Dash Lights not working since....

[1FIERCEGT]

I had my dash out to get some work done on the cowl area and now that it's back together I noticed my dash lights(ex. heater control backlights, strut control back lights etc..) are not working at all.

Any ideas/experience with this happening? My thought is can a bad dimmer switch cause this?

[el seven]

Yes a bad dimmer can and will cause that. Don't know why it would be all of a sudden, during other work... though.

[1FIERCEGT]

I know thats what has me puzzled too..i also have this long wire that i don't know where it goes and it appears to be a ground since it's partly black but it didn't seem to fix the lights

I am thinking maybe I didn't plug in the dimmer switch or maybe loose or something so I'll have to take off that panel again and give it the twice over.

and thanks.

EDIT: haha i just made you get a second gem

[Dutch]

if your heater lights and strut switch lights work its not the dimmer switch.
that thing controls all the lights in the dash.

[el seven]

Dutch is correct... if it's the panel only, then it's not the dimmer.

That dimmer is for the illumination of everything (less the stock radio...)

Thx for the extra gem.

[1FIERCEGT]

Originally Posted by Dutch

if your heater lights and strut switch lights work its not the dimmer switch.
that thing controls all the lights in the dash.

are you talking about the orange/redish lights on the buttons themselves? if so yeah those still light but none of the back panel lights work but those aren't dimmed by the dimmer IIRC or at least now they don't they are just on with the park and headlights on.

and np el seven

[compnut21]

personally sounds like the dimmer to me.

[deftones904]

when i put my cd player in i hooked up the ground wrong and it blew the fuse that controls the brake lights and the dash lights i fixed the ground and it fixed my issue.... i would check all the fuses and maybe anything new you installed... :<

[Zach]

Are your instrument lights working correctly, and just your surrounding lights not working, or is everything not working? If everything not working, most likely, like everyone here has mentioned, the dimmer switch, if it's heater control lights and AAS lights, could be a loose/bad ground in your dash harness.

[1FIERCEGT]

Guys I am a littel embarrassed but I took off the panel to see what the deal was and found the dimmer switch not plugged in so plugged it in tested it out and now good to go.

on a little off matter though my high beams don't work...i had this prob b4 and i opended up the little console that houses the wiper and light switch and got it to work in the past but now it's benn this way for a bit now and this time fiddleing with the wires didin't seem to help the bulbs are fine and low beam and DRL etcc all fine but when i flip the switch or pull for high the lights just go out any experiences?

[compnut21]

probably a bad switch. try finding the two pins on the connector and shorting them to see if your highs turn on. if they do then obviously its the switch.

[blackmx6]

when i bought my 6 not too long ago, it was the opposite experience, the high beams worked but not the low beams, how long ago did you have with the current bulbs? might be time to change them.


another thing it can be, maybe your actual switch to turn the high beams on is broken, so the switch doesn't signal for the high beams to come on, i also had that problem before.


oh compnut beat me to the faulty switch possibility, so yeah it's probably the switch.