Instrument Lights and Daytime Running Lights Not Working

[bd]

Then, does the "white" wire in the image feed the headlamp dimmer switch?

In the top left corner of your image, appears to be a "yellow" wire.  Where does it go?

[Double-A]

I don't know exactly what the white wire does. If it was the feed how do I check? As for the yellow I will have to check what it does.

[bd]

Let's try a different approach....



The "green" and "brown" wires appear to be connected to the switch correctly.

DO each of the following exactly as stated, and ANSWER each question in turn...

First, you need to determine whether the "blue" wire is fused.  With both the ignition switch and headlamp switch turned OFF, connect your voltmeter between the "blue" wire and ground - the meter should indicate battery voltage.  Does it?

Now, remove the "tail lamp" fuse and recheck the "blue" wire using the voltmeter.  Does the meter still indicate battery voltage?

Next, reinstall the "tail lamp" fuse.  With the ignition and headlamp switches still turned OFF and both doors completely closed, connect your voltmeter between the "white" wire and ground.  What does the voltmeter indicate?

Finally, with the ignition and headlamp switches still OFF, connect the voltmeter between the "yellow" wire and ground.  What does the voltmeter indicate?

[Double-A]

The wire that is connected to the top right corner in the picture is not white. I'll be able to tell you what color it is tomorrow. And I'll answer the questions tommorow as well

[Double-A]

The wire in the top right of the picture is yellow. I couldnt tell in the picture. I wasnt able to go out and to the tests you posted today because it was storming here and my truck lives outside D: Tomorrow hopefully it will be nice enough to do the tests.

[Double-A]

Also. The wires in the top left are the orange pair. Sorry for the confusion.. It's a pretty tight space to get a good picture. 

The wire colors on the switch in my picture are
Top left: orange
Top right: yellow
Left of yellow : brown
Directly below yellow: green
Bottom right: blue


The white and red wires are disconnected at the moment.

[bd]

The wire colors are in the correct positions on the switch.

So, "blue" is substituting for "red."  Ignore "white" for the time being.

Are the "orange" pair constant 12 volts?

[Double-A]

Correct, it appears that the blue wire is acting as the red wire. The blue wire has voltage, and I found the red and white wires, the red wire has no voltage. And the orange pair also have no voltage.

These tests were all done with the ignition off and the driver door open.

[bd]

You are making progress!   

The orange wires should measure 12-volts at all times.  They are powered off of the 20-amp "T/L CTSY" fuse.  Recheck that fuse.  If the fuse is good, remove it and check for corrosion on the fuse terminals.  If there is no corrosion, then there is an open in the orange wire between the fuse box and the headlamp switch.

If you determine the orange wire is open, make up a fused jumper as previously described, and temporarily jump power to the headlamp switch terminal occupied by the orange wires.  The tail and instrument lamps should now operate with the switch.  Trace the orange wires back to the fuse box to find the open circuit.

[Double-A]

Alright I will check all of that stuff tomorrow. I am fairly certain that the fuse you are talking about is fine and has no corrosion but it doesnt hurt to double check.

[bd]

And, be sure to verify that there is 12 volts at the 'T/L CTSY' fuse.

[Double-A]

Alright. I rechecked the blue and orange wires again with the ignition off, the switch pushed all the way in to off, and the driver door open. Blue still has voltage and orange is still cold. The Tail/CTSY fuse is fine but the terminals are dead. I didn't look for an open in the wires yet (its a mess... so much electrical tape) but I did jump the blue to the orange and the parking lights worked, but I couldnt tell if the instrument lights turned on. They however did not operate with the switch, (Im guessing because the terminal had voltage?) as soon as I put the jumper on the blue wire and connected it to the orange terminal the lights turned on... with the switch off.

[bd]

You earlier stated that the red wire is dead too.  Open the hood.  Look for a black-plastic, two-post junction block, about 2 inches square, mounted to the firewall above the back of the engine.  There are several wires connected to it.  Grab each wire, in turn, and give it a firm tug.  Do any of the wires stretch or did any pull apart?  Do any appear overheated or burned?

Do the same thing at the starter solenoid.  There are two 12-gauge red wires that connect to the 3/8" battery cable stud on the starter solenoid.  The two red wires attach to the solenoid through 6" long fusible links.  Give the red wires a tug to see if either stretches or pulls apart.  While you are there, make sure the battery cable connection to the solenoid is tight.  If the cable is loose, disconnect the battery before tightening the retaining nut so as not to short the cable to ground.

[Double-A]

Ok, sorry for the late reply, it got kinda busy here. I think i found the black plastic junction box ( http://imgur.com/5Np1SlX ). There was a loose wire because its terminal wasn't crimped well but nothing stretched or came apart. The blue wire has an inline fuse but doesn't connect to anything.

The starter looks new to me.. ( http://imgur.com/Yd8NA8W ) Anyways, it was very difficult to see the wires but I tugged on them and none stretched or fell apart. I think the fusible link is the wire that has a silver colored shield, but I'm not sure. I couldn't see any of the wires you talked about in your last post that are on the starter.

I can't really get any better pictures than the ones I posted links to because the starter is in a really tight place, I cant see it from the top of then engine and it looks like all the wires are on the top of the starter.

[bd]

i found the black plastic junction box ( http://imgur.com/5Np1SlX ). There was a loose wire because its terminal wasn't crimped well but nothing stretched or came apart.

The green oxidation at the junction block indicates overheating caused by connection problems.  The red wire with the yellow terminal maybe the feed into the headlamp switch.  If it is, the PO removed the factory fusible link (NOT GOOD)!  Important: does that red wire run into the firewall bulkhead connector below the windshield wiper motor?

The starter looks new to me.. ( http://imgur.com/Yd8NA8W ) Anyways, it was very difficult to see the wires but I tugged on them and none stretched or fell apart. I think the fusible link is the wire that has a silver colored shield, but I'm not sure. I couldn't see any of the wires you talked about in your last post that are on the starter.

The purple wire with the wire tie looks like the solenoid "crank" circuit from the ignition switch.  Use a mirror, being careful not to touch any wires.  Is it connected to a small #10 machine stud on the solenoid?  How many wires attach to the battery cable stud at the solenoid?

The adjacent reddish wire looks like a fusible link.  You need to route both of those wires (purple and red) away from the exhaust manifold, otherwise the exhaust heat will burn the insulation and ignite a fire.  The 'silver' jacketed wire at the starter is probably a short jumper that connects the solenoid to the cranking motor.