Hi,

I own a Suzuki Vitara '90 JLX

I recently installed a new stereo head deck using the old stock wiring loom from the previous head deck. Everything installed fine, but now my dash lights don't work? The dash lights are the ones behind the speedo/tacho/etc.

So I opened up my dash and found a globe that wasn't working and tried to get it to work.



At no stage have I been able to get the light to come on. Only when I tested it on another car.

Now this is where I am confused, the globe is getting power but it still isn't illuminating?!

I have tested for the following:
* Blown fuse: Nope, all my fuses are fine.
* Blown globe: Went out and bought a new globe, still doesn't work.
* Broken Earth: Wouldn't the light come on using the test light as an earth?

Why does the NEG (-) have power?!

....*confused*

PLEASE NOTE: At a stage when I was testing the new head deck, I used the NEG (-) from one of the dash lights to earth the stereo. It didn't work so I made my own earth. I don't know if this could have harmed the wiring or whatever??

now as dumb as this might sound, is there any chance that u hit the dimmer knob for hte instruments? lol stupid suggesttion but it could be it

If the test light lit when you probed both sides of the bulb (globe?), it was getting power through the bulb. You lost your ground for the dash lights. There are three ground points under the dash: At each end and at the steering column brace. Check for a loose or bad connection. If you want a scanned page from a '93 Sidekick wiring book, email me.

Don, y'all
.

Also my left rear brake light doesn't work -- the other one works though. I think there is a serious wiring problem in my car. Should I just pull the whole dash out and take to it with a test light? Or is that dangerous and should be left to an auto electrician?

If the bulb wasn't grounded properly, wouldn't it turn on when I used the test light on the NEG (-) wire?? Because it doesn't.

Are their fuses under the bonnet?

WAIT !!!  DON'T TEAR INTO THE DASH!!!
OK now I got your attention, did it all work
before you installed the new radio/tape player???
if it worked fine, retrace your work and make
sure you didn't un-do somthing or perhaps hook
up the deck wrong so it is grounding improperly.

Strange thing with the Japanese Cars, they use
the switch to ground the circuit, so the wires are
always "hot", it's a strange way to us yanks here
because we do wireing differently.

Theory of electricity is the electrons flow from
Neg to Pos, not the other way like we think,
so in theory the Japanese have it right, they
are "insulating" the hot side of the circuit from
the rest of the system, but it sure makes it
a female dog to track down stuff when all
H E double toothpicks breaks loose in the
wireing department