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Veteran
Posts: 108
| Hello everyone!
I recently found my dream car in New Hampshire and bought it a 1961 dodge pioneer.
The last few months I have been fixing all the small problems on it. I am having a hard time
with the dash lights because they are not working. I have taken the speedo and gauge cluster off
of the dash to get at the internals and found several bulbs missing or broken I replaced all of these but the
three for the speedo and two for the gauges are not working. Clearly someone was messing around back there
before and I can't find a schematic. The lights for the tranny pushbuttons and climate control work and the warning light
turns on as it should when I start the car. The speedo doesn't go above twenty and the turn signals work when the lights are off but
when they are on they don't. I realized this is a lot of stuff but it looks like there are some very knowledgable 61 owners on here who I
hope can help me out.
thanks,
Ken from mass |
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Expert
Posts: 3393
  
Location: Chestertown, NY ( near Lake George) | Do these bulbs have 12v and grounds working? |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 466
Location: Vancouver, Washington | Yeah...you need to clean your grounds first. Your dash light power comes off your light switch. It is possible your switch is coroded, my old one was. Check out my photo album to see what the back of your 61 dash wiring looks like and the arrangement. Attached is a pic of the 62 880 wiring. It's the same as the Pioneer of 61'.
 (wiring diagram.jpg)
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 wiring diagram.jpg (202KB - 126 downloads)
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Veteran
Posts: 108
| Hi Shep,
I don't know. I don't have a ton of electrical experience. I do have a multimeter. I checked all the inline fuses they seem
to be intact. There is no fuse block on this car. Do you know of any easy way to test for this.
thanks,
Ken |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 466
Location: Vancouver, Washington | Here is what you got to look forward to, once you fix'em. be sure to clean your wire terminals well. If your harness is original years have a way of creating resistance through dirty connections creating all kind of goofy results. I disassembled all of my switches and cleaned them thoroughly, and chose to go new harness, because mine was such a hack job when I got the car.
 (night dash.jpg)
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night dash.jpg (94KB - 117 downloads)
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Veteran
Posts: 108
| Hello,
Thanks for the diagram. Sweet ride I checked out the photos.
What do you suggest for cleaning the terminals on the light switch or are those available new
maybe I can just replace it? |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 466
Location: Vancouver, Washington | You can get them on ebay from time to time new. They still need to be clean though. I use a terminal cleaner spray for the internals and dremel with small wire wheel for all externals like the dimmer resistor and all the terminals atop the swith itself. Nearly everything in the dash is powered by that swith. In fact the switch has a circuit breaker built into it and they do weaken as your harness build resistance through years of corrosion. If your harness is in good shape clean all terminals and connection points (sandpaper or dremel). Also, the amp gauges are sensitive to the resisitance build up. I have seen several melted in some of the parts cars I have come across. I suggest cleaning your gauges carefully removing any sign of corrosion, to keep your siring in top form. When I finished cleaning my switches they worked perfectly, I could even hear the switch click like new when turn it on/off. I even got my clock working perfectly after a thorough cleaning and light lube on the mechanicals. What options did your car come with? Would like to see some pics, if you've a notion to post a few. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 337
Location: UK | A lot of the bulbs wont light until the holders they are in are popped back into their respective holes as they rely on the grounding of the chassis on the clocks/dash.
Glad you have a multimeter, with that check to see if the power is getting to the centre contact of the bulb holder, put bulb in and then check that power is getting to the outer case (as the case will be floating ground), If you have volts there then it should light when grounded (fitted back into its hole). You can also check to see if the dash cluster isn't floating with the meter too. Anywhere you check with the meter make sure that surface is clean. So many false readings can occur measuring off a rusty screw etc.
The dimmer may need a few turns back and forth to clean the contact strips. Cleaning spray as mentioned above is a help too. |
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Veteran
Posts: 108
| Hey guys! Thanks to 61forfun, shep, and little carl,
I have all the dash lights working. I had one extra light but I don't have a map light or clock
so I guess thats why there is an extra. I removed the light switch and cleaned it wish a wire brush attachment
on the dremel and traced all the wiring with the diagram you posted for me which was a big help. I also put in a new flasher so
now I have blinkers and replaced the climate control module so I no longer have a vacuum leak I am pretty psyched to drive it tonight.
I will post pictures soon. As for options I don't have many at all, it does have a radio but thats about it, no clock, maplight, or brake light.
thanks again,
Ken |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 466
Location: Vancouver, Washington | Very good...nice to see an enthusiastic 61' Dodge owner,,, there aren't too many of us..lol please do post some pics, I love seeing these cars back on the road. |
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Veteran
Posts: 108
| Hey Guys,
Thanks again for all the help. I have all the dash lights working. I did have a couple questions though.
