Some Electrical Help Please...

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RustyRatRod

I was born on a Monday. Not last Monday.
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I have this little 63 Dart 4 door I am trying to finish up for James. One of the last things I need to address is the dome light comes on with the headlights. I'm assuming somehow that circuit is getting ground, since that's how it's switched at the doors, but my electrical diagnostic skills are not "that great". Any help is appreciated.
 
I have this little 63 Dart 4 door I am trying to finish up for James. One of the last things I need to address is the dome light comes on with the headlights. I'm assuming somehow that circuit is getting ground, since that's how it's switched at the doors, but my electrical diagnostic skills are not "that great". Any help is appreciated.
I noticed some of the aftermarket switches have a little connector on it that's a ground for that. That lasts little nudge when you turn it to the left just activates a ground... Also maybe make sure the headlight switch is grounded itself like if it's a freshly painted car or something it may not be making contact with the dash...
 
Let me check some pictures I have real quick I know I dealt with this with my truck when I just rewired it..
 
Screenshot_20211228-172351.png
 
Looks like the first one on the upper left on both of these and they're for Dodge trucks but I can't imagine they changed much over the years...
 
RRR,
From memory: the h/light sw has a rheostat [ resistor ] to dim the panel lamps. If it is turned to 'full' brightness, the dome light comes on. If left in this position, the dome light will come on next time the h/lights are turned on. normal operation.
 
RRR,
From memory: the h/light sw has a rheostat [ resistor ] to dim the panel lamps. If it is turned to 'full' brightness, the dome light comes on. If left in this position, the dome light will come on next time the h/lights are turned on. normal operation.
Correct. It does not matter where the rheostat is. It comes on regardless.
 
i think you have the red switch and you need the grey switch

easy to say when i'm chugging coffee and bored at work but looking at the helpful picture looks like you dome light is being treated as side/parking which is only availble on red switch

"To dome light 79 an earlier" on the grey switch has a jumper/link to a stud in the switch to the north east which the red one does not

that dome light pin on the grey is the park lights on the red

park lights may well stay on when headlights are on hence dome light is on all the time

there seem to be a number of A body like switches

simple poverty spec switch 6 pins
7 pin switch
and austrlian version with 6 which seems to be a clone of the US one made locally
and a Mopar version they used in jeeps until the 90s

all have the annoying heat based circuit breaker. that will suddenly leave you blind on a moonless night on an unlight road
once it has pinged off once it gets into the habit

First thing i'd do is get a new switch...got mine off Rick Erhenberg.. Good service and the switch was RIGHT

Dave
 
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i think you have the red switch and you need the grey switch

easy to say when i'm chugging coffee and bored at work but looking at the helpful picture looks like you dome light is being treated as side/parking which is only availble on red switch

"To dome light 79 an earlier" on the grey switch has a jumper/link to a stud in the switch to the north east which the red one does not

that dome light pin on the grey is the park lights on the red

park lights may well stay on when headlights are on hence dome light is on all the time

there seem to be a number of A body like switches

simple poverty spec switch 6 pins
7 pin switch
and austrlian version with 6 which seems to be a clone of the US one made locally
and a Mopar version they used in jeeps until the 90s

all have the annoying heat based circuit breaker. that will suddenly leave you blind on a moonless night on an unlight road
once it has pinged off once it gets into the habit

First thing i'd do is get a new switch...got mine off Rick Erhenberg.. Good service and the switch was RIGHT

Dave
Thanks Dave!
 
A couple of questions:

Does the dome light work normally with headlights off?
Does the dome light come on when you rotate the knob to the click?
 
A couple of questions:

Does the dome light work normally with headlights off?
Does the dome light come on when you rotate the knob to the click?
Operation as follows.
Door open, headlight switch OFF, NO dome light operation.

Depress dome light switch with finger to simulate door closed, headlight switch still OFF, turn switch all the way counter clock wise, dome light comes on.

Turn switch one click clockwise to turn dome light off and it turns off. Remove finger from switch, still off. Turn headlights on, dome light comes on. Turns off when switch is depressed.
 
Operation as follows.
Door open, headlight switch OFF, NO dome light operation.

Depress dome light switch with finger to simulate door closed, headlight switch still OFF, turn switch all the way counter clock wise, dome light comes on.

Turn switch one click clockwise to turn dome light off and it turns off. Remove finger from switch, still off. Turn headlights on, dome light comes on. Turns off when switch is depressed.
It sounds to me like the ground from the headlight switch is going to the The door switch ground when it should be just going to ground...
 
