Gauge lighting went out!!! HELP

klsoneSC

Registered User
I removed the dash and gauge cluster assortment to do some stereo wiring and when I put it all back together and turned the lighting on, it went on for a minute then went out. Only the lights for the gauges went out, the turn signals light as do the lights on the lower part, just not the gauges. Guges all work. Any info is appriciated.
 
Sure sounds like your cluster doesn't appreciate havin' to share it's power for gauge lights with the new stereo. Either you overloaded the little thingamuhbob on the back of the cluster (regulator/resistor/whateverthethingiscalled) with the extra load or...?

Disconnect the lighting for the stereo and see if the cluster lights come back.

'bird
 
do you have interior lights? there is a 5amp or 10amp fuse for the guage lighting and all that, mine used to keep going out...
 
check the plugs

i had the same thing happen once the lights didn't work but the guages did it turned out to be that the plug on the right was not all the way plugged in.
 
If your fuse is blown, I would recheck your wiring. You may have tapped a switched wire that goes from power to ground or vice versa. This would be applicable especially if you hooked up a dimmer wire for the radio.

Paul
 
Any Solution??

Hey all,
I am having the same problem, and was wondering if a solution was ever found. I just bought the car, and I am sure that the stereo was just thrown in. The seperate cd player never shuts off, even if the key is out. Does anyone know where I can get a stereo/cd player wiring diagram to compare to? Thanks for your help.
 
is your memory ok on the stereo? there is a small 7.5 amp fuse in the master fuse panel under your hood. try checking that one. i'm not sure what it's for but you can check it real quick.
 
My radio memory is fine. My headlights and tail lights work just fine, its just the dash lights that keep popping a fuse. Thanks for the suggestion.
 
i have this exact same problem. I keep blowing fuses and my dash lights just won;t go on. I think it happened just after i installed the stereo, I have been driving over a year like this now, just no time, and not sure what to look for
 
Well, here it is a week later, and still no short found. I took out the factory radio and cd player, and all connections are stock and stable. No loose wires, no wires crossed, no bare wires. When I pulled them out, the stereo played better than ever, and the fuse did not blow. The gauge lights worked fine. I double checked everything, and found nothing out of the ordinary. When I put the stereo back in, everything worked fine. So that night, I get in the car, crank it up, turn on the lights, and the dash lights blow the fuse again!! Now the sub amp isn't working again. There is a short somewhere, but for the life of me, I can't find it. Is there a location in the firewall where this wiring harness could rub raw? Any other thoughts or ideas?:confused:
 
Im not really a "stereo pro" but when I hooked up mine, I connected all the wires including the one that controlled the dim feature, I turned it on all the way up, and then both the guage lights and the cdplayer shut off, I pulled the cd player, replaced the fuse, and then my dim knob wasnt working properly, it only came on full bright, right before you turn it to turn it off.

I later tryed installing a new cdplayer cause I thought I blew the other one, I hooked it up and it didnt work, I checked the fuse behind it, and under the dash, But I didnt know the "Memory" fuse under the hood also linked to the cdplayer. Replaced it, and then it worked perfectly, Except for the dim knob, I think the contact points on it are toasted.
 
you can get a brand spanking new dim know from your local auto parts store for 10$

i just got one, took 15 minutes start - finish to install:D
 
Well, here it is, another week passed by, and still no "definite solution. But I did have an idea, and has possibly helped me track down the problem. I thought that if I turned the dim switch all the way down, then turned on the lights, I would at least get a few moments with the lights on to try to track down the source of the short. It worked! So with the dash lights on, I turned on the stereo, heater, fan on high, turn signal, and reverse lights all at once, and the fuse did not blow. So I started the engine, and still the fuse did not blow. Keep in mind that the dash lights were on really low. So I put the car in first gear to take off down the street, and the dash lights got very bright. Very weird. But once I shifted out of first, they returned to normal. It took me awhile to figure out that shifting into first causes the short, not the back and forth motion of accelerating down the street, and i still haven't tracked down exactly why. By this weekend, I will have it figured out. Does anyone know of any wires that have anything to do with this that are located in the area of the shifter/first gear area? There wouldn't happen to be any stereo wiring running through this same spot, would there? I still haven't gotten any further with the short in my jbl amps...yet. I'll keep all posted incase they have this same problem.
 
O.k... Update and solution time:
The ashtray light power wires were worn through, causing a short in the entire interior lighting. These wires run next to the shifter, so that when I shifted into 1st, these now bare wires would rub against each other and short out. Hope this helps someone else.
 
Congratulations.

The ash tray lighting wires get worn bare by the metal plate around the shift boot which can float once the plastic boot tabs break off from the console. These things are WEAK and Flimsey.

Unfortunately the consoles are out of production. (anyone know of a supplier for them ??)

The SAME thing happened to me last year after I did some trani work.

'Built to a price' strikes again.
 
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