So a few odd problems with my lights in my truck ('56)

I have headlights, but only on one setting, if I hit the hi/low beam it turns them off.

I don't have blinkers in the front or back. I'm not sure if the '56 ever had that "blinker clicking sound" that lets you know it's on or not, regardless it doesn't make it, lol.

I don't have brake lights.

The instrument cluster has working oil and battery lights, however doesn't seem to have any sort of lighting with the head lights on. The left turn signal light remains on, doesn't blink, just remains. When I put the right blinker on the left remains solid, and so does the right.



I checked a few things. I was missing the fuse on the headlight switch, when I put it in I got the blinker lights in the panel back, well sorta (doesn't help when one is always on...).

Bit hard to look at things straight, I'm pretty sure it was designed by ****'s, who else would make me have to get in the worst position possible and rest my head on the clutch pedal just to look, lol (Is it too much to ask for just an access panel in the fire wall?)

I do have two wires that have original female ends on them that are not connected to anything but hanging off the headlight switch. One is black, the other blue, one is on the **** side (opposite fuse) the other is towards the passenger side... it doesn't match up with the diagram I have (there is nothing next to them) so I'm not sure on it.




What I do know: my headlights originally worked, can't remember if I could use hi/low, I don't think so, but maybe. The bulbs looked good, both filaments looked new. The brake lights I thought worked, I only drove it once at night and was ubberly stressed, but I thought they did. Don't think I ever tried the blinkers that night.


What I've done around any of this: The brake lights where re-installed, but I'm pretty careful on matching wires up correctly. The head lights where once removed and put back in. I once tested the 2-speed rear end, got a click sound from under the dash, tried it again, made the same sound, it's not hooked up to the headlight switch area. I'm replacing the 4 bulbs (rear lights and front blinkers) 2 where damaged, the other two looked fine but maybe they had a bad connection...


Also it appears a very long and thin spring is totally trashed but sticking out some how, the **** still moves in and out, no idea what the spring did, looks like it was trashed long before I got to it.




Any help is appreciated, it's about the only thing keeping me from driving. Sorta need brake lights, in this town however you don't need blinkers, least no one ever uses them. Ever. lol

Thanks

 

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Thanks

Haven't managed to get under it too much (weather), I did put new bulbs in and found the right side blinks, the left rear doesn't but the left front remains constant, even if the key is out, I have to disconncect the battery for it. Brake lights still don't work. I guess I'll have to trace some wires and see what pops up.

What do the brake lights connect to? There are two wires for the MC but they run off towards the front (I suppose they might turn around up ahead and I'm missing it)

 

You might check the dimmer switch, they have been known to cause all kinds of lighting and electical problems.

 

Yeah I'm thinking so, as it definetly looks like someone played around it before... Course it has to be in the worst place possible to get to... (honestly just once I would love an access panel through the firewall...

 

Uuuhhhhmmm no, not really if everything else is hooked up correctly.

It's a simple coiled rheostat and a singular circuit that isn't physically connected (again if all is hooked up properly) to any of the other lights.

 

Couple of things.
That "long skinney spring" is the instrument light rheostat. I have had those fail often, (in my 77, I had to replace the thing every 4 years or so) the fix is a new headlamp switch. That is the reason for no instrument lights, and it can short other terminals out causing other weird effects.

Sometimes I find it easier just to remove the headlight switch from the dash and let it hang, makes it easier to see things.

And I have had several dimmer switches go bad. Water, rust, etc. can cause contacts to go bad. First symptom is either low or high beams do not work, but the other position does. Best way to test is unplug connector from dimmer switch and use a jumper wire from hot to either other terminal and check lights. I use a voltmeter or test light to determine hot terminal.

On the rear lights, I have had corrosion in the sockets cause lights to come and go, so pull the bulbs and clean the bulb and socket contacts before going too far. Sometimes when I have doubts about the integrity of the wiring to the rear, I trace the wires back to where they come into the cab and splice in a set of "dummy" lights where I can easily see them when working on dash wiring.

Good Luck

 

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Ok, fixed a few things:

My brake lights now work, it turns out they where wired wrong near the lights. I followed the lines and noticed a lot of wire patching, the brilliant kind that involves using red wires to patch black lines... and wiring green wires to black wires with blue wires. And folding back wires instead of trimming them or just cutting the end and taping it to the line.




I haven't managed to get to my headlight hi/low problem, I am going to take a look at the switch and follow that, I'm thinking it might be a problem there, not sure how it works.


This seemed wired correctly but I don't know what the extra female connectors go to...





