Got my tach working but I dont know what wire to splice into to get my light to work. I shoved it into the light fuse in the fuse box but the light constantly stays on. Thanks for the help
update: now I got a problem. I got all the wires wired up except the light wire. I start the car, and the needle stays at my shift point. But my stock tach still works. I have one to the ground, one to the neg. side coil, and another to the power in the fuse box.
Pop out the headlight switch and test for the wire that lights up when the switch is on. Make sure it is the wire that the dimmer switch controls. I forget what color. Just strip that wire and connect the tach light wire.
thanks guys, good info. Hissin, so it sounds like a coil connection problem? The wire was too short to reach the coil so I had to splice in another wire to make it reach, would that be a problem also?
No problem at all with using a splice - in my experience anyhow. I had to do the same for my AM tach (mine's real plain though - no light or nothing).
I'd just give it a quick check and make sure the connection is secure, as chances are that this is the source of issue. The connections do need to be pretty clean because the negative side of the coil pulses a zillion times a minute and the tach 'counts' these.
Per MSD, I do believe that the tach should go to the tach terminal on your box, like you said. I have seen folks in here say they didnt but I'd do it at the box, especially since you're having issues.
I got the tach to work, thanks a lot guys. One problem, I cant get the light to work. I shoved the wire in fuse 13 (dimmer) and its not working for me. Any other options besides splicing into the dash lights?
Whenever you don't get the desired result with something like that, do as mentioned above and whip out the test light and trace the pathway from your tap at the fusebox towards the gauge.
Chances are either the splice into the fusebox was bad or that the wiring connection at the gauge socket (where you spliced into the little leg of wires they supply) is bad.
If that whole run of dimmer wire to your gauge is good, do the same test with your gauge light's ground.