Problem with low beams and front directionals

[Limo par]

OK here we go. I have a 66 belvedereII. New battery, new 100 alt, new voltage regulator, new light switch, new high beam dimmer switch. Charging system working great. 12.6 ay battery when off and right around 14V when running. My rear taillights and rear directionals work fine. The trunklight even works fine. Problem is I only have headlights when the high beams are engaged. My front directionals do not work either. When I put high beams on the voltmeter holds steady at 14V. When I switch to low beams I have no lights and the voltmeter jumps all over the place. I have heavy duty ground straps running from;
1. From block to k frame
2. From block to firewall
3. From fire wall to frame
4. From battery to block
5. From battery to body.
Where else should I ground.
Oh, I also forgot to state that interior lights not working.
Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[440roadrunner]

The path for the low and high beams is the "same" just one different wire

That is, the headlight switch feeds the dimmer switch, which selects high or low

The low and high separately go out through the BULKHEAD connector to the headlight connectors

So check right at the dimmer switch. Two terminals of the switch should be hot with the headlights on, regardless of high/ low beam.

If the low beam terminal is dead, you have a defective dimmer switch.

If the low beam terminal of the dimmer is hot, move to the bulkhead connector

If that is hot.....................

Check the headlight harness grounds which should be out somewhere on the rad support

Check the headlight sockets for tight connection, and the headlights for good filaments

 

[Limo par]

Thanks for the help. I am going out right now to do some exploring.

 

[440roadrunner]

Forgot to mention your turn signals. The front signals come out of the TS switch on two wires which branch out and feed through the bulkhead to the front harness, and up to the cluster indicator lamps

Do the indicators light? If so, the trouble is likely the bulkhead connector, or grounds, etc, out at the front sockets

If the cluster indicators don't light, check right at the TS switch connector

By the way you can download a free 66 Plymouth shop manual over at "MyMopar:"

http://www.mymopar.com/index.php?pid=31

der linkee

http://www.mymopar.com/downloads/servicemanuals/1966_Plymouth_Service_Manual.zip

You have to play with the page numbers because the viewer does not use the same numbers as the original manual

Electrical starts page 189 in my viewer

Wiring diagram index page 289

Belvedere instrument and front end wiring page 289/290

You have to use the color code chart at the right, IE

For example, D5 series wires are tan, right side signal

D6 series wires are light green, left side turn

So you should be able to probe those at the switch and see if you have power there

 

[Limo par]

Went and checked wiring at dimmer switch. The green wire is hot coming from the headlight switch when the high beams are on. The red wire at the dimmer switch is also on when the high beams are on. The red wire coming out the bulk head is hot when high beams are on. The black wire is not hot regardless of whether or not the dimmer is set to high or low beams. BUT, I can leave the high beams on all day long with no issues. As soon as I put the dimmer to low beams the wiring to the dimmer starts to heat up fast. Also in the low beam position when I test the green wire feeding the dimmer switch the test light is barely lit up. As the test light flickers I can here clicking behind the dash like the voltage regulator for the dash is clicking. The black wire connection at the dimmer switch looks real suspect and beat up. It looks as if the connector harness was heat damaged in the past. Could a bad connection at the black wire at the dimmer switch cause a problem. Also if the dash voltage regulator is bad would it effect the headlights. Once again thanks for any help.

 

[440roadrunner]

The black must be shorted somewhere

To isolate the problem, yank the bulkhead connector apart, that is, the section leading to the light harness. This will "dead end" the wiring from the dimmer switch to the bulkhead

If you get a lamp on the black, and it quits heating up, then the problem is obviously out in the engine bay

I would be pulling the headlights out, and examining the harness in the engine bay from one end to the other. You probably have a bare spot shorting against the body somewhere.

 

[Limo par]

Once again thanks for the info 440roadrunner. The harness plug that goes onto the dimmer switch is pretty bad shape. Would it hurt anything if I cut the plug end off and spliced single female ends onto each wire to connect to the dimmer switch?.

 

[440roadrunner]

No but the same type dimmer was used in a LOT of cars. I would think you could buy a pigtail connector at the parts stores, although I've never tried.

