Headlights turn on - Mysteriously- 2001 Dynasty

[sg47619]

I have a 01 Monaco Dynasty Jack.  I’m hooked up to shore power at my house, went out after the storm yesterday evening and the headlights were on, I checked the switch and it was off the key wasn’t in the ignition. Has anyone had this happen? I had to shut the kill switch off in the back panel to get them to go of. 
Thanks in advance 

[timaz996]

It is your VIP system. If you push the CC button on the steering wheel it will shut them off.

[Tom Cherry]

46 minutes ago, timaz996 said:

It is your VIP system. If you push the CC button on the steering wheel it will shut them off.

Certainly a viable explanation.  The headlights are not ignition dependent.  There is a “sealing/latching” circuit or relay in the VIP system.  Do a single swipe of the “variable” mode or the ON/OFF switch and the headlight switch is bypassed and the headlights stay on, if on bright…i think the indicator is on or you can change or dim from the stalk.  That also allows you to use the “clearance light” button.  It would appear from the explanation that flicking on or off the Clearance lights “clears it”…..except the clearance lights are programmed differently. Whatever the phenomenon, the VIP has taken control of the headlights via the “I’ve swiped once and locked on the headlight”.  Not logical to me, but with gremlins, you never know.

Two things come to mind.  That was a heck of a transient voltage spike or current that got into the VIP PCB. Perhaps both of you can tell us if your earlier Dynasty’s have the Surge Guard ATS that has built in surge protection?  If NOT, then do either of you have an external or hardwired surge protection device ….and if so, what brand and type.

We always learn new and seemingly trivia little factoids or nuances about our MH.  Mine never do that and i have been way too close to strikes….as in a tree maybe 50 yards away.  If you don’t have surge protection, then the “dirty power” on a 120 VAC line went through several devices….many, like the ATS, also have PCB.  That would worry me….but maybe not everyone….

Thanks for the solution and explanation….more feedback or comments would be appreciated.

[timaz996]

2 hours ago, Tom Cherry said:

Certainly a viable explanation.  The headlights are not ignition dependent.  There is a “sealing/latching” circuit or relay in the VIP system.  Do a single swipe of the “variable” mode or the ON/OFF switch and the headlight switch is bypassed and the headlights stay on, if on bright…i think the indicator is on or you can change or dim from the stalk.  That also allows you to use the “clearance light” button.  It would appear from the explanation that flicking on or off the Clearance lights “clears it”…..except the clearance lights are programmed differently. Whatever the phenomenon, the VIP has taken control of the headlights via the “I’ve swiped once and locked on the headlight”.  Not logical to me, but with gremlins, you never know.

Two things come to mind.  That was a heck of a transient voltage spike or current that got into the VIP PCB. Perhaps both of you can tell us if your earlier Dynasty’s have the Surge Guard ATS that has built in surge protection?  If NOT, then do either of you have an external or hardwired surge protection device ….and if so, what brand and type.

We always learn new and seemingly trivia little factoids or nuances about our MH.  Mine never do that and i have been way too close to strikes….as in a tree maybe 50 yards away.  If you don’t have surge protection, then the “dirty power” on a 120 VAC line went through several devices….many, like the ATS, also have PCB.  That would worry me….but maybe not everyone….

Thanks for the solution and explanation….more feedback or comments would be appreciated.

If I turn on my headlights and later on shut them off, all of the lights will go off except for the headlights until I press the CC button on my steering wheel. I don’t know if that is how it’s supposed to work, but that’s how mine goes.

[Tom Cherry]

30 minutes ago, timaz996 said:

If I turn on my headlights and later on shut them off, all of the lights will go off except for the headlights until I press the CC button on my steering wheel. I don’t know if that is how it’s supposed to work, but that’s how mine goes.

Assuming mine are working as intended.  Swiping the wipers once, obviously with with ignition switch on, turns on headlights and activates the locking circuit so that they stay on until the ignition is turned off. Turning off the wipers from the VIP switch will leave them on.  We dubbed that a “non Canadian DLR (Daytime Running Lights) feature”.  This has been discussed many times on the old site over the years.  When on a two line or a four lane road with no median, many folks do that….as then they don’t have to turn off the headlights when they stop and shut off the engine.

If many of the earlier Dynasties are the same as yours….then that is the way Monaco wired it.  What does the owner’ manual say?

