no dash lights at all

-
C

cherokeechief79

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 20, 2016
Messages
79
Reaction score
14
Location
new jersey
this is actually on my 67 coronet wagon but i hoped you guys may have an answer.i just bought the car.the blinkers and gages work as well as the dome lite but no dash cluster lights at all.all of the fuses are good.where is the next place i should look?i hope i dont have to pull the cluster out of the dash.
 
See if there is power on both sides of the instrument lamp fuse. If so, look downstream. If not, look upstream.
Headlight switch needs to be in park or headlight position.
 
This condition is frequently caused by the headlight switch. Usually the resistor coil for the dimmer adjuster breaks inside the switch. The tan wire from the headlight switch is the illumination circuit. It goes to a fuse and then turns to an orange wire witch feeds illumination voltage to cluster back light and radio.
 
Last edited:
thanks.....the switch should be easy to check.im looking for voltage from the orange wire to the cluster from the back of the lite switch with the lights on?
 
cherokeechief79 said:
thanks.....the switch should be easy to check.im looking for voltage from the orange wire to the cluster from the back of the lite switch with the lights on?
Click to expand...
Yes, if you pull the switch out you may even be able to see the coil, its warped around the shaft right behind the front part of the switch.
 
Should be one fuse that doesn't have power on either end of it until headlight switch is pulled to first/park lamp step. If the dimmer rheostat is good a test lamp will brighten and dim at this fuse as switch knob is turned. This is illumination but they didn't label it ill on the fuse box. Inst is instrumentation. That's their lighting, not the instrument/gauge power. It gets is supply from a tan wire from headlight switch to fuse box. The orange wire appears/begins in the fuse box, one end of this fuse.
 
cherokeechief79 said:
thanks.....the switch should be easy to check.im looking for voltage from the orange wire to the cluster from the back of the lite switch with the lights on?
Click to expand...
I need to correct my statement as RedFish is correct. The wire coming out of the switch is tan until it goes to the fuse, and then orange on the output side of the fuse.
 
^^Read Redfish's reply^^ Here is how this all works. The headlight switch receives TWO separate power sources. The power ONLY for the headlights comes to the switch from the welded splice in the black ammeter wire. This is UNFUSED and supplies ONLY headlights, "B1"

"B2" comes from the tail light/ fuse circuit and powers tail, park and dash lamps. So the park/ tail circuit must be operational first

When the switch is on, that power goes through the dash dimmer and out on tan TO the fuse box. and to the INST fuse at one end of the fuse box. THIS IS THE only fuse that is wired in this manner. So in order for power to appear at that fuse, the tail circuit must work, the switch must be on, and the dash dimmer "twisted to the left" By the way try twisting the &*%$ out of it to see if it will "clean" up.
 
thanks....forgot to say that the blinker cancel cam is broken and floppy.its on all the time unless i hold it in the center.i bought the whole assembly because the po tried the cheaper cancel only assembly and it broke right away..aybe they are related?
 
It may be unusual, but be prepared that all the bulbs may be bad. You might be able to replace them without removing the dash.
 
thanks guys....ive got a lot of leads now without pulling the cluster first.
where does the cluster get its ground?
 
That's another thing LOL Cluster originally just grounds via mounting screws, which is a poor idea. Install a ground pigtail on one of the pc board mounting screws and bolt it to the column support/ dash frame

Some other "things" to check over while you have it out

Harness connector pins are only riveted. Inspect them for loose and solder
Clean up PC board at dash lamp sockets, clean socket fingers, replace if necessary and bend fingers for better contact. Replace bulbs LEDs etc

Loosen/ tighten gauge mounting studs several times to "scrub" the board / connection clean

The IVR contact fingers can break contact with the board. Solder bridges across contact fingers to the board traces

Replace IVR with a solid state one. Does not hurt to test gauge accuracy while at it. There are hundreds of threads on this. Here is one

67dart273, gauge testing - Google Search

Gas gauge troubleshooting

This is a gauge test tool photo someone added the resistor values in yellow. You can buy resistors, or if you have an old gas sender you can set it for a resistance and use that

c-3826-jpg-jpg-jpg.jpg


Here is an old thread on pc board repair

67dart273, pc board repair - Google Search

Printed circuit pins repair
 
Last edited:
cherokeechief79 said:
thanks guys....ive got a lot of leads now without pulling the cluster first.
where does the cluster get its ground?
Click to expand...
Start at the fuse as Redfish and I have described. Then you'll know where to go next.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top