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Tooling · 02-01-2018, 03:30 PM

Hi folks

This is an abbreviated post of the one that just got wiped out when I went to preview my first post. Frustrating! Just joined today after being a stalker for two plus years.

I had the same problem with my 2006 Monaco Dyn Countess III. The pin #11 on the J-1 connector was making intermittent contact at the bulkhead of the Front Run Box. I cleaned a tightened the contact on the connector by prying the male end open very slightly to increase the continuity. This worked for me. Prior to that the light would turn on and off when I wiggled the connector. The old saying try the simple things first.

I also discovered the smart wheel controller is the only relay driving the low beams. The j-12 connector on the Smart Wheel Controller (second wire from the left) should have power out when the low beams are on. If not, you do not have the same issue as I was having. Once all was working on my coach I used this power from that pin (J-12) to drive an aftermarket headlight relay to take the stress off of both the headlight switch and the SWC. From the new relay it passes through the J-1, pin 11 to the low beams.

Btw, you are right the headlight drawing from Monaco are not correct for our coach.

Hope this help you out. If you have further questions feel free to PM me.

Simon

RCLImperial · 02-01-2018, 07:05 PM

I’m going to suggest again that you start by examining your smart wheel connections. I just took a good look at the schematic for that controller. The headlight switch directly connects 12 volts to the headlight logic in the controller. The controller contains the power switching relays and that power is then routed through the hi-low switch and then to the lights themselves . All the headlight current passes through that controller through connectors, which failed in my case by overheating and opening up.

If you do a search for VIP smart wheel and look for their troubleshooting guide, you will find a generic schematic which should assist you, it is my feeling that the headlight switch is pretty robust and unlikely to be your problem. In any case, you will be able to see if the headlight switch is passing power by probing the appropriate connection point on the controller. The schematic also shows a breaker located in the 12 volt line that provides power to both the controller and the headlights . That breaker is on the Monaco provided wiring. I suspect that it is a self-resetting breaker.

Dick L. ‘04 Imperial

K7JV · 02-02-2018, 06:57 PM

Tooling, you are awesome! Thank you for sharing your experience. I will check that out. We recently relocated from Yuma to Tucson, and it will be a day or three before I can get back on that task. But you've definitely given me a good place to look. And RCL Imperial, I agree that the headlight switch should be fairly robust, as that is its job by design.

I am really liking the idea of the additional relay in the front firewall area to handle the switching of the primary Lo Beam current. But I do still really need to verify whether my problem is with the light switch or if the problem is downstream of the switch. But I appreciate hearing Tooling's experience.

Cheers to all, and I will stay on task, although it will be a few days before I get to do it. And the last several times I switched the lights, they did come on as intended. They need to go into the failure mode so I can check the voltages.

As for wear and tear, I would be surprised if we've switched our headlights 200 times in the life of the coach, as we generally do not put ourselves in the situation of having to drive after dark. So contact burning really shouldn't be an issue quite yet.

Again, cheers!

Tooling · 02-03-2018, 10:33 AM

K7JV

Thanks for the kind words.

I thought a copy of the smart wheel controler troubleshooting guide might be helpful so I have attached a copy. See diagram on page 10, j-12 pin #1 should have 12v power from your low beam headlight switch when turned on. If not, your problem is prior to the SWC. It could be switch, fuse, etc. If there is power there at J-12 pin #1 that should in turn activate the relay in the SMC and send power through to J-12 pin #2 which then sends power to the outbound harness to the front headlights. If there is power at J-12 pin #2 you should be able to feel/hear the relay when the headlight switch is turned on/off. As I mentioned in my previous post my problem was after the SWC at pin #11 on the J-1 connector (see post number 15) as it leaves the front run box. This info may help you figure out which side of the smart wheel controller you should be looking for your issue.

Good luck!

K7JV · 02-03-2018, 09:01 PM

Fantastic, "Tooling", thank you so much! When I am able to get back on task, and find my answer for sure, I will post my results. You have given me fantastic information!!!

Cheers for now!

K7JV · 02-06-2018, 06:58 PM

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED - Hopefully!!! I have completed my efforts to correct my documentation on the headlights, clearance lights, running lights, fog lights and dash lights schematic that I developed from the Monaco documentation. My schematic is attached to this posting. If it can be of value to you, fantastic!!

I have also isolated the problem to the headlight switch, itself. That was my expectation from the beginning, but very quickly the engineer in me wanted to end up with good documentation of how the system was built. So I am sharing that with you. It does NOT come with any guarantee of accuracy, but I believe it to be quite close.

I was able to rule out the dimmer switch, the Canadian Headlight Module and the SmartWheel as possible culprits, so now I just need to replace my dash switch and all should be good. I also note that if the headlights fail to come on, and the key is in the off position, evidence of the failure of the switch to complete its job as designed will be the lack of the audible alarm indicating that the headlights are on.

Cheers to all, and thank you all for your input and support. Happy RV'ing!!!

nehog · 02-07-2018, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by K7JV

...
Cheers to all, and thank you all for your input and support. Happy RV'ing!!!

Great show!

Just a note: on the Canadian Headlight Module (AKA the DRL module) the High Beam signal is to turn off the DRLs when the high beams are on. The rules say you should not have both low beam and high beam on at the same time.

K7JV · 02-07-2018, 08:57 PM

That makes great sense, Peter, thank you. I'm sure there are several omissions in my drawing, but at least I hope that it gives some good information for troubleshooting problems with the lighting systems. Cheers to all.