1992 Interior lights question

[Justinb928]

Hey guys/gals, I had a quick question about an issue that I'm having with my interior map (?) lights in my NA. Im referring to the lights on each side of the tombstone. Last week I noticed the light on my drivers side and had gone out. So today I went ahead and replaced the bulbs on both driver and passenger side with some LED's to get some actual light in the car. Passenger side went smooth, but after fitting in the bulb on the drivers side I noticed it wasn't fully working. By that I mean, the light would only come on in the "door" position, and not in the "on" position. It would flicker here and there, but ultimately would not come on. It was flickering some even in the "door" position, but I eventually mounted it back into the dash with it working properly in that position. The wires seemed fine, and the LED was placed properly. I thought it might be the bulb, so I swapped in the pass side bulb (knowing it fully works), but the same results showed. My guess right now is that it could be a bad fuse? But if it were the fuse, then that light wouldn't work at all, even in the "door" position. Yeah? I'm just looking to see if any of you have had this issue, and if you were able to fix it, along with any other ideas you may have.

Random google image below so everyone knows which lights im talking about. Thanks

[sammm]

Maybe the fixture itself is flaky. Did you try swapping it side to side?

[Justinb928]

Maybe the fixture itself is flaky. Did you try swapping it side to side?

Hmm. What do you mean by swapping it side to side?

[jrj512]

Hmm. What do you mean by swapping it side to side?

Just as you swapped the bulbs, try swapping the entire fixture to see if the problem follows the fixture.

[OZMDD]

I will wager that the solder connection on the red wire has failed. Pop the cover off with a screwdriver at the top, then again from the sides of the fixture itself. There are 3 wires, and the red is a very common solder joint failure point on early cars for some reason. I have several spares that I have collected and resoldered because it is such a common problem on cars I restore. If you know how to solder, its an easy fix. If not, I will swap you a good one for yours (unplugged at the connector, not cut) for $10.

[jrj512]

I(unplugged at the connector, not cut)

OZMDD prefers un-cut.

[OZMDD]

Damn straight!

[Justinb928]

Just as you swapped the bulbs, try swapping the entire fixture to see if the problem follows the fixture.

Gotcha. Will give that a go. The entire fixture w/wiring just unplugs from inside the dash, correct?

I will wager that the solder connection on the red wire has failed. Pop the cover off with a screwdriver at the top, then again from the sides of the fixture itself. There are 3 wires, and the red is a very common solder joint failure point on early cars for some reason. I have several spares that I have collected and resoldered because it is such a common problem on cars I restore. If you know how to solder, its an easy fix. If not, I will swap you a good one for yours (unplugged at the connector, not cut) for $10.

Yeah, as I was replacing the bulb the red wire did indeed come off in the process. I reattached it, but it may not have a good connection like you said. I may take you up on your offer when its all said and done.

[OZMDD]

Also, try contact cleaner on the metal sliders, as they will corrode over time.

[Justinb928]

Also, try contact cleaner on the metal sliders, as they will corrode over time.

So I removed the connector to test it. But then I put it back in, and now I have power whatsoever to my interior lights or radio... Giving me a massive headache.

[OZMDD]

Fuse. Contact cleaner is conductive, so you probably shorted it and blew the fuse. I was assuming you'd do the cleaner with the connector unplugged.

[Justinb928]

Fuse. Contact cleaner is conductive, so you probably shorted it and blew the fuse. I was assuming you'd do the cleaner with the connector unplugged.

I didn't even get to cleaning it yet. Just unplugged, then put it back in, and nothing. Do you happen to know which fuse/fuses need to be replaced?

[Justinb928]

Fuse. Contact cleaner is conductive, so you probably shorted it and blew the fuse. I was assuming you'd do the cleaner with the connector unplugged.

From looking at a diagram it looks like i need a red 10amp for the antenna, a red 10amp for the interior lights/radio, and a blue 15amp for the cig lighter/radio. Does that seem right? Everything else works like the power windows, hazards, headlights, tails, turn signals, etc.

[sammm]

Not sure what fuse it is....pull them out one at a time and find the blown one.

[OZMDD]

Seems reasonable.

[Justinb928]

I got the fuse situation fixed. Back to square 1. Going to use some contact cleaner tomorrow and see what happens.