electrical frustration

Tell us, again, what year model? And what do you have for a shop manual or wiring diagram?


You may have multiple problems, so try and chase one thing at a time.

DOME lights. the dome light is powered "hot" at all times on one side of the dual contact bulb, which is one filament.

On the OTHER side of the bulb, usually yellow, wires go everywhere to door switches AND to the headlight switch dash dimmer control. All that happens is that these switches provide a ground on the yellow wire, completing the circuit to light the bulb

Your one door switch (if hooked up) could be a simple matter of a corroded switch. Make SURE the wire to the emergency brake warning switch did not somehow become wired to the door switch

Unhook the wire, snake it out and ground with a clip lead. Dome should light. IF so, it's right there in the switch

AUTOMETER. I'll bet this is a miswiring or GROUNDING problem with your autometer gauges

DASH LIGHTS.

Mopar did "a trick" with headlight switches

FIRST, UN fused power comes to the switch for ONLY the headlights (not part of this problem)

Next, FUSED power comes to the switch to power the tail/ park lights AND feeds power to the dash light dimmer control

So power comes from the fuse box (tail fuse) to the light switch, through the dash dimmer

AND THE TRICK

the dash dimmer output then goes to ONE special fuse in the box ONLY for the dash lights (tan) goes through the fuse and then feeds off to ALL "dimmed" dash lights (orange)

SO!!!!--------------

If the park / tail work OK, here is your potential list 'o problems

Could be the dash dimmer rheostat. Turn on park lights, turn dimmer to left just before dome light switch comes on, and take your meter/ test probe down and find the INST fuse. You should have power on BOTH sides of the fuse.

Also these dimmer controls get rusty, so twist and wiggle 'em around in different spots to see if you can find a "good" spot that makes connection.

If not pull the fuse, wiggle around in there, and see if you have power on ONE side.

IF not, you have a bad dimmer control on the switch OR a wiring problem from the dimmer control to the fuse box. Should be the tan wire

IF you DO have power on both sides of the fuse, then it's OK that far. Find a couple of places to check "dimmed" lamps, like the radio. These dimmed lamps are normally all orange wiring. If the radio or other point you grabbed works, and dimms, then...............

Either it's aproblem at the cluster harness connector, problems with the PC board/ sockets, or a grounding problem at the cluster OR just burned out cluster lamps