Classic/Antique Car Repair: 1960 Chevy Impala dash, chevy impala, fuse panel

Question
This is probably a dumb question, but I just purchased a 1960 Chevy Impala 4-door sedan and the dash is not illuminated.  I can't see the instrument panel when I drive at night.  It's been a while since I've seen one of these cars(dad used to own a '60 decades ago#, but am I wrong in assuming that the dash should light up somehow?  If so, where and what do I check?  I checked a fuse panel#5 or 6 fuses) behind the pedal and they looked fine.  I don't want to mess up this beautiful dash by ignorantly pulling it apart, so any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated.  By the way, thank you for sharing your expertise on this site.  Cheers.

Answer
Mark,

The next thing I'd check would be the headlight switch. Make sure that all the connectors are present and nice and tight. You'll need a wiring diagram for this, which can be found with a bit of searching on the Web. Removing the switch is a bit tricky--the trim nut needs to be unscrewed. There is a special tool to loosen this, and it is commonly available, too.

You can try these folks for the tool and help. The switch for a '60 Chevy is similar to a '55-'57. Things didn't change till about '67.

http://www.luttyschevy.com/pages/home.html

Good luck!

--Paul