My lights don't work.

[justin260z]

I've been trying to figure out what is wrong with my lights. I checked the fuses, I took apart the headlight switch, and I took the dash out and checked all connectors. None of the lights are unplugged or burnt out. BUT, my turn signals work. That's the only part of my lights that work. I'm stumped.

[Virto]

You need to check and see if you're getting current to the switch before you do anything else. If you don't have power going to the switch, then you certainly won't have it leaving the switch, no matter how well you clean it.

When I got my car, the running lights worked, but not the headlamps. I had a dirty switch. This is probably more severe, so you should start at the beginning.

Run a quick search, I know there are threads that tell you where to test. I'd run it for you but I'm scooting out the door.

Good luck.

[SteveJ]

I've been trying to figure out what is wrong with my lights. I checked the fuses, I took apart the headlight switch, and I took the dash out and checked all connectors. None of the lights are unplugged or burnt out. BUT, my turn signals work. That's the only part of my lights that work. I'm stumped.

How long have you had the car? Have you always had problems with the headlights? Has your headlights ever been modified for relays? Did you check the fuses visually or with a continuity meter?

Tracing the circuit - The S30 headlight circuit basically goes like this:

From the positive terminal (Please no arguments from the peanut gallery about the direction of current flow.) you have a wire that goes to the headlight switch.

From the headlight switch, you have a wire that branches into two wires, one for each headlight.

Each headlight wire goes to the fuse box, where you'll find fuses for the left and right sides.

From the fuse box, the wires go to their respective headlights.

There are two wires coming back from each headlight. One wire is for low beams and one wire is for high beams. The two low beam wires will join, and the two high beam wires will join.

The low beam and high beam wires run to the high/low switch in the steering column.

From the high/low switch, you have a wire going to ground.

So in all likelihood, if BOTH headlights are out, your problem exists between the positive terminal of the battery and the split between the left and right headlights (to include the headlight switch) OR between the negative terminal and the high/low switch (to include the high/low switch).

If your headlight circuit has been converted to relay operation, that could increase the number of suspects, depending upon how it was wired.

Below is a simplified drawing of the headlight circuit. I did not include the fuses.

[justin260z]

I have had the car for about a month now. The first day I got it, the lights didn't work. So, naturally, I banged on the steering column, and messed with the high beams, and all my lights started working. Then the next day I tried to get them to work, and they never have since. I checked the fusebox with a multimeter and all the fuses are getting power. If the problem is in the high/low beam circuit, then why would that make my taillights stop working as well? One other thing that doesn't work is the hazards, and guage lights. But, the choke, defogger etc. lights work fine.

[SteveJ]

I have had the car for about a month now. The first day I got it, the lights didn't work. So, naturally, I banged on the steering column, and messed with the high beams, and all my lights started working. Then the next day I tried to get them to work, and they never have since. I checked the fusebox with a multimeter and all the fuses are getting power. If the problem is in the high/low beam circuit, then why would that make my taillights stop working as well? One other thing that doesn't work is the hazards, and guage lights. But, the choke, defogger etc. lights work fine.

Okay, let's be more specific. I assumed (possibly incorrectly) that you meant headlights. If you are having problems with the running lights/turn signals & hazard lights, you have different diagnostics. The tail lights and headlights do not share any circuits. They are controlled by different connections on the headlight switch.

Did you clean your headlight switch when you had it apart?

Have you cleaned the light sockets?

Have you inspected & cleaned your hazard switch?

If your dash lights work, but your running lights don't, the problem is not in your fusebox. The circuits ground at different points, so use a proper service manual to locate and check your grounding points. You can get a CD copy of the factory service manual from Courtesy Nissan, or you can advertise in classified sections of this website and Zcar.com for a paper copy, or you can look on eBay for a paper copy. According to a 72 wiring diagram I found online, the power for the running lights comes from a green wire with a white stripe. It goes into the combo switch and comes out as a green wire with a blue stripe. That wire splits out to the different lights. It comes back as a black wire that is grounded around the wiper motor. You can see the other connections here: http://www.atlanticz.ca/zclub/techtips/wiringdiagrams/72_240z_wiring.pdf

Other wiring diagrams are here: http://www.atlanticz.ca/zclub/techtips/electrical.htm.

Keep in mind that you might be looking to solve two unrelated problems.