1979 ford headlight hell
Thread Starter
|
New User
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
1979 ford headlight hell
Alright so I'm new here and I own a 1979 Ranchero. I have been having lots of light problems with it since I bought it. Someone had stuck a toggle switch in for the lights. He also gave me a box of spare parts and trims which I found 2 light switches and 2 pigtails. I took the pigtail that matched my light wire color for color except one wire that I didn't hook up. At first everything worked I put a new brake fuse in and what looked light a new light switch with the pigtail. All side markers, headlights, tail lights, dash lights, brake, turn and hazard all worked. Now all I have is a hot switch really really bright tail lights and fast blinkers. It melted my pigtail and its a black with orange stripe wire going to letter B on the switch. My question is why did it all work and now i have bright tail lights no brake light and fast blinkers and hot switch. New fuses where needed new bulbs installed the right way and new column was needed so shouldn't be the TSS but I notice with key on and blinker on there is no clicking from the turn signal deal in the fuse box. I want all my light to work already!
Moderator
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 56,949
Likes: 2,718
From: Virginia
I would check the wiring to the taillights. Make sure the brighter filament goes to the different colored wire(the brake/turn circuit) and the brown wire goes to the dimmer filament on both sides of the rear lights. This brown wire should also feed the license plate lights.
Also check the ground wire to the rear lights. The brass part of the bulb should touch the outside of the socket, and this part of the socket should be grounded to the metal part of the truck in some way. If it's grounded to the rear bed sheetmetal, I would then make a short jumper wire with crimped ring terminals, and bolt one end to the frame and the other end to the bed sheetmetal. I would then hook another small 10 gauge jumper wire from the battery negative post to the frame up front. This will give you a good ground path to the rear.
Also check the ground wire to the rear lights. The brass part of the bulb should touch the outside of the socket, and this part of the socket should be grounded to the metal part of the truck in some way. If it's grounded to the rear bed sheetmetal, I would then make a short jumper wire with crimped ring terminals, and bolt one end to the frame and the other end to the bed sheetmetal. I would then hook another small 10 gauge jumper wire from the battery negative post to the frame up front. This will give you a good ground path to the rear.
New User
Joined: Jul 2016
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
I have a similar problem with my 79 Ranchero. The head lights will not remain on. They will turn off with no warning. The switch is hot to the touch. I traced the wires looking for a short and cannot find one. The ights are dim when on. The turn signals do not seem to be affected.
Moderator
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 56,949
Likes: 2,718
From: Virginia
I have a similar problem with my 79 Ranchero. The head lights will not remain on. They will turn off with no warning. The switch is hot to the touch. I traced the wires looking for a short and cannot find one. The ights are dim when on. The turn signals do not seem to be affected.
I would buy a new switch and see if you can get a new plug/pigtail for it also. Loose connections on the plug are what usually cause the heat. Also make sure your dimmer switch in the floor is in good shape. They lead a rough life down there, and all the power for the headlights goes through that switch which selects high or low beam.
New User
Joined: Jul 2016
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
79 Ranchero
The switch does feel hot to the touch. I replaced the connectors for both the dimmer and the headlight switch, both were in poor shape. I replaced the dimmer switch and the headlight switch. I cleaned off all the grounds behind the headlights and behind the tail lights. I checked the resistance between the battery negative terminal and the headlight ground and there is no measurable resistance. The problem still exists.
Moderator
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 56,949
Likes: 2,718
From: Virginia
The switch does feel hot to the touch. I replaced the connectors for both the dimmer and the headlight switch, both were in poor shape. I replaced the dimmer switch and the headlight switch. I cleaned off all the grounds behind the headlights and behind the tail lights. I checked the resistance between the battery negative terminal and the headlight ground and there is no measurable resistance. The problem still exists.
What I would do first is get a little bulb and socket, and try to temporarily wire it to the dimmer switch. The dimmer switch has 3 terminals, one coming from the headlight switch and other two are the high/low beam. I would strip a wire back and try to carefully stuff it in the correct terminal on the plug somehow for the one coming from the headlight switch. Run the wire up to the light bulb socket, and then ground the other side of the socket.
Anytime the headlights are on, this little light will light up. As you are driving it, when the headlights suddenly cut off see if the little light is lit. If it's not, you know the problem is back up at the headlight switch or feeding the headlight switch. If it's still lit with the headlights failed off, then you know the problem is from the dimmer switch out to the headlights.
You can then possibly move the little light to a different part of the circuit to narrow the problem down even further. Intermittent problems are very hard to find sometimes.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
texas_tech_guy83
Electrical Systems/Wiring
13
Aug 14, 2021 12:27 PM
jimstrecker
1961 - 1966 F-100 & Larger F-Series Trucks
2
Dec 13, 2008 01:53 PM
