits the Canadian switch at terminal 5. The other wires - Blue/Yellow (Term 1), White (Term 7), Red (Term 3), and Yellow/White (Term 4) - are the same. The US-spec switch does not have a terminal 5.
I'd guess that using a US-spec switch will not require any re-wiring: one wire in the connector simply won't connect to anything. Adapting a US-spec car to have the daytime running lights would require additional wiring.
Someone more adept at reading wiring diagrams may be able to turn this "guess" into a statement of fact.
Hope this helps.
Yours faithfully,
Spook
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would make me wonder if the extra terminal connector is why there are headlights even at the middle position...wonder if I can just disconnect it?
Unfortunately, my wife just ran off with the 940, so it'll have to wait...
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Dear RepairmanJack,
Hope you're well. Cars made for similar and/or next-door markets, with slightly different electrical requirements, may have wiring installed, that is needed in one market, but not in another. The reason: changing wiring after the car has been built is very time-consuming. Multi-market wiring makes it easier to shift factory inventory between markets.
For example, 940 wagons are wired for a second (right- /passenger-side) rear fog-light. The factory-supplied light cluster may not have an opening at the top, for a bulb holder. Yet, if an opening is made, and one installs the contact into the cluster body and puts in the bulb-holder, the second fog-light can be connected to in-place wiring. The switch is the same, with one fog-light or two.
Thus, your Canada-made 940 may have a Canada-specific switch, but wiring that accepts a US-spec switch. I infer from the different switch part numbers, that a Canada-spec switch cannot be converted to US-spec functionality, simply by disconnecting a wire. If the conversion were that easy, Volvo would not have had a second switch made, that is specific to Canada.
Hope this helps.
Yours faithfully,
Spook
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posted by
someone claiming to be B.C.
on
Thu Feb 9 19:55 CST 2012 [ RELATED]
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I bought a switch on eBay for my 1997 965 when its switch went kaput one night.
The switch fitted into the dash, but the connector would not fit and there was no DRL change screw thing.
The numbers on it are on the bottom side of the switch (when installed:) 13 98 417 are below the Volvo word, and then below that number is a logo of SWF and 501.451 .
It looks like it might have been for an 850, I really don't know.
If it will work, I will be pleased to get it into the hands of someone who can use it. Postage and tad more.
Thanks,
Bob
:>)
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Dear B.C.
Hope you're well. Volvo Part #1398417 is indeed a switch for a 1993 or 1994 850.
Hope this helps.
Yours faithfully,
Spook
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