When the Pontiac Fiero debuted in the early 1980s, one of the distinguishing features that made it look "different" than other vehicles was the flip-up headlights. With the flick of a switch the automatic motor would open the headlight covers. As with many early '80s vehicles with features driven by small motors, there are issues with the Fiero headlights. The gears were made from plastic that, according to a number of specialty repair websites, had a maximum life of less than 10 years.
Check the fuse. Use the vehicle manual for your specific year Fiero and locate the correct fuse in the fuse box. If the connectors have burned out or separated, your problem is as simple as replacing the fuse.
Open the hood of the Fiero and examine the headlight assembly. Turn on the headlights and examine the motors on the sides of the headlights, if the motors are continuously running, the problem is stripped gears in the assembly. You will have to replace or rebuild these motors.
Unplug the wiring from the headlights and from the motors. Locate the small nuts that secure the assembly to the frame of the Fiero. There should be four of them. If all of the nuts are removed, the assembly may fall into the frame of the front bumper. You will have to use the manual knob to lift the headlight up to loosen the bottom two. Loosen, but do not remove the lower two nuts, then remove the top two. Hold the light while removing the bottom nuts and set the four nuts aside.
Remove the assembly. Tilt the assembly toward the front of the vehicle as you are removing it, and set each headlight aside. If the problem involves the motor or plastic gears, purchasing a new headlight assembly will be cheaper than replacing the parts on the old headlights. If you choose to replace the motor or gears you will have to remove the motor housing from the assembly.
Locate the "C" clip that secures the lever arm to the outside of the motor housing of the assembly. Unbolt the motor by removing the "C" clip and the nut that attaches the lever arm to the shaft. The motor housing will be held in with screws or rivets, depending on the age of the vehicle. Remove these carefully.
Cut open the silicone adhesive that holds the motor housing together using a dull screwdriver or pen knife. The larger side of the housing holds all the vital, yet small parts. Make sure the larger side is on the bottom when you remove the top half. Examine the inside of the housing.
Inspect the inside of the housing for broken parts or stripped gears. If it does not appear that the gears are stripped, you have the option of replacing just the green drive coupling unit. You will have to remove the whole unit of gears and coupling together. If you do have stripped gears, you have the option of replacing the plastic pieces with the new Fourth Generation metal gears for the Fiero headlight assembly. Consult your local auto supply store for the brands of metal gears that are available.
Clean the dirty parts of the shaft with solvent to remove the grease and pieces of plastic that may be interfering with the movement of the coupling or the gears. If the coupling has disintegrated or broken you will have to remove the metal drive plate. It is difficult to remove this plate without the use of vise-grips or some other pulling tool. Use caution in doing so to prevent damage to the unit.
Reassemble the unit. When the repair has been made, replace the coupling, gears and top of the motor housing. Secure the motor housing together with the screws or rivets you removed and use silicone sealant to join the two halves together. Place the motor housing back onto the headlight assembly with the "C" clip and plug it back into the wiring of the vehicle. Secure the assembly with the nuts you removed earlier.