It sounds like there could be two problems.

First, why don’t the door switches ( is it both of them?) operate the dome light? Are the door switches dirty, pull one & check it. Does the dome light come on if you touch the switch wire to the body?

Second, if the dome light comes on with the headlights, the headlight switch may be bad or wrong , as stated above.
 
I agree. Dome light power to the dome lights should have zero to do with any switch in the car. The dome / courtesy lamps are switched in the ground leg. That power should be "hot" at all times, and tied in with a hot circuit NOT from the light switch.

Traditionally the switch leg is yellow.

You should be able to yank the light switch clear out of the car and still have the courtesy/ dome lamps work "at the doors"

I would pull the door switches out and see if they actually work. Maybe they are corroded
 
I agree. Dome light power to the dome lights should have zero to do with any switch in the car. The dome / courtesy lamps are switched in the ground leg. That power should be "hot" at all times, and tied in with a hot circuit NOT from the light switch.

Traditionally the switch leg is yellow.

You should be able to yank the light switch clear out of the car and still have the courtesy/ dome lamps work "at the doors"

I would pull the door switches out and see if they actually work. Maybe they are corroded
They work with the headlight switch ON. With the lights on and the doors open the dome light is on. Shut the door with the headlights on and the dome light goes out.
 
Ok, clarification:

So, with both doors shut and the dome light switch off, does the dome light come on when you turn on the headlights?
 
So, the power feed for the dome lights is coming from the headlights it seems.

can you check to see if there is power at the dome light bulb? It should be hot all the time.

if it is not hot all the time, does it come on with the headlights?
 
They work with the headlight switch ON. With the lights on and the doors open the dome light is on. Shut the door with the headlights on and the dome light goes out.
All I'm saying Rob is that is not how they should be wired...............
 
Here are the factory 63 compact car schematic's
 

Attachments

  • 63 valiant f harness.pdf
    3.7 MB · Views: 42
  • valiant ins panel.pdf
    4.2 MB · Views: 43
  • 63 valiant rear harness.pdf
    4.1 MB · Views: 64
The dome light gets the grd connection from the door switches. If these are not grounding, then the H/L sw switch or a wiring fault/crimped wire must be providing the ground.
 
see switch on the right, point labelled "To Dome Lights 79 and earlier"
belive that, that will be powered all the time due to the highlighted link and the dome light is powerd all the time, so it can come on when the circuit is made by opening the door and hence connecting the circuit to earth at the door jam switch

you need to get switch with the bit i highlighted in red... see below

if you have the other switch then you are feeding the dome light with the side/parking light feed and all kinds of wierd will happen.
that feed on the other switch is probably ON only when the headlights or side lights are on.

first identify the switch you have before worrying about horrible door jam switches and wireing in the A pillars or a fuse box spaghetti nightmare

if you hear hoof fall, clip clop, its usually a horse not a zebra....! don't go zebra hunting just yet.

a horse has fitted the wrong switch surely...... and less likley that a zebra has been doing knitting with your loom.

the switch, all of them, has button ,like a sprung rivet head, in middle of metal side. press it, pull out the pull-switch knob and shaft, give it a yank, it will pop out, and then you can undo the collar. it will be a nice bezel type collar with 4 or 6 raised ribs or a flat face circlip/pin plier removal job, which is the style that is a bit more BASE/poverty pack/rubber floormat plymouth model.

switch should fall off the inner dash and dangle below so you can have a look,
be carefull not to rotate rheostat when the collar is off. the whole lot pivots on the collar threaded insert section on some of these switches and it can fall apart.
switch and hole has a key to get it back in the correct way.
the correct switch may have smooth or castelated ceramic rheostat disc depends how old and who made it.

keep the mounting hardware from the old switch it may the the only useful part depending on your dash trim... the wrong hardware can stop you switching on or off the lights or stops full rotation to the CLICK ON dome light position

this sounds like switch replaced after 1979 and before today, with a 1979 onwards switch that has correct number of pins but wrong allocation for application.

Dave

PS all kinds of wierdness will also happen if the switch is not earthed. so bolt it back in for testing or hold it against the dash box at a screw or unpianted part. That big hunk of metal mounting is metal for a reason other than bolting it in, if its not earthed you will get pathetic dash lights or an eerie glow from stuff that should not be glowing.

dome light.png
 
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