1977 Ford LTD Country Squire

That's very strange. Like I wrote previously, the failsafe position is supposed to be in the open position. That became a federal regulation in the late 1960s when hidden headlights were becoming popular. The system uses vacuum pressure to keep the doors closed. When vacuum pressure leaks out over time or if the system fails, the spring loaded doors open. That's why you would sometimes see hidden headlight cars with the lights exposed when not "on." :confused:

 

If the vacuum motors are disconnected from the doors, they fall shut with gravity. It could also be the head lamp switch has ceased to operate the doors, but is not leaking vacuum, so they stay shut. Either way, the vacuum part is working just fine, so making the door work should be pretty easy! I'd STILL love this car!

 

Yeah - just noting they were similar......

 

OK....those headlight doors are no biggie at all. I don't know why the owner went 20 years without just fixing them. Mine went down in my 77 Lincoln and it was a breeze. Most of the time, IIRC, it's a leaking switch or hose. I have avoided talking about them here because I can't remember exactly what I did to mine besides replace the switch and a hose...but I do know it's not a big problem. If you like this car don't let this minor problem stop you from buying it. The only tough problem, again, IIRC, is if the springs in the doors get weak or break. I don't think I could find any and one door opened slower than the other which drove me nuts until I jerry rigged a spring to work.