I take it the headlights are working? I use smartglow fuses, check the one that was blown again, maybe it blew without you knowing. I know its a bigger problemif it keeps blowing but i use a higher amp fuse. Just a little over most is 10 over.
Check the wires that are located near the parking brake and left side kick panel. My tail lights quit working and there was a brown wire broken. This happened several years ago. I do not remember if it involved the dash lights.
Billy, I think you have two problems. Taillights and directionals can be thrown off with a bad bulb. Check your bulbs and see if you have a bad one. One headlight dim is an indication of a bad ground and may be causing the issues with the tail lights as well. Check to make sure the ground is on in the drivers side of the trunk. It's screwed in and has snap clips. Also make sure your connection between the body harness and the tailight harness is good.
With the headlights, check your screw under your brake booster that connects the headlight harness to the fuse block. These do some loose and can give a bad connection. If thats good, check your grounds up front on the fenders by the header panel.
As far as the underdash lights go, I think you have something loose in your ACC (accessories) circuit. the best way to find it is to check it from the fuse block to the headlight switch to make sure you have power, then check to the HVAC controls, then the grey wire feeding the counsol. I'm betting it's not seeing power from the fuse block.
Did the car get rained on by chance? I'm thinking you got moisture at your fuse block and may be the source of all of your problems ------jeremy
I recently was involved in something similar...
My instrument panel lights fuse kept blowing after maybe 5 - 10 minutes of use.
The circuit works like this. There is constant power from a fusible link to the headlight switch. There is also an input from the tail lamp fuse. That part of the switch runs the tail lamps and running lights. The output from the headlight switch goes to a solder point where all the parking lights get their power as well all the dimmer switch source power. The dimmer switch output feeds the "inst lps" fuse. I did very extensive checking and found some bare wires behind my fuse panel under the dash as well as where the front headlight and signal light wires go through the core support holes behind the headlights.
There are 2 solder locations one for the output after the headlight switch (brown wires) and the other is the output from the inst lps fuse which is a gray wire. The gray solder location runs all of your dash lights, a/c lights etc.
So I would tackle the first things first. Make sure you have power from the fusible link and the tail lamp fuse to the headlight switch. Then check for power at the brown output from the headlight switch with the switch turned to park lights on. If yes, check for correct dimmer switch operation.
Good luck,
Jerry jr.
P.S. Hope you dont have to tear into your car like I did mine trying to figure this stupid problem out.