headlights don't work but automatic lights work

[smilecow]

My 99 camry's headlights don't work. I checked its fuse, relay and wire

harness and they were ok. I guess that the problem is the light switch.

the headlights don't work but the automatic lights(DRL) work. when it is dark,

the lights turn on automatically. it turns on high beam and when I step on a

brake pendal, the highbeams switches to the low beam.

Here is my question.
Is it legal to drive my car or Am I going to get a ticket because of the highbeam?

thank you for reading

[JohnGD]

Might want to check the light switch. Haynes or Autozone's free online repair manual may give you pin outs to check with an ohmmeter.

High beam is not friendly to other drivers at night. And they may not be friendly either.

Originally Posted by smilecow

My 99 camry's headlights don't work. I checked its fuse, relay and wire

harness and they were ok. I guess that the problem is the light switch.

the headlights don't work but the automatic lights(DRL) work. when it is dark,

the lights turn on automatically. it turns on high beam and when I step on a

brake pendal, the highbeams switches to the low beam.

Here is my question.
Is it legal to drive my car or Am I going to get a ticket because of the highbeam?

thank you for reading

[tooyoungtoodie]

Well I have a 99 and have the same problem. I thinks it the rained or something. The other day my right low beam works well and yesterday both of the low beams went blank/dark. Now I'm assuming the DRL is malfunctioning because since every lights plus signal in the front and the back work fine.

Well you'll get a ticket for driving with high-beam and no headlights at all. Just be careful on the road if you're using high beam.

[Dick Tuck]

The DRL circuit is a resistor in the low beam circuit which is BYPASSED by a relay when the full low beam is called for. If the bypass relay is defective you will get "DRL light" but no low beam. When the sensor on
the right side of the dash senses low light outside it closes that relay as well as the main headlight relay. I'd check them both, and their fuses. Neither will cost much. The switch on a 99 doesn't carry much, just "signal" voltage to control the headlight relay. Not usually the problem.

[Dick Tuck]

BTW H-4 halogen bulbs were NOT designed to run at low voltage to make a "DRL." It disrupts the halogen cycle, so called, and makes them burn out fast. Low voltage on a halogen is as bad as high voltage. That's why the later Gen 4.ds use a small bulb just for the DRL function. I would pull the plug from the resistor (passanger side near the strut top- - says "hot" on it) and use my parking lights instead.