"Ok, I don't have a vacuum pump. From what I'm hearing, no one thinks it's the switch because is seems to work the opening of them correctly?"
Jeff,
not necessarily, the switch basically shunts vacuum 1 direction or the other. If it's leaking in the up position it can have the same affect as a leaking actuator. You could have a slow leak actuator that works good enough with full vacuum, but when coupled with a slow leak switch just doesn't have the umphff to close. The slowly closing door that is closing still tells me it's a leak problem. Okay, Actuator test without a pump or gauge:
Unplug the vac lines off both sides of the actuators and close both doors so the grilles are up and the headlights hidden. take a vac line off the manifold and run it directly to the actuator's top line tap. Plug off the line tap on the bottom of the actuator (use rubber caps or a piece of vac line with a golf tee, screw, etc). Fire up the motor if the actuator is tight and not leaking the arm should NOT move (the actuator needs to pull air in one side while it's getting the other side sucked out) This will prove out that the actuators work good for the closing position. Now pull the lines and plugs and open the doors so the grilles are down and the headlights are exposed. Now reverse the vac line to the bottom line tap of the actuators and plug the top holes, repeat the test. If the arm doesn't move in either test, it's a good actuator. If it moves during one test, and not in the other, the hole is in the housing on the side of the actuator it DIDN'T move during the test.
If you've got a vac gauge, T it into the vac line before the actuator and put a one-way vac valve between the engine and the gauge. fire up the motor to get vacuum then shut it down, if it's a slow leak you'll see the gauge lose the vac -- better way to be sure than the non-gauge test.
To test the switch with your gauge, connect the engine vac line directly to the switch (bypass the t going to the can) and then connect the gauge to each line seperately going to up and down positions. You should have same reading each way. if it's lower on the closed side, then your headlight switch is leaking.
Wow, was that long winded....good luck and let me know what happens!
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