Passat - No Dash Lights - Help!

[BigJoe]

I bought a boost/vac gauge to test if the car was boosting or a vac leak had appeared.

So I removed the drivers heater vent and put the gauge in there, I used the power for the vent lights to power the back light on the gauge and used the bolt beside the fuse box for earth.

Everything went very well until I realized that I have now lost all the dash lights behind the clocks, I still have the lights behind the heater controls and on all the doors etc, just no lights behind the rev and speedo.

I did remove the headlight switch when I was installing the gauge if it makes any difference, i have also removed the wiring for the boost gauge and it made no difference.

Car is a 2000 Passat S B5.

 

[chunkerz]

Did you blow a fuse ?

 

[BigJoe]

Meant to say that I had already checked the fuse and its not blown.

I had a Google and the consensus is that it may be a faulty headlight switch or dimmer switch.

The headlight switch still turns on the rest of the internal lights (heater lights and door lights etc) and still turns on the head lights etc...

 

[tommy309]

did you check ALL the fuses? worth a look as on alot of vehicles the fuse is part of other circuits that arent mentioned on the drawing, it seems unlikely to me that the headlight switch would just go as soon as u fitted this new gauge although it is possible.

 

[BigJoe]

Thought that it might have been that I disturbed the switch and now isn't working. I was looking tonight and I have a notion that the sidelights aren't coming on with the switch however the lights on the centre console still light up

 

[BigJoe]

Front side lights don't light, however the rear lights do come on.

PS, one of the rear lights doesn't light at all, tried new bulb with no joy...

Any ideas bai's

 

[Ruairi83]

have you got the car scanned to see if anything shows up there...

 

[BigJoe]

Not yet mate.....hope its just the headlight switch

 

[BigJoe]

SO, i "borrowed" for a few mins the switch from another car (2001 Golf) and voila all worked.

Unbelievable that the headlight switch can turn on other things like interior lights, but not dash clock lights, can work headlight but not side lights and can even turn on one tail light but not the other!


All i need to do now is find a handy replacement from a breakers.......anyone know a handy brakers to Lisburn that would/might have one?

 

[Mrt20]

Damien Pior has Passat in for breaking last week on the hannahtowns road

 

[BigJoe]

As always with Priors, stood about waiting for anyone to stop taking sh1te and get the part i wanted.
Turns out that the switch they gave me came out of a Skoda (which is dead on, works 100%) however have only just realised that the backlight on the switch is GREEN (the rest of mine are red)

Dont really care just happy that it sorted out the issue, now on to the next thing!