Right now I'm trying to figure out my turn signal. The right works properly, the drivers side is well... odd.
The front stays on, I'm assuming there is a wire that's stuck on hot that shouldn't be. It looks like it's a cream color wire, yet there is only one connector for that and it already has a line in it thats cream (which runs to the passenger side). There seems to be a seafoam green and a neon green and I've noticed following some wires under the dash that these connect sometimes...

The left blinker in the instrument cluster stays on. However the tail light only comes on if I flip the switch, it's not constantly on if the battery is connected like the others. Which leads me to believe there is something that's hot that shouldn't be.

The right side blinker does make the noise in the cab and blinks, the left side doesn't, its quite and remains constant.

I did find a connection of 4 wires, 2 seafoam, one neon green and one black. I removed the black one and then NOTHING worked, no blinker or headlights.

Right now I'm basically following lines and disconnecting this or that and trying it again. Lot of on/off with the battery, ha.


Thoughts?

 

WOW! OYE!

Well i guess I've seen worse - at least there are no wire nuts or scotch tape (in the pics anyway)

I know you are going to hate me for saying this, but its true and something you should seriously consider:

It's going to take you less time, and be 100% more reliable if you just strip all that out and rewire. Rewiring is really simple - I'll help you.

But you will not EVER get that mess under control, and you'll spend tens of hours trying to trace and find faults.

PS Is that a piece of bailing wire on your headlight switch?

 

I do plan on re-wiring it one day, the wiring is old and cracking, but I would like it to just work enough to be able to drive it till I get to that point. Actually since my brake lights now work, once I get that little bit of play out of the brake pedal I should be able to drive it around. This isn't the actual build, just the getting it to where I can use it around town a little. I can always just disconnect the blinker if I must, hardly turn left anyways, lol. There isn't a road over 30mph in this town and it won't be seeing the freeway just yet or anything, I'd just like to be able to haul a few things around, be really helpful with this move.


I'm guessing something is connected that shouldn't be, I'll probably just contiune to trace it. I plugged the headlight wires into it and it remained constant as well, I am thinking the seafoam wire is stuck on hot when it shouldn't be. I would say it could even be the blinker control but it doesn't do it on the rear, so it's probably between the control and where it connects to the cluster (since that light stays on too).

How do the blinkers work, I mean what are they connected to to make them blink? I am thinking it's there cause the right side blinks, but the left doesn't, maybe it's wired wrong...

 

ok, let me first admit i haven't carefully waded through all the responses. but i did note that headlights worked on one setting of dimmer switch (hi/low beam floor switch) and went out when dimmer is clicked (if i read that right). if that is indeed the case, it could be the wires are on the wrong terminals in the dimmer. use continuity tester. power goes in and alternately is fed to high beam then low beam wire. if you find two terminals with no continuity with switch in either position, those are the terminals for the high, low beam feeds. the other should be the common power into the switch from the main headlight switch. from common to either other lead should go on/off with operation of dimmer switch. hope that helps or atleast does not confuse the issue. dick r

 

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lol thanks for the help

I'm going to look at the floor switch next... as soon as I can get those screws out, lol. It seemed logical to me that the problem could be there, it works on low so that makes me think it's just however the high beam is changed is off.


The wiring isn't actually all that bad, most of it is completely original. There have been a few add ons under the dash (in line fuses) which might just be from the 2-speed axle button. The back I think got messed up by someone when they installed one of those beepers for when you back up, lol it doesn't look like that anywhere else, actually it's less of a mess than my Mustang (which I swear has an extra wiring harnest just tossed in there, can't be 3000 wires...)


Oh, and that wire is part of a spring that went around in a circle next to the opening, most of it is still there, in place, that little bit just got messed up (lol didn't help when I tried to yank it off...) I just need to trim it.





I will have to take a look but for the blinker problem I am thinking that somewhere under the dash something is set to hot when it shouldn't be. If it was the blinker on the whole the back one would work constantly too. It doesn't blink like the right side, nor make the tink-tink sound of a blinker, so I can't help but wonder if something got bi-passed or connected where it shouldn't be and making it hot after the blinker and rear wire but before the light and cluster panel...


Oh what fun, lol. Least it's not too bad, I can remember my brothers Jeep being wired in the exact same color for everything, just the following of it that be a pain, that and I'm not tiny and fitting under there is interesting to say the least... though being a 2-ton truck and up high enough I can stand when I'm looking sure is a plus! Would be a pain to constantly have to jack everything up to look under it, like my car which is about 8" off the ground...

 

Is your floor high beam switch kinda stiff? it mayjust need a doucing with WD-40 to loosen it up so it actually "switches" all the way.

Not that bad huh? OOOOOoooooooohhhhhhhhKKKKkkkkaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyy!

But you know me - just a perfectionist!