headlight switch and dash lights

[mickeypowa]

Hi guys !

My previous headlight switch made a short I guess because It started burning one day. After I saw some smoke I stopped the headlights and ordered a new one.

I just received a new headlight switch and I thought It would fix the problem but the first time I put it in place, it began heating up too (I saw the little spring in front of the headlight switch beggining burning in a red color !! I stopped retried and now it's ok, I don't know why, but it doesn't heat up anymore and my headlights tailights are working ! Has anyone an explanation for the burning headlight switch ?


But now I would like my dash lights to light when I pull the headlight switch.
But as soon as I pull it, I hear the fuse (the instrument panel lights fuse) that blows... what can it be ??
I guess I have maybe a short somewhere but I don't know how to find it and where it can be !

 

[Texas82GP]

It sounds like there could be a chaffed wire under the dash. You need a wiring diagram to identify the wire that feeds power from the headlight switch to the dash lights and give it a visual inspection. You really need to do some looking under there. It sounds to me when you first installed the replacement switch, you had a short, hence the glowing 'spring'. I'm guessing that by moving the wiring around, now the bad section of wire isn't making contact with ground.

 

[mickeypowa]

I will try to check the wires going to the headlight switch but it's not easy as everything is behind the black part of the dash !

Do you think its possible to bridge a 12V ignition wire to the wire going to dash light in order to get the dashlights work as soon as I put contact ?

 

[Texas82GP]

It will likely take a fair amount of disassembly to find the problem but I think finding and fixing the problem would be better than trying to jump around the problem.

 

[mickeypowa]

Hi again, I followed your advice and finally I will try to avoid to use the 12v ignition wire instead of the wire going from the cluster to headlight switch.
So I disassembled the dash and I have new elements to share with you :
I've found a diagram in my haynes book for the dash lights :


So i've found out that :

- I don't find any visible dead short (used wire for exemple)

- I think the grey wire (for the dash lights) which is in the plug behind the cluster is grounded, because when I put contact, it has 0 ohms resistance with the ground wire juste next to it.
It would explain why when I pull the headlight switch, the fuse blows as it deliver 12v on 1 side and ground the other side
of the fuse.


- my dimmer switch which is located of the steering column is not hooked. Is it the same dimmer switch that is on the wiring diagram ?? could it be a problem to not have it hooked ? because I don't find the plug to hook it.. maybe the previous owner withdrew it ?


- I see on the diagram that the radio, clock and ashtray light are on the same grey wire that I think is grounded. I have an aftermarket radio which works normally but do you think It can have the grey wire grounded and be the root of the problem ?


Sorry for all these questions but I'm new to electrical problems and it's so hard for me to fix this !

Thanks !!

 

[mickeypowa]

Hi guys !!
Finally I found out the problem for the dash lights. I checked all the grey wires looking for a dead short to the ground, and I found one behind the radio which was hanging and touching the ashtray metal !
So now all my dash lights work back !! Great !
Thanks!