I Broke My Dash Lights :(

**Guitarist575** · 05-20-2008

I checked all relevant fuses and none are blown...
I was installing a car alarm myself. It has 2 wires, one for each parking light. For some reason I felt the need to take a shortcut...
I took off that panel on the side of the dash that you can only see with the driver's side door open (the one that exposes the harness and back of the headlight switch), and used a multimeter.

I found that the first 2 brown wires have a constant 3 volt connection when parking lights are off, then a 12 volt connection when you switch the lights on.
So I tapped into those two...

After doing that, I noticed that my radio lights and fan control lights do not light up when I start the car to go to work. I also noticed on my way home from work, that my backlights for my gauge cluster do not come on. Glad I have a HUD

Sometimes, while driving, I will hear a clicking sound (I think it's my headlights coming on automatically) and all the lights in my radio/fan controls will (sometimes) behave normally.

When I manually turn on/off the parking lights, the radio/fan lights come on, then quickly fade out. I have disconnected the alarm from those 2 wires.

I recorded a video of it on my cell phone...

http://www.youtube.com/v/8qX1UxlZ_SI

Also, here is an image of the two brown wires I tapped into...
ImageShack - Hosting :: img012iy3.jpg

Anyone have any solutions? Did I fry something electronic? Is there some kind of computer-controlled thing I could reset?

**BackInBlack** · 05-20-2008

If you checked all your fuses and the headlamp connector, and they are all good, I believe you've smoked your headlamp switch. What is the PIN LOCATION of the wires you tapped into? I hate just listing wire color, as it is always possible that the colors do not match. There are sensitive electronics in the headlamp switch. You really need to know the pin number first, and use the color for additional verification.

What functions does your alarm require from your headlamp switch? I have mapped out the switch extensively...

**Guitarist575** · 05-21-2008

How exactly would I determine pin numbers? They are the two wires closest to the driver's side. One on the top of the connector, one on the bottom.
Also, where would the headlamp connector be, and how would I test it? All outside lights work properly.

Is there a way to just test the headlamp switch with a multimeter or something? Maybe if I had a pinout of it?

**Guitarist575** · 05-21-2008

Just thought I might add that I just found this...

1997 Pontiac Grand Prix Alarm, Remote Starter, Keyless Entry Wiring Information

It says I had the right wire... Maybe I wasn't supposed to use both brown wires? They both put out the same voltage at all times (3v when off, 12v when on), but now that I think on it, maybe the brown one with the stripe is for dash light. Anyone know anything about it?

**Guitarist575** · 05-21-2008

Pretty sure I figured it out...

Where I said 3v up there, it was actually 0.32v... Sorry, I was going by memory. The plain brown wire is for the parking lights, the other one (brown/white I believe) is for the dash stuff.

Just tested both with the multimeter...
The brown one (for lights) still functions as it should. 0.32v while off, 12v while on.
The brown/white one (for dash lights) is 0.32v while off, then flashes 12v for a split second just like the lights show in the video.

SOO...

I put a wire connecting the two brown wires together, since they're supposed to always show the same voltage anyway.
The backlights for the radio now function properly, and the little "gear" light (the light in the gauge cluster that tells you what gear you're in) dims as it should when turning on the lights.
However, I still have no backlights working for the gauge cluster. And when I turn my parking lights on, all lights on the A/C controls go out including the screen.

**archemedes** · 05-21-2008

mine did that when the door window switch shorted, undo all the wiring you have done around the switch, and see if the problem continues

**Guitarist575** · 05-21-2008

I did that and it did continue. I wound up connecting both brown wires, and the gray wire (also the same behavior as the brown wires) and that seemed to kinda fix it. I forgot what it was doing exactly but I still wasn't satisfied.
I disconnected them from each other and they still acted the same... Weird

So I unhooked my battery for a few minutes and reconnected it. They straightened themselves out.
Not sure why that happened, but it worked

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