When is the choke light supposed to light on a 78 with the factory gauge package.

[Ribbedroof]

Cluster/bezel swap in the past, maybe?

Seems odd there would be provision for a choke lamp on a carline that wasn't going to get an electric choke until the 1980 model year

As an aside, I know the 78s got black bezels on all cars with the standard cluster, did that apply to optional gauge package cars as well?

 

[gnvair]

Cluster/bezel swap in the past, maybe?

Seems odd there would be provision for a choke lamp on a carline that wasn't going to get an electric choke until the 1980 model year

As an aside, I know the 78s got black bezels on all cars with the standard cluster, did that apply to optional gauge package cars as well?

Yes 78's had the black bezel. 79's had the color matched bezel. Mine has the original black bezel with gold trim. It also has 1977 cast into it. Car was an uncut, unmolested original car. I am very confident it was original. I have 1 other 78 cluster and 3 79 clusters and they have it as well. I just figured it might be used as the oil warning light.

 

[gnvair]

Ok I found this in the 78 owners manual this morning. Anyone have a wiring diagram of that circuit?

 

[pagrunt]

I thought Malibu's would of been black & Classics would have the color match in '78.

 

[gnvair]

I thought Malibu's would of been black & Classics would have the color match in '78.

No, all 78's had the black cluster bezel. 79's had the color match on the outside of the bezel. It was some of the small detail changes made between the 2 model years.

 

[Ribbedroof]

I take the owner's manual to indicate that some powertrain combinations used an electric choke instead of the hot air choke, and would then use the warning lamp. Similar wording and wiring is indicated in the 1980 shop manual.

Surprising that they would not have spec'd a separate cluster for that particular combination...perhaps they felt the numbers would be so low that the tooling costs would be more than the cost of the extraneous lamp being used on all the clusters. Odd, though, as GM had a long history of making different assemblies for the smallest of variances.

My guess is that the engine harness only included the choke wiring on that specific powertrain combination

 

[pontiacgp]

Ok I found this in the 78 owners manual this morning. Anyone have a wiring diagram of that circuit? View attachment 105034

there is the problem. they were installing a gage instead of a gauge...