1979 Collector’s Series Headlamp Doors & Garage Door Opener

Hi Bill,
I’ve just purchased a 79 Collector’s Series and have a couple questions. The headlamp doors open fine when I turn on the lights manually, but when I set it to auto, the doors don’t open, however the parking lights do come on. Is there an easy fix?
The second is to see if I can reprogram the garage door opener button on the drivers sun visor myself, or do I need to take it in? I appreciate you information and help.
The car has 56K miles, great interior and exterior and I want to get everything back into great working order. Thanks again.
John in Los Angeles
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Hello John
The Autolamp feature on your car is a great option and I think that most Lincolns had them starting in the mid seventies. When they fail however it is difficult to find someone who has the knowledge to quickly repair them. The problem is to be able to diagnose the problem Correctly and Accurately. This is why the Shop Manual is a must to have near by in order to find the location of and perform the necessary tests on the key components. Having said that, the following are my thoughts on what may be faulty with your Autolamp system based on my experience with my cars and the cars at Lincoln Land. I assume first that you have tested all fuses with a test lamp and that the system is receiving power. You state that the headlamp covers only open when you operate the headlight switch manualy and that they do not open when the Autolamp turns on the lights. You do not tell us however if the headlamps operate correctly with the Autolamp on so there are two possibilities. If the headlights DO operate and it is only the covers that do not open when the Autolamp is On then I believe that the Vacuum Solenoid module is at fault. It receives a power signal from an Amplifier to open the h/l covers and at the same instant the h/lamps are also turned on. If the h/l covers and the H/lamps both do not function with the Autolamp is ON then I believe that the Amplifier could be the problem. Of course any electrical contact or plug in the circuit is also a possibility but most faults are inside one of the components. Please contact us further if we can help you locate any parts or manuals from our warehouse that you may require.
The remote GDO is an item that we do not receive too many inquiries about. I understand from Chris here at Lincoln Land that the customers that had this feature factory ordered in those years received an Accessory Package from Ford and that the dealer would “prepare and set up the system” at the time of delivery. I am assuming that it also was a Dealer Care item at the time and that now 30 years later,any of this knowledge is no longer available. In any case my suggestion to you is to contact the maker of your GDO. If you are persistent the correct person from that Company may be able to advise you. My fear is that the technology in your 1979 Lincoln may not be at all compatible with the modern GDO technology but who knows,it is worth a try. Sorry to be so wordy here in these replies, but I wanted to try to cover all the “bases”. If you can get some type of confirmation – we do have an New Old Stock Garage Door control package available for $150. I wish you the best of luck.
Sincerely,
Bill