Dash lights quit working

[Turbo Brian]

when one turns on the headlights, the dash lights are supposed to come on. in the past this was the case on my 87 GN however, once in a blue moon they wouldnt. turning the headlights off and back on again usually fixed the problem (sometimes on/off a few times). anyway, this no longer works. i have no dash lights regardless of how many times i flip the headlights on/off.

the first thing i check was the fuse. it had no power on either side. weird, eh? (its the 5A near the top of the block. i think its inst. panel or something). i ended up checking all the fuses and thats the only one thats not working and the fuse is good. i ohm'd it. i replaced the dimmer switch but that didnt help.

while replacing the dimmer, the headlight switch came out with it as its all connected. the white connector in the dash that the switch plugs into is, well, white, except the top "cell" which was brownish in color.

the headlights still work but im wondering if power travels through the top cell (the brownish one) to one side of the fuse and the other side of the fuse goes to the dimmer switch powering it. although, i think (cant recall off hand) that the dimmer switch will still turn on the interior lights when pushed up all the way. so i guess its getting power from somewhere. i will verify this when i get home tonite but im pretty sure the interior lights come on.

so is this a headlight switch or a wiring issue. im lost and really REALLY do not want to go digging in the dash. i have 4 gauges, a line lock, alky controls and alarm stuff under/in there and its a mess.

 

[Low Budget]

I would put my money on the headlight switch

The inst panel dimmer switch gets powered by the head/park light switch. The dimmer then powers the inst lamp fuse, which in turn distributes it to the individual lamps throughout the dash and shifter area.

Do your tail lamps work for sure? They get power from the same pin on the headlight switch as the dimmer. (At least it looks that way on the schematics.)

Hope that helps.
Jeff

 

[Turbo Brian]

thanks! that was very helpful. i called home and had someone check my taillights and they in fact do not light up! called oreilly's and they will have a headlight swtich for me later this afternoon. i hope this fixes it.

a scary thought is the day this started i drove home about 20 miles in the dark thinking i only had no dash lights. little did i know i had no taillights either

 

[salvageV6]

You might want to check/replace the 20A taillamp fuse before you replace the switch.

 

[Low Budget]

Originally posted by salvageV6
You might want to check/replace the 20A taillamp fuse before you replace the switch.

For sure on checking the fuse. I should have said to do that first. I assume all the fuses are already checked when I discuss this stuff sometimes. Hope you didn't order a switch you don't need.

 

[Turbo Brian]

yeah, i checked all the fuses, twice, just to be sure. anyways, i put the switch in and its fixed up. dash lights are a go as are the tail lights! thanks!!!