dash lights 2002 lincoln ls

saloking

LVC Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2011
Messages
18
Reaction score
0
Location
independence
my dash lights just went out today. checked all of the fuses they are all good would a bulb just have gone out or are there more than one. also all of the gages still work just no light emitting form behind them i think that if i do have to go behind there im going to just put some led strips behind them
 
my dash lights just went out today. checked all of the fuses they are all good would a bulb just have gone out or are there more than one. also all of the gages still work just no light emitting form behind them i think that if i do have to go behind there im going to just put some led strips behind them

This happens to some cars when the tail lights are burned out/not working. Start there.......
 
This happens to some cars when the tail lights are burned out/not working. Start there.......

Not this one.

The REM control all the rear lighting. The FEM controls the front. A fault in the rear won't affect the front.

The first thing to check is, of course, the dash dimmer wheel position.

There are several lights that make up the dash lighting.
Are the lights behind the door buttons working? How about the climate control buttons and display?
 
Not this one.

The REM control all the rear lighting. The FEM controls the front. A fault in the rear won't affect the front.

The first thing to check is, of course, the dash dimmer wheel position.

There are several lights that make up the dash lighting.
Are the lights behind the door buttons working? How about the climate control buttons and display?

Joegr,

You kill me.. haha is there anything Lincoln LS related that you don't know about? The value you add to this forum is just amazing!!
 
Well the only lights not working are gage lights and the headlight switch/dimmer everthing else works. Also I will check all of the fuses just in case and how hard is it to replace the lights behind the dash?
 
new update the shifter lights dont work the fuel and status lights dont work the headlight and dimmer switch lights dont work and neither does the ring around the key if it ever did light so i checked all the fuses and every single fuse was good. any other ideas?
 
any other ideas?

You have an electrical problem. Sorry, couldn't resist.


You'll need to find out which module controls these functions. Other than lights not illuminating, are you having any driveability issues? Any other weird things happening?
 
You have an electrical problem. Sorry, couldn't resist.


You'll need to find out which module controls these functions. Other than lights not illuminating, are you having any driveability issues? Any other weird things happening?

The FEM provides power to all the backlights. The instrument cluster determines when and how much backlighting is needed and sends a command to the FEM. The headlight switch and dimmer positions are read by the cluster to decide if backlights should be on and how bright they should be.

However, if at least some of the backlighting is working, then it is unlikely to be any of those modules and more likely to be bulbs or some broken wires. If everything that stopped working stopped at once, then a broken wire is likely. If you don't know when they stopped, it may just be that several bulbs have burned out.
 
My car has done the same thing but only the dash lights and th ones for the fuel status buttons above the radio dont light up. Fuses good. The trip dims when I turn on the headlights though and the ac buttons still are back lit. Don't know where to go
 
Ok so I answered my own question. Maybe my overlook can help you out. I had a bad fuse a few weeks ago and so I decided to check all the rest in the fuse box in the car on the passenger side kick panel. I apparently put the fuse out of spot 33 in the unused spot next to it thus there was no fuse for lights. I actually had went back and looked at all the fuses but didn't look at what went in each location. My mess up on that one. Now that I have the right fuse in the right location everything is back to the way it should be. I would check fuse number 33 in the kick panel specifically and make sure it's in the right spot (duh to me). If that checks out fine then it's most likely a broken wire.
 
Ok so I answered my own question. Maybe my overlook can help you out. I had a bad fuse a few weeks ago and so I decided to check all the rest in the fuse box in the car on the passenger side kick panel. I apparently put the fuse out of spot 33 in the unused spot next to it thus there was no fuse for lights. I actually had went back and looked at all the fuses but didn't look at what went in each location. My mess up on that one. Now that I have the right fuse in the right location everything is back to the way it should be. I would check fuse number 33 in the kick panel specifically and make sure it's in the right spot (duh to me). If that checks out fine then it's most likely a broken wire.

So everything works? Cool! :slam

Now, as long as someone else can learn from this all is good!
 
That is why I posted that. I can admit when I make a mistake and I will share that if other people can learn from it
 
Dash lights

Ok, I am new to this forum. I have a 2001 LS and I'm having similar issues with mine. Two days ago I started my car for work and the auto headlights were on but I turned them off so as not to completely illuminate the neighbors house. The dash lights were working fine until I turned the headlights of and then back on when I drove away. Now the gauge lights, shifter lights, door button lights and the headlight switch lights and steering wheel lights are inoperable. The climate control lights and aftermarket radio lights along with the digital message center lights are all that come on. Can someone please shed some light (no pun intended)?
 
And I checked all of my fuses.

Try turning the headlight switch through all the positions several times and see if the come back (could be a dirty switch contact).

Does the autolamp feature still work?

Try rotating the instrument dimer wheel up and down too.

Does the message center text dim down some when you turn the lights on? If so, does it's brightness vary with the dimmer wheel position?
 
I checked everything you've asked me to right after they went out. The text along with the AC back light does dim with the wheel and as far as the daytime running lights go they are on all of the time as long as the switch is set to auto. Are they supposed to do that or are they supposed to shut off during the day? I wasn't sure if they are supposed to act as day time running lights. I am a bit stumped, could it be the FEM or the lighting module in the trunk? Or would that make all of the lights inoperable?
 
I checked everything you've asked me to right after they went out. The text along with the AC back light does dim with the wheel and as far as the daytime running lights go they are on all of the time as long as the switch is set to auto. Are they supposed to do that or are they supposed to shut off during the day? I wasn't sure if they are supposed to act as day time running lights. I am a bit stumped, could it be the FEM or the lighting module in the trunk? Or would that make all of the lights inoperable?

Those aren't DRLs (unless your LS is Canadian). The autolamp feature turns the headlights on when it is dark enough to need them and the key is on. It sounds like yours isn't working correctly.

The light switch is read by the cluster. I believe this is true of the light sensor too, but I'll have to check on that. The cluster sends commands to the FEM to control the headlights. I suspect that the next step is to connect a good scan tool and see what is being read for the light switch inputs and the light sensor inputs. From there it should be possible to narrow it down to the cluster, FEM, switch, or sensor. Since you have at least two issues going, I suspect that it might be the cluster.
 
when i had the fuse in the wrong place the gauges, prnd, window switches and fuel lights didnt work. however when i turned on the head lights the trip dimmed and the ac controls lit up. its my understanding it sounds like you have the same thing so i woulndt suspect the fem but you never now. look for corrosion on the harness that comes out of the fuse block thats in the passenger kick panel
 
2002 Lincoln LS high beams stuck "on"

Not this one.

The REM control all the rear lighting. The FEM controls the front. A fault in the rear won't affect the front.

The first thing to check is, of course, the dash dimmer wheel position.

There are several lights that make up the dash lighting.
Are the lights behind the door buttons working? How about the climate control buttons and display?

Hello, I have a 2002 Lincoln LS. A while back I turned on the headlights and all worked fine. High and low beams worked.
I had the high beams on for a while then when I got home, I tried to switch them to low beams but they wouldn't switch.
I tried the high/low turn signal switch several times but they wouldn't switch to low. Then I turned off the lights but the
high beams stayed on. Turning the light switch on and off didn't make a difference. I finally had to pull the fuses for the
high beams. Now I only have low beams.

Any idea on what to check? Thanks!
 

Members online

Back
Top