 

[tpodwdog]

anytime you have an electrical issue....or any issue for that matter,,,,start out with the simplest and easiest things to get to first.....like the fuses...and switches....then start tracing wires. learn how to use a powered and unpowered test lights. they will make things so much easier.

 

[Limo par]

Well I replaced the plug at dimmer and one of the headlights. I also went over the entire headlight harness under the hood as well as the front directional harness. I did not find any problems but I am still not getting power through the firewall to the black wire. The high beams still work fine but no low beams. The dimmer switch still heats up. I checked under the dash and can't find any problems. There is no power at the black wire on the dash side of the bulkhead either. From what I can tell the dimmer gets power from green wire from light switch and then that feeds the black wire at the dimmer switch which should then go to the light harness. The green wire has power.

How can I tell if the voltage reg for dash is working. When I put the low beams on the regulator starts clicking and my voltmeter starts to jump around. When this is happening there is a slight amount of power going to the second terminal of the dimmer switch which makes the test light flicker as the voltage regulator makes its clicks and noises.

I went to the auto parts store to get a dash volt reg and was told that the computer shows a picture of the reg I pulled from the dash but it states it is for all BUT the BelvedereII.

Sorry for the long post. Any other suggestions and should I change the volt reg for the dash.

 

[Dako]

Maybe you could try rigging up some pigtails...that would allow you to swap sides at the hi-beam switch...attach the 'low wire' to the 'high side' and vice-versa. This would possibley show you if the switch is defective. Kind of like reversing a tail light bulb to see if both elements are working.

 

[demonram]

I bought a new set of sylvania low beam halogens. I put them in checked em and everything was fine. I took it out that afternoon and when I started home that night I turned the lights on and everthing went nuts. Gauge was bouncing dash lights were flickering it scared the hell out of me. I shut them off and everything was fine. I pulled the left light and disconnected it, tried it again and everything was fine. I drove it home and put in a bulb and it's been fine since. I would never imagine a short in the bulb would have caused that.

 

[tpodwdog]

clean the connectors at the headlights ...or did you do that already?

 

[tpodwdog]

heres how to check the under dash volt reg without pulling it out:

get a non powered test light
ground the clip on the batt. neg (-)
on the temp sending unit...either probe the wire....or... touch the pointy part to the temp sending unit (+) ( where it pushes on ) with the wire still on the temp unit.
i.e. ...both test light AND the temp sender wire BOTH are making contact with the threaded part of the temp send unit)....followin me ???

if your test light pulsates....the volt reg is ok.... key must be on of course.

the volt reg should have nothing to do with the headlights...its for the gauges only and possibly the low voltage dash lights....but thats how you test it since you asked!

 

[440roadrunner]

Well I replaced the plug at dimmer and one of the headlights. I am still not getting power through the firewall to the black wire. The high beams still work fine but no low beams. The dimmer switch still heats up. I checked under the dash and can't find any problems. There is no power at the black wire on the dash side of the bulkhead either.

How can I tell if the voltage reg for dash is working. When I put the low beams on the regulator starts clicking and my voltmeter starts to jump around. When this is happening there is a slight amount of power going to the second terminal of the dimmer switch which makes the test light flicker as the voltage regulator makes its clicks and noises.

I went to the auto parts store to get a dash volt reg and was told that the computer shows a picture of the reg I pulled from the dash but it states it is for all BUT the BelvedereII.

Sorry for the long post. Any other suggestions and should I change the volt reg for the dash.

I first was going to suggest that the black is grounded (shorted) but it should have nothing to do with anything clicking EXCEPT the breaker on the light switch.

ANY possibility that something got mis--wired? OR that part of a harness became internally melted and shorted to other wiring?

I would do this:

Separate the engine bay lighting harness from the bulkhead. Now see if you have low beam power to the bulkhead. If not, and especially if the clicking is going on, yo have a short in the INTERIOR

If the dimmer has power with the engine bay harness disconnected, the problem is "out there." Most likely a shorted wire in that harness. Examine every inch of the harness, looking for melted areas, frayed bare spots, splices, or amateur taped areas indicating some repair.