Still no dash lights

sallyO92mx-3 · Post by **sallyO92mx-3** » May 7th, 2004, 4:36 pm

i've looked at every fuse swaped the old out with the new i have every singal light in and around the car that works except for my dash lights !would the dimmer switch be the problem ?

2fazed · Post by **2fazed** » May 7th, 2004, 8:45 pm

Did you replace your stereo? I know when you use the ground wire for your aftermarket stereo, it shorts out your dash and tail lights. Could this be your problem?

Typhoonk · Post by **Typhoonk** » May 7th, 2004, 9:59 pm

How do you short out your tail lights by just hooking up the ground wire to the aftermarket stereo?

If there was a problem behind the stereo the fuse would keep poping. I'd get a know working dimmer switch and try that, or jumper over twelve volts to the lights, bypassing the dimmer switch.

2fazed · Post by **2fazed** » May 8th, 2004, 2:51 am

I guess it's hooked up to the same ground. I'm not sure, but I've seen it in three different Mazda's, the same thing. I run a separate ground to my Kenwood, because of the short.

sallyO92mx-3 · Post by **sallyO92mx-3** » May 9th, 2004, 11:02 am

no i have the stock stero ... should i give it a sepreate ground as well ? but i still havew my taillights tho, its not being shorted out

DJsMX-3 · Post by **DJsMX-3** » May 9th, 2004, 2:53 pm

Check the plug that goes in the back of the dimmerswitch,it may have come loose

sallyO92mx-3 · Post by **sallyO92mx-3** » May 10th, 2004, 7:16 pm

checked it its fime but the dimmer switch is ...+.well looks broken to me, the wheel doesn't move freely . could this be the problem ??

hubiev · Post by **hubiev** » May 10th, 2004, 9:59 pm

Sorry to jump in this, but I have the same problem. I just got a 94 which I bought during the day and I could not tell that the instrument panel lights as well as the climate control lights. I have tried to fix, but no success. My question is how would I "jumper over twelve volts to the lights, bypassing the dimmer switch."? I have taken the instrument panel to the battery and have connected directly to the battery and the lights work???

Does anyone have the schematic that they could share?

Thanks for any response

DJsMX-3 · Post by **DJsMX-3** » May 11th, 2004, 5:56 pm

Well first off "you 2" get or borrough a measuring instrument (voltmeter)
Then stick your hand up under the dash and loosen the plasticsprings that hold the dimmer in place.Without removing the plug pull it out as far as it goes,so you can measure on the terminals of the dimmerplug..

If i remember right theres only 3wires:
1.12V input to dimmer
2.Ground input to dimmer
3.Variable positive output from the dimmer

So there should be one wire with NO voltage on it (when you find it measure resistance to another groundpoint in the car to check if the groundwire is ok)

If theres only voltage on the one of the remaining two wires,then dimmer is broke or has a bad connection within it..

If theres no 12V on either of the 3 wires then you have a blown fuse or the 12V inputwire of the dimmer is burnt/broken

hubiev · Post by **hubiev** » May 12th, 2004, 8:41 pm

Thank you for your ideas. You were correct about the 3 wires. I tested following the method that you described.

I have my own digital multi-meter and I know how to use it. The 2 red wires had 11.88 V when the car was not running and 14.7 V when the car was running.

I tested the continuity of the red wires from the dimmer switch to the instument cluster and they tested fine as well. When I crossed the test (used the opposite red wire) there was 20 ohms.

I have the cluster out and tested it on the battery of the car by connecting the ground of the battery to one of the leads that the wire harness would connect to and the positive to the other. The instrument panel worked.

It appears to me that there must be a problem with the interface of the harness connectors to the silk screened back of the printed circuit board???
Does that make sense? I have never heard of or seen that problem before. I got some spray electrical contact cleaner, and used it, but the lights do not come on.

I may go to the local wreckers to see if I can get a cluster to try to see if there is something that I am missing.

Any other ideas??

DJsMX-3 · Post by **DJsMX-3** » May 13th, 2004, 3:56 pm

Dont go to the wrecker just yet because if you measured "12V" on the 2 positive wires your clusterlights will never light up!

If you read my instructions carefully you will se that i wrote that the "everything is fine condition" was (Ground,12V and 2-10V)

Clusterlights goes from 12V to 2-10V and NOT from 2-10V to ground,so if you have 12V on both positive wires theres no voltage over the clusterlamps

So the next thing you do is measure resistance between the 2positive wires (its probertly low or zero)

If theres zero or a very low resistance between the 2positive wires with dimmer both plugged in AND out,then the wires is shorted somewhere between dimmer and cluster.

If theres zero or a very low resistance between the 2positive wires when dimmer is plugged in but NOT when dimmer is plugged out,then your dimmer has a shorted FET and you simply replace that instead

Should be cheaper than a cluster at a wrecker LOL

What about you sally? did you find the fault??

hubiev · Post by **hubiev** » May 14th, 2004, 7:02 pm

I tested again and traced the wires to find a short, but could not find a short. I did find that behind the aftermarket stereo that the two red wires were attached together with electrical tape. I think that the wires would have ran through the factory stereo, but i am not too sure.

Should the wires be spliced together or not. It does not seem to have any affect on the instument cluster.

Thanks

sallyO92mx-3 · Post by **sallyO92mx-3** » May 14th, 2004, 11:09 pm

dont have multimeter on hand but already got a new cluster ( for free, and no i didnt pimp it ) but the lights don't come on and my stero face (factory stero ) just totoaly disapers when i turn the headlight on? so i am going to get a dimmer switch tomorrow because the one i have is messed up pretty bad .and is that still dont work then i will go to my dads and check the wires

DJsMX-3 · Post by **DJsMX-3** » May 15th, 2004, 1:41 pm

Hubiev did you follow my instructions??

I cant help you find the fault if you dont follow my instructions,or tell me what you measured that didnt add up with what i wrote

and if youre talking about the same 2positive wires,as those of the dimmer.

They should not touch eachother at any point because then the lights will not come on....

If you want to test your wires from dimmer to cluster another way do this.

Get a 5-10A fuse with some wire in each end.
Unplug dimmer! you should now have a NC. a +12V. and Ground.

Take one end of your wire and make contact to the ground of the plug,take the other piece of wire on the other end of the fuse and make contact to the NC. of the dimmerplug and your lights should light up if wires is fine..

But if your wires are shorted behind the stereo,fix that first or you will just pop the fuse

hubiev · Post by **hubiev** » May 15th, 2004, 4:19 pm

Sorry that I didn't state that I did follow your directions. I found that by your directions that there should be a short somewhere, but I could not find one.

I did take a wire from the postive battery terminal to the wiring harness of the dimmer switch. When I contacted the wire to one of the red wires on the plug of the dimmer switch the instrument panel did light up, but when I turned on the head light switch the lights went out.

When I touched the same live wire from the battery to the other red wire on the plug of the dimmer switch it did not turn on the lights. When I turned on the head light switch the instrument panel did not turn on.

Does this make sense to you??

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