bj40green
Tssss, tssss
Are those 2 wires the same color?
tail light issues (1 Viewer)
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- #22
Rudi, the tail light fuse is good. It shows 11+ volts. Hate to sound really dumb, but what is the "light switch"? Same thing as a connector?
Danny (pngunme), the PO has a lot of wires going no where here and there (like the two in the one picture), mostly with connectors, so he probably did something to by-pass some other problem that he didn't resolve correctly and that's why the fuel gauge works. I'll try to trace the solid green all the way back. It's hard when it goes hiding inside the frame along with the other wires but I'll assume it isn't cut somewhere in there. If it's a ground issue, I'm not even sure where to look. I thought the ground was supposed to be one of the six wires in that six-pin and not a fuel sender wire. That's how much I know. As I've said before, I know almost nothing about electricity so it's kind of a foreign language to me when you guys say some of what you say. I've just got to get up to speed slowly but surely and find someone who can be next to me to point things out and interpret what you're telling me to do. (Coolerman later on realized he thought I had a US spec HJ47 so that's why he said what he said in #11)
Danny (pngunme), the PO has a lot of wires going no where here and there (like the two in the one picture), mostly with connectors, so he probably did something to by-pass some other problem that he didn't resolve correctly and that's why the fuel gauge works. I'll try to trace the solid green all the way back. It's hard when it goes hiding inside the frame along with the other wires but I'll assume it isn't cut somewhere in there. If it's a ground issue, I'm not even sure where to look. I thought the ground was supposed to be one of the six wires in that six-pin and not a fuel sender wire. That's how much I know. As I've said before, I know almost nothing about electricity so it's kind of a foreign language to me when you guys say some of what you say. I've just got to get up to speed slowly but surely and find someone who can be next to me to point things out and interpret what you're telling me to do. (Coolerman later on realized he thought I had a US spec HJ47 so that's why he said what he said in #11)
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- #23
Yes, they're the same even though they don't look exactly the same in the photo.
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- #24
Rudi, tomorrow when it's light, I'll see where that other yellow and red wire goes.
bj40green
Tssss, tssss
That proves that he bypassed the Yellow/Red wire. The gauge works so leave it for now.
There are a number of wires going nowhere or dangling somewhere because they are for stuff that's not installed from the factory.
Don't worry about that unless a circuit is not working.
On both sides?
Your light switch is that Pull knob on the dash, left of your cluster.
The path is: battery - fuse - light switch - through the firewall - 6 pin connector - to the rear of the truck - splice to license plate and tail lights.
So, go to the 6 pin connector and check for voltage on the green wire.
I'm off to bed,
Hasta mañana,
Rudi
OEM lights were grounded thru metal-to-metal contact between the light fixture and the metal it's mounted to... The aftermarket lights typically have a ground wire... I grounded mine to a bolt on the frame... But, that requires a good ground to the frame in the first place.
The frame is (or should be) grounded by a cable/strap, from the negative battery post, to the frame behind the passenger side front wheel.
As Rudi said, check green wire voltage at the 6-pin connector, with light switch on.
Assuming you find green wire voltage at the 6-pin, check it again, at the back of the truck.
By "stuff not installed from the factory", Rudi's referring to the fact that the harness is 'stubbed out" for options that were not included on your truck.
The frame is (or should be) grounded by a cable/strap, from the negative battery post, to the frame behind the passenger side front wheel.
As Rudi said, check green wire voltage at the 6-pin connector, with light switch on.
Assuming you find green wire voltage at the 6-pin, check it again, at the back of the truck.
By "stuff not installed from the factory", Rudi's referring to the fact that the harness is 'stubbed out" for options that were not included on your truck.
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- #27
Don't have a lot to report yet because I haven't been able to check the voltage at the connector for the green wire, but I did see that the PO did by-pass the connector and went straight from the fuse box to the fuel tank.
So at the bottom, all the wires, including the red and white are coming from the dash (fuse) with the yellow and red one going to the taped up wires and then coming back out and rejoining the other wires that went thru the connector. The red and white and I think a solid green but can't remember go to the two-pin connector and then go back into the black conduit like the others. What do those two wires go to?
