Dash Light Problems

Started by 1joe, December 05, 2006, 02:55:44 PM

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1joe

On my 87 80q the dash lights don't come on when I turn on the lights but when I put it into reverse the spedo and fuel gauge light up. I have checked all the fuses and they are all good. Any help would be appreciated

Mike

Sounds like an earthing problem. The reverse light switch is somewhere on/near the gearbox, as it activates the reversing lights when reverse is selected. This seems to be activating the speedo/fuel gauge illumination somehow. In the centre console there is wiring for the centre console/dash/switch/auxiliary gauge illumination, cigarette lighter etc. It is possible that wiring here is not earthed properly and somehow gets earthed when reverse is selected. First step would be to remove ashtray and centre console and look for loose or broken earth (brown) wires or bodged looking wiring from an amateur electrician who might have been there before. 

The next step depends on how good an electrician you are. If you have a similar electrical skill level to me I suggest you then take it to an auto electrician or someone in the know.

cml52

i would say it's 90% of chances that it has a broken light bulb inside the dash. it's quite often.

orggti

I agree with mike id say its an earthing issue and when you select reverse they earth through that earth. remove your dash instrument panel and find where it is earthed and then clean it up or even run a new wire. Do it soon as sometimes they end up earthing through the speedo hair spring which then melts and your speedo will fail.

1joe

Thanks for all your input.
The problem has now been resolved.
I guess the previous owner was a bit of a rat when you see how chewed some of the wiring was!!

Mike

Did you fix it yourself or take it to someone?

1joe

I did it myself, by a process of elimination in the end!!