The 3 lights behind the information panel showing mileage, door open, etc are not lighting up and the light showing what gear you are in when in manual shift mode is also not lighting up. All other lights are working normally. These 4 lights will go on for a while (weeks) then off for a while. I found only one fuse for the instrument panel in the drivers side fuse box and it was okay (are there any others i missed). I took the dash apart today to check the bulbs. I checked the bulbs with a meter as well as a 9 volt battery while they were installed in the circuit board. All lit up when I sent voltage to them. I checked all the plugs for any pin damage and did not find any. It seems odd to me that all the lights with a red base are not working. The information is being sent to the displays as I can see the mileage, odometer reading, door open indicator, gear indicator, etc if I shine a flashlight on it or there is bright sunshine hitting the dash. The bulbs just do not light up. Any idea what to check next?

 

Maybe clean the contacts with some rubbing alcohol?

 

What contacts are you referring to?

 

Each of the bulb sockets have a copper contact, both on the circuit board and on the sockets themselves. Over time, they may have built up corrosion.

 

Thanks. I think the contacts are ok since the bulbs did light up when I used the nine volt battery and sent voltage to them through the circuit board.

 

Did you ever find out what was wrong with your lights? I have a similar issue (just bought the car though) where the odometer/trip meter/outside temp readings work when I don't have the lights on, but go out when I turn on headlights. Is this a bulb issue or a fuse issue? I don't want to go ripping out my dash if it isn't necessary...

 

I was never able to figure it out then one day a few months ago they all started working again except the clock light which quit working when I put the dash back together. I am afraid to take the dash out again to fix the clock, the dash light might stop working again.