In the dark and need some help!!

[Julian.Saturno]

Okay here is the problem.

I just got a 81 accord. Its so far a great little car but the only thing that needs some help is I don't have any dash lights when I turn on my headlights?

I'm not the most mechanical guy around but I'm even worse at electric stuff haha!

Ive tried simple stuff like checking for loose wires, and fuses, but all seek OK.

So any other ideas and suggestions to get some lights on would be great!

My indicator lights and what not work just not the lights to light up the gauges.

Thanks!

[2ndGenGuy]

I would be willing to bet that the dimmer switch is shot. That thing is a huge pain in the ass to remove, but if you could pull it and test it, that's where I would start... It might even just be disconnected...

[Ichiban]

...or corroded real bad. Try wiggling it and turning it back and forth 94849578 times.

[lostscotiaguy]

I agree, I would almost bet money that it's your switch...it's the only common connection for all those lights. Please let us know how you make out!

[Julian.Saturno]

I wondered if it might be the problem. Ive tried turning it a few times but not 937293 times so I guess ill try that! But ill try and see if i can figure out if its the problem..

[2ndGenGuy]

937293 times is not enough. You gotta try it at least 94849578 times, like Ichiban said.

[lostscotiaguy]

If all else fails, you may want to see if you're actually getting power to the switch, or test for continuity and/or resistance through the switch. No offense, I don't know if you're familiar with using a multimeter (or even have one), but they're pretty cheap & and I'm willing to "walk you through it" if need be. I have an 81 myself plus a FSM, I haven't looked at the wiring schematic yet, but I can take a look if you'd like. I DO know that the power for all your dash lights goes through that switch, so If you find that the switch itself is bad, it'll at least be a lot easier to replace it, and if it ISN'T bad, then you can try to see if the short is before the switch, or after it....

[1GCustomAccord]

Well, theres 3 things to take on count:

1-Fuse
2-Dimmer switch
3-Earth

Sometimes those crystal fuses have a bad contact, you can move them up and down a few times to test if the contact is bad, if not, you can use a contact cleaner on them. Not a bad idea to clean ALL the fuse contacts from time to time.

The dimmer switch have 3 wires in the back: Black, red w/stripe, and solid red, you can jump the 2 red wires together and turn on the light, if the dimmer is bad the dash will lit up.

The dash light earth is located close to the radio area, is a black wire with a ring terminal thet goes to a bolt in the dash frame. If the terminal is loose or broke, the system wont work.

[Dr_Snooz]

937293 times is not enough. You gotta try it at least 94849578 times, like Ichiban said.

Would it be possible maybe simply to shoot it full of contact cleaner?

Just a thought.

[dieselgus]

Only problem with contact cleaner is that it can be hard on older plastics (generally more an issue with the cheaper stuff) and can cause even more issues. I have had good success with Caig (DeOxit), and the MgChemicals stuff.

Haven't had one of these dimmers apart......wirewound or carbon trace/transistor driven?

[1GCustomAccord]

Haven't had one of these dimmers apart......wirewound or carbon trace/transistor driven?

The dimmer on the Accord is transistor driven, a lot of electronic stuff inside.

[lostscotiaguy]

Hmmm...grab a dimmer switch from home depot maybe? LOL J/K

[dieselgus]

Ahh, kay. Definately grab a can of good contact cleaner and a can of contact lube from your local electronics supply joint. The cleaner wahes out the control assembly, the lube keeps the wiper from degrading the carbon trace on the potentiometer that they are probably using in there to control the dimming transistor.

Or replace the assembly with a known good working one.