I'm sure this is totally unrelated to my electrical issues but what is this broken wire supposed to do? Is it a ground. It is broken off from that exhaust-looking oval container and on the other are two fuel-line like hoses that go to metal lines, one that goes to the master vac and the other goes to the alternator it looks like.
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Sorry, I'm not familiar with that thing In your last picture... Diesel-related? ... And I can't answer your question about the wire in the last picture... You'll need to try to find what it's supposed to be connected to...
In your second-to-last picture, there are three pink/red connections...
One appears to be a red bullet connector... That one appears to be black, connected to solid green... Is that the solid green tail light wire? Where does the black wire go to?
Where do the other two red/pink connectors go? What colors are they connected to?
The fact that your yellow-red was clipped, at the 6-connector, coupled with the three red/pink connectors appears to indicate the PO bypassed the 6-connector... Perhaps for more than the yellow-red fuel sender wire.
You still need to check the green wire, at the 6-connector, for voltage... And the green wire, at the rear, for voltage.
Unless the green (taillight) wire bypasses the 6-connector...
You have a mixed up mess... Figure out what has bypassed the 6-connector... And how?
In your second-to-last picture, there are three pink/red connections...
One appears to be a red bullet connector... That one appears to be black, connected to solid green... Is that the solid green tail light wire? Where does the black wire go to?
Where do the other two red/pink connectors go? What colors are they connected to?
The fact that your yellow-red was clipped, at the 6-connector, coupled with the three red/pink connectors appears to indicate the PO bypassed the 6-connector... Perhaps for more than the yellow-red fuel sender wire.
You still need to check the green wire, at the 6-connector, for voltage... And the green wire, at the rear, for voltage.
Unless the green (taillight) wire bypasses the 6-connector...
You have a mixed up mess... Figure out what has bypassed the 6-connector... And how?
- Is green bypassing the 6-connector?
- Is it transitioning to black?
- Is this black going to the taillights, at the rear?
- Is the green, at the bullet connector energized, when the lights are turned on?
bj40green
Tssss, tssss
Last picture.... that's your vacuum tank for brake assist. That wire should be connected to that (broken) vacuum sender.
When your vacuum drops, a buzzer should go off. That buzzer is located under the dash above the clutch pedal.
That wire is a live wire from the buzzer. The vacuum switch connects to ground.
Put it on your to-do list for later.
Happy new year and lots of
Rudi
When your vacuum drops, a buzzer should go off. That buzzer is located under the dash above the clutch pedal.
That wire is a live wire from the buzzer. The vacuum switch connects to ground.
Put it on your to-do list for later.
Happy new year and lots of
Rudi
- Thread starter
- #30
I'll try to figure out some of the answers to your questions but also look into a new wire harness for the back. From what I can tell, though the green doesn't by-pass the connector and continues on as green but I'll double check that. Where is the bullet connector in the start to finish of the fuse to connector at firewall to connector at tail light and then the tail light itself? I see what I would call bullet connectors that branch off at the rear to the license plate connectors.
- Thread starter
- #31
Last picture.... that's your vacuum tank for brake assist. That wire should be connected to that (broken) vacuum sender.
When your vacuum drops, a buzzer should go off. That buzzer is located under the dash above the clutch pedal.
That wire is a live wire from the buzzer. The vacuum switch connects to ground.
Put it on your to-do list for later.
Happy new year and lots of
Rudi
Thanks. I finally found a picture of that part to see it is what you say, Rudy. I will buy a connector I can reattach to it so I maintain the warning signal under the dash. Thanks for explaining what that does.
In the second, from last, picture, above... It's dead center, black wire near end, green wire far end
- Thread starter
- #33
Oh, that green and black wire--the thicker ones. I hope you can follow this because I think you might be on to something.
So the red/pink wire you can see below the black one joins the black one and they both go up a black flexible tube alongside the black more rigid tubing you see in the picture and they connect to a connector, the reddish wire on one side and the other on the exact opposite side. The direction of this flexible black tubing is toward the top of the front wheel well (so opposite the rear). There is a place on the side of this connector for two other wires to be attached by another connector but there is nothing. (I was going to say about your suggestion to rewire the back section that the front is even worse.)
