Gauge lights on the fritz....

[sonofzzzap]

Well, I have had this problem since I purchased my 280Z back in November, and I am finally getting a chance to pull the dash and check out the wiring for my three right hand gauges.... See.. the gauges work fine... but the lights like to come on and off frequently... its rather odd and doesn't help at all at night... What I really want to know of is just anything I should look for when I pull the dash... any specific wires or what have you that could be causing my problems... thanks a ton everyone!

-ZZZap

[EScanlon]

.......the lights like to come on and off frequently...

If all 3 lights are blinking in unison, then it is a common wire and not the bulbs.

I may be wrong on the 280, but on the 240 the dash lights were fed with a common Blue/Red wire (Blue wire, Red Stripe). You might also check that there is a good ground connect to the dash frame.

2¢

Enrique

[sonofzzzap]

thats the thing though, they don't do it all at the same time, they do it individually....

[EScanlon]

That they're blinking erratically and not in unison with one another may be due to the bulb housing not making proper contact with the instrument housing, bad bulbs with corrosion on the base, the clip on the housing could have been compressed such that it isn't making tension on the housing.

In the 240 you would either remove the glove box or the Heater Control Panel to access the back of the 3 center gauges.

Give Sblake01 a PM, he has a couple 280's and he can probably help you with the disassembly.

Enrique

[sonofzzzap]

thanks Escanlon