tail lights wired, but no worky!

[NEK5]

I followed my instruction manual (Summit Racing universal harness), the lights are wired correctly...brake switch is wired correctly, and the rest of the wires to the column are correct (according to a diagram from brochures.slosh). I just finished wiring the rear lights, and wanted to check if they worked, so I flipped the turn signal in either direction, and got nothing, hit the brakes, nothing...

none of the lights in front are wired, if that matters...


any ideas? this column was in my 90 blazer, and it worked when it was in there....but its been hanging around my basement ever since (fell off a 6 foot shelf once, I do know that )

 

[4X4HIGH]

Turn signals must have ignition switch on, brake lights should light at anytime the pedal is pushed. Check all grounds (most common failure, and even more so if there is fresh paint).

 

[NEK5]

Turn signals must have ignition switch on, brake lights should light at anytime the pedal is pushed. Check all grounds (most common failure, and even more so if there is fresh paint).

Should each tail light be grounded? There are only three wires coming out of each light; backup,tail, and turn, don't recall seeing a ground

 

[4X4HIGH]

Should each tail light be grounded? There are only three wires coming out of each light; backup,tail, and turn, don't recall seeing a ground

Make sure the taillight housing itself is grounded.

What vehicle are you working on? You need to make sure the ground cable goes from the battery to the engine. Then you need to have a ground strap from the engine to the frame and another from the engine to the firewall.

 

[NEK5]

Make sure the taillight housing itself is grounded.

They're all plastic

 

[4X4HIGH]

They're all plastic

Then there MUST be a ground wire going into the light socket.

 

[NEK5]

thanks for the help, Scott!

Turns out the light housings, even though they're plastic, were made to ground themselves at the mounts, which doesn't work very well when they're mounted to my temp. wooden bed . So, I ran some jumpers from each mount to the frame, and voila!

 

[ryoken]

usually those setups grd thru the mounting studs... if ya take the lense out, there's probably a grd strap off one over to the bulb...

sounds like it's almost ready for a test run!

 

[NEK5]

usually those setups grd thru the mounting studs... if ya take the lense out, there's probably a grd strap off one over to the bulb...

sounds like it's almost ready for a test run!

yep, that's just how it was. I just ran a little wire with an eyelet to the mount with the strap, then screwed it to the frame, and it worked

Make sure the taillight housing itself is grounded.

What vehicle are you working on? You need to make sure the ground cable goes from the battery to the engine. Then you need to have a ground strap from the engine to the frame and another from the engine to the firewall.

I didn't see the second half of the post the first time around. My 82 trazer. Strap from engine to frame, eh? I only have a ground for engine to batt, then batt to rad support....which is exactly how my 90 blazer was

 

[4X4HIGH]

yep, that's just how it was. I just ran a little wire with an eyelet to the mount with the strap, then screwed it to the frame, and it worked


I didn't see the second half of the post the first time around. My 82 trazer. Strap from engine to frame, eh? I only have a ground for engine to batt, then batt to rad support....which is exactly how my 90 blazer was

Your 90 blazer originally had a strap from the back side of the passenger side head to the firewall. This strap needs to be there to make sure that everything electrical under the dash gets grounded properly since the under dash ground leads go to the firewall. The headlights will use the ground to the radiator support. You have to remember that there are rubber body mounts and you can't rely on the bolts themselves to make a good enough contact.

Just remember this, anytime there is an electrical issue it is almost certainly because of a bad or missing ground.