No interior lights

[TimFX]

Hello all

i do not seem to have any interior lights. No dash lights (switched the toggle back and fro)

no back seat headliner light. Tried to remove the bezel but couldn't get it off. Don't want to break it. 

Opened and closed the door. Flicked the little switch in the back seat on drivers side  

Tried with head lights on and off. They work. Break and signal lights work. 

 

Is is there a special procedure for removing the dash bulbs behind the console?

Arg...

[greg g]

If you are talking about a P15 the instrument panel lights are powered through the toggle switch through a red wire connected to the "A" terminal of the headlamp switch.  The dome light is powered by a red, or white or black and red wire from the "D" terminal of the head light switch.  My dome light didn't work after the car sat for a while, working the slide switch on the door pillar about a dozen times "fixed" it.  Make up a jumper wire about ten feet long with a couple of alligator clips, then use it to power circuits from the battery,or bypass switches to determine where the problem is. If you power the instrument switch from the battery and you get lights, you know the switch and bulbs are good and the fault must be between the power source and the toggle, so that would indicate the head light switch which you know is getting power because your head lights work,so it most likely be the terminal connection is loose or corroded,or the toggle is not connected to the correct terminal. An inadvertant ground between the headlamp switch and the toggle would cause a short and cook the fuse so you would not have headlamps. So check for clean tight connections and work the switches for several cycles.  If that doesn't work, make up a jumper wire and start looking for the fault.  Just be careful to make sure you don't make incidental contact to grounds while probing around.  You might want to include an inline fuse in your jumper wire just to be safe if you have never done this type of fault chasing.  Wouldn't want to start I fire.  Use 12 gauge wire and a 10 amp fuse.

[TimFX]

6 hours ago, greg g said:

If you are talking about a P15 the instrument panel lights are powered through the toggle switch through a red wire connected to the "A" terminal of the headlamp switch.  The dome light is powered by a red, or white or black and red wire from the "D" terminal of the head light switch.  My dome light didn't work after the car sat for a while, working the slide switch on the door pillar about a dozen times "fixed" it.  Make up a jumper wire about ten feet long with a couple of alligator clips, then use it to power circuits from the battery,or bypass switches to determine where the problem is. If you power the instrument switch from the battery and you get lights, you know the switch and bulbs are good and the fault must be between the power source and the toggle, so that would indicate the head light switch which you know is getting power because your head lights work,so it most likely be the terminal connection is loose or corroded,or the toggle is not connected to the correct terminal. An inadvertant ground between the headlamp switch and the toggle would cause a short and cook the fuse so you would not have headlamps. So check for clean tight connections and work the switches for several cycles.  If that doesn't work, make up a jumper wire and start looking for the fault.  Just be careful to make sure you don't make incidental contact to grounds while probing around.  You might want to include an inline fuse in your jumper wire just to be safe if you have never done this type of fault chasing.  Wouldn't want to start I fire.  Use 12 gauge wire and a 10 amp fuse.

Yes it is a P15

thabks for the info. I'll get some wire, an inline fuse and track it down!

 

[TimFX]

Just now, TimFX said:

Yes it is a P15

thabks for the info. I'll get some wire, an inline fuse and track it down!

 

And can you tell me what a negative ground is about?

one side of my 6v goes to starter, one to a mystery location under the engine

 

yeah. I'm new...

[greg g]

Your car was made for positive ground.  So it should be wired so that the positive post on the battery goes to ground.  In the P 15 the ground is a special bolt that holds the generator bracket to the block.  So it does look like it disappears under the side of the engine.  The negative cable goes to a large terminal on the starter solenoid.  (That terminal is a good spot to hook your jumper test wire to ads it is easy to get to and easy to disconnect from if you need to in a hurry. The other large terminal on the solenoid connects to the starter.  The cables making these connections need to be thick cables, about like your little finger to carry the amperage that six volt systems require.  The smaller terminal comes from the starter button and energizes the solenoid when the button is pushed.  The solenoid is a magnetic switch that completed the connection through the thick cables from the battery to the starter.  While you are looking around for wires and cables see if there is one that looks like a ground cable that connects the body typically a bolt on the engine side of the firewall to the engine or to the frame.  This provides a ground path for the accessories likes interior lights that are mounted to body sheet metal.  If there isn't one you can make one up using three or four strands of the 12 gauge stuff you use for the bumper wire, cut them the same length twist them together and connect them from firewall to a bolt on the engine or frame.  Use it for your testing, then get something more permanent when you can. Just another reminder about being careful when probing around with that hot test wire, as a matter of practice, connect the load end to the switch or the lamp, then connect it to power.  I believe the instrument lamps release with a quarter turn or so then pull out of their holes. Take it slow and try to think about how the current flows to do its job.  Power to switch, power out of switch, power through fuse if used to load, power through load to ground.  You might want to go to the parts store and buy a simple circuit tester. They will be set up with a 12 volt bulb but will still work with 6v but the light will be dim. Don't buy an led one as they are polarity sensitive

 with one of these testers you hook the clip to body bolt or other chassis metal ground, the use the probe to check for power.  If your good, the light will illuminate.  So if for example you wanted to check your starter button, you would put the clamp to ground then touch the probe to the small solenoid terminal and have an assistant turn the ignitionignswitch on and press the button.  If the light lights you know you have power from the battery, through the ignition switch, through the button to the solenoid, through the test lamp to ground, there fore a complete circuit.Each and every circuit can be tested that simply.  Since you know your starter works when you push the button,this was just an example of how to employ the tester to verify current is reaching its intended load.

