QuestionQUESTION: Hello Mr. Finston I asked for your help about a lighting problem with my 1992 Dodge Dynasty a couple weeks ago and you took care of that problem but now I have another issue and im not sure what it could be.... now when I turn the light switch off my marker lights as well as my Gauge panel lights all stay on. Im not sure whats going on and how this is possible do you have any idea what could be wrong now and what I need to do to fix this?
ANSWER: Hi Karla,
Interesting question... while searching I found an error in the wiring diagrams which confused the situation, but I think I have that corrected. Chrysler usually doesn't have errors in their diagrams!
The power for the marker lamps and for the illumination of the instrument cluster (is that what you mean by the "gauge panel lights"?) both are controlled by the headlamp switch. I recall that you said earlier that you had changed the headlamp switch.
I would suspect that either the headlamp switch is defective or that there is a short circuit at the plug/socket of that switch. If you go to the headlamp switch you should be able to locate contacts B2 and R and E1. In the off position there should be no connection between B2 and R, while in the park and headlamp positions of the switch B2 should be connected to R. It is behaving like it is connected in the off position of the switch. If it working as it is supposed to then look at wiring of the plug to see if the pink/red wire is somehow touching the black/yellow wire which if it were then that would be a short that by-passes the headlamp switch function that turns off the marker/cluster lights.
The E1 contact is the one for dimming the cluster/dash lamps and it is also connected to the
R contact but there is a variable resistor between R and E1 which changes value as you rotate the headlamp knob. So you might want to verify that in the present faulty situation that the cluster lamps do still dim even with the headlamp switch off, just to check that out.
Let me know what you find.
Please read the PS below and respond to it, as you have been so kind to do earlier.
Roland
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thank you Mr. Finston for your help. I will check those connections but to answer another question yes the dimmer switch does work when my headlight switch is off.
AnswerHi Karla,
Yes, that would suggest that somehow contact R (of the black/yellow wire connected to R) is getting 12v when it should not get when the switch is in the "off" position.
Thanks for the rating/nomination.
Roland
PS About the 'error'. It may not be...when things with marker are resolved, is the case that when you put on the turn signal that both the turn signal bulb blinks and so does the marker, but they are out of phase with one another? That is how it appears to be wired up.
