possible relay replacement question

[Kelly from florida]

Hi all,
So I took my truck through the carwash. Firstly, I lost my decorative front plate and now some other things have stopped working. It may not be the carwash but I'd like to blame them. never again.
first let me say, all the fuses are fine.
problem: My headlights and tail lights won't turn on, my blinkers work, and my wipers and wiper fluid squirters also won't turn on. it all went out on the same day but I wasn't using them at the time so i don't know if they went out together or not. my relay does click when i go to turn the headlights on. Does anyone know what might control both of these things? The Haynes manual doesn't really talk about relays much or what's ganged together etc.
any help is appreciated.
thanks!
-Kelly

[Kelly from florida]

could this be the culprit?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Headlight-Relay-Mitsubishi-Montero-Dodge-Raider-MB046436-85919-20012-056700-2093-/174164560790
I'm willing to take an educated $50 gamble, in order to rule it out. Also the one I have looks super tired and there was a bug and some corrosion when i unplugged it. this part clicks as i go to turn the lights on. the clicking leads me to believe that the switch (in the column) is sending. but I know the click doesn't always mean the relay is working.
more info as I've been messing around with it. the high beams will flash if i hit them but won't stay on, and the tail lights DO work. It seems to only be the wipers and headlights. I'm pretty sure all the other lights function. so stumped.

[geezer101]

Do some basic checks before spending money. I would start with cleaning up all of the ground leads. They can cause all kinds of glitches in the electrical system. And check their general condition (corrosion, blistered or damaged insulation etc) Is there a main fuse in the engine bay as well next to the battery? It could be crusty or just plain blown. The fact that you have lost a couple of accessories in one hit means the odds are it's a single fault that has caused them to go out together.

[Kelly from florida]

So i went through and checked my fuse panel looking for a short as per this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wLrTjeb9TY
couldn't fine anything there.
There is an in-line fuse near the battery and i had changed that already but maybe the housing is toast? I can't really see what it goes to but it does connect to the wire bundle that holds my headlight wires near the headlight relay.2529025291
I'm just not sure what else to check. Am I correct in thinking that as long as my relay is making clicks it's receiving signal from the switch in the cab?
it's just so weird that both went out together because to me they seem completely unrelated.

[Kelly from florida]

i'm worried it's the switch, thats the only place I can see that both items are connected. it's' also a $300 part..... if the relay clicks though, that's gotta mean the switch is functional correct?
thanks for everything.

[Kelly from florida]

OK, so took the relay apart, hooked it up to my drill battery, and it seems to be working fine, cleaned up the contacts, threw it back in and no change. I think i must be missing a fuse or something somewhere. along the line. I'm getting all the other lights so i can't imagine it's a bad ground. anyone know of a secret fuse panel hidden somewhere? wheres the fuse for the headlights located?

[camoit]

Yea. It's not getting power on one side of it. Use a test light and work your way back.

[SubGothius]

If the relay clicks, that confirms the switch and relay are both working, and the wiring that triggers the relay is good, so the fault must be somewhere in the switched circuit that the relay triggers. I'll second Geezer's suggestion to check your relevant grounds on that circuit. Then check that you've got 12v to the hot side of the relay, then 12v coming out the other side of the relay when it's triggered, then 12v at the headlight(s).

[Kelly from florida]

update: the girl has fixed herself. Which leads me to believe it must be/have been a bad ground. I've got to look around and clean up some contacts I guess.
on another note, my gas gauge has started functioning again. when I got her the tank was empty and had some water in it and i think the sensor had rusted. I guess i've filled up the tank enough to slosh around the rust and get the float working again. it's getting more and more accurate as I drive it around. crazy.
as always, thanks for all the help and advise.

[geezer101]

Weird, but it's working for now. I'd be a little worried that if you aren't 100% sure it was you trying a few things to remedy it that it'll make a return (like usual - when you really don't need it....) If it's only rust on the sender unit I would say you could remove it and soak the sender in a citric acid bath for a while and clean it off with an old soft bristled tooth brush to lift the surface crud off. Only problem is getting the sender out - it's a PITA job.