 

[TimFX]

8 hours ago, greg g said:

Your car was made for positive ground.  So it should be wired so that the positive post on the battery goes to ground.  In the P 15 the ground is a special bolt that holds the generator bracket to the block.  So it does look like it disappears under the side of the engine.  The negative cable goes to a large terminal on the starter solenoid.  (That terminal is a good spot to hook your jumper test wire to ads it is easy to get to and easy to disconnect from if you need to in a hurry. The other large terminal on the solenoid connects to the starter.  The cables making these connections need to be thick cables, about like your little finger to carry the amperage that six volt systems require.  The smaller terminal comes from the starter button and energizes the solenoid when the button is pushed.  The solenoid is a magnetic switch that completed the connection through the thick cables from the battery to the starter.  While you are looking around for wires and cables see if there is one that looks like a ground cable that connects the body typically a bolt on the engine side of the firewall to the engine or to the frame.  This provides a ground path for the accessories likes interior lights that are mounted to body sheet metal.  If there isn't one you can make one up using three or four strands of the 12 gauge stuff you use for the bumper wire, cut them the same length twist them together and connect them from firewall to a bolt on the engine or frame.  Use it for your testing, then get something more permanent when you can. Just another reminder about being careful when probing around with that hot test wire, as a matter of practice, connect the load end to the switch or the lamp, then connect it to power.  I believe the instrument lamps release with a quarter turn or so then pull out of their holes. Take it slow and try to think about how the current flows to do its job.  Power to switch, power out of switch, power through fuse if used to load, power through load to ground.  You might want to go to the parts store and buy a simple circuit tester. They will be set up with a 12 volt bulb but will still work with 6v but the light will be dim. Don't buy an led one as they are polarity sensitive

 with one of these testers you hook the clip to body bolt or other chassis metal ground, the use the probe to check for power.  If your good, the light will illuminate.  So if for example you wanted to check your starter button, you would put the clamp to ground then touch the probe to the small solenoid terminal and have an assistant turn the ignitionignswitch on and press the button.  If the light lights you know you have power from the battery, through the ignition switch, through the button to the solenoid, through the test lamp to ground, there fore a complete circuit.Each and every circuit can be tested that simply.  Since you know your starter works when you push the button,this was just an example of how to employ the tester to verify current is reaching its intended load.

 

Wow. That's great info again..

one last question. 

'When I hook up my 6v battery tender, should the red clip go on the post with the wire that goes to the starter?

and when I'm driving, should the needle on the Amps gage be in the negative?

[greg g]

How is the battery currently installed? Pos to ground or neg to ground?  Perhaps some one changed it to neg in the past.  Second place to look, there are two small wires connected to the coil. One going from the coil to the distributer (should be on the (+) terminal, and one coming from the ignition switch that should go the (-) terminal.  When you hook up charger/ tender always pos to pos neg to neg.  Your amp gauge should move to pos when the car is running.  With everything off what does the amp gauge do when you switch on your headlights??

[Plymouthy Adams]

3 hours ago, TimFX said:

Wow. That's great info again..

one last question. 

'When I hook up my 6v battery tender, should the red clip go on the post with the wire that goes to the starter?

and when I'm driving, should the needle on the Amps gage be in the negative?

your battery charger will always connect red to positive and black to negative regardless of the polarity of the chassis...answer Greg's question on swing of ammeter to verify if by chance your battery is installed backwards...

[greg g]

Did you get this sorted???

[TimFX]

Not yet. Busy work week. 

 

I noticed that the positive from the battery is going to the starte solinoid and negative to under the engine block. 

'I think I need to switch the battery around

has having the battery in backwards been hurting the system?

[TimFX]

Just re-read the comments...

 

clearly it is in backwards. 

'I'll flip it and see what happens. 

[greg g]

Won't cause any real damage, but would make amp gauge read opposite of what is happening.  So your slight discharge was actually a slight charge which is proper for a battery in good shape with minimal load on it.  

Edited July 15, 2017 by greg g

[TimFX]

Spent a few hours with her today. 

 

''Installed the battery the correct way,,,

'traced the interior lights to a bad B pillar switch. 

Traced the no brake lights to the brake light switch, mounted to the frame rail on the drivers side, and simply pushed the wire back into the socket...

drove for a few hours. Amp meter goes into the positive now, not neg. 

i just barely push the starter button now and she starts up. 

 

Next project, fuel line heat shield. 

Is installing a new rigid fuel line from the fuel filter with it bent away from the manifold a good idea?

 

thanks for everyone's help!

[greg g]

Anything you can do to shield, or isolate the line from pump to carb away from the exhaust is a good idea unless you are a stickler for factory original. Glad you sorted some of your electrical gremlins.