As to my comment…a stray voltage coming in on an AC line and activating a PCB “circuit” would be worrisome….and I would probably invest in a hard wired surge suppressor or if i had an ATS with surge protection, i would be questioning the MOV’s that are supposed to absorb or “take the heat”.  We have had members that routinely would test and replace the MOV’s, if defective or “committed the ultimate sacrifice”…

Let us know if your manual discusses.

Thanks for the feedback…. BTW….curiosity?  Have you replaced the headlight Bosch relay and see if that changed the function?

[timaz996]

Tom my coach did not have a headlight relay and consequently shortly after I bought it, I melted the headlight switch and after replacing it I put the headlights on a relay. It made me question what Monaco was thinking when they wired the headlights and all the clearance lights through a standard Chevy pick up light switch. My manual gives very basic instructions for the smart wheel operation. It just says how the cc lights are operated. But as I’ve stated, once I turn on my headlights with the switch and turn them off, they will stay on, regardless of ignition switch position until I press the CC button again to shut them off . 

[sg47619]

9 hours ago, timaz996 said:

It is your VIP system. If you push the CC button on the steering wheel it will shut them off.

It shuts them off as long as I hold the switch, when I release it they come right back on. 

[timaz996]

On mine I have to push it once firmly and immediately let it go as it works as an on off switch. If I hold it, it will do what you’re talking about.

[sg47619]

8 minutes ago, timaz996 said:

On mine I have to push it once firmly and immediately let it go as it works as an on off switch. If I hold it, it will do what you’re talking about.

Ok I’ll try that tomorrow, thanks

[Tom Cherry]

13 hours ago, timaz996 said:

Tom my coach did not have a headlight relay and consequently shortly after I bought it, I melted the headlight switch and after replacing it I put the headlights on a relay. It made me question what Monaco was thinking when they wired the headlights and all the clearance lights through a standard Chevy pick up light switch. My manual gives very basic instructions for the smart wheel operation. It just says how the cc lights are operated. But as I’ve stated, once I turn on my headlights with the switch and turn them off, they will stay on, regardless of ignition switch position until I press the CC button again to shut them off . 

Tim & Steven....Thanks for the insight 

You never know what little nuances come along.  After 14 plus years of reading about every post on the old site and here, something odd or interesting pops up. 

This is a great discussion.  Now, my curiosity or my concerns about lightning coming in on an AC line or being nearby activating a DC circuit still stand. 

Did Monaco put in a Surge Suppression style ATS in your MH or was it the 65N Esco with is just a plain ATS without surge?

Do either of you have a surge suppressor, external or hardwired internal?

Thanks 

[Greg Coffey]

I have had my headlights stay on such as yours. Do you have the smartwheel? If so, do you have a fuse box in front of the drivers front tire? If so, you will have a Modular Smartwheel Master Controller. Look closely at the J12 plug,,, mine was burnt from heat. I unplugged it, my lights went out. I have since bought a harness to fix the burnt plug but haven't installed it yet. Everything works except my headlights for night driving. My daytime headlights still go on when starting the engine.

At PDX RV LLC,, you can purchase a " VIP SM209 & SM210 Smartwheel Controller J12 plug/harness. $39.00

[Jim Pratten]

59 minutes ago, Greg Coffey said:

Look closely at the J12 plug,,, mine was burnt from heat. . . . .  I have since bought a harness to fix the burnt plug but haven't installed it yet.

The root cause of the connector failure is the circuit components are undersized for the load. Poor design IMHO.  Replacing the connector will likely extend the life but there remains risk that the board components may fail: a more costly repair.

Recommend you also consider installing a relay as described here.

[timaz996]

5 hours ago, Tom Cherry said:

Tim & Steven....Thanks for the insight 

You never know what little nuances come along.  After 14 plus years of reading about every post on the old site and here, something odd or interesting pops up. 

This is a great discussion.  Now, my curiosity or my concerns about lightning coming in on an AC line or being nearby activating a DC circuit still stand. 

Did Monaco put in a Surge Suppression style ATS in your MH or was it the 65N Esco with is just a plain ATS without surge?

Do either of you have a surge suppressor, external or hardwired internal?

Thanks 

I have an external surge suppressor but I dry camp 95% of the time.

[MHRookie]

Well this resembles the issue I had a month back.  Experienced a weird power issue with inverter/charger.  When performing a reset, when turning battery switch back in, VIP horn started sounding.   Had to go unplug the horn wire from the VIP board.  I’ve since removed the plug and cleaned the connector & pins and hooked back up.  No problems so far.  I still have the SM209 board.