lost dash lights after deck install & mystery wire (pics)
 

first off, i've searched the forums quite a bit trying to resolve this issue. i had the orange (dimmer) wire hooked up, but that has since been disconnected. i've checked all of the fuses. dome light works, tail lights work, brake lights work, clock dims when headlights are turned on. dash lights, climate controls and gear selector lights don't work. i've narrowed it down to this mystery wire with a blue connector that activates when the headlights are turned on. any ideas on where this guy plugs into?

http://adrock.net/89/bluewire.jpg

honestly, i'm not entirely sure when i lost the dash lights because i haven't driven the truck at night lately. at one point my ECT light didn't work, but then started working again. so that might have been the point when the dash lights stopped working.

no luck, huh? i'll try and take better pics tonight after i rip the dash apart again.

what year and make vehicle is it? try taking a picture that shows the entire area not just the wire. did you do the obvious and test all fuses, under dash and under hood? also did you take out any of the lights and test them to see if they are possibly all blown?

thanks for the response, but i figured it out. this wire, behind the black shielding is red w/ a black stripe. i found that if i grounded it, the dash lights worked. i ended up tracing it back to the rheostat and jumping the connection there. looks like i'll be heading to the junk yard at some point to pick up a couple of dimmer switches.

what i don't understand is how the previous aftermarket cd player worked in conjunction with the dash lights if this wire was disconnected? i searched all over for some sort of tab on the metal chassis behind the radio for this guy to plug into. still stumped as to where this wire goes...

could possibly be a dimmer wire. what year and make truck are you working on?

sorry, thought my signature would have answered that for you. it's a 1990 toyota 4x4 dlx. yes, it is a dimmer wire or the ground for the entire circuit. i don't believe this wire was hooked up with the previous aftermarket cd player that was installed and the dash lights worked. even though i've got a work around for this issue, i'm still scratching my head wondering why it worked then and not now.