Weird Panel Dimmer question...

[stangzroastrice]

Yeah thanks to all your help I was able to get my amber lights and tailights working again by replacing fuse number 4 (which kept blowing out every fuse up to 25 amps for some reason) with a 30 amp fuse and everything works again... But for some reason after doing my gauge cluster swap, it seems that the gauge cluster lights will only turn on when the panel dimmer is all the way up (resulting in keeping my interior light on). With the dimmer in any of the adjustable positions, they don't come on at all... Did this happen to anybody? This is on my 90 by the way and I could just take out the interior light bulb, but I'd rather have it.

 

[BlackFox5.0]

Sounds like a normal problem to me. My 90 does the same thing. I have to crank it all the way up till the dome light comes on, and gently shut the dome light off, the my gauges stay lit. Otherwise they flicker, and are not bright enough. I gotta get around to swapping it out.

 

[stangzroastrice]

Good news... I did a little searching on here (gotta love Stangnet man) and I first checked fuse 13, which was fine, then I read about how the panel dimmers have a flat spot sometime and that you need to keep moving it back and forth until you find a spot where the gauges come on... Luckily, this spot was at it's high position, basically right before it clicks so that the interior light would come on... Pay close attention and keep adjusting it back and forth, and you might see them flicker on... Thanks guys

 

[HISSIN50]

Yep, the dimmer is just a rheostat - like on old radios. I remember growing up having to crank the volume knob up and down real quick to get the 'static' out.

FWIW, keep a fire extinguisher handy - I doubt the wires and circuit on fuse 4 are able to handle up to 30 amps through them.

Good luck.

 

[trbkrb]

Also be careful when the dash lights are out. Mine does the same thing, and when the dash lights are out, all the exterior lights are out too. Cop stopped me on that one since only my headlights were working. Just something to remember. I need to replace my dimmer also.