Ok guys, I have a 1991 F250, the dash lights don't work. None of them not even the climate control panel. I figured since none of them worked it must be the switch. When I pulled the old switch out to replace it the spring on the wheel that (I guess) controls the brightness of the lights fell out. I just knew that that was the problem. When I put the new switch in they still didn't work. I don't believe all of the bulbs blew at once so what else do I need to check. I really don't want to pull the whole dash out to check every wire. I hope one of you have a solution for me, this is really bugging me. All help is appreciated.

 

I would just buy one bulb and replace one of them to see if the switch shorted out and possibly blew them all. Bulbs aren't but a dollar or two if that.

 

Do all the exterior lights work properly?

 

check to see if tail lights work,usually on same fuse,.. also check for power there.

 

I had a truck that had this problem. A new switch did not fix it but i'll tell you my story.

Switch in all the way is off right?
Pull it out one spot, and it should be marker/gauges.
Pull it out again and it should be headlights/everything.

Well with mine, when you pulled it out all the way just the headlights came on. No tail lights or gauges. But screwing with the switch I found that if the switch is sliiiiightly out farther then the second spot the lights came on and everything worked.

(But if you bumped it your headlights would shut off or your gauge lights would.)

I'm not sure the cause, but maybe you can benefit from this by screwing with the switch to see if they work in any position. Just move it as slow as possibly possible and see if the lights come on.

 

all of the lights work but the dash lights. The fuse is not blown, I checked it before and after I replaced the switch. I don't think the dash lights would be wired in series. I have seen other trucks that had a blown dash lightbulb and it didn't blow the other bulbs. I think the previous owner used it to pull a fifth wheel travel trailer (holes in the bed for the fifth wheel carrier and the light hookup). I'm not sure if they might have had a trailer brake controller hooked up or how they had it hooked up if they did. I kind of wonder about how to check the current flow through the plug at the switch. What are the chances of getting a bad switch? Maybe something else I could check for without taking the dash out. Thanks for the replies guys!

 

Same issue on my 1990 f250. All lights worked fine until I hit a bump at night and lost tail lights and dash lights. Swapped the switch just to have the same issue. If I pull the switch half way out than I get either headlights or dash and tail lights (but not both at once). My solution is a toggle switch that takes the tail and dash light connections off the headlight switch and runs it through it's own on/off circuit.