Electric!

Discussion in 'Technical' started by cometking244, Oct 1, 2009.

  1. cometking244

    cometking244 light em up!!!!

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    recently my car has suffered some electrical problems, everytime i pull the headlight switch my tail lights quit working , they work just fine when i have the head lights off,
    ive checked fuses and theyre fine. and also my interior lights have quit working so i cant see the spedometer ect.

    im guessing its a short but i may be wrong. i guess my questions are,

    did i miss somthing simple?
    what do you think it is?
    and how much do think it would cost to fix?
     
  2. 302-72-mav

    302-72-mav Member

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    does it stop working with the running lights on or just the head lights
    try cleaning up the grounds and replace the bulbs ???
     
  3. 71gold

    71gold Frank Cooper Supporting Member

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    is this the...rear running lights or the brake lights?
     
  4. bmcdaniel

    bmcdaniel Senile Member

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    Power for the rear brake lights go through the turn signal switch. Running light power is through the headlight switch.
     
  5. cometking244

    cometking244 light em up!!!!

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    when i pull the headlight switch all the lights on the rear of the car quit working breaklights,turn signal lights ect.
     
  6. bmcdaniel

    bmcdaniel Senile Member

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    Hmmm, if I remember correctly, I think the headlight switch has an internal circuit breaker for the brake lights. I had to bypass mine when I added Shelby tail lights 'cause they drew too much current. I'll have to look at my wiring diagram this evening. If that's the case, the easiest and cheapest thing to try first is to replace the headlight switch.
     
  7. rthomas771

    rthomas771 Member

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    Why didn't you use a relay? It would have been the wise thing to do.
     
  8. bmcdaniel

    bmcdaniel Senile Member

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    A relay adds reaction time to the brake lights coming on, really don't want to do that.
     
  9. mercgt73

    mercgt73 Member

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    I think that most relays 'react' in the 5-10ms range. I would be more annoyed with the "clicking" sound every time I hit the brakes. Or you could have used a solid state relay. Either way, you have it working, so life is good. :)

    cometking, sounds like you have a bad component. A wiring diagram will help you narrow it down to a headlight switch or turn signal switch. But do make sure to check your grounds. They can give funky results.
     

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