I'm looking to diagnose why my lights-on reminder and "door courtesy switch" don't work anymore. Tired of killing my battery because I can't tell if my headlights are on. According to the FSM, I need to apply battery voltage over the relay:

Lights–On Warning System
1. INSPECT DOOR COURTESY SWITCH
See combination meter on page BE–39.
2. INSPECT LIGHT REMAINDER RELAY
(Relay Circuit/Operation)
(a) Connect the positive (+) lead from the battery to
terminal 3 and the negative (–) lead to terminal 4.
(b) Check that the buzzer does not sound when con–
nected terminal 1 or 2 to the positive (+) lead.
(c) Check that the buzzer sounds when disconnecting
terminal 1 or 2 from the positive (+) lead.
If operation is not as specified, replace the relay.

What's the best way to do this? I have a multimeter but it only puts out up to 9V so I don't think it will work. I don't have any spare wires around... is there a cheap trick or tool I can pick up that will do the job? Electrical is not my specialty

 

In the time it took you to type this, you could have driven to the hardware store and picked up a spool of wire.

What you want is something like these: http://www.harborfreight.com/36-inch...ads-66712.html . The clips mean you can do it with only two hands. These are 18ga which is much bigger than you need for a relay (24ga is good enough for the current, but a little mechanically flimsy for auto work). The 18ga, though, will be good enough if you want to test a 35W headlamp with them. (

Or, just about any wire will do for a relay. Yes, you could even unplug the leads from the multimeter and use them. Wire is wire. But do yourself a favor and pick up some "test leads."

 

Nearly any automotive store will have a set of test leads in the electrical section. Also you can buy a pack of test leads from any radio shack.

 

There's a Harbor Freight within walking distance of where I live so yeah, probably! I just don't like the idea of shocking myself... again...

The clamp one will do the trick for me. It's only yours truly working on the truck so I can't rely on an extra pair of hands. Thanks for the help.

 

Don't worry about 12v; you can't feel that, even with wet hands.

The only thing on a truck that can shock you is the spark-side of the ignition system (coil - distributor - plugs). The voltage is plenty high, but the current is low. It will really smart (so don't do it!), but the current is low enough that you'll survive. Probably.

 

shocked he say's

I dont know about you, but I always wear rubber gloves and a cup when using jumper cables. And im sure never to actually touch the jumper cables. I dont want to get electrocuted.

And I always take the battery completely out of my truck and make sure its atleast 80 feet from the vehicle when changing my headlight bulbs, I dont want to end up one of those statistics.