I have been trying to clean up some of the wiring under the dash and came across a wire that is green with either brown or red traces on it which is referenced in the diagram you sent me but I cannot see on the diagram where it goes. Under my dash one end of it is behind a large nut under the dash and the other end is floating free disconnected. Also my shop manual shows three lights for the speedo but I only saw two spots for lights when I had the speedo cluster out. Are there three lights for the speedo or two.
thanks,
ken |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 466
Location: Vancouver, Washington | Hi Ken, I went through both my 60 and 61 supplemental wiring diagrams...I do not see any multiple colored wired (solids with a tracer color). They are all solid colors. Perhaps someone adding another circuit off a later model car. As for the lights on the speedo, there are three. one on either side of the speedo bottom facing up (towards the roof) and one directly above the speedo cable connection, plugs in from the back of the unit. Hope that helps |
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Veteran
Posts: 108
| Ok thanks again I guess maybe I missed that third light socket. It is odd that the color wiring diagram you posted me mentions a green wire with red tracer on the bottom were all the colors are listed and I actually have that wire under my dash. I guess maybe someone just put it under there after. Next step leds now that I can easily changed the bulbs by climbing under the dash.
thanks again! |
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Veteran
Posts: 108
| Oh yeah sorry I had one more question. My speedo does not go above 20 mph when it does it freezes at 20 and does not move.
I checked the cable on both ends and it is ok it seems to be in the head. Have you experienced this? or do you know how to remedy it. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 466
Location: Vancouver, Washington | Does it make any noises? They do require lubrication from time to time. There is an oiling felt (application point) at the base of where you screw the speedo cable into the speedo housing. It sits facing the roof of your car. You can feel it with your finger from under the dash. get some 3 in 1 oil and add a few drops to see if that helps the situation. |
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Veteran
Posts: 108
| Yup makes plenty of noise and when I had it out I operated it by hand and it was crunchy. Is the oil spot inside the socket itself where the cable goes in?
P.S. thanks again for all the pointers. I took my steering wheels off and cleaned up my turn signal switch with the dremel and now my blinkers work perfect |
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 9899
 
Location: Lower Mainland BC | I was going to post "The dash lights in my 56 CR don't work. WTH??" Then I noticed this little knob down on the bottom edge of the dash to the left of the steering column. Wonder what it does? So I turn the lights on to PARK and turn the knob. HELLO.
OKAY. I have dash lights. Well sort of. Speedo is it quite bright but the gauges and the clock are barely perceptible as being on (very dull). I would like to change the bulbs and go up a few watts (if possible). How many bulbs are there and what is the spec on them? What is upgrade that has worked for others?
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 9899
Location: Lower Mainland BC | 56D500boy - 2016-11-26 8:01 PM... Then I noticed this little knob down on the bottom edge of the dash to the left of the steering column. Wonder what it does? So I turn the lights on to PARK and turn the knob. OKAY. I have dash lights. Well sort of. Speedo is it quite bright but the gauges and the clock are barely perceptible as being on (very dull). I would like to change the bulbs and go up a few watts (if possible). How many bulbs are there and what is the spec on them? What is upgrade that has worked for others?
I forgot to mention that as I turned to dash light dimmer from totally dim, to brighter and brighter, before I got the the end of the travel of the knob, the dash lights went out again. That didn't seem right. Seems like there might be a physical issue with the rheostat that I will need to investigate. (??!!) |
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 7393
Location: northern germany | 56D500boy - 2016-11-27 2:48 PM
I forgot to mention that as I turned to dash light dimmer from totally dim, to brighter and brighter, before I got the the end of the travel of the knob, the dash lights went out again. That didn't seem right. Seems like there might be a physical issue with the rheostat that I will need to investigate. (??!!)
spray it with a good penetrating oil that does not affect plastic, that fixed that problem of 10 out of 10 dimmer switches that crossed my path. |
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 9899
Location: Lower Mainland BC | 1960fury - 2016-11-27 3:11 PM
56D500boy - 2016-11-27 2:48 PM
I forgot to mention that as I turned to dash light dimmer from totally dim, to brighter and brighter, before I got the the end of the travel of the knob, the dash lights went out again. That didn't seem right. Seems like there might be a physical issue with the rheostat that I will need to investigate. (??!!)
spray it with a good penetrating oil that does not affect plastic, that fixed that problem of 10 out of 10 dimmer switches that crossed my path.
Does WD40 qualify?
?? |
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 7393
Location: northern germany | i asked and they said yes but label says it also cleans/removes oil so i'm not so sure. i used "caramba" oil (not sure if its available in the US) that is also recommended on electrical components. if you can apply the wd40 only to the rheostat without spraying any wires i guess it will be okay. |
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Expert
Posts: 1737
Location: Hay Lakes, Alberta, Canada | Nutrol Contact Cleaner is the best stuff to clean/lubricate controls. I use it on radios all the time.
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 9899
Location: Lower Mainland BC | miquelonbrad - 2016-11-27 9:21 PM Nutrol Contact Cleaner is the best stuff to clean/lubricate controls. I use it on radios all the time.
This stuff? http://www.mgchemicals.com/products/cleaning-products-for-electroni...
All I need to do is find a radio store.
Wait a minute. What's a radio? Like these? (Most of my collection - one or two missing)
Edited by 56D500boy 2016-11-27 10:58 PM
 (DaveFsRadioCollection.jpg)
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DaveFsRadioCollection.jpg (103KB - 101 downloads)
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Dash Lights
