95NA no lights??

I searched a lot of other forums and even this one with no luck. When i left work the other night, i turned the lights on and the only ones that came on where the headlights. no gauge lights, running lights, no radio, no emergency lights, no turn signals nothing. last friday night was the first time ive driven it at night since the head gasket change. could i have done any damage to a ground that ties all these together. The most simular probs i could find were- no dash or radio lights or no turn signal and dash light but brak lights still work... nothing that has all of them not working like mine... Also, when i start the car, and turn the key on. all lights/icons come on as usual.

Electircal problems can drive you nuts. More information might help, such as, does the radio work when the lights aren't on, but not when you turn on the headlights? Same question for the other items (emergency flasher, turn signals, etc.). The braided ground cable would certainly be suspect, but a loose plug might be the problem, too.

radio and the other lights does not turn on at all. regardless of if the running light/driving lights are on or off.

I'm guessing you've already verified the fuses are good with a test light (and not just visual inspecition). You might wish to start with something like the radio and trace the wiring back, with a test light, until you find a live wire. Ignition switch, perhaps, some some of what you mentioned usually aren't active with the switch in the off position?

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Originally Posted by shortshift

I'm guessing you've already verified the fuses are good with a test light (and not just visual inspecition).
Ignition switch, perhaps, some some of what you mentioned usually aren't active with the switch in the off position?

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Yes i verified all fuses with my fluke. And yes some of what i mentioned is USUALLY not active when the switch is OFF position lol, JK. But the radio shouldnt be affected by the switch should it? ive had cars in the past that used the same fuse for the dash lights as the stereo but that shouldnt be the case with the miata should it? even so, all fused checked good.
ill check all the grounds under the hood and dash when i leave base today. Its just strange to me why the brake lights, runnin lights, turns, and radio would all stop working at the same time.. right after i did the head gasket change. ?????

Just a shot in the dark but remove the bulb from the cup holder area in the center console.

Did you hook wire the radio in to the dimmer circuit, so the display changes brightness when your headlights are on? On many cars the driving lights and instrument cluster lights are on the same circuit. I suppose that's so you get a visual indication that you have no rear driving lights when the circuit goes out.

C

Woops, multitask fail. Don't know why I thought you just installed a radio.

nevermind

C

Well ive been extreemly busy lately and havent been giving the miata much attention. Unfortunately the problem persists. I checked under the dash to see if i may have pulled a wire when changing out the fuel pump relay and didnt see anything unsual. When i hit the blinkers i can hear the ticker under the dash. No lights are coming on still :( is there a common ground that ties the blinker, dash backlight, brake lights, hazards, radio, and side markers together?

Bump. Suggestions? Drivin the jeep everywhere is taking a toll on my pocket lol

Here's a 1995 wiring diagram for reference. Ground locations are about halfway down.
http://www.madracki.com/miata/images/wiring/95sys.pdf

ok update. I checked grounds and everything checked good. So according to the link above, all the systems that are acting up, get their power from the TNS relay, and BTN relay. so after work either today or tomorow i will check out the relays. does that sound resonable? maybe one not making good contact could cause all the lights except the headlights to not work.. ??? guess i will find out.

Well Ptech. After looking at the wiring diagram u provided (thanks btw) i moved to the relay box on the pass side fender near the firewall. Removed and checked all the relays, all good. Proceded to move the 40A relay from the 2nd spot from the firewall to the 4th spot (4th =blank in my car) and all the lights/ radio worked. Went for a start and nogo. ??? So i moved the 40A bac to where pulled it so i could start the car and go to the store for another relay. When i started the car, the radio turned on. I checked the blinkers, running lights and hazards and they all worked? Does this make sense? Im going to drive it to work in the morn and hope it stays fixed lol.

Sounds like re-seating the relays did the trick. I'd pull the relay and check where it plugs into and make sure the contacts aren't bent or recessed. I'd also check the wires going into that fuse block and make sure they werent damaged during the head removal.