Hey all, just picked up my first of many Ford 4x4's. The first vehicle I drove was my parent's '83 F-150. Now that I'm (a little) grown up, I bought a '96 Cobra and needed a winter vehicle. I bought a '78 today (details in sig) for less than the lift and tires would've cost me. The body is "fair" but my main concern is some electrical stuff. I'm posting here first in case someone has experienced these issues before, so thanks in advance!

-Tail lights do not turn on with headlights (running lights) but DO light up when brakes are applied
-Instrument panel lights do not come on. It's not the flex print, and it's not the bulbs, I'm thinking maybe its the module on the back of the cluster? All gauges function properly, FWIW. Also, the right turn signal blinker is always on.
-HVAC unit lights also do not come on.

I'm certainly getting power to the cluster, since the gauges work and the right turn signal blinker lights up, so this is quite confusing. The fuse looked fine, but maybe I'll replace it anyways. Thanks again for any input!



Here's what she's saving (sig from my Mustang forum)

 

Three letters for you...LMC, catalog!!!

You can trace all the gremlins down, but just a piece of advice from someone who's owned one of these (with gremlins) for over 10+ years.

Instead of trying to track down the gremlins, save for a new cluster (that doesn't crumble when you change out a light) or custom guages and spring for a painless wireing harness. Its about $500 and far outweighs tracing the gremlins down in the long run. The wires are brittle (30+ year old trucks), they break and once you find and fix one, there are certainly more to pop up....I promise!!!

 

Good lookin truck by the way!!! I've always had a thing for this body style....maybe b/c it was the Original "Big Foot"!?1?

 

Thanks man! I'll keep that as an option. I do have the LMC catalog, I had no idea there was such a huge market for these until I bought this. I seem to have the electrical stuff figured out (bad wiring was the culprit) and got plenty of other stuff done as well. Just need to replace the driver's turn signal socket. Thanks again for the advice!