And the red/pink, thicker wire that goes up to the connector that's not connected to anything connects by the reddish bullet connectors in the bottom left part of the picture (I hadn't noticed before that these are bullet connectors) to the green wire that goes into the six-pin connector, opposite which is the green wire that then joins the other wires to go to the rear of the truck.
So it seems like the green wire coming from the fuse is not connected to the green wire that goes to the rear, interrupted by this thicker red wire that goes nowhere. What do you think the PO was trying to do?? If these two green wires are the solid ones, which I think they are (It's night time so can't see as well), then that would explain why there's no juice to the tail and license plate lights, wouldn't it?
I guess... I'm having a problem following... And have no idea what the PO was doing...
Maybe you can diagram it...
Maybe you can diagram it...
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- #35
Do you know how to write on images like Rudy does? If I could do that, it would be much clearer. But the essence is that red/pink thick wire at the bottom of the picture you referenced connects thru the bullet connection to the green wire that goes into the six-pin connector. That red/pink wire is not connected to anything on the other side--so no power source.
bj40green
Tssss, tssss
Same goes for me.
bj40green
Tssss, tssss
I the past I used "Paint" which comes with Microsoft. Nowadays I use "PicPick" ( PicPick - by NGWIN, All-in-one design tool, Screen Capture, Image Editor, Color Picker, Pixel Ruler and More ) which works 100x better. There is also a portable version of it.
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- #38
Hopefully, this photo version will clarify things. (PicPick doesn't work for Macs, so it took me a little longer to find and do this. There appears to be no connection from the fuse box (or any other source of electricity) to the green wire mentioned below that should light the tail lights. (Best to read from bottom right counter clock-wise)
bj40green
Tssss, tssss
We can keep guessing what goes where and why, but we don't know the reason why the PO did this hack job.
So, if it was my truck, I would do the following:
The GREEN wire from the light switch goes through the firewall and from there to the front and the rear of the truck.
So go to the engine bay and find that bundle of wires that comes out of the firewall.
Peel of the tape or the black tubing. You should see....
- 2 GREEN wires, one to the front markers/running lights and one to the 6 pin connector
OR.....
- 1 GREEN wire and a splice, one to the front and one to rear (the 6 pin connector).
Assuming that your front markers are working, there should be voltage on the GREEN wire(s).
Peel off a little piece of insulation with a sharp knife and check with your voltmeter or volt tester.
If you use a volt tester like this
make sure you have a sharp tip and you can push the tip through the insulation. No need to remove a piece.
Maybe you'll find a cut wire or a bad splice or something else that the PO fabricated.
You have to follow the wiring from the beginning to the end to figure out where the voltage stops and go from there.
Rudi
So, if it was my truck, I would do the following:
The GREEN wire from the light switch goes through the firewall and from there to the front and the rear of the truck.
So go to the engine bay and find that bundle of wires that comes out of the firewall.
Peel of the tape or the black tubing. You should see....
- 2 GREEN wires, one to the front markers/running lights and one to the 6 pin connector
OR.....
- 1 GREEN wire and a splice, one to the front and one to rear (the 6 pin connector).
Assuming that your front markers are working, there should be voltage on the GREEN wire(s).
Peel off a little piece of insulation with a sharp knife and check with your voltmeter or volt tester.
If you use a volt tester like this
Maybe you'll find a cut wire or a bad splice or something else that the PO fabricated.
You have to follow the wiring from the beginning to the end to figure out where the voltage stops and go from there.
Rudi
As Rudi said... We're just guessing here. A PO has hacked up your wiring... It's impossible for us to know what goes where.
Your 6-pin connector SHOULD feed your rear harness... But, from what you're saying and from what your pictures seem to portray, a PO has bypassed some of the 6-pin wiring... Probably when the aftermarket LED taillights were added.
So, as we said, concentrate on the taillight (green) wire... Follow Rudi's instructions and map out where the green originates and where it goes.
Your 6-pin connector SHOULD feed your rear harness... But, from what you're saying and from what your pictures seem to portray, a PO has bypassed some of the 6-pin wiring... Probably when the aftermarket LED taillights were added.
So, as we said, concentrate on the taillight (green) wire... Follow Rudi's instructions and map out where the green originates and where it goes.
