Dashboard lights out need help!

[netwerkjim]

I have a 2003 SE-R Spec V and the other day I was installing a car stereo and after I was finished, when I went to turn my lights on, my dashboard lights were out. I have checked all of the fuses both under the dash and under the hood and I did find that one of the fuses under the hood a 15amp, was blown and I replaced it. Still my dash lights won't come on, what should I do next to solve this problem?



Thanks Jim

[mpe235]

Sounds like something on the radio is hooked up wrong. My guess would be that it burned out the dimmer switch.

[netwerkjim]

Thanks for your reply, I will check the dimmer switch, but I don't see how it could have burned out when I didn't have the lights on at all. What I did was connect the positive and accessory to my new radio and then turned the key to ACC to see if the radio came on. Wouldn't I have to have the lights on in order to short them out? and wouldn't a fuse blow first? If it does turn out to be the dimmer switch, do you have any idea how much a replacement would cost?


Thanks, Jim

[airlinepilot]

I did the same stupid mistake yesterday and i plugged the replacement stereo ground chassis wire in the orange wire for instrument light... The fuse melt away instantly. (Fuse box and fusible link under the hood 10AMP) This meens no more instruments lighting and parking, position light.

Now i need to find s more suitable location for the ground chassis wire. The factory stereo was self grounded trough the stereo casing.

If anyone have suggestions on where to put a ground wire for the stereo, please make sugestions!

[griebs18]

I installed my new deck today and subs and both my tail lights and dash lights were out...i replaced the fuse under the hood for the tail lamps (because somebody said that the tail lights and dash lights were on the same fuse) and the tail lights work now but the dash lights are still out.

does anyone know why the dash lights still dont work and know what i can do to fix this problem?

[theunknownr]

I believe that when you plug in the antenna for the radio it grounds itself because thats what i did on my new deck and it worked.

[griebs18]

when i installed the deck...i asked the guy at best buy if i needed to do anything special with the installation (cuz i picked up the wiring harness there). he said alls u do is connect the colored wires but leave the two orange looking ones and i believe the striped black and white one unconnected (he said connect them all to eachother cuz they do nothing) and then ground the all black wire from the deck to a screw or something somewhere on the dash (so i did one of the screws for the mounting frame for the deck and storage box)

[05silverser]

I made this mistake on my first car when installing a stereo, thurned out the ground wire was just hooked up incorrectly. You just need to find a good clean metal/ground connection and bolt the wire down.

[05silverser]

I made this mistake on my first car when installing a stereo, turned out the ground wire was just hooked up incorrectly. You just need to find a good clean metal/ground connection and bolt the wire down.

[griebs18]

i need to find a new spot to ground my deck??? can u tell me where u grounded yours after u fixed it?

[05silverser]

I haven't put a stereo in my Sentra, but on my other car I had to make the ground wire a little longer and ran it to a bolt on the firewall, under the carpeting... It just needs to be something connected to the frame/body of the car for a good solid ground.

[griebs18]

okay...ill try finding a bolt or something somewhere else...becuz right now i have it grounded to a screw on the dash somewhere (it like holds the deck and stuff in place)

[griebs18]

so once i unplug my ground from the deck...if i were to turn the key to acc would my dash lights then go on becuz i replaced the fuse for the dash/tail lights???

cuz if i redo the ground and my dash lights dont come on...what would still b left for me to do?

[griebs18]

ok...i just got done pretty much rewiring the deck...moved the ground and what not...checked all the fuses again and still no dash lights

im am completely stumped...my only guess is somehow there was a short circuit after the fuse was blown and now either it needs to be rewired or all the lights replaced...idk...its just a guess

[griebs18]

okay...ive tried just about everything with my deck and fuses...so i talked to my friend at work who works on cars too and he said that the orange wires for the deck were hooked up in correctly (thanks best buy) and that melted something for the dimmer

does anyone no how to access the dimmer and than no what i would be looking for once that happened...all this stuff is just frustrating and there is noway im takin my car in and paying $96 an hour for some hooligan to work on it????

please any help is appreciated

[griebs18]

just ordered dimmer switch off ebay for 11 bucks...put it in and now everything works

yes!!!

[bradart300]

That's awesome you figured that out. I just bought a Sentra with a Kenwood in it, and of course the dash lights don't work. So prior to replacing the switch, want to make sure it doesn't burn out again, which wires did you have hooked up improperly that caused this in the first place?
Did you get to the dimmer switch thru the opening by the fuse box or pull part of the dash panel off?

Originally Posted by griebs18

just ordered dimmer switch off ebay for 11 bucks...put it in and now everything works

yes!!!

[griebs18]

Originally Posted by bradart300

That's awesome you figured that out. I just bought a Sentra with a Kenwood in it, and of course the dash lights don't work. So prior to replacing the switch, want to make sure it doesn't burn out again, which wires did you have hooked up improperly that caused this in the first place?
Did you get to the dimmer switch thru the opening by the fuse box or pull part of the dash panel off?

its been a while since i made this thread, lol, but i got an email saying someone posted in it, so im doing this from memory

i connected the orange wires together on the back of the harness...BIG no no...(if ur head unit doesnt use those wires) lol...cap them off seperately. so basically if my headunit didnt use the wires, i capped them off seperately and just moved my grounding wire to a different location where there was metal on both sides of it.

the dimmer switch just popped right out i think...just took a screwdriver and lightly pryed on the top, then disconnected the three wiring harnesses that attach to the mirror aimer, trunk pop, and dash lights

[bradart300]

Right on, thanks for replying to that, going to tackle that headache saturday afternoon!

[bradart300]

Capped off orange wire, replaced dimmer, boom, lights have been fine for a couple weeks now.