4 Wheel Drive/SUVs: 94 Jeep tail light prob, jeep grand cherokee, grand cherokee v8

Question
I have a 94 Jeep Grand Cherokee v8 5.2l and all three of my tail lights have all of a sudden stopped working.  I checked the bulbs and they are fine.  I checked the fuse and its fine.  I replaced the brake switch at the top of the brake pedal.  I unhooked all the wire connectors that I could find and hooked them back again.  Then after hours of messing with the tail lights I notice they started working again.  I was happy and left.  Not more that a half mile away from my home, my tail lights go out again.  Any ideas what I can check next.  The bulbs installed are 1157 are they the right bulbs?  I have not had this problem until today.  Help!

Answer
Chris,

How about the turn signals, backup lights, and tail lights.  If they are all having problems, I would suspect a bad ground, or loose wiring connection.  Try tracing out the wiring from the tail lights working forward.  You can do this with a test light, or voltmeter.  Sometimes you can find the bad connection by, simply pulling, and pushing on the wiring.  When you do this, don't pull so hard that you break a wire.  Make sure that all the wiring connectors are pushed tightly together when your checking the wiring out.  Also, check out all the wiring connectors under the dash, and on the fire wall.

I would suggest that you purchase a repair manual for the Jeep.  A Chilton's or a Hayne's manual can be purchased at most auto parts stores for $20.  They have a lot of information on basic trouble shooting, and repairs, including electrical diagrams, along with wiring color codes.  These manuals are designed for a year or range of years for specific vehicles, and are invaluable if you are planning on doing any repairs, or maintenance yourself.  To trace out the wiring, you may need to purchase a cheap voltmeter, or test light also.

Carl