Hey all, first post here! I just bought a ’92 DLX 4x4 22R-E pickup and I’m having a wiring issue. The exterior lights seem to work fine (including the tail lights) and the interior dome light and HVAC unit both work (including the A/C light that illuminates when pressed.) However, the dash lights, the HVAC backlighting and the cigarette lighter do not work. Not sure whether the aftermarket stereo worked; the faceplate was missing so I ripped it out and discovered that it had been installed in the dash with hot glue and duct tape. I am not kidding. There’s an amp for the stereo behind the seats and I’ve removed all that wiring, and I’ve checked fuses under the hood and all seems OK there. The stereo wiring doesn’t look all that bad; it appears that they just spliced in an aftermarket harness. Could it be as simple as a bad dimmer for the dash lights? Wiring is a foreign language to me and I have no idea where to start. One interesting footnote that may clue in those of you who understand wiring: when the turn signal is on, the speedo needle bounces. It stops when the turn signal is canceled. Could that mean anything specific, other than “I’m screwed!”? Thanks so much for any input!

 

You need to begin with the beginning.

Your fuse for the backlighting will not be under the hood but inside the cab. Left kickpanel, just beside the clutch pedal your dash fuse will be there. On your operator manual you will have the list for the fuses. Check every fuses to be sure to not missing one.

Maybe your trouble is the rust behind the fuse panel, mine is rusty as ˟˟˟